-4lbs in a month?! Not good enough
Replies
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1lb is a week is a healthy loss..
This. When you had 90 pounds to lose, more pounds per week was doable. Now that you're have about 45 pounds to go, it's going to come off slower. You *might* be able to get away with 1.5 pounds, but that's cutting it close. Trying to lose more than your body can safely drop is a recipe for muscle loss.
Generally speaking... If you have 75+ lbs to lose 2 lbs/week is ideal (1000 calorie deficit). If you have 40-75 lbs to lose 1.5 lbs/week is ideal (750 calorie deficit). If you have 25-40 lbs to lose 1 lbs/week is ideal (500 calories). If you have 15 -25 lbs to lose 0.5 to 1.0 lbs/week is ideal (500-250). If you have less than 15 lbs to lose 0.5 lbs/week is ideal (250).0 -
forget about the number on the scale (nobody sees it except you).
get a tape measure and do checks every 2 weeks, also take pictures, these are much better methods for gauging fat loss!0 -
I would say too many carbs and not enough protein. Cut back on the breads and pastas. Since you exercise a lot you may want to use this calculator to determine your daily intake, http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/ , if you do use it don't eat back your exercise calories. Take protein shakes after your workouts to help gain muscle.0
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Like almost everyone has said, averaging one pound per week is GREAT. After looking at your diary, the fact that you are eating so many processed foods and LOTS of carbs/sugar and low fat, I would say you are doing incredible for the diet that you have chosen.
I'm losing well right now, partly because I have a lot to lose and partly because I avoid foods that don't work well for me (grains, legumes, sugar) and I eat lots of FAT. Even more notable than the weight loss is how all of my health problems (there were lots) have vanished.
Edit: To the "nothing else matters" than calories crowd; maybe that works for you, but it doesn't work for me and many other people. There are a number of people on MFP that had many health issues similar to mine that were only resolved by dietary choice and setting our own macro goals, not just by counting calories. For instance, high carb food makes me crave and binge (and causes other serious illnesses). Low carb (healthy) food makes me feel full and satisfied.0 -
First, let me start by saying I am no expert on anything... but when this has happened to me, I run a report on my nutrition over the last say 60 or 90 days or I look at my diary from a date back when I WAS losing. I try to look at the data and see if there is a specific area that maybe I have inadvertantly changed or increased without realizing it. Then, I start making those changes.
Also, have you been fluctuating? So, do you seem to lose a pound or two, then gain it back the very next week? If so, maybe it's a change in habits over the weekends or something. I tend to eat saltier foods over the weekend, which makes me retain water. I then have to cleanse all week to lose what I gained.
Finally, I realize you are working out quite a bit... are you using a Heart Rate Monitor? This is the only true way for you to have an idea of what you are personally burning. If you are relying on the info on MFP... it is not specific to you and only a guesstimate. You could be eating back too many or too few calories based on your work out.
That's where I would start. Also, I really try hard to stay within my parameters for the macronutrients on a daily basis... if you are going over frequently... that may be your answer here.0 -
First glance, I'd say too many carbs. Try not to go over the limit there. I have to keep under my carb allowance to do anything. My diary is open. I stay close to 1200 - 1500 in calories, and 100 in carbs. Don't fret, it's still a loss and not a gain.
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I know what your thinking, that you do all this work, not going over your calories, stepping on the scale... and only .5 pounds lost. But think about it, a whole pound lost is appx 3500 calories, and that takes quite a bit of work to lose. Not to mention activities that cause you to weight more (or stay the same) like building muscle, retaining water, or your storing fat from not eating enough. All these things need to be taken into consideration. 3500 calories burned away in a week is plenty, you shouldn't try to rush it, just be patient and you'll get there eventually.0
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I would gladly take those 4lbs a month and your shoes,I love those!0
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First off, a pound a week does not suck. It's not a race.
Second, yeah, cut the carbs and up the protein. My understanding about the advantage of choosing proteins over carbs is that excess protein is disposed of as bodily waste, where excess carbs tend to get stored as fats. Having too much protein doesn't set you back.
Finally, a pound a week does not suck. It's not a race.0 -
Could more knowledgable people take a sec to look at my food diary and exercising. -4lbs in a month sucks. I have gone over calories a bit some days (but at 1280 calories a day, its not hard.)
If you eat foods that are nutrient dense, but lower in calories, you may find it easier to say within your calorie goal. I have my protein set quite a bit higher and my fat a littler higher than the MFP default. I find that when I stick closer to this, I am not in danger of grabbing random junk from the cupboard.-4lbs in a month sucks and I am 170, so I have alot more to lose.
Think about it this way...at this rate, you will be 158 by Christmas. If you keep going, you might be in the 140s before next summer.
I only had 15-20 lbs to lose and it took me almost 9 months to get that weight off. Could I have done it faster? Probably, but talk to me a year from now; I bet that I am at, or lower, than my current weight. I have found a lifestyle that is infinitely manageble. I don't feel overworked or deprived of any food.Thinking of doing the 1 or 2 days a week of alternating fasting (500 calories a day).
I, personally, wouldn't, but that's my personal opinon. I do not do anything that I am not willing to do for the rest of my life.0 -
You know, it really irritates me. ...no, INFURIATES me when people feel like if they don't lose a crap ton of weight every month then they are a failure. This is the real world - not Biggest Loser where they practically starve themselves and beat their bodies into the ground every day with hours upon hours of exercise and lose 10-20 pounds a week. PLEASE do not feel like 1 pound a week is not good, because it is.
Everywhere we look - TV shows, commercials, magazines, we are bombarded with headlines like "Lose 10 pounds in a week on *insert stupid fad diet here*!!" We are made to feel if we don't lose weight rapidly on some dumbass diet and crazy exercise routine then we are failures. YOU ARE NOT A FAILURE. You are doing great! Don't give in to the media hype of "fast weight loss".
I know it is cliche' but slow and steady really does win the race. You are more likely to keep the weight off losing slower, and less chance of saggy skin and a higher chance of keeping your lean body mass. Weight loss is not glamorous, it's a long hard road that is going to take patience and determination. So often if we don't see results fast enough we just want to throw our hands up in the air and give up. DON'T GIVE UP. Sure I've had my days where I just wish I could wake up skinny but that's not going to happen. Stay strong and persevere. Dig your feet in and see this through. You can do it.0 -
Could more knowledgable people take a sec to look at my food diary and exercising. -4lbs in a month sucks. I have gone over calories a bit some days (but at 1280 calories a day, its not hard.)
Ideas welcome.
I run 6k twice a week and 10k once a week on weekends.
I do Bikram/hot yoga a minimum of 3 times a week.
-4lbs in a month sucks and I am 170, so I have alot more to lose.
I drink 4litres of water a day.
too many carbs?
Thinking of doing the 1 or 2 days a week of alternating fasting (500 calories a day).
Thanks!
Sounds like you are doing fine. Impatience wrecks many a fat-loss plan. The goal should always be fat loss rather than weight loss. Weight can go up and down based on many factors. For example, if you get very dehydrated, you can lose up to five pounds a day but no one thinks that is a healthy way to lose weight. :frown: That's why I like taking waist measurements as that is a better indicator of fat loss than is weight. You can still look at weight loss daily if you want, but a waist measurement every couple of weeks (or, if you really want to get accuracy, get a set of fat calipers---you can get them online inexpensively) tracks your success better. The key is getting your body to burn stored fat rather than relying on burning carbohydrates. For most obese people, restricting carbs (please---NO no-carb plans---you cannot stay healthy on a no-carb plan long-term) forces their body to burn fat. That is why drinking lots of water is so important for two reasons: 1. it helps your body to burn fat more efficiently and 2. it helps to flush out toxins that enter your blood stream when you burn fat (and thus, you stay healthier and feel better so you are not as apt to quit).. The reason why it is important to not go TOO low on carbs is that a too-low carb plan will cause a number of biochemical problems for obese folk---one of which can be the raising of uric acid levels to unacceptable heights---you don't need a gout attack or the kidney impairment that high uric acid levels can produce. At 75-100 grams of carbohydrates (most of which should be spent on vegetables and a couple of pieces of fruit per day) you will burn fat slowly, without becoming dehydrated. When someone tells me that they have lost 3-4 pounds per week I think to myself, "Physiologists tell us that you can't possibly be burning more than 2 pounds of fat per week, so you are likely dehydrating yourself and cannibalizing your own muscles as well!" When a person loses weight very quickly this is what they are doing to themselves and when they go off the draconian measures they have imposed on themselves, the rebound is devastating---when they eventually go back to eating more healthfully---which they must or they will start feeling lousy. (I know, I have been there.)
You need to think about it this way---you are doing this in order to be healthier right? Looking better should always be secondary. You likely didn't gain the fat any faster than a pound a week (unless you are a pig-out artist
, which most people are not) so losing it at that rate shouldn't be a problem 0 -
You know, it really irritates me. ...no, INFURIATES me when people feel like if they don't lose a crap ton of weight every month then they are a failure. This is the real world - not Biggest Loser where they practically starve themselves and beat their bodies into the ground every day with hours upon hours of exercise and lose 10-20 pounds a week. PLEASE do not feel like 1 pound a week is not good, because it is.
Everywhere we look - TV shows, commercials, magazines, we are bombarded with headlines like "Lose 10 pounds in a week on *insert stupid fad diet here*!!" We are made to feel if we don't lose weight rapidly on some dumbass diet and crazy exercise routine then we are failures. YOU ARE NOT A FAILURE. You are doing great! Don't give in to the media hype of "fast weight loss".
I know it is cliche' but slow and steady really does win the race. You are more likely to keep the weight off losing slower, and less chance of saggy skin and a higher chance of keeping your lean body mass. Weight loss is not glamorous, it's a long hard road that is going to take patience and determination. So often if we don't see results fast enough we just want to throw our hands up in the air and give up. DON'T GIVE UP. Sure I've had my days where I just wish I could wake up skinny but that's not going to happen. Stay strong and persevere. Dig your feet in and see this through. You can do it.
Excellent advice! 0 -
And now for something completely different. Well, not really, several others made the comment too.
1 lb a week is indeed great and recommended, and closer to goal weight maybe even too much.
But....
Is that 1lb a week because of educated choices of activity level and goals selected, and it's nice and slow as intended?
or,
You selected a goal too aggressive, and are not feeding all those workouts you are doing, and have slowed the metabolism lower than it needs to be? Either because of muscle loss or body slowing everything down?
While the end result as far as pure weight loss may indeed be the same, you are not getting nearly the benefit from your exercise if it's because of slowed metabolism and under-eating for your level of exercise.
And if because of muscle loss, really bad news.
How is the body going to make improvements from the food you eat, if the body needs all those nutrients and energy just to take care of the basic metabolism functions?
If it has barely enough left over to repair from exercise, how is it going to rebuild stronger?
I'm glad to see, at least it appears, you are giving some rest days in there, or at least easier days, for the muscle to recover, just not much for it to use though it appears, especially if you only eat around 1200 and no more for the exercise.0 -
So you're running 22k a week? That's a lot of mileage with little fuel. Are you eating more on the days you run?
All in all, 1 pound a week is good. However I believe if you add a little more food you'll do better.0 -
have you tried a low carb high proteint high fiber diet? I looked into you diary and your protein is really low try it, it may work 0
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I rum between 20 and 28km per week, and heavy weights 2 x per week (until race day/end of running season when I'm planning on concentrating on weights!:drinker: :flowerforyou: , and if I had to do that on 1200cals a day and almost no protein my body would fall apart, never mind lose any weight...
Up your protein and fuel your body, otherwise you are probably losing 3lbs a month of pure muscle and killing your metabolism...
Oh, and I'm 176lbs, and 44 (as in perimenopausal with crazy raging hormones:sad: )....I eat between 1800 and 2300 per week to maintain........0 -
4lbs is a great loss, also for your activites and weight etc you should be eating more0
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Thanks all!
Yes, I eat lots of veggies, I just dont log them like I should because it takes forever to add every little thing. The Rotini pasta you see in there is actually mixed with carrots. peppers, celery, cucumber, onion ..I make a big batch for the family and we eat it until its gone.
I dont exercise excessively. 6k every other day takes about 45 minutes and the 10k is an hour on weekends as I am entering my first 8k race coming up, Im a new runner. Hot yoga, I do because the stretching feels good, less about the weight loss
Im eating 1280 based on MFP of my having a sit down job and put in my info of 5 - 45 minutes of exercise a week and that what they gave me to work with. Perhaps the Nike watch is over estimating my calories, but I think its pretty accurate.
So if 1280 calories is too low, which is what MFP gave me, how would I find out what my daily intake should be?
I have my weight loss set to 1.5lbs a week.
Thanks0 -
I just do not think that 4 lbs in a month sucks. So, congrats on your four pound loss!0
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Thanks all!
Yes, I eat lots of veggies, I just dont log them like I should because it takes forever to add every little thing. The Rotini pasta you see in there is actually mixed with carrots. peppers, celery, cucumber, onion ..I make a big batch for the family and we eat it until its gone.
I dont exercise excessively. 6k every other day takes about 45 minutes and the 10k is an hour on weekends as I am entering my first 8k race coming up, Im a new runner. Hot yoga, I do because the stretching feels good, less about the weight loss
Im eating 1280 based on MFP of my having a sit down job and put in my info of 5 - 45 minutes of exercise a week and that what they gave me to work with. Perhaps the Nike watch is over estimating my calories, but I think its pretty accurate.
So if 1280 calories is too low, which is what MFP gave me, how would I find out what my daily intake should be?
I have my weight loss set to 1.5lbs a week.
Thanks
Just because you put in you do that exercise 5 days a week on mfp, does not mean mfp adds the calories for you to eat back.
You actually need to choose either to change your activity level to suit what you are doing, you are clearly active, which will lift your calorie goal, or you log your exercise manually by clicking exercise, searching for running, or whatever it is you did, and inputting the time you ran for and it will add those calories to your goal, or best yet, get a heart rate monitor to wear when you run, and do it that way. But your calorie intake is actually what you need if you are just sitting at your desk job, without exercising, basically. You have to log exercise manually.0 -
Thanks all!
Yes, I eat lots of veggies, I just dont log them like I should because it takes forever to add every little thing. The Rotini pasta you see in there is actually mixed with carrots. peppers, celery, cucumber, onion ..I make a big batch for the family and we eat it until its gone.
I dont exercise excessively. 6k every other day takes about 45 minutes and the 10k is an hour on weekends as I am entering my first 8k race coming up, Im a new runner. Hot yoga, I do because the stretching feels good, less about the weight loss
Im eating 1280 based on MFP of my having a sit down job and put in my info of 5 - 45 minutes of exercise a week and that what they gave me to work with. Perhaps the Nike watch is over estimating my calories, but I think its pretty accurate.
So if 1280 calories is too low, which is what MFP gave me, how would I find out what my daily intake should be?
I have my weight loss set to 1.5lbs a week.
Thanks
I really wish MFP would change that setup routine.
Your entered goal exercise time, frequency, and calories has NO bearing on the math for daily goal.
Your daily goal has NO exercise planned in it at all.
That is why when you log exercise, you receive credit and your daily goal goes up - so you eat it back, and keep what may have been a decent deficit still there.
Otherwise you create an even bigger deficit from the exercise. The same exercise you are probably hoping helps your body improve.
But it can't do that if you don't eat enough.0 -
Im eating 1280 based on MFP of my having a sit down job and put in my info of 5 - 45 minutes of exercise a week and that what they gave me to work with. Perhaps the Nike watch is over estimating my calories, but I think its pretty accurate.
So if 1280 calories is too low, which is what MFP gave me, how would I find out what my daily intake should be?
I have my weight loss set to 1.5lbs a week.
If you want max benefit from your workouts, and an idea if that Nike watch (not a HRM, just pedometer perchance?) is accurate (probably better chance being accurate as pedometer while walking, but not running), then use the spreadsheet linked in this topic.
HRM tab has a calorie burn table customized for you, once you enter details on that tab. And the BMR/TDEE tab will help figure out how much you likely burn on avg each day, and what a good deficit would be to improve your body with those workouts.
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/677905-spreadsheet-for-bmr-tdee-deficit-calc-macro-calc-hrm0 -
Two things you have to change workout for a while in ordet to stimulate your muscles with othe rexercise, running is fine you keep it because it speeds up your metabolism but have a circuit with small weights or cross fitting like swimming and... I see that you don't understand this equation training= gaining muscles....the running is high cardio but it bulks your legs up and...helps you tho shed fat, many times my scale doesn't move for 20 days and I run and I stay under calories...on the other side of this slooooow process we can be sure that you drop pure fat....mesaure your hips or thigh or calves or waist and see the inches dropped...0
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I think that four pounds in a month is an amazing weight loss. I mean, that's about a pound of week.
I know you don't feel that way, but congrats!0 -
I've been stuck for months now and 4 pounds a month sounds fab to me- that's 48 pounds a year!!! Don't be so hard on yourself, 4 pounds really is great x0
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I would be so happy to lose 4 pounds in one month!0
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losing 1 pound a week is good enough. Much more than that is not considered healthy. Why can't people be happy with the progress they've made?
I would also suggest you take pictures and/or measurements. That's wehre the true differences will be shown.0 -
Could more knowledgable people take a sec to look at my food diary and exercising. -4lbs in a month sucks. I have gone over calories a bit some days (but at 1280 calories a day, its not hard.)
Ideas welcome.
I run 6k twice a week and 10k once a week on weekends.
I do Bikram/hot yoga a minimum of 3 times a week.
-4lbs in a month sucks and I am 170, so I have alot more to lose.
I drink 4litres of water a day.
too many carbs?
Thinking of doing the 1 or 2 days a week of alternating fasting (500 calories a day).
Thanks!
You are eating way too many carbs. Drop your carbs to under 100 grams and eat more protein and fat. Some people's bodies react badly to carbs.0 -
1/2 pound a week is great. 1 pound a week is fantastic. Don't be discouraged. There were some weeks that I did not lose anything at all then suddenly went down 3 pounds over night. Also, I say this all the time but I am going to say it again. Do you measure? I measured weekly and when the scale was not moving I was still losing 1/2 inch to an inch a week from my waist. Losing inches is more important than losing weight and what the scale says.0
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