"It's SIMPLE! Burn more than you consume!" (B.S.)

MeliciousGibson

OK, so that statement really chafes my nether-parts.

It is so NOT that darn simple!

I am a Zumba Instructor. I teach a 1 hour class at the MINIMUM of 3 times/week. On average I AM burning more calories than I consume and I am NOT losing weight anymore. I've been teaching about 6 classes/week for the past 2 weeks and haven't been eating any more or any less and I haven't gained or lost a SINGLE FRIGGING POUND!

By the way, I'm NOT asking advice, because I can almost promise you for 20 different people at least 10 different answers. Not gonna help me, but thanks anyway. I simply wanted to point out that this statement gets thrown around so much and it's just blatantly NOT TRUE!

EnchantedEvening

Your body has adapted. That's what causes plateaus. You need to vary your exercise and cycle your calories to start losing again.

But, as you said, you don't care about my (educated) opinion, so you can just ignore this and keep sticking your fingers and your ears and saying, "Lalalalalalalala."

Your anecdote is not fact. Please stop spreading the wrong information and calling science a lie.

_HeathBar_

Actually it is that simple. But thanks for sharing your opinion I suppose.

Saiklor

I think that this is one of these situations where the advice is deceptive because it's simple. Sure, if you burn more than you consume you'll change the composition of your body; but how do you calculate what you're burning? And how does the composition change (weight v. lost/gained inches for example). Every person is different...

Trail_Addict

Starvation mode! :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

LesterBlackstone

You're absolutely right. There's no possible way you could be overestimating your expenditure an/or underestimating your intake.

That would just be silly.

heybales

OK, so that statement really chafes my nether-parts.

It is so NOT that darn simple!

I am a Zumba Instructor. I teach a 1 hour class at the MINIMUM of 3 times/week. On average I AM burning more calories than I consume and I am NOT losing weight anymore. I've been teaching about 6 classes/week for the past 2 weeks and haven't been eating any more or any less and I haven't gained or lost a SINGLE FRIGGING POUND!

By the way, I'm NOT asking advice, because I can almost promise you for 20 different people at least 10 different answers. Not gonna help me, but thanks anyway. I simply wanted to point out that this statement gets thrown around so much and it's just blatantly NOT TRUE!

Simple statement, perhaps not simple application.

And when simple idea is delved into, not really simple statement.

http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/the-energy-balance-equation.html

p0pr0cksnc0ke

You're absolutely right. There's no possible way you could be overestimating your expenditure an/or underestimating your intake.

That would just be silly.

:drinker:

UsedToBeHusky

You do have to burn more than you consume, but you also have to know how much you are burning which is where things get fuzzy. Nobody can accurately measure that. The best that anyone can hope for is to come close. If you aren't losing, it is because you aren't burning as much as you used to, and therefore, are NOT burning more than you are consuming.

It is that simple!

Acg67

pastryari

You do have to burn more than you consume, but you also have to know how much you are burning which is where things get fuzzy. Nobody can accurately measure that. The best that anyone can hope for is to come close. If you aren't losing, it is because you aren't burning as much as you used to, and therefore, are NOT burning more than you are consuming.

It is that simple!

Bingo.

mcarter99

It is true. It's not often observable over very short time frames like your's.

sherry9300

You look great in your pics, BTW! Two weeks isn't long enough to determine your weight loss. If you raised your calories recently, it can take weeks, maybe even a couple of months, for your body to adjust. I'm sure you know this already, though. Not losing is frustrating....may you find success soon!

myfitnessnmhoy

Sorry, but biologically and mathematically it IS that simple. Calories are taken in and absorbed, and burned.

What makes it difficult is the interrelationship between the two. Eating more (or less) can have a direct effect on how many calories you burn or are able to burn. Different macronutrient balances support different types of activities optimally.

Increased fitness and reduced weight will both reduce the number of calories a given activity tends to burn. And, worst of all, the calories you eat and ESPECIALLY the calories you burn, as calculated by any tools you choose to use, are all merely estimates.

Repeating the same cardio exercise, even at ever-increasing intensity, will yield reducing results over time as the muscles get more efficient at doing that exercise. You gotta mix up the cardio, and even then you'll get diminishing returns for the same workout level because your overall cardiovascular efficiency is improved. Which is great news for every single aspect of your life OTHER than weight loss.

bm99

It IS simple, burn more than you consume. THIS IS FACT.

The hard part is figuring out how much you are burning. It sounds like your body adapted to the exercise, so you are no longer burning as much doing the same activities. That doesn't mean in vs. out is wrong, it means you are wrong about how much you should be eating.

boggsmeister

You aren't burning more than you consume. So the problem is that you aren't taking in less calories than you are burning. If you were burning more calories than you were consuming, you would lose weight.

As far as it not being simple, well, the metabolism can be a mysterious beast.

MeliciousGibson

OK, I was just venting because I've been extremely frustrated that I've been doing all of the "right" things based on opinions from different people. Trust me, I've tried the "Eat more to lose weight", I've tried the 15% less than TDEE....I've given plenty of time in between applications to give it time to actually work. And nothing.

Today I finally just snapped when someone said to me flat out, "I don't know why you're stressing - it's simple. Burn more than you take in". If it were that simple, would I be struggling like I am?

As for varying my routine - the only thing I can do is ADD. I am a Zumba Instructor - I teach Zumba. There's only so much you can do with a Zumba format... So I can try to add strength training to one of the days I'm also teaching Zumba. This is a job, I can't just NOT do it.

I do appreciate the nasty and sarcastic responses, though! (by the way, that's my own sarcasm, in case you missed it) It serves to remind me why I rarely ever post to these forums. Such a nasty and unsupportive place. Honestly, I've never known a forum be so full of such nasty people in my life - and I've belonged to more than a few of them!

I'm happy to have been able to provide you with the opportunity to get it all out, though! Carry on!

GasMasterFlash

neverstray

wait...if you burn more than you eat, i'm pretty sure you would be dead. so, i know you're lying there somewhere.

probably under/over estimations, and not really looking at every single thing.

clean eating
solid exercise (and i see the zumba results, so its a burner)
watch the macros
count EVERYTHING
if you have hit a plateau, you may have to do something to switch up. sometimes you have to trick your body. if you do/eat the same thing day in and day out month after month, your body adapts and thinks its normal and will stop responding. you have to shcok it. my technique is to just stop exercising for a week or so. then, hit the exercise, then eat like a pig for a week or two, then go back, and it seems to knock everything off kilter. do what works, but it really is as simple as you are saying it's not.

auroranflash

Congrats on beating cancer. Hope you figure it all out. I won't give my opinion since you said you didn't want it. Have a great day.

MeliciousGibson

By the way - I want to apologize to all that have been actually offering supportive and factual information without resorting to pettiness and sarcasm. THANK YOU to you!