No Loss

brooke800

Someone please help! I have been logging everything for a month now. I haven't lost, in fact I have gained!
By the end of the day I am so full and bloated, but I am eating on average 1700 calories. I know people might think I need to eat more, but if I am that full do I really?

I work out a lot...should I cut back on that? I burn about 800 calories a day through exercise and set my MFP profile to inactive so that I can specifically see what calories are burned through exercise.

I have started strength training, but in the past I have never seen any results through that. My instincts tell me to cut back on intake because I worry that I am miscalculating my intake and eating more than I think. I'm so confused right now and frustrated that it is this difficult! It seems like most people just cut back on calories and lose. Not me. I exercise, eat very well, and nothing!

mom2gar

Can you give an example of your daily meals or open your Food Diary up to the public? We can help better knowing what you've been eating.

brooke800

One more thing! It seems so counter-intuitive to eat more because obviously people do not get overweight from eating too little. How do you find that balance between too much and too little? This is why I hesitate to believe the eating too little causes gain theory.

I'll open my diary to the public and here is also a typical day:

BREAKFAST
1 cup cheerios
almond milk
banana

LUNCH
sandwich made with:
turkey
egg white
spinach
tomato

yogurt
apple

SNACK
turkey on corn tortilla with spinach/salsa
OR
yogurt/apple
OR
carrots/hummus

DINNER
huge salad
veggies steamed
chicken breast
low fat dressing
quinoa

SNACK
air popped popcorn
or light frozen yogurt
or fruit
or cereal/almond milk

jwilly30

Brooke800,

I know that when one exercises your muscles hold water (for reparing) thus you will gain water weight but it should even out. Have you been logging food ? Perhaps to many carbs- the bad kind- or to much sugar? I know when I hit 40 I gained because I became sensative to breads carbs, sugar and all processed foods. I now watch that and try and eat a truly clean diet. These are just a few suggestions but please please stay with it. You are doing your body a great service with the cardio alone. Hang tough.

mom2gar

Brooke - Is there a reason your protein is below the target every day? Wanting to understand - I'm a protein heavy low carb and with your working out, you may need to add more protein.

brooke800

I changed my protein/carb ratio from what MFP had to try to get in more protein. I think I eat enough protein, but I definitely am not eating low carb. I run a lot and when I drop my carbs I have a really tough time. Have you found it to help? Do you have any problems with energy? I guess I could try again!

Jillian130

I would switch the cheerios with oatmeal, and not the instant kind. Try 1/2 cup of oatmeal and cook as directed on package. Add some scrambled egg whites on the side or whole grain toast. You should try to balance your meals with protein/carb combination so that your body can feed your metabolism and protein is harder to burn therefore revving your metabolism.

For your snack replace the yogurt with a handful of almonds and eat that with the apple. Or substitute the yogurt for Greek yogurt.

One last thing, whats your water intake like? You should be aiming for 2-3 litres each day, seriously.

Keep up with it and you'll see change. Take measurements for more accuracy, as the scale always fluctuates too much.

Hope this helps.

mom2gar

Yes, I seem to lack energy, but I work 80 hours a week, so right now I'm not working any extra physical activity into my day. I do squats and walk, but that's about it. I didn't notice until MFP that I was eating under 100 carbs a day. I know that last night I had a drink and ate some bread and feel bleh today. I guess my body is not a processed carbs body. I should have learned that long ago. I'm not watching my fat intake right now either and I know I need to adjust that when I plateau. Maybe if you try a good protein drink and boost your intake a bit and see how that goes for a week?

tinana_RN

I would drop some carbs and log your water, if you're not-- I saw a bunch of 0s for water intake-- get at least 8 glasses a day!

erickirb

If you only eat 1700 but burn 800 that is like eating 900 (1700-800)and not working out, which is not enough fuel. aim for a minimum of 1200 Net, preferably more, so on days you burn 800 the minimum you should be eating is 2000 as 1200=2000-800.

To eat more without getting full try eating more calorie dense food instead, no diet or lite foods. add nuts, seeds and dehydrated fruit as snacks, put nut butter on everything you can think of, add olive oil to soups and sauces, etc.