eating right, exercising...and little to no weight loss?

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  • cedarghost
    cedarghost Posts: 621 Member
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    Took a look at your diary and I see a couple of problems. They aren't with food. I don't care what you eat as long as you eat at a deficit and hopefully get enough protein.
    What I do see is that you haven't been logging very long or at least not consistently. So my first piece of advice is log everything. All the time. Period. Looks like you have been doing a good job at that, so keep it up.
    The second thing I see is that your calories are all over the place. Back in November, especially, it looks like you were extremely low cal. You have been second-guessing your weight loss and moving your calories up and down trying to start losing. You're getting discouraged instead of thinking rationally. STOP....
    Here's what you need to do. Find a good TDEE calculator and figure your BMR and TDEE and eat between those numbers for AT LEAST a month. Consistently. Don't drop your calories because you are not losing.
    In fact, if you were eating very low calorie for longer than what I saw in your diary, I would recommend eating at TDEE for 2 weeks to a month to reset your metabolism and hormone levels, before you start eating at a deficit again.
    You can over-think this all you want, worrying about sodium, potassium, what counts as water, what doesn't, etc. etc. Go ahead and complicate this if you want but the bottom line is that if you eat below your TDEE, you will lose. That's where I would start.
    Be consistent. Be honest. Be successful.

    Here is a link to a decent calculator: http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/
    I'll just go on and tell you, you are NOT sedentary, so don't set your activity level as "Sedentary" hoping to make sure you lose weight. Most people are not sedentary.
  • improvninja
    improvninja Posts: 19 Member
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    Took a look at your diary and I see a couple of problems. They aren't with food. I don't care what you eat as long as you eat at a deficit and hopefully get enough protein.
    What I do see is that you haven't been logging very long or at least not consistently. So my first piece of advice is log everything. All the time. Period. Looks like you have been doing a good job at that, so keep it up.
    The second thing I see is that your calories are all over the place. Back in November, especially, it looks like you were extremely low cal. You have been second-guessing your weight loss and moving your calories up and down trying to start losing. You're getting discouraged instead of thinking rationally. STOP....
    Here's what you need to do. Find a good TDEE calculator and figure your BMR and TDEE and eat between those numbers for AT LEAST a month. Consistently. Don't drop your calories because you are not losing.
    In fact, if you were eating very low calorie for longer than what I saw in your diary, I would recommend eating at TDEE for 2 weeks to a month to reset your metabolism and hormone levels, before you start eating at a deficit again.
    You can over-think this all you want, worrying about sodium, potassium, what counts as water, what doesn't, etc. etc. Go ahead and complicate this if you want but the bottom line is that if you eat below your TDEE, you will lose. That's where I would start.
    Be consistent. Be honest. Be successful.

    Here is a link to a decent calculator: http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/
    I'll just go on and tell you, you are NOT sedentary, so don't set your activity level as "Sedentary" hoping to make sure you lose weight. Most people are not sedentary.

    The truth is I haven't been logging very long. I signed up for MFP a while ago. But, December 1st is when I really started. So my diary reflecting from that date is the most accurate account of my "trying". I will check out that calculator you sent and attempt the reset. Do you think I am not eating enough?
  • jsuaccounting
    jsuaccounting Posts: 193 Member
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    One of the things to remember is as you start a new exercise program and especially Insanity, Your body holds onto water to both keep you hydrated and to repair the micro tears in your muscles. Keep with it and make sure you eat some protein within 30 mins of finishing exercising to help rebuild the muscles.

    Excellent point... Water is heavy. When I feel sore, I ignore the few extra pounds until they disapear in a day or so.
  • cedarghost
    cedarghost Posts: 621 Member
    Options
    Took a look at your diary and I see a couple of problems. They aren't with food. I don't care what you eat as long as you eat at a deficit and hopefully get enough protein.
    What I do see is that you haven't been logging very long or at least not consistently. So my first piece of advice is log everything. All the time. Period. Looks like you have been doing a good job at that, so keep it up.
    The second thing I see is that your calories are all over the place. Back in November, especially, it looks like you were extremely low cal. You have been second-guessing your weight loss and moving your calories up and down trying to start losing. You're getting discouraged instead of thinking rationally. STOP....
    Here's what you need to do. Find a good TDEE calculator and figure your BMR and TDEE and eat between those numbers for AT LEAST a month. Consistently. Don't drop your calories because you are not losing.
    In fact, if you were eating very low calorie for longer than what I saw in your diary, I would recommend eating at TDEE for 2 weeks to a month to reset your metabolism and hormone levels, before you start eating at a deficit again.
    You can over-think this all you want, worrying about sodium, potassium, what counts as water, what doesn't, etc. etc. Go ahead and complicate this if you want but the bottom line is that if you eat below your TDEE, you will lose. That's where I would start.
    Be consistent. Be honest. Be successful.

    Here is a link to a decent calculator: http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/
    I'll just go on and tell you, you are NOT sedentary, so don't set your activity level as "Sedentary" hoping to make sure you lose weight. Most people are not sedentary.

    The truth is I haven't been logging very long. I signed up for MFP a while ago. But, December 1st is when I really started. So my diary reflecting from that date is the most accurate account of my "trying". I will check out that calculator you sent and attempt the reset. Do you think I am not eating enough?
    I don't know your stats, so I couldn't tell you. But I do know you aren't consistently eating the same amount. You're doing a good job of logging now. Keep at it. If you log EVERYTHING, you will be able to look back and KNOW if you are eating too much or too little. The calculator just gives you a good starting point and it tends to be fairly accurate for most people.
    If you will post your height, weight and age, I can tell you what the calculator says you should be eating. You may vary slightly from that, but it should be pretty close.
    I forgot to mention.....Make sure to measure and take progress pics as well. Never rely on just the scale to show progress. It has it's place, but it is only one of several good tools you can use to measure progress.
  • cedarghost
    cedarghost Posts: 621 Member
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    Keep with it and make sure you eat some protein within 30 mins of finishing exercising to help rebuild the muscles.
    The whole "protein within 30 minutes thing" has pretty much been debunked.
  • supersmashl3y
    supersmashl3y Posts: 2 Member
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    I think a better indicator of your progress would be checking your body fat %. You can get a pretty cheap manual fat caliper on amazon. You may have gained muscle and lost fat, but that won't necessarily be reflected in your weight.
  • michellekicks
    michellekicks Posts: 3,624 Member
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    The food scale is the most important tool for weight loss IMHO... and patience.
  • elisa123gal
    elisa123gal Posts: 4,306 Member
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    it is the shock to your body..exercise and diet all at once.. exercise will make you gain temporarily. You'll weigh heavier for a few weeks to a month. I read this an an article long ago. I have lost more steady and easily without exercising and eating at a deficit than when i exercise and diet at the same time. However...we all know that exercise makes us LOOK BETTER...even though the scale might not reflect a loss. Have to get your head right about it all. lol.
  • cedarghost
    cedarghost Posts: 621 Member
    Options
    I think a better indicator of your progress would be checking your body fat %. You can get a pretty cheap manual fat caliper on amazon. You may have gained muscle and lost fat, but that won't necessarily be reflected in your weight.
    Good point ^^^^^ I forgot to mention that as well. This another good measurement tool besides the scale.
    But again, I can't stress enough, that until you get your diet consistent you will just be running in circles.
  • improvninja
    improvninja Posts: 19 Member
    Options
    Took a look at your diary and I see a couple of problems. They aren't with food. I don't care what you eat as long as you eat at a deficit and hopefully get enough protein.
    What I do see is that you haven't been logging very long or at least not consistently. So my first piece of advice is log everything. All the time. Period. Looks like you have been doing a good job at that, so keep it up.
    The second thing I see is that your calories are all over the place. Back in November, especially, it looks like you were extremely low cal. You have been second-guessing your weight loss and moving your calories up and down trying to start losing. You're getting discouraged instead of thinking rationally. STOP....
    Here's what you need to do. Find a good TDEE calculator and figure your BMR and TDEE and eat between those numbers for AT LEAST a month. Consistently. Don't drop your calories because you are not losing.
    In fact, if you were eating very low calorie for longer than what I saw in your diary, I would recommend eating at TDEE for 2 weeks to a month to reset your metabolism and hormone levels, before you start eating at a deficit again.
    You can over-think this all you want, worrying about sodium, potassium, what counts as water, what doesn't, etc. etc. Go ahead and complicate this if you want but the bottom line is that if you eat below your TDEE, you will lose. That's where I would start.
    Be consistent. Be honest. Be successful.

    Here is a link to a decent calculator: http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/
    I'll just go on and tell you, you are NOT sedentary, so don't set your activity level as "Sedentary" hoping to make sure you lose weight. Most people are not sedentary.

    The truth is I haven't been logging very long. I signed up for MFP a while ago. But, December 1st is when I really started. So my diary reflecting from that date is the most accurate account of my "trying". I will check out that calculator you sent and attempt the reset. Do you think I am not eating enough?
    I don't know your stats, so I couldn't tell you. But I do know you aren't consistently eating the same amount. You're doing a good job of logging now. Keep at it. If you log EVERYTHING, you will be able to look back and KNOW if you are eating too much or too little. The calculator just gives you a good starting point and it tends to be fairly accurate for most people.
    If you will post your height, weight and age, I can tell you what the calculator says you should be eating. You may vary slightly from that, but it should be pretty close.
    I forgot to mention.....Make sure to measure and take progress pics as well. Never rely on just the scale to show progress. It has it's place, but it is only one of several good tools you can use to measure progress.


    Thank you
  • cedarghost
    cedarghost Posts: 621 Member
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    You're welcome. If you have any questions or doubts, just shoot me a pm.
  • gretchenwb
    gretchenwb Posts: 70 Member
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    I used this after Jan to March eating way below TDEE and feeling awful and not losing anything. I use it now frequently.

    spreadsheet-bmr-tdee-deficit-macro-calcs-hrm-zones">http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/813720-spreadsheet-bmr-tdee-deficit-macro-calcs-hrm-zones
  • Dakryn
    Dakryn Posts: 155 Member
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    Thanks for correcting me in a nice way, I've seen some people on this website as others who are not so... And now that I read your comment, I see that you were right :)

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