not losing after 5 months

2

Replies

  • waldo56
    waldo56 Posts: 1,861 Member
    Yup. You are not serious about losing weight if you eat that sort of food. Eat clean. google it.

    I'm sorry but this is just plain silly talk, eating clean is a bunch of hogwash and science agrees with me.

    http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/research-review/hormonal-responses-to-a-fast-food-meal-compared-with-nutritionally-comparable-meals-of-different-composition-research-review.html

    http://www.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/11/08/twinkie.diet.professor/index.html

    I guess I was never all that serious about losing weight, odd how it just melted away.

    To the OP:
    You need to be honest with your logging and complete with your logging. Strive for accuracy, not good looking #'s. Given the gaps, I suspect that there are some major flaws in your logging quality. There is no point in logging if you are going to do it inaccurately.

    You calorie goal might be too low. Eating too low of a net intake WILL cause stalling.
    http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/why-big-caloric-deficits-and-lots-of-activity-can-hurt-fat-loss.html

    You protein intake is low overall. Protein is filling and is needed for exercise recovery. If you are not strength training (either with weights or bodyweight) start immediately. Not only is it a great way to burn calories while exercising, recovery, repairing and building your muscles takes a ton of calories (though mostly protein calories), often dwarfing the calorie burn of the workout itself.

    If you have insulin resistance issues (as in are diabetic or pre-diabetic) consider a low carb diet they work a lot better for people with insulin resistance issues.
  • JoniBologna
    JoniBologna Posts: 653 Member
    You are not eating enough.
  • Emancipated_Tai
    Emancipated_Tai Posts: 751 Member
    Simple. Your not eating enough.
  • Prudiddy
    Prudiddy Posts: 262 Member
    Hi feel free to add me as a freind and I can help you. I'm no expert but I will show you what worked for me. I've been a member since April 6, 2012 but started working out on March 17, 2012 I have lost 12 pounds and getting ready to weigh in on Saturday againn. I was at 12 pounds by May 11th. That is about 1.5 or more pounds a week, not including the girly time of the month.
    As I have said in other post, I'm still working on getting the foods down to a science, but the working has helped alot. I had a freind tell me the other day, "It seems like you should have lost more in two montths" You could have done that just by eating right.

    Well it was a low blow but every body is different. I wanted to lose more in two months, but I am proud of what I did. When I signed up the MFP said if you do every thing right you will lose 7.8 lbs by May 11, 2012 Instead I was down 12 lbs so who knows maybe the working out 30 min mornings and 30 min evenings helped. Once again, I'm not an expert, I think if you are getting the proper excercise and eating within the 1200 cal mark. Your body will naturally lose the fat. It has no other choice. I am 36 with 2 kids I thought my motabolism was shot. Well it is not. Good luck
  • srpm
    srpm Posts: 275 Member
    A couple of hints that might help some:
    1-try eating fruit in the morning about 30 minutes before you have anything else (coffee, carbs, meat), it's a good way to get your metabolism started with low calories & low fat. Plus we digest fruit easier than any other foods so it's a good way to pull some of the essential nutrients into your system earlier in the day. (lots of fad diets play on this concept but any fruit is fine)
    2-Try to eat more protein in the morning. Maybe a boiled egg or peanut butter on your toast
    3-Try to avoid the overly refined foods, they are harder to digest so we don't absorb as many nutrients making our bodies grab on to and hold what we have similar to under eating.
    4-Log everything you eat every day. That includes the 1 goldfish cracker your baby hands you. It's hard to do but will give you a clearer picture of what you're eating.
    5-If you feel hungry, eat something, if you've had a lot of calories that day or it isn't a good time to eat try a banana or some carrots instead of a cookie or ice cream.

    I was having a similar problem, I had cut my calories but was losing nothing. I upped my calories a little bit and tried cut as much added sugar & processed stuff as possible and got over the hump.
  • crystal8208
    crystal8208 Posts: 284 Member
    lets recap:


    1.I HAVE AN HRM! POLAR FT4 so my calorie burn is accurate
    2.Im set to sedentary - desk job and eat my exercise calories back
    3.I have a kitchen scale to measure portion
    4.I walk to work and daycare everyday of the week

    Love your pic by the way :drinker:

    Eating "clean" will help, I'm sure, but I don't choose to do it that way. I agree with (some of) the other posters. Visit www.fat2fitradio.com to calculate your BMR. I'm a bit larger than you, but mine was like 1850. So I eat between 1850 and 2100 depending on if I lift weights that day. My MFP settings are on 1930 so I have a close target to be near. I've been over for the last 3 days, but I'm still down some weight and on TOM so you can do it without living on celery sticks. (Hate those!!!) Eat less exercise more worked for me for 2 months. I lost 10 lbs in 6 weeks. Then I stalled. Lost 5 more after I started eating above my BMR. It worked for me. I'm not saying it works for everyone, if you lost at 1200 cals a day, go you! But, I didn't, and I was able to start losing when I ate more. What you are doing is obviously not working, so try something else for a while. Good luck!!!! :bigsmile:
  • Prudiddy
    Prudiddy Posts: 262 Member
    Sorry to tell you this but after quickly looking at your food diary it's there in black and white. You will not lose weight on the amount of processed foods you consume in a day. Consider dropping the strabucks, the ice cream, the bagel etc for healthier alternatives. More protein less carbs. With some fine tuning you'll be on your way to successful weightloss in no time!

    Oh yeah forgot to say drink a boat load of water, I used to hate it only sodas and starbucks. I cut those completely out on March 17th 2012 and started visiting my swimming pool daily LOL for a ton of water I beleive that is what helped me to lose 12 lbs in two months as well. Some poeple say don't cut it out all together, but for people like me who was not seeing any weight fall off, I felt it was only fair to my body if i'm going to eat and work out the right way!
  • bjohs
    bjohs Posts: 1,225 Member
    After 5 months i only lost 4 pounds. I gain and lose the same 2 pounds over again. Im 27, 5 feet 4 and 171 lbs.
    If im not losing anything after that amount of time, should i up my calories per day or descrease it. Im currently at 1370 per day, set per MFPs automatic calculations.

    Only based on what I was able to gather from your diary for the past two weeks, here are two suggestions...

    1) Eat your veggies! There may be a vegetable here and there, but not enough servings per day. Cut out as much processed foods (anything from a can or box) and fast food as you can and replace it with lean meats, low-sugar fruits (like berries) and tons and tons of veggies. Make them your best friend.

    2) You may be over-estimating the amount of calories you are burning with your exercise and under-estimating the calories you are eating. I see you eat most of your exercise calories back (personal choice for many). You could be eating back more than you are actually burning.

    Hope those help and keep at it! Never give up. Good luck!

    I have an HRM so impretty sure the calories i burn are accurate

    An HRM definitely helps. You will get all sorts of advice when solicited on MFP, but my honest opinion is that you just need to clean up the quality of your food choices. You can eat less, eat more, exercise more, analyze the science all you want... the key to losing weight is to eat at a calorie deficit and just make better choices. You don't have to eat clean, or 100% healthy... just better. A good guide to eating better is if you can't kill it, dig it up, or pick it... don't eat it. It really is that simple. Shop around the perimeter of the grocery store where the food is fresher or frozen. If it can sit on a shelf for over a year without going bad, it probably isn't the wisest choice to eat it. Having a few indulgences is fine too, just not multiple times per day. Does that make sense? Good luck to you!
  • kristen6022
    kristen6022 Posts: 1,923 Member
    I'm gonna go with everyone else. Reduce the processed foods. I won't tell you to eliminate them, but reduce them. I eat packet oatmeal, granola bars, low fat fudge pops, etc too, so I'm no expert, but I also eat a lot of fresh veggies, fresh fruit, and lean meat (other that today, don't judge me on today!). Increase your protein in take by replacing the bagels with eggs in the morning. If you don't have much time or are like me and eat breakfast at work, make egg muffins (there's thousands of recipes out there, search under South Beach Egg Muffins). Then all you have to do is grab two and put them in the microwave.

    Also maybe try and decrease your grains. Less bagels, pasta, bread, etc. You need carbs, don't get me wrong, but maybe get them in fruit, brown rice, wheat cous cous, and quinoa (great high protien grain). I couldn't eliminate sugar, but I did make a conscience effort to reduce it. Peanut butter and an apple is a very tasty, quick snack that will fuel you for a long time.

    Good luck and I hope all of our suggestions help you!
  • CherryOnionKiss
    CherryOnionKiss Posts: 376 Member
    lets recap:


    1.I HAVE AN HRM! POLAR FT4 so my calorie burn is accurate
    2.Im set to sedentary - desk job and eat my exercise calories back
    3.I have a kitchen scale to measure portion
    4.I walk to work and daycare everyday of the week

    Love your pic by the way :drinker:

    Eating "clean" will help, I'm sure, but I don't choose to do it that way. I agree with (some of) the other posters. Visit www.fat2fitradio.com to calculate your BMR. I'm a bit larger than you, but mine was like 1850. So I eat between 1850 and 2100 depending on if I lift weights that day. My MFP settings are on 1930 so I have a close target to be near. I've been over for the last 3 days, but I'm still down some weight and on TOM so you can do it without living on celery sticks. (Hate those!!!) Eat less exercise more worked for me for 2 months. I lost 10 lbs in 6 weeks. Then I stalled. Lost 5 more after I started eating above my BMR. It worked for me. I'm not saying it works for everyone, if you lost at 1200 cals a day, go you! But, I didn't, and I was able to start losing when I ate more. What you are doing is obviously not working, so try something else for a while. Good luck!!!! :bigsmile:

    I went to the link you gave me. My BMR is 1530.

    So BMR x Activity level = how many calories to maintain: 1530 x 1.375(lightly active) = 2103.75 calories to maintain my weight
    In order to lose 1 pound per week I have to eat 500 calories less per day than the calories intake to maintain weight
    2103.75 - 500 = 1603.75 calories per day

    So that's what I should eat per day right? And since I've put activity level to lightly active because of my 2-3 workouts a week, I don't have to eat my calories back. Am I correct?
  • CherryOnionKiss
    CherryOnionKiss Posts: 376 Member
    anyone?
  • ArroganceInStep
    ArroganceInStep Posts: 6,239 Member
    anyone?

    Yes, the setup you have now accounts for workouts, so do not eat back exercise cals. Is it less than what you have been eating currently? Also note I did not check your math.
  • CherryOnionKiss
    CherryOnionKiss Posts: 376 Member
    it's actually more. I was eating 1370 per day and eating back calories
  • ArroganceInStep
    ArroganceInStep Posts: 6,239 Member
    In that case, if you burn on average less than 233*7 calories per week than it's probably high since you're already at a point where you aren't losing. If you burn more than that give this a shot.

    Edit: I forgot, that's also assuming you don't have a cheat day/meal. If you do, you need to account for that and further reduce your daily intake accordingly.
  • CherryOnionKiss
    CherryOnionKiss Posts: 376 Member
    i was eating 1370 calories only and didnt lose anything. I dont think going below that would be healhty
  • adfabus
    adfabus Posts: 178 Member
    Okay, I am sooo confused!!! I have read many many many posts on how much a person should eat and I have a question. How much should I be eating???
    My TDEE is 1794
    My BMR is 1500

    I am 5.4, 167.4lbs, 39, female, and have a desk job

    If I follow the - 20% of the TDEE it equates to being 1360 rounding down to 1300. I have also read that one should NEVER eat below their BMR.

    I have been eating no greater than 1200 calories on most days and often less than that. I have lost about 2 lbs a month and want to lose the 2lbs a week. Can anyone out there please help me in figuring out how many calories I should take in daily? I also exercise some (doing 30 day shred right now). Like many others, I am affraid of eating too much. PLEASE HELP!!!

    If anyone needs more specific information please let me know as I am so confused as to what to do!!!
    Also, MFP notes I should eat 1200 calories a day to lose 1.5lbs a week
  • CherryOnionKiss
    CherryOnionKiss Posts: 376 Member
    Okay, I am sooo confused!!! I have read many many many posts on how much a person should eat and I have a question. How much should I be eating???
    My TDEE is 1794
    My BMR is 1500

    I am 5.4, 167.4lbs, 39, female, and have a desk job

    If I follow the - 20% of the TDEE it equates to being 1360 rounding down to 1300. I have also read that one should NEVER eat below their BMR.

    I have been eating no greater than 1200 calories on most days and often less than that. I have lost about 2 lbs a month and want to lose the 2lbs a week. Can anyone out there please help me in figuring out how many calories I should take in daily? I also exercise some (doing 30 day shred right now). Like many others, I am affraid of eating too much. PLEASE HELP!!!

    If anyone needs more specific information please let me know as I am so confused as to what to do!!!
    Also, MFP notes I should eat 1200 calories a day to lose 1.5lbs a week

    Can you not hijack my thread please? I'm having a hard time getting an clear answer about my last post
  • jodienc1
    jodienc1 Posts: 13
    I use MFP as a tool to log my food on the advice of my nutritionist... both she and my doctor insist only bodybuilders and extreme athletes should be eating back their calories, so be wary of advice.. <Many people have had a lot of success on this board, but my advice comes from medical professionals. Look at it this way. If you are burning off 350 calories at the gym and you eat back those calories, you've negated your efforts - making your calorie deficit ZERO. One pound = 3500 calories, in or out.. no way around it.

    I have lost 52 pounds since November with 6 more to go... by eating clean and exercising my butt off in the gym 6 days a week. Portion size, protein, fruit and veggies... No soda, no juice.. very little alcohol and lots of water.

    The worst thing you can do is start your morning out with is carbs.. swap it out for protein - try a protein/fruit smoothie. Egg white wrap something filling and healthy. You won't miss bagels and cream cheese.

    You need Fruit and you need veggies, they fuel your system.

    If you are serious about losing weight the compromise will be easy to make. You walk away from the sweets and the fancy drinks at Starbucks. You save money and gain a healthy lifestyle in the process.
  • ArroganceInStep
    ArroganceInStep Posts: 6,239 Member
    i was eating 1370 calories only and didnt lose anything. I dont think going below that would be healhty

    If you were eating 1370 calories and not eating exercise calories back and still not losing, you may want to consult your doctor or a dietician. I wouldn't personally feel comfortable (particularly if you do exercise heavily) advising you to eat much lower than that.

    What I was saying is that if your total average daily intake (1370+exercise cals) was around the 1603 you quoted, then you've already tried that and should potentiall try reducing it even further (like -10% at a time, tops) and seeing how you feel and what kind of results you get.

    BodyRecomposition.com is a good resource for fat loss information. Try checking out the articles he has on the subject. That may help too.
  • ArroganceInStep
    ArroganceInStep Posts: 6,239 Member
    I use MFP as a tool to log my food on the advice of my nutritionist... both she and my doctor insist only bodybuilders and extreme athletes should be eating back their calories, so be wary of advice.. <Many people have had a lot of success on this board, but mine comes from medical professionals. Look at it this way. If you are burning off 350 calories at the gym and you eat back those calories, you've negated your efforts - making your calorie deficit ZERO. One pound = 3500 calories, in or out.. no way around it.

    I have lost 52 pounds since November with 6 more to go... by eating clean and exercising my butt off in the gym 6 days a week. Portion size, protein, fruit and veggies... No soda, no juice.. very little alcohol and lots of water.

    The worst thing you can do is start your morning out with is carbs.. swap it out for protein - try a protein/fruit smoothie. Egg white wrap something filling and healthy. You won't miss bagels and cream cheese.

    You need Fruit and you need veggies, they fuel your system.

    If you are serious about losing weight the compromise will be easy to make. You walk away from the sweets and the fancy drinks at Starbucks. You save money and gain a healthy lifestyle in the process.

    You have received the advice from medical professionals (not a dietician, but I won't argue that here) but you are not one yourself. Their advice was tailored to you specifically, for your current program and lifestyle, not everyone. If they put you on a proper diet, that diet would account from the energy you burn through exercise one way or another (either estimating your TDEE not including exercise and then eating those calories back, or estimating your TDEE including exercise and then not eating those calories back). MFP does the former strategy, so you SHOULD eat them back using that paradigm. And the idea that eating carbs in the morning is the worst thing you can do is complete hogwash, you can have a perfectly acceptable diet/workout program with a carb laden breakfast and have great success. Time of day does not matter.
  • CherryOnionKiss
    CherryOnionKiss Posts: 376 Member
    I use MFP as a tool to log my food on the advice of my nutritionist... both she and my doctor insist only bodybuilders and extreme athletes should be eating back their calories, so be wary of advice.. <Many people have had a lot of success on this board, but mine comes from medical professionals. Look at it this way. If you are burning off 350 calories at the gym and you eat back those calories, you've negated your efforts - making your calorie deficit ZERO. One pound = 3500 calories, in or out.. no way around it.

    I have lost 52 pounds since November with 6 more to go... by eating clean and exercising my butt off in the gym 6 days a week. Portion size, protein, fruit and veggies... No soda, no juice.. very little alcohol and lots of water.

    The worst thing you can do is start your morning out with is carbs.. swap it out for protein - try a protein/fruit smoothie. Egg white wrap something filling and healthy. You won't miss bagels and cream cheese.

    You need Fruit and you need veggies, they fuel your system.

    If you are serious about losing weight the compromise will be easy to make. You walk away from the sweets and the fancy drinks at Starbucks. You save money and gain a healthy lifestyle in the process.

    You have received the advice from medical professionals (not a dietician, but I won't argue that here) but you are not one yourself. Their advice was tailored to you specifically, for your current program and lifestyle, not everyone. If they put you on a proper diet, that diet would account from the energy you burn through exercise one way or another (either estimating your TDEE not including exercise and then eating those calories back, or estimating your TDEE including exercise and then not eating those calories back). MFP does the former strategy, so you SHOULD eat them back using that paradigm. And the idea that eating carbs in the morning is the worst thing you can do is complete hogwash, you can have a perfectly acceptable diet/workout program with a carb laden breakfast and have great success. Time of day does not matter.

    MFP calculate your TDEE including exercise so you should not eat your calories back?
  • CherryOnionKiss
    CherryOnionKiss Posts: 376 Member
    I think I figured out why I'm not losing. MFP set my calories goal to something lower than my BMR

    BMR calculated with MFP tool: 1496
    Calories goal set by MFP: 1390
    TDEE: 1886
  • adfabus
    adfabus Posts: 178 Member
    Okay, I am sooo confused!!! I have read many many many posts on how much a person should eat and I have a question. How much should I be eating???
    My TDEE is 1794
    My BMR is 1500

    I am 5.4, 167.4lbs, 39, female, and have a desk job

    If I follow the - 20% of the TDEE it equates to being 1360 rounding down to 1300. I have also read that one should NEVER eat below their BMR.

    I have been eating no greater than 1200 calories on most days and often less than that. I have lost about 2 lbs a month and want to lose the 2lbs a week. Can anyone out there please help me in figuring out how many calories I should take in daily? I also exercise some (doing 30 day shred right now). Like many others, I am affraid of eating too much. PLEASE HELP!!!

    If anyone needs more specific information please let me know as I am so confused as to what to do!!!
    Also, MFP notes I should eat 1200 calories a day to lose 1.5lbs a week
    Anyone?
  • yarwell
    yarwell Posts: 10,477 Member
    I think I figured out why I'm not losing. MFP set my calories goal to something lower than my BMR

    BMR calculated with MFP tool: 1496
    Calories goal set by MFP: 1390
    TDEE: 1886

    Bear in mind that BMR equations usually only catch about 75% of people's actual BMR within 10% either side of the prediction, so you don't know if your BMR is even in the range 1350 - 1650. If you aren't losing weight for a month then your TDEE is probably equal to your food intake.

    Eating below your BMR doesn't stop weight loss, I've lost over 50 lbs eating less than my predicted BMR. MFP inevitably sets you below BMR if you use sedentary and 1 lb/week or higher weight loss.
  • yarwell
    yarwell Posts: 10,477 Member
    My TDEE is 1794
    My BMR is 1500
    I am 5.4, 167.4lbs, 39, female, and have a desk job
    If I follow the - 20% of the TDEE it equates to being 1360 rounding down to 1300.

    20% off the 1794 TDEE is 1435 according to my calculator. That's a deficit of 360 so targets less than 1 lb/week.

    Try that - eat 1435. Don't increase the deficit with exercise.
  • adfabus
    adfabus Posts: 178 Member
    My TDEE is 1794
    My BMR is 1500
    I am 5.4, 167.4lbs, 39, female, and have a desk job
    If I follow the - 20% of the TDEE it equates to being 1360 rounding down to 1300.

    20% off the 1794 TDEE is 1435 according to my calculator. That's a deficit of 360 so targets less than 1 lb/week.

    Try that - eat 1435. Don't increase the deficit with exercise.
    Humm....but I am wanting to lose 2lbs a week...not LESS than 1 lb a week.
  • wftiger
    wftiger Posts: 1,283 Member
    Up your protein and lower your carbs. That is one of the easiest changes to see results. And if you are working out you need more protein.
  • wftiger
    wftiger Posts: 1,283 Member
    The worst thing you can do is start your morning out with is carbs.. swap it out for protein - try a protein/fruit smoothie. Egg white wrap something filling and healthy. You won't miss bagels and cream cheese.

    I have been told this by my MD as well. I am almost at 100 lbs lost since Nov. 3, 2011 so I think he might be on to something. Doesn't hurt to give it a try.
  • yarwell
    yarwell Posts: 10,477 Member
    Humm....but I am wanting to lose 2lbs a week...not LESS than 1 lb a week.

    2 lbs/week requires a 1,000 calorie deficit. That would put you at 800 calories. Are you sure ?
  • adfabus
    adfabus Posts: 178 Member
    Humm....but I am wanting to lose 2lbs a week...not LESS than 1 lb a week.

    2 lbs/week requires a 1,000 calorie deficit. That would put you at 800 calories. Are you sure ?
    Well, I would love to lose the 2lbs a week but I do not think only eating 800 calories a day is healthy. What if I ate 1200 and exercised 400 calories a day? Not that I could every day though.