stuck

yoovie

Are you doing ANY strength training or are you limiting your exercise to cardio only?

cause you know, cardio is only about 25% of fitness....

californiagirl2012

I have lost 28 pounds - i work out 5-6 times a week for about 35-40 mins. sometimes treadmill- elpict. and zumba.
some days i do treadmill in the AM and zumba at night, just do that 1 day a week. but most its treadmill-

i cant lose anything. the scale hasnt moved in 2 weeks. i am getting so upset. bc i know i am working so hard.
Does anyone have suggestions?

One thing I've learned is you can not work off the fat. The only thing that makes you lose weight is a true calorie deficit and honest logging of calories. We all sometimes play mental accounting games with calories because it's hard.

Workout only to develop lean body mass and make your body healthy, strong, and pretty when the weight is gone.

Calorie deficit to lose fat. Nothing else matters. See quote below on what is the right amount of calories.

Your body loses weight in chunks, not linear. I have found that you can do everything right and your weight loss seems to plateau but if you are patient and keep exercising and eating at a deficit (however slight) you will lose it, it will suddenly "whoosh". There are so many variables for the scale; water retention, digestion, hormones, allergies, sodium, carbs, water intake, DOMS, inflammation, the list goes on. People mistakenly think they lose or gain weight when they eat more or less because of these fluctuations.

Losing weight requires tremendous patience. You will not lose it when you want it or where you want it. The body does its thing. Some apparent plateaus can last a month or so. You can not make it happen faster. You must focus on two things; calories and exercise. Nothing else matters. Scales and metrics don't matter. The day in and day out grind of exercise and calories are all that matters. It is not very exciting until things fall into place. You get your victories and you ride one victory to the next.

The scale is a trend tool. The scale is good but put it away and only check once a week and only use it as a trend tool. It will fluctuate, it does not matter. Take front side and back progress pictures at least once a month. You will see differences that the metrics won't tell you and it's that little bit of NSV that will keep you going until the next victory.

Some people will say you need to eat more. Some people will say you need to eat less. Only you can decide or check with your doctor. But what would make the most sense? Eating more or eating less, to lose weight? Hmmm..

Taller people have more room in their calorie budget to go up or down. Shorter people like me have less room and get frustrated with "eat more" because that typically does not work for us. If you are confused about it don't just listen to any of us, do some research and get approval from your doctor, then just do what you need to do and tune the rest of us out.

It really depends on your RMR. If you are short like I am then your RMR is really just above the 1200 limit so you really don't have much room for a calorie deficit and going up is less likely to work. If you are taller you will have a higher RMR and can go up or down and still be in a deficit so you can lose no matter what. All that matters is a calorie deficit. If you are short it can be hard to have a deficit at 1200 or above so your only option is to check with your doctor. I did and he agreed and had me go down. So I had to tune everyone out around here, as some of us short girls will say, the "eat more" bullies.

Once I got leaner I had to taper UP my calories. The leaner you get the less of a calorie deficit your body can handle. It needs to be a long slow shallow deficit. For me still under a doctor’s care, this is around 1000-1200 calories because I am so short, petite, and am under 12% body fat where I truly can go into starvation mode if I ate under 1000 calories. I have supporting documentation below. Again, you must seek your doctor’s advice. No one here can tell you how many calories to eat, either up or down.

Seek advice from your doctor. Myself or anyone else on here can’t tell you how much to eat, or to go up or down. If you have a lot of body fat reserves you would be surprised at how little you can eat (unless you have emotional eating issues or disorders). The leaner you get the less your body has to draw from and then you have to taper up your calories. There is no such thing as starvation mode for woman over 12% body fat or men over 6% body fat. I pretty much proved that for myself by staying strong and building muscle and doing what I did. I'm the leanest, most muscular, and most fit that I have ever been in my life at almost 52 years old. My doctor looked at my blood work throughout my journey and it remained fine even with “taking breaks from eating” for periods of time and eating less. Even now at less than 12% body fat everything is A-OKAY. I am healthy, active, and vibrant, muscular not skinny. I have never had eating disorders nor do I now. If you have eating disorders you should not be on a diet unless you are under a doctor’s care and/or get those issues resolved first. I do not advocate unhealthy eating or promote eating disorders.

While there is no one size fits all I listed the things that worked for me here --> http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/740340-i-lost-60-lbs-at-age-51-anyone-can-any-workout

I found the following quotes helpful for sorting through all the myths plastered all over the place

What is the exact number of calories for you?

We’ve been trying to figure out an exact NUMBER of calories that everyone should be eating, without recognizing that everyone is slightly different. In truth, the calories aren’t the end game. Your body is. So the EXACT amount of Calories that are right for you is the EXACT amount that will allow you to maintain your ideal bodyweight no matter what some calculator or chart says.

In other words, an online calculator might tell you that you need to eat 2,500 calories
per day to maintain your ideal bodyweight. But the only way to know for sure if this is
the right amount for you is to test it out. If you gain weight or can’t lose weight eating
that much, then you know you need to eat less to lose weight no matter how many
calculators and text books say otherwise.

This doesn’t mean your metabolism is broken, it just means the estimate of your needs
was just a bit off.

-John Barban (The Body Centric Calorie Guide from the Venus Index and Adonis Index Manuals)

The Theory of Fat Availability:
•There is a set amount of fat that can be released from a fat cell.
•The more fat you have, the more fat can be used as a fuel when dieting.
•The less fat you have, the less fat can be used as a fuel when dieting.
•Towards the end of a transformation, when body fat is extremely low you
may not have enough fat to handle a large caloric deficit anymore.

At the extreme low end, when your body fat cannot ‘keep up’ with the energy deficit
you've imposed on your body, the energy MUST come from SOMEWHERE. This is
when you are at risk of losing lean body mass during dieting (commonly referred to
as ‘starvation mode’). This happens at extremely low levels of body fat, under 6% in
men and 12% in women [Friedl K.E. J Appl Phsiol, 1994].

-Brad Pilon and John Barban (from The Reverse Taper Diet in The Adonis Index and Venus Index manuals)

californiagirl2012

the good thing i havent gained just not moving well the scale..
i want to believe i am building muscle. and that weighs more then fat.

This is a myth. http://www.onemorebite-weightloss.com/muscle-to-fat.html

californiagirl2012

Are you doing ANY strength training or are you limiting your exercise to cardio only?

cause you know, cardio is only about 25% of fitness....

Lifting weights is KEY. I recently had my DXA scan done and at 51.5 years of age I have the bone density of a super athletic 30 year old. That is a direct result of lifiting for over 30 years. Now if that is not scientific proof that lifting weights keeps you younger I don't know what is!

If you really want to have the best quality of life when you are older like me start lifting now and keep lifting the rest of your life. Once your bones start to deteriorate there is no getting back what you lost, only halting the process as much as possible.

jzammetti

NO thoughts here, only sympathy. My scale has not moved in MONTHS. at least 3. it SUCKS. I work out 3-5x a week, eat well at least 90% of the time (we are on the go a lot so sometimes it is hard) and still, nothing. only 10lbs lost in the past 8 months. It is so frustrating! Folks say sometimes you have to change things up, shock your body...I did that. when I had to miss some workouts due to my boys starting football (practice every night messed with my evening workout schedule!), I also altered my food as well. When I can sneak in an extra workout (like tonight, when football is likely to be canceled due to the weather), I try to eat and extra snack as I have also read that if you do not eat enough, you may not lose anything (which seems counter-intuitive, doesn't it???) SO much information out there, I don't know what to do! And nothing I have tried can seem to get me over this hump. GRRRRRRR.

I have been stuck for 4 months just like you - traveling back and forth between 129 - 132 (I am 5'2" and 42 yrs old). So, I recently decided I would just jump in head first and calculate my caloric needs under the TDEE principles. Using that calculation my caloric intake for my goal weight is 1748 - 1940 depending upon my level of activity. I use the lower number since I run 3-4 days per week, but am not even close to athletic yet. (I use the TDEE for my goal weight instead of calculating my current TDEE and deducting 20% so I never have to change my eating habits again. The weight will theoretically come off slower, but that is ok because I do nto want to deal with slackened skin)

So, last week I upped my calorie goal and I will test it for 10 days (because I typically eat lower carb than I am now and I do not want to gain too much if the higer carb is truly bad for my body type). I will get on the scale on october 10th to see if there is any difference. If I do not gain weight, I will continue on this plan for 30 days and weigh again. I just hope this approach gets me off my plateau. You can add me if you want to see my results...maybe you want to test it out for yourself?

yoovie

Are you doing ANY strength training or are you limiting your exercise to cardio only?

cause you know, cardio is only about 25% of fitness....

Lifting weights is KEY. I recently had my DXA scan done and at 51.5 years of age I have the bone density of a super athletic 30 year old. That is a direct result of lifiting for over 30 years. Now if that is not scientific proof that lifting weights keeps you younger I don't know what is!

If you really want to have the best quality of life when you are older like me start lifting now and keep lifting the rest of your life. Once your bones start to deteriorate there is no getting back what you lost, only halting the process as much as possible.

really bugs me when people tell me this like im not already living it.

Culley34

Try doing something instead of Zumba. Run outside or give it a go with some weightlifting.

Also, you may want to start recording inches -- it's another way to track progress.

to me its unacceptable knowing what i have been doing and 2 months i dropped 25 pounds.. this isnt flying to well with me

Aquarian

to me its unacceptable knowing what i have been doing and 2 months i dropped 25 pounds.. this isnt flying to well with me

I feel for you. Try seeing a doctor and making sure everything is fine. Or, you could get help from a trainer or a dietitian. I feel that your particular situation needs to be professionally evaluated, so you will get some advice that will work for you.

krisha36

I have gone to my dr. Everything is good with what i am eating.. and excersing. he looked over my journal- so carbs- fiber fat and calorie intake are ok and also and for the one who said change workout and dont do zumba run instead. I cant run. not yet anyway- and outside. really i belong to a gym!
i think i am getting a trainer.. and i maybe i because i am stressed out at work its not helping. I will just go back to working out in the AM at 5a. and again at 9p see what happens in a few days

yoovie

I have gone to my dr. Everything is good with what i am eating.. and excersing. he looked over my journal- so carbs- fiber fat and calorie intake are ok and also and for the one who said change workout and dont do zumba run instead. I cant run. not yet anyway- and outside. really i belong to a gym!
i think i am getting a trainer.. and i maybe i because i am stressed out at work its not helping. I will just go back to working out in the AM at 5a. and again at 9p see what happens in a few days

is there a specific reason that you dont even want to talk about the weights half of working out?

krisha36

the scale has finally moved WOOHOO.. 3 more gone.. i am not 2 pounds shy of my 1st goal of 30.. maybe going back to the gym last night did it - ahh who knows. i am so so happy

Yoovie- i have been doing some weights for my arms. triceps. but i am not going to get crazy with that,
I have actually gotten a personal trainer.

kellicci

Who wants to bet her trainer suggests she lift some weights?

peuglow

the scale has finally moved WOOHOO.. 3 more gone.. i am not 2 pounds shy of my 1st goal of 30.. maybe going back to the gym last night did it - ahh who knows. i am so so happy

Yoovie- i have been doing some weights for my arms. triceps. but i am not going to get crazy with that,
I have actually gotten a personal trainer.

To be honest, you're probably doing yourself a huge disservice by NOT committing to some kind of lifting program.

yoovie

Who wants to bet her trainer suggests she lift some weights?

I bet $8,000,000.00

krisha36

i think i will listen to my dr.
what works for you people doesnt work for everyone else..
and yes there is a reason i dont want to use weights crazy i dont want to bulk up and look like a man... if u really needed to know

jacksonpt

i think i will listen to my dr.

Good. He knows you better than we do... this is never a bad idea.

what works for you people doesnt work for everyone else..

Actually it does. Our bodies are remarkably similar in how the respond ot diet and exercise.

and yes there is a reason i dont want to use weights crazy i dont want to bulk up and look like a man... if u really needed to know

You couldn't even if you wanted to. At least not without drugs.

krisha36

i think i will keep things to myself. i thought this site was to help out. it seems people think they are smarter then everyone else. i have seen to many women bulk up and without drugs. and i will not be one of them,,, i have been doing fine on my own for the last 2 months and losing 25 pounds. when u become a dr. then talk to me., i will not be asking anymore questions. and i will continue to do on my OWN

jacksonpt

i think i will keep things to myself. i thought this site was to help out. it seems people think they are smarter then everyone else. i have seen to many women bulk up and without drugs. and i will not be one of them,,, i have been doing fine on my own for the last 2 months and losing 25 pounds. when u become a dr. then talk to me., i will not be asking anymore questions. and i will continue to do on my OWN

So... you come here and ask a question, then complain because we (I) are "smarter than everyone else"? That makes sense.

Bulky is a relative term... what you consider bulky I may not. But the bottom line is you didn't say get bulky or bulk up, you said bulk up like a man. And I guaran-damn-tee you they didn't bulk up like a man without drugs.

Next time you ask a question, just tell us what you want to hear, we can post that, you'll be happy and we can all move on.

krisha36

there will be no more questions.. BS u do bulk up without drugs and i have seen it..

jacksonpt

there will be no more questions.. BS u do bulk up without drugs and i have seen it..

Not "like a man" you don't.