It doesnt seem to want to go!

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SweetE4308
SweetE4308 Posts: 4
in Introduce Yourself
I am becoming very discouraged with this weight loss process! I have been staying within my 1200 calorie goal and working out religiously (5-7 days a week). I have been watching what I eat, inclduing eating breadless sandwiches and making sure to get plenty of fruits and vegatables. I did initially lose 10 lbs but now, I am seeing no results! It is incredibly frustrating and disheartening. Does anyone have any suggestions? Anything that worked for them? I would still like to lose 15lbs before Vegas at the end of April... Thanks!

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  • aerobicgirl
    aerobicgirl Posts: 354 Member
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    lower your calories maybe.
  • mschelle
    mschelle Posts: 240 Member
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    As weird as it sounds, I would suggest you eat more. 1200 calories is the bare, bare minimum anyone should eat in a day. Otherwise your body goes into "starvation mode" and your metabolism slows down in order to preserve what it has.

    This paragraph (from this article: http://blogs.webmd.com/pamela-peeke-md/2009/07/stop-starving-yourselves.html) explains it:
    Although you may think it makes sense, eating very little over the long term does not help you shed pounds. Instead, it actually teaches your body how to hold onto your weight. You see, the body is hardwired to do whatever it takes to help you survive. When you drastically cut your calories, you will drop some weight. However, if you keep doing that, the body adapts and adjusts to what it considers to be life threatening starvation. Your body does not know whether you’re on a desert island with nothing to eat, or you’re sitting in an office in Manhattan deliberately starving yourself. It’s all the same to your biology. The end result is that the body becomes very efficient at burning the fuel it has (your fat) and eventually you’re not burning much at all and thus the thwarted efforts to drop weight.
  • debnu1
    debnu1 Posts: 1,568 Member
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    What are your net calories? Are you eating any exercise calories back? You need to eat at least half of them to avoid going into starvation mode...
  • BigdaddyJ
    BigdaddyJ Posts: 357
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    I'm no expert but I know that you dont wanna go under 1200 calories....maybe your not taking ENOUGH calories instead and you boddy beeing in starvation mode stores the fat instead of burning it....
  • bwaterbabe04
    bwaterbabe04 Posts: 1
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    it seems that you have hit a plateau. one day a week you should be up-ing your carbs by 500grams that day(i usually choose sunday), this speeds up your metabolism, because your body is in starvation mode and in need of more carbs. When you're not getting enough of them, or enough food in general, your metabolism will slow down. so whenever you hit a plateau just up your intake for that day, and then go back to normal and you are bound to see results! hope this helps :]]
  • rlshirk74
    rlshirk74 Posts: 8
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    Could be you're not eating enough calories. If you don't feed your body enough fuel, it will start "hoarding" what you do give it. Maybe try eating some of your workout calories.
  • chanell35
    chanell35 Posts: 10
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    Congratulations on losing 10lbs! That's something to be proud of. I'm not an expert in this area but I've experienced the same thing before. First make sure you're drinking enough water. Because you've lost 10lbs, you may need to reduce your calorie intake or recalculate your overall intake based on your new weight. It's helped me in the past. It also helps to change your workout routine to something different but equal activity level.
    Good luck!
  • ange_mechant
    ange_mechant Posts: 25
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    I totally understand where you're coming from! I've lost about 5 pounds (if you can call it that because 1/2 way through I started weighing without shoes because I was so discouraged I just wanted SOMETHING to report), and now I'm just stuck. It's been at least 2 weeks, but I think closer to 3 since I've lost anything and it's sooooooo frustrating. I have 1200 calories too, which I'm pretty good staying within and I'm doing the Jillian Michaels 30 day shred 7x a week and doing 30-60 minutes of cardio 5x a week. And drinking water and taking "fat burning" pills. I'm getting so very irritated and disheartened. Not sure what to do, so I'd appreciate any kind of advice too. All I've gotten so far is "drop your calorie intake", which just seems like I'd be starving and having less progress because my body would start storing everything even more. So, I guess any advice other than THAT would be appreciated. Thanks ladies.
  • tayner
    tayner Posts: 372
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    I agree with those who say eat more, just make sure it is more quality food. Your body needs food to function, and I dont know your stats, but I would think that if you are exercising as much as you say, and only eating 1200 calories, you are not getting enough food. Remember, MFP is already accounting for the deficit in calories BEFORE exercise, so if you are burning off 400 or 500 calories a day, or more, with exercise on top of the deficit MFP is already giving you then you could be placing yourself in starvation mode without even realizing it.

    Try eating half your exercise calories for a week... and if that doesnt work try eating them all back. Give your body at least a week, maybe even two, for each change you make before deciding if it works or not. It wont happen over night no matter what change you make.

    Plateaus happen, ive had many in this journey.. just shake it up and keep going, it will come off...
  • kristin1781
    kristin1781 Posts: 9 Member
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    You don't mention how long this has been going on for, but if this is more than just a short-term (1-2 weeks) sort of problem, you may want to make an appt with your doctor to review your diet and exercise habits. Like other posters have suggested, it could be that you aren't eating enough. It is doubtful that 1200 calories is too much. It is generally not medically recommended that you go below that, especially if you are exercising. There are a number of other medical factors that could be causing your body to hold onto weight, such as medications (even previous ones that you aren't currently taking) thyroid problems, or homonal problems. A simple round of blood tests should help address some of those concerns. Good luck, and congratulations on your weight loss so far. I know its easy to get discouraged, but try to remember to feel proud of yourself for all the effort you have made, and not just wait on the ultimate result to congratulate yourself :)
  • chrissyh
    chrissyh Posts: 8,235 Member
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    lower your calories maybe.

    No, No, no - don't go lower...are you eating more when you exercise? How long have you been at 1200? You may be way too low.
  • aerobicgirl
    aerobicgirl Posts: 354 Member
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    Congratulations on losing 10lbs! That's something to be proud of. I'm not an expert in this area but I've experienced the same thing before. First make sure you're drinking enough water. Because you've lost 10lbs, you may need to reduce your calorie intake or recalculate your overall intake based on your new weight. It's helped me in the past. It also helps to change your workout routine to something different but equal activity level.
    Good luck!


    that is very good advice
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,293 Member
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    I totally understand where you're coming from! I've lost about 5 pounds (if you can call it that because 1/2 way through I started weighing without shoes because I was so discouraged I just wanted SOMETHING to report), and now I'm just stuck. It's been at least 2 weeks, but I think closer to 3 since I've lost anything and it's sooooooo frustrating. I have 1200 calories too, which I'm pretty good staying within and I'm doing the Jillian Michaels 30 day shred 7x a week and doing 30-60 minutes of cardio 5x a week. And drinking water and taking "fat burning" pills. I'm getting so very irritated and disheartened. Not sure what to do, so I'd appreciate any kind of advice too. All I've gotten so far is "drop your calorie intake", which just seems like I'd be starving and having less progress because my body would start storing everything even more. So, I guess any advice other than THAT would be appreciated. Thanks ladies.

    Try eating more not less. You have to eat some of your exercise calories, preferably all of them. It appears you and the original poster may have gone into starvation mode and your body is trying its hardest to hold onto the weight you have.
  • SweetE4308
    SweetE4308 Posts: 4
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    Thank you all so much! I do try to eat my full 1200 but I dont eat back any of my exercise calories. However, my calories consist of healthy foods such as granola bars, turkey and cheese roll ups(in replace of bread), an apple and an orange a day etc. I could probably stand to eat a few more claories at night because that is when I go the longest without. I try to have a small low calorie snack every two hours or so and good lunches. Breakfast is fruit and dinner is something simple after the gym (such as spinach and chicken salad with low cal dressing). I am not on any meds but it has been like this for about two weeks now. I appreciate all of the feedback!! I think I will try for a little higher intake of calories while keeping it healthy. I definately don't want to end up in starvation mode and I would love to reach my goal by Vegas! Thanks so much and keep them coming if you ave more!
  • sweetteacher123
    sweetteacher123 Posts: 178
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    You've hit a plateau, which is VERY common in weight loss! Do not decrease your calories! Do not! Keep going on what MFP sets for you. Maybe reset your profile with your ten pound weight loss. This may help. Something else that sometimes helps is an exercise shock to your system. Have you been doing the same workouts for some time? Try running, or lifting weights, or interval training. Maybe just run/walk faster instead of longer. The body is expert at adapting. It has adapted to what you've been doing. You need to change! But that change should not be cutting more calories.
  • annastasia76
    annastasia76 Posts: 123 Member
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    another thing (I'm not sure if i'm the only one who does this) I tend to stay the same weight for a month then all of a sudden one day it will show a 5lb loss, then I will stay that weight for a whole month, then again it will drop 5lbs.

    Does anybody else do this, maybe I should start another thread

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