Not dropping pounds? :(

karirenae

I have been using my elliptical at least 5 times a week, on the interval setting, as well as using mfp. I have been close, sometimes a little over my 1200 mark, and for the first week, I dropped like 7 lbs. Now all of a sudden, I went UP two pounds I dont get it, I am not overestimating, in fact, I underestimate exercise and overestimate food intake (nothing huge, just enough that I know im actually safe)
Anyone had this issue but still lost maybe inches? Or start losing weight again?

quirkytizzy

I lost five pounds the first two weeks and lost two inches., Put on a couple of pounds the second week and still lost another inch. The scale fluctuates day to day - all kinds of things can influence it. It's not always actual weight gain. I focus on the inches when the scale isn't budging.

lenniebus

There have been weeks when I haven't lost, and there are some weeks when I've lost more than I should...it does seem to balance out though. I try to see the scale as one guide I have that I'm on the right track, but the most important to me is the way I look and feel. On the weeks that the scale isn't my friend, I try to remember that I've been doing the right things, and that I'm feeling better .

karirenae

Awesome, that makes me feel SO much better, I am on this obsession of checking the scale EVERY morning, then I get discouraged when it's been going down, then suddenly keeps goin up

Capt_Apollo

if you are exercising that much, you are probably not eating enough. ever thought about eating back your exercise calories? a protein smoothie, made from OJ, some frozen fruit, and vanilla protein powder, can be very beneficial post-work out.

kr1stadee

Are your muscles sore?
How long did it take you to lose the 7lbs?
Have you eaten anything higher in sodium lately?
What time of day did you weigh in, and was there anything in you? (Water, food, pee?)

I'd assume the 2 pounds up is from water retention. Drink lots of water, it should help. Are you eating back your exercise calories (or half)?

Keep at it, you may not see a loss every single time you get on the scale, but it will come!!

jellybeanhed313

You are probably not eating enough calories. Are you eating back your exercise calories? You want to look at your net calories (calories eaten - exercise calories = net calories) If you are aiming for 1200, then that should be the lowest your net calories get. Honestly if you are working out 5 days a week, you should probably be eating more than 1200 cal.

DebraAukett

Do you eat your exercise calories?
Monthlies perhaps?

cararickel

My weight has gone up due to salt content before. After drinking water and eating clean for a day or two, it went right back down. When you're seeing that rapid a fluctuation -- either up or down -- it is often due to something else other than true weight (fat) loss. If you think about it, eating 1200 calories and working out hard can't turn into a true 7 pound loss in one week--that would be a 3500 calorie defict every day! Don't take a daily weigh in too seriously--weigh once a week (same time, same conditions)--and go from there. That way you won't be discouraged by these temporary ups and downs and see a steadier loss.

karirenae

I actually do eat all my calories back, I usually only use the amount of calories burned on MFP instead of my machine, because my machine says I burn approx 525 calories per 30 minutes, so I dont want to eat back all those calories if it's wrong.

kristen6022

Weight loss isn't linear and you'll need much more than 2 weeks to determine if your new workout/food lifestyle is working for you. Keep up the good work and after a month if you still not losing, it's time to change things up.

1200 calories might not be enough for you, but it's too early to tell! Keep up the good work and be patient. Great things come to people who wait!

karirenae

MY net calories consumed is usually around the 1200-1500 mark. I try to zig zag so I dont go into starvation mode... IDK maybe im not doing it right

Articeluvsmemphis

yeah. the first week or two you'll lose quickly, then i gained then started losing again. it happens, nothings wrong. what worked for me is just having a nice variety of food and workouts. i never stuck to one calorie goal, i ate how i felt for the day so i always eat within a several hundred calorie range

Shannon2714

Sounds to me like you're not eating near enough calories, especially if you are exercising that much.

Go to: www.fitnessfrog.com/calculators/tdee-calculator.html and figure out your TDEE, to lose weight you should eat between 20%-25% of your TDEE.

I was eating 1200 calories and hardly lost a thing. I bumped up to 1500 and started losing steadily immediately.

crimsoncat

Elliptical bunny here. I've spent over an hour on one an gained weight. Why? I drink lots of water and it's a pretty hardcore work out. You're tearing down lots of muscles, so you're bound to get some water retention while your body repairs itself. I found that if stop the elliptical for 2-4 days, I drop weight like crazy as my body has a chance to heal.

When you work out like that, you really need to go by measurements or how loose your clothing is because you will retain water a ton.

It's totally normal. No worries.

Capt_Apollo

i think that you are eating way too little at 1200 calories.

http://www.quickbmr.com/what-is-tdee.html

go here to find out your tdee (total daily energy expenditure) and that'll help you find your BMR (basal metobolic rate). BMR is what you would need to consume, at MINIMUM, if your body were just laying in bed all day.

you should be eating in between you TDEE and BMR. unfortunatly some people get confused and eat below their BMR, which causes their weight loose to suffer.

cbk93

When working out, you have to focus more on inches lost, rather than weight. When I began running, I put on 5 lbs, but I was wearing clothes I hadn't worn in a long time. I try to stay off the scales. If my clothes get tight, I know I need to be concerned!

karirenae

2429 is my TDEE
Im TERRIBLE with formulas, calculations, etc...
What numbe SHOULD I be eating to lose 2lbs a week?
or what number should I NET after exercising?

vadarvs

You should only weigh yourself once a week, it's more realistic than expecting everyday results. As others have said, there are many factors that will fluctuate your daily weight, such as the amount of sodium you are eating in your foods, water retention, etc. On your weekly weigh in, make sure it's the same time each time, preferrably first thing in the morning.

My goal is to lose so I try not to eat back the calories I've burned from exercise. There are days when I'm hungrier than others, so I don't starve myself but I try not to eat them back. Also, in my experience MFP doesn't give an accurate calorie burn for exercises. I started using a heart rate monitor to track my calories and I LOVE it!

Keep trying different things until you figure out what works for you. Good luck!

Capt_Apollo

2429 is my TDEE
Im TERRIBLE with formulas, calculations, etc...
What numbe SHOULD I be eating to lose 2lbs a week?
or what number should I NET after exercising?

i wish i could give you a magic number, but i can't.

find your BMR. try not to ever eat less then that. ever ever ever.

find your TDEE at lightly active. that should be roughly your daily consumption on a non-exercise day. feel free to add in your exercise calories and eat those back too.

Shannon2714

2429 is my TDEE
Im TERRIBLE with formulas, calculations, etc...
What numbe SHOULD I be eating to lose 2lbs a week?
or what number should I NET after exercising?

25% puts you at about 1800 and 20% puts you at a little over 1900. Now, mine is about the same but I only eat around 1500. I think, in my opinion, with as much as you work out you should try bumping up to 1500-1600 for a couple of weeks and see what happens. Try to only weight once or twice a week at most and take measurements every two weeks....

now_or_never12

I would suggest not weighing yourself after exercise (or the day after). I never do because it always seems like I go up. I weight once a week on Monday's as Sunday is my rest day.

Unfortunately no matter what we do our weight will not always go down.

How much weight are you trying to lose? 2lbs a week may be too high of a goal to strive for. Depending on how much you have to lose you need a smaller deficit. If your ticker is right you only have 20lbs left you want to lose ... if that is the case it's best to have your goal set at no higher than 1lb per week.