Don't know what's wrong

stormieweather

I need some encouraging words or better yet, some advice.

I'm logging all my foods (diary is public if you want to look), staying close to my goals for the most part, only rarely splurging, working out 3x a week which I haven't done in decades, and it isn't working.

Yesterday AND today I was up a pound. A whole pound. Each day! Not one inch has been lost and the scale is going UP. I'm now less than 2 lbs below where I started over a month ago.

I keep telling myself that it's because I was starving myself with 700 calorie a day before I started this, but honestly, if you add up my late night snacks and my 275 calorie SoBe's that I would drink 2-3 of every day, I was probably up near 1700-2000 calories before I started on MFP.

So....what am I doing wrong? No, it's not my TOM. And I do drink at least 6 glasses of water a day, some days closer to 8. My workouts are strength training for 20 minutes then 30 mins of cardio at the gym 3 times a week with walks or dancing at home in between.

Help...

jennbarrette

Have you been to the doctor, could be thyroid issues? I would probably give it another month and then get it checked out. Also, do you eat your exercise calories?

stormieweather

I usually eat part of my exercise calories.

amymeenieminymo

I usually eat part of my exercise calories.

Eating exercise calories is widely debated here, but since what you're doing doesn't seem to be working, I would suggest eating all of your exercise calories.

Also, I don't know if this would affect it or not, but your calorie totals seem to be pretty sporadic. Granted I only looked at one week of your diary, but one day you're under by 190 calories, another day you go over by 400 some calories. Are you zig zagging your calories? Or are you maybe going under one day to compensate for going over another?

I do that sometimes, like if I had a big meal and went way over, I'll try to stay under my calories the next day. But I don't think it's something that should be done often. Also, your breakfast is low in calories (though mine usually is too) but your lunch and dinner seem to be very low, and then you make up for it in your snacks.

While I do not think it really matters what time of day you eat (some believe in not eating past a certain time) I do think you need to beef up your lunch and dinner more and limit yourself to maybe 1 light snack in the afternoon, and one in the evening. Your snacks don't seem all that bad for you, but I think you should be getting more balanced, fulfilling meals.

BrendaLee

I don't know what effect sugar has on our weight loss, but like me, you're over your sugar most days it seems. The weight hasn't been dropping for me like it usually does either. I'm going to try to keep an eye on my sugar for the next couple of weeks and see what effect that has.

havingitall

Looking at your food diary, you don't eat a lot of fruits and veggies and your calories burned from exercise was only a couple of hundred. A good work out for me burns 500 - 600 ( on weekends it's a lot more). A good trainer can really kick your butt here.

Maybe some time with a nutritionist or a look at the American equivalent of Canada's Food Guide would help. There is absolutely no shame in asking a professional for help.

If all else fails, your doctor can always check you out and make some recommendations.

madmama

Things you could try, change up the exercise program, our bodies get used to the same thing after a while and need a kick start. I also noticed that you eat a lot of processed foods, these are normally high in sugar and salt content, both are not good for weight loss. Your calorie intake is everywhere and you are skipping meals this is not good. Try more fresh fruits and vegies less processed foods. Also there is a theory that breakfast should be a high calorie high protein meal to kick start the metabolism, dinner should be the lowest calorie intake meal and lunch somewhere in between as we are still busy burning calories in the afternoon.

Whatever you do, do not give up, try to stabilize your program and success should follow.:happy:

incircles_lp2

I have been working out for 6 weeks straight now and I have only gained weight. I gained about 5 lbs during that time period and haven't lost any inches. Frustrating, right? The idea is to keep going. I have been told your body starts going into "fat burning" mode after a certain point, but that is different for everybody. I thought I had thyroid issues, but i don't. I just have to stay positive and keep doing what i'm doing till I start losing weight. I have almost given up several times now, but then i realize how much i feel better during the days I work out (it's like a drug, honestly!)

Best of luck, and keep up the good work:)

stormieweather

Thanks everyone. :flowerforyou:

I'll try to increase my breakfast calories and also to eat it closer to when I get up. I usually take it to work and eat about 2 hrs after I get up. I work two jobs and have 3 kids so time is of extremely short supply.

I do tend to eat what's quick easy and therefore, somewhat processed. I can try making a whole wheat + turkey + raw veggie sandwich instead of a Lean Cuisine for lunch.

I eat 6 small meals instead of 3 large ones because of my diabetic tendency. It's necessary to control my insulin/sugar levels.

I do have a lot of trouble hitting my target calorie goal exactly. Except for the times I splurge, I often find myself at the end of the day needing a couple hundred calories still.

The workouts I do are pretty intense. I don't measure the calories burned by strength training and only go by what this site measures for a vigorous 20-27 mins on a stationary bike. I average 20 mph, and ride between 6-7 miles, so I'm not slacking. I only have daycare for 90 mins so I can't work out for hours, even if I had the time to do so. Running is out of the question due to arthritis and knee damage, but the cycle doesn't seem to hurt my knees. I don't know how else to increase the workout calories I use and even if I did, what to eat to use them up, lol.

I'm not giving up, just wondering if there was any glaringly obvious screw up that was going on that I could point to and say ... THAT is the problem, right there. It's never that easy though, is it?

oEmmao

watch your sodium, i eat a lot of crackers at times and i love my ham, but sometimes i get way too much sodium, so keep an eye on it

:blushing:

pcbta

I would strongly suggest cycling your calories...and some weight training. you can turn up your resting metabolism by just having some more muscle on your body


Cindy

Melissa_123

Please don't get discouraged! I did the same thing. I was working so hard and going to the gym and watching calories, etc. And I gained almost 4 pounds in a month! I was ready to quit but I had tried everything else...everything. Finally, it just happened. My calories are sporadic as well, I know I am supposed to eat the exercise calories but I hate it. It feels wrong, haha. So, sometimes I do and sometimes I don't. I save them for the days I am hungrier and eat them on those days. It will happen. Remember muscle weighs more than fat. I think that is why I gained but who knows. Good Luck!!!:flowerforyou:

havingitall

The workouts I do are pretty intense. I don't measure the calories burned by strength training and only go by what this site measures for a vigorous 20-27 mins on a stationary bike. I average 20 mph, and ride between 6-7 miles, so I'm not slacking. I only have daycare for 90 mins so I can't work out for hours, even if I had the time to do so. Running is out of the question due to arthritis and knee damage, but the cycle doesn't seem to hurt my knees. I don't know how else to increase the workout calories I use and even if I did, what to eat to use them up, lol.

Have you tried the elliptical? It is fairly easy on your joints and gives more of a work out than the stationary bike. As well, if you have access to a pool, lap swimming is a great way to burn calories

twilight1542

Have you tried the elliptical? It is fairly easy on your joints and gives more of a work out than the stationary bike. As well, if you have access to a pool, lap swimming is a great way to burn calories

I agree! I have a "tricky" knee & neck problems from a chilhdhood injury and weak ankles. So the elliptical is my machine of choice b/c it's easier on my knee than cycling & better for my ankles than the treadmill. Also, for strength training I use ree weights & an exercise ball. It's great because there's less strain on my knee than standing & great or abs b/c you have to use them to stay balanced on the ball. When I joined my gym I got 2 free hours w/a personal trainer & learned all the exercises I use. Perhaps 1 session with a personal trainer would be worth the $ for you because good form is really important w/ree weights because it greatly reduces the risk of injury! GOOD LUCK & KEEP THE FAITH....All things happen in their own time

carissa55

Hi, I'm in the same boat as you. I haven't lost any weight. But I'm still sticking to it and believe it will eventually come off. I"m trying to eat less sugar right now even though most of it I have is from fruit. I wonder why the weight hasn't come off of me either? Strange.

twilight1542

I checked out the last week of your food diary. I'd recommend keeping a closer eye on your fat, protein, sodium & water intake. On most days you exceeded fat intake & was really low on protein. (my problem was carb vs. protein). you might want to consider adding more low-fat, high protein foods, like lean meats (especially chicken), nuts, & beans. I like to saute 1 lb of chopped chicken in 1 tbsp on kikkoman teriyaki sauce & I'll use it t/out the week as a salad topping. I also love adding kidney & garbanzo beans to my salad. And or a snack a 1/4 cup o unsalted almonds. You just have to find ways to mek proteins yummy w/out adding a lot of salt & sugar. For sodium, keep in mind that you are allowed just enough sodium in your diet that when drinking 8 glasses (8oz) of water your body will be balanced. If you eat too much sodium & too little water your body will store water to make up for the imbalance (water weight). The greater the imbalance the more water your body will retain. So if you go over your sodium OR I you sweat a lot during the day make sure to drink extra water..For example, last weekend I did house repairs outside in 100+ degree weather for 13+ hrs. On that day I drank at least 10 20-oz bottles of water & was way under on sodium. I know it sounds like a ridiculous amount of water, but I know my body needed it to make up for the sweating because I only needed 2 bathroom breaks (1 around hour 10 well after sunset & 1 at the end of the day). I have found that googling helps me come up w/ideas for foods (eg I got ideas for good proteins by searching "low-fat high protein foods").

Good Luck & I hope this helps

ivykivy

You have to look at weight loss over a week or month not day to day. My weight can sing 7 pounds from day to day due to water retention-sodium & exercising hard,and hormones. If those 2 pounds are still I round in two weeks you may want to change something. But if you are just basing wanting to change because you gained to pounds today then I wouldn't.

I eat high amounts of sugar and have no problem losing weight. Technically if you are in a calorie deficit you should lose weight regardless of what you eat. Not to mention if you only have twenty pounds to lose you are probably not going to see a pound a week weight loss.

You may want to read this
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/9433-expectations

I need some encouraging words or better yet, some advice.

I'm logging all my foods (diary is public if you want to look), staying close to my goals for the most part, only rarely splurging, working out 3x a week which I haven't done in decades, and it isn't working.

Yesterday AND today I was up a pound. A whole pound. Each day! Not one inch has been lost and the scale is going UP. I'm now less than 2 lbs below where I started over a month ago.

I keep telling myself that it's because I was starving myself with 700 calorie a day before I started this, but honestly, if you add up my late night snacks and my 275 calorie SoBe's that I would drink 2-3 of every day, I was probably up near 1700-2000 calories before I started on MFP.

So....what am I doing wrong? No, it's not my TOM. And I do drink at least 6 glasses of water a day, some days closer to 8. My workouts are strength training for 20 minutes then 30 mins of cardio at the gym 3 times a week with walks or dancing at home in between.

Help...

barbiecat

:flowerforyou: :flowerforyou: :flowerforyou: :flowerforyou: :flowerforyou:

I would suggest that you learn more about clean eating.

Try eating lean fish or chicken, grilled or broiled with a salad of many different kinds of fresh vegetables with little or no dressing and a steamed fresh or frozen vegetable with no sauce or butter

Eliminate all the sweets and crackers and most bread and try brown rice, oatmeal and whole grain cereals, apples, bananas, peanut butter, hard boiled eggs, egg white omelets, non fat yogurt

Aim to make every calorie come from nutritious food and eliminate the empty calories.

And never, never, never, never give up:bigsmile: :bigsmile: :bigsmile: :bigsmile:

April0815

Just looking at your food diary, my advice is your sodium is way off. I would bet anything it is water weight. I would give up things like the So Be. Good Luck

stormieweather

Thanks I did give up the SoBe's. I had one, the first and only one, in over a month last week as a reward. I drink nothing but water, coffee and iced green tea now.

I can tell I'm retaining a bit of water lately, but can't tell from what. I see it in my hands.

azwildcatfan94

Stress is another thing that can lead to weight gain. It seems to me that you have a pretty hectic life, which can be stressful. So, you may want to find a wee bit of "me" time. Even if it is just a soak in the tub.

I too have difficulty with convenience foods. One thing I try to do is grill extra chicken when making sunday dinner and then use that as the base for my lunches in the following week. Salads, sandwiches, mixed with veggies, whatever you like.

kimss

I will bet that the biggest problem yourbody is facing is the quiting smoking. I too quit 7 months ago, after 28 yrs. so I feel your pain. But the fact that is, your body was used to the stimulant that it got all day everyday from the cig's. it is no wonder that weight loss is hard. I gained over 10 lbs the first month I quit and then I started here. it then took 5=6 weeks of good diet and exercise before I began to see any loss. and then I lost like 2lbs a week for 4 weeks and then it stopped. I went 3 months without any loss and have begun to lose about 1 or 2 pounds a month since then. so Be patient...... keep following the formentioned advice. And I hate to say it, but Being in the over 40 crowd... I too am there... that only adds to the difficulty of this journey.
Try to remember that this is a life change. It may take some time. I am honestly not expecting to hit my goal weight until sometime next yr. and I only have 15 more pounds to lose. Just relax, enjoy your life, and enjoy this time of getting to a healthier place than you've ever been before.
That is my view of this journey. :bigsmile: Try not to stress.. and be happy....:bigsmile:

stormieweather

Thank you...

I don't know if this lack of progress has anything to do with quitting smoking, but I am grateful I managed to accomplish that without gaining any weight. I had decided to be proactive and get fit/healthy with my diet/exercise the same time I quit smoking so that IS something good.

Congrats on each of your successes as well.

toots99

Don't get discouraged! the only other option is to just say F it and do what you want, which will definitely take you in the other direction. Your body will kick into gear and you'll see results. I know how you feel...I've been on a plateau for months. You can't give up.

kankan213

YEAH!!! Good job on successfully quitting smoking!

carissa55

I'm still not losing much weight. It just flucuates and I think its water. This is very strange.


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