getting a little discourage

I been going 3 weeks now following the MFP plan to lose a pound a week. Which for me is to eat a minimum of 1350 and burn 160 a day for 5 days. But I do more I do 300 calories a day for 5 days. I see no results. If I'm doing correctly for 3 weeks I wouldve lost 3lbs by now, and the only thing I'm seeing is my legs and arms are getting a bit toner but the fat is still there. No I dont weight myself because I dont think the scale is accurate. I just need to know if I'm doing this right. please help thank you!

Oh and as far as eating goes, I dont eat the most healthy i admit, but I dont eat complete crap either. I have cut out a lot of junk and drink maybe one glass of diet soda every now and then but thats it. And I still keep eating to only about 1350 maybe sometimes less.

Replies

  • lin7604
    lin7604 Posts: 2,951 Member
    you have to give it more time, you body is adjusting to a big change. I didn't see the scale move or inches or anything till around 2-3 months....
  • damn that sucks, life would be so much better if only we could lose weight a tad faster lol
  • ericadawn92
    ericadawn92 Posts: 346 Member
    Yes give it time! Right before Thanksgiving I was feeling like I hadn't seen any change in my appearance or how my clothes fit, even though I had lost quite a bit of weight, but then after Thanksgiving it's changed a lot! Bodies are weird :)

    Also, if you're not using the scale, how do you know you haven't lost 3 pounds? You might have lost 3 but just haven't been able to 'see' it yet!
  • melodymedlin
    melodymedlin Posts: 254 Member
    Don't get discouraged. It took me about a month to notice a difference and then it was just a small difference; no one else could tell but me. While I haven't lost a lot of weight I've toned up some and thus have lost about 17 inches. :) keep up the good work i'm sure you'll see a change soon.
  • thats true, I need to get myself a scale then lol..but thanks for the tips. it just sucks when you work so hard and barely see anything changing lol
  • portwein
    portwein Posts: 29 Member
    Hang in there, all of us have been there. Are you eating your exercise calories back into your daily diet? Eating back my exercise calories slowed my progress, worked for me but everyone is different.
  • lilpoindexter
    lilpoindexter Posts: 1,122 Member
    How do you know how much you've lost, if you don't weigh yourself?
  • well I try to only eat when I'm hungry, so I'm hungry i'll eat back the calories I burned, but mostly I dont cuz eating 1350 calories is enough for me
  • foleyshirley
    foleyshirley Posts: 1,043 Member
    What exactly do you expect to see in 3 weeks?
  • Erikalynne18
    Erikalynne18 Posts: 558 Member
    Mid-Sept I made a decision to eat healthier. I work in fast food so this was a pretty big change for my body and it reacted well! Lost 9 lbs over 2 months, however this slowed and then I saw no drop...

    So I joined MFP. I'll be a member for a month on Saturday. Like you, I saw no change in my scale and got discouraged and was wondering why nothing was happening since I was eating WAY better than before and excercising! :grumble:

    But.... DON'T GIVE UP!!! Finally this week my body has said "okay" and the scale has dropped!! Noticed last week that I was down 1.5 lbs from previous checkin. Then I kept weighting myself, down another 1/2 lbs one morning and this morning I swear another 1 lbs was gone!

    So my advice, STICK TO IT! :D Progress takes patience :happy:

    Add me as a friend if you want to encourage each other! :)
  • robin52077
    robin52077 Posts: 4,383 Member
    the small print on this Kindle made me read that title as "getting a little discharge"

    I came in here to say "go see your doctor."
  • Duck_Puddle
    Duck_Puddle Posts: 3,237 Member
    Ok-so what do you think 3 lbs looks like? I have lost 75 and I don't "see" a difference (others claim they do....). You could have lost 0 or 20-if you need to "see" something, you really need to invest in a scale. Otherwise, be patient-keep making good choices and it'll happen.
  • Calantorntain
    Calantorntain Posts: 172 Member
    Think of it like a role of paper towels. When you have a fresh role, and you take off 10 sheets, can you see much difference? NO! But you slowly keep tearing them off... and eventually, 10 sheets makes a huge difference!
  • thanks everyone and i like the toilet paper reference. lol

    and i know 3lbs isnt much but I've seen people who lost 3-4lbs and it looks a huge different on them, i was hoping for that too but I guess i was just wishful thinking lol
  • itstimetoeat
    itstimetoeat Posts: 63 Member
    I'm feeling extremely discouraged too and I've lost a good amount but really cannot feel it. I made drastic changes. All I can suggest is, no matter how discouraged u feel, do not let it over come u. I'm struggling with my plateau right now. Try to make some little changes here and there like choosing better food alternatives. Try to avoid white foods and sauces or dressing. Carbs are ok but cut back where u can. Fiber and protein! Eat those instead. I never use to lose weight EVER but I was super strict on myself and stayed consistent. Lost 2 lbs each wk consistently until the last month.
  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
    How tall?
    how old?
    how much do you weigh?
    gender?
  • jzammetti
    jzammetti Posts: 1,956 Member
    maybe you are not eating enough?
  • lucyricky2
    lucyricky2 Posts: 450 Member
    what are you monitoring? I do calories, carbs,fiber,sugar(to me very important),sodium(important too) and fats. I don't do protein cause I know i get enough. drinking your water is very important too. sometimes you don't lose and then all of a sudden it comes off.don't get discouraged. the weight will come off.
  • Retiredmom72
    Retiredmom72 Posts: 538 Member
    Couple of questions--
    1. You joined in October and this is December, but you wrote you have been doing mfp for 3 weeks. Did something happen a couple of weeks?
    2. Are you eating back your exercise calories?

    To look like a big difference, a 3 pound loss doesn't usually show on most people.

    Good luck.
  • Florawanda
    Florawanda Posts: 283 Member
    There will be times when you get discouraged as the scale does not seem to move, though often other things change, like your measurements - well worth measuring once a week, and keeping the records. I do this, and I reckon one or two of the 8 points I measure go down slightly every month - and certainly the clothes I wear are getting looser!
    But if it does not budge for a while (and I have been playing with the same 3 or 4 lbs for a couple of months) review whether you are being over-generous with portions... I invested in a good kitchen scale, and weighed eg the baked potato, so now I have a better idea of what a 5 oz potato looks like! But I certainly don't weigh every single thing, just do enough to ensure I am reasonably accurate when I enter the food diary.
    Also, maybe you are being overgenerous with the calories you are apparently burning when you exercise. MFP cals are more than the gym machines register me at, and some of my MFP friends have magic machines which measure their daily steps, etc.
    And if it still does not seem to budge, hang on in there... it may be your body adjusting, the muscle you are building. At those times, I cling on to the weight I have already lost, and the NSV's (non-scale victories) that show I have lost, like my rings getting looser, feeling bones on my face that have been covered with fat layers (and I love the paper towel analogy), that I can cross my legs and get my tights on so much more easily!

    Good luck!
  • im 17 female weight 140 5'2'and to answer ur question i did join in october but kept doing bad on and off but now i decided to start over and get serious
  • When Losing weight your body goes through a strange process and it can be different for everyone. First you should know that fat is the lightest part of your body. Bones and muscle are heavier. If you have an even mix of cardio and strength ( weight training) you may actually see yourself gain weight because you are building more muscle. I think if you want to focus on true weight loss put 90% of your exercise in to cardio to burn fat.
  • ihateroses
    ihateroses Posts: 893 Member
    im 17 female weight 140 5'2'and to answer ur question i did join in october but kept doing bad on and off but now i decided to start over and get serious

    You are aware this site is 18+ right?

    And buy a scale.
  • lin7604
    lin7604 Posts: 2,951 Member
    im 17 female weight 140 5'2'and to answer ur question i did join in october but kept doing bad on and off but now i decided to start over and get serious

    i am also 5.2 ft and i started at 142 Last October. I am currently 120. like i said before it is slow, especially when you are short and not a whole bunch to lose like us.... I am so glad i stuck with it and i have lost what i have. sure it would of been nice to lose more faster and hit my goal quicker but regardless, i am where i am from not giving up :) I have my ups and down and i hit stall all the time, i just finished a 2.5 month stall... i hope i am finally out of that.
  • junodog1
    junodog1 Posts: 4,792 Member
    Since July I have lost 30 pounds and am over halfway to my goal weight. In the mirror I can't see a difference but I have to hold my pants up with safety pins. (I sure as heck didn't see 3 lbs ) Take it easy.