getting very frustrated and almost want to give up.

kcoburn327
kcoburn327 Posts: 111 Member
in Motivation and Support
I am almost 4 months into my journey and lost 25 pounds. I recently added running to my routine anr also started doing Insanity (took my fot test yesterday). The last few weeks the scale has barely moved at all. I have lost some inches, which is great but I am hung up on thr scale. I am a big numbers person.

I am just really frustrated. Part of my keeps thinking it would just be easier to tlgive up. I won't because this is the firsy in my life I uave been successful of keeping off weight and I want to keep going.

Thanks!

Kelley

Replies

  • jg627
    jg627 Posts: 1,221 Member
    It's not going to be consistent all the time. Don't think about the numbers on the scale so much. Use progress pictures.
  • gaia3rd
    gaia3rd Posts: 151
    I must say, I don't understand - you've lost 25 pounds in 4 months (woohoo!), you've added exercise and are continuing to lose inches (double woohoo!) This sounds like the very definition of great success. Why in the world would you consider giving up because some stupid little scale isn't showing you what you want to see. Big numbers person or not, put or throw the scale away for now. It's not uncommon for your muscles to hang onto extra water weight when you start or change an exercise routine. You have done marvelously well. Congratulations - and keep on going!
  • KilikiMom
    KilikiMom Posts: 237 Member
    25lbs in 4 months? that is AWESOME!!!!! i have been here since January and i've only lost 22lbs....so you are doing fantastic!! there will be MANY times that the scale will not move (or GASP go UP)...and that is usually due to water weight....so try not to focus on the scale so much...focus more on the inches you are loosing if you are a numbers person...the scale likes to lie....it really does!! do not give up!!!
  • tmauck4472
    tmauck4472 Posts: 1,785 Member
    Don't give up, you'll only regret it at some point down the road. I feel your pain on being centered around the scale because it may just a number but it's a number you want to see it decrease and when it's not it gets into your head. Try giving up the scale for a while. The first few months of my new life I didn't weigh, I didn't even weigh to know where I was at so my results are based on my best guess. I thought that if I knew how much I really did weight that I'd give up before I even started so I didn't want to know. But now I can't wait to see the new me, the me I know is there but has been hiding from reality. Don't you want that too? Give up the scale, throw it away if need be. Just continue doing what your doing and if your seeing the inches go down then the lbs will follow eventually.
  • Crochetluvr
    Crochetluvr Posts: 3,281 Member
    I must say, I don't understand - you've lost 25 pounds in 4 months (woohoo!), you've added exercise and are continuing to lose inches (double woohoo!) This sounds like the very definition of great success. Why in the world would you consider giving up because some stupid little scale isn't showing you what you want to see. Big numbers person or not, put or throw the scale away for now. It's not uncommon for your muscles to hang onto extra water weight when you start or change an exercise routine. You have done marvelously well. Congratulations - and keep on going!

    Couldn't have said it better myself.
  • Crochetluvr
    Crochetluvr Posts: 3,281 Member
    Computer double posted
  • pwittek10
    pwittek10 Posts: 723 Member
    sometimes when I got "stuck"
    I ate 50 to 100 more calories
    took a day off from walking.
    I do not know why this worked but it did
  • Bobby_Clerici
    Bobby_Clerici Posts: 1,828 Member
    Just imagine how frustrated you'd be if you were actually NOT making progress?
    Try this.
    Track weight, body fat, belly measurement, blood pressure, resting heart rate and all the blood junk doctors check twice per year.
    The scale is but one standard, and NOT the most valuable.
    Good Luck :flowerforyou:
  • sl1ngsh0t
    sl1ngsh0t Posts: 326 Member
    Fitness and weight loss are a process, not an event.
  • JeSuisPrest
    JeSuisPrest Posts: 2,005 Member
    Congrats on a job well done. I understand your frustration. But when you increase your workouts you need to eat more. MFP has a calorie deficit already set for you, it is important to eat back those exercise calories. When you properly fuel your body it run more efficiently, metabolize and burn the fat.
  • jjsmith4006
    jjsmith4006 Posts: 2
    Kelley,
    Please don't give up! You can do this, look how far you've come. I'm sure it took awhile to put the weight on, so it will take awhile to get it off. Your losing inches which is good. This happened to me in the beginning too. After awhile the pounds starting dropping too. Running/walking is critical for faster weight loss. These burn calories faster than just about anything and they are pretty much no-brainers. Like I said, remember how far you have came! Don't quit, you can do this!:wink:
  • JeSuisPrest
    JeSuisPrest Posts: 2,005 Member
    Just imagine how frustrated you'd be if you were actually NOT making progress?
    Try this.
    Track weight, body fat, belly measurement, blood pressure, resting heart rate and all the blood junk doctors check twice per year.
    The scale is but one standard, and NOT the most valuable.
    Good Luck :flowerforyou:

    Now that's a fact! I've recently gone up a few pounds, but my measurements are still going down and my new size 2 shorts are loose!!! They weren't loose when I bought them a month ago!
  • DyanCB
    DyanCB Posts: 138 Member
    I must say, I don't understand - you've lost 25 pounds in 4 months (woohoo!), you've added exercise and are continuing to lose inches (double woohoo!) This sounds like the very definition of great success. Why in the world would you consider giving up because some stupid little scale isn't showing you what you want to see. Big numbers person or not, put or throw the scale away for now. It's not uncommon for your muscles to hang onto extra water weight when you start or change an exercise routine. You have done marvelously well. Congratulations - and keep on going!

    Couldn't have said it better myself.

    I agree - doubled! you are getting the results - who cares what the scale says???? Did you take photos of yourself when you go started? I will bet you see a huge difference. Personally, I finally weened myself off the scale to maybe once a month weigh-in. My progress is reflected in my measurements, photos, how my clothes fit and how much better I feel. I don't have back boobies any more - YEA!

    Throw the scale away - it is not your friend. If you are such a numbers person then pay more attention to the change in measurements, change in clothing size - not the scale.
  • iWaffle
    iWaffle Posts: 2,208 Member
    I am almost 4 months into my journey and lost 25 pounds.
    The last few weeks the scale has barely moved at all. I have lost some inches,

    You're not seeing this clearly. You've lost on average over a pound a week. That's fantastic progress. And the inches lost, let's be real. This is the real goal. People want the inches gone. The weight is just a measurement of progress when you can't see or measure the inches. Keep weighing and keep measuring. Both are tools to gauge your fitness levels.

    By the way, 1-2 weeks with no scale movement is not a plateau. There are many things to take into account such as water retention and TOM for women. Just keep doing what you're doing and be patient. It looks like you're on the right track.
  • JeSuisPrest
    JeSuisPrest Posts: 2,005 Member
    sometimes when I got "stuck"
    I ate 50 to 100 more calories
    took a day off from walking.
    I do not know why this worked but it did

    That tells you that you can increase your calories and start losing again.
  • kuger4119
    kuger4119 Posts: 213 Member
    I am almost 4 months into my journey and lost 25 pounds. I recently added running to my routine anr also started doing Insanity (took my fot test yesterday). The last few weeks the scale has barely moved at all. I have lost some inches, which is great but I am hung up on thr scale. I am a big numbers person.

    I am just really frustrated. Part of my keeps thinking it would just be easier to tlgive up. I won't because this is the firsy in my life I uave been successful of keeping off weight and I want to keep going.

    Thanks!

    Kelley

    Taking a quick look at your diary, you are a textbook case of someone who could be undereating. Quite a few days where your input is under or around 1200 calories. Personally, I found that I wasn't doing as well when I wasn't eating as much as I should and exercising less than I had been even though my net was lower. For me, I seem to do better when I hit the gym a quite a bit and eat good. It's hard to get the gym time in on certain days but I've decided that I need to take an hour a day for my own health and not worry about everyone else.

    EDIT: Even though MFP does a good job estimating calories....it can be wrong. Make sure your estimates are right for you.
  • Bobby_Clerici
    Bobby_Clerici Posts: 1,828 Member
    Just imagine how frustrated you'd be if you were actually NOT making progress?
    Try this.
    Track weight, body fat, belly measurement, blood pressure, resting heart rate and all the blood junk doctors check twice per year.
    The scale is but one standard, and NOT the most valuable.
    Good Luck :flowerforyou:

    Now that's a fact! I've recently gone up a few pounds, but my measurements are still going down and my new size 2 shorts are loose!!! They weren't loose when I bought them a month ago!
    Sometimes the scale is as much a liar as the man in the mirror.
    Take EVERYTHING into consideration, and be happy for your progress.
  • dicoveringwhoIam
    dicoveringwhoIam Posts: 480 Member
    Dont give up! Youre Worth it!!

    I posted my NSV today.. http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/652040-nsv-my-2nd-5k-changed-me
    I hope my NSV gives you motivation!

    Use those excuses of I cant's and change it to I can and I will! We are all a work in progress!
  • mmmyotwnz
    mmmyotwnz Posts: 119 Member
    Don't give up!! You are worth the results and they do take time. If you got back into your dream size clothing but the scale didn't match up, would it still be worth it to you? Your inches coming off is what you are looking for.

    I have cycles where I will loose a few pounds in two days and then I go about two weeks of nothing. I am walking or hitting the gym about 5 days a week. I have been on MFP for 65 days now and I lost 21lbs, but I've lost multiple inches in all the target areas. I have a long way to go.
    I have mornings like this morning where I get on the scale and nothing has changed and I feel like 'what is all the fuss about and is it even worth it?" my answer has to be yes. This is the reason I have given up before.

    I have range and strength in spinal muscles now that I haven't had in years. I am waking up with out excruciating back pain for the first time in 7 years. I am getting stronger and slowly my body is changing.
    It took me a while to get like this and it will take me awhile to loose it. When I see others and their weight is dropping off, it does smart. But we all will get to our goal if we persevere.

    Take every negative comment or thought you have and take them to a treadmill and work them out. Take pictures of yourself for you to see the change in your body. Realize that this day may just be the heaviest day you have had in your life and tomorrow you will be different.

    Add friends to support you and help you in your journey. No one here is alone.
  • JeSuisPrest
    JeSuisPrest Posts: 2,005 Member
    Dont give up! Youre Worth it!!

    I posted my NSV today.. http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/652040-nsv-my-2nd-5k-changed-me
    I hope my NSV gives you motivation!

    Use those excuses of I cant's and change it to I can and I will! We are all a work in progress!

    Fabulous testimony.....hope everyone reads it!
  • NanaKK1234
    NanaKK1234 Posts: 79 Member
    I totally understand. I have been here since March 26th, 2012 and I am down 39 pounds. But this week I only lost 1/2 pound, it is very frustrating.

    Like you I won't give up, but good lord knows there are days I wonder if it is worth it. Then I look in the mirror
  • susiebear29
    susiebear29 Posts: 266
    Ditto what everyone else has said!!! the scale is deffo not your friend!!! losing inches and gaining muscle is the most important thing to be fit and toned and strong and for your long term health, don't worry about what you weigh it can be affected by so many different factors and it is not a true reflection of your progress or your fitness!! You are doing AMAZINGLY, please don't give up!!! :smile:
  • CampKelly
    CampKelly Posts: 172 Member
    I'm in the same boat! And I just keep telling myself "if I give up I'll just gain weight" can't go there....
  • sorrelduncan
    sorrelduncan Posts: 69 Member
    Please don't give up! Keep doing what you're doing and you will continue to see results. I finally listened to all the suggestions about figuring out your TDEE and eating 500 below that. I had to set my goal as "active" in order to get enough calories, plus eat back my exercise calories. I also added workouts - I increased my runs to 4 or 5 a week, plus cross-training 1 or 2 days a week with a Jillian Michael's DVD & Butt Bible.

    I seem to have finally broken a plateau I have been on for months. But one thing I've learned, is that you can't give up. Keep at it, it's a lifestyle change, whether the scale moves or not. It will all pay off in the long run. Don't do it for the scale, or for anyone else. Do it for yourself, that's the only way you will stick with it!
  • dicoveringwhoIam
    dicoveringwhoIam Posts: 480 Member
    JeSuisPrest thank you :)

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