One month increased calories to TDEE no weight loss

princesselle1

Hi guys,

So this is the story! I started my weight loss journey in September 2012 it went really well at first I ate 1200 calories and I lost 12 lbs in 2 months! Since then i haven't lost anything! So last month I was advised to increase my calories to my TDEE! So I did which gave me 1570 calories to eat.

I do not go to the gym so my exercise had been 30 DS which I didn't lose anything from but felt better inside after I finished it!

It's been one month and I haven't lost anything! It's just getting so frustrating and depressing why I am not losing weight! There has to be something!

I am desperate to lose weight!

Please someone advise what to do!

__RANDY__

patience

freelancejouster

I have a few different mentions: First - what are your statistics? (age, weight, height, and activity level) Someone can help you clarify things that way.

Second, typically your TDEE is maintenance. Most people advise eating 20% less than it.

Third, occasionally when changing around your diet it takes a month and a half or so to see results.

Fourth, have you been ingesting too much sodium? Not enough water? Staying within your macros? All these things can screw with weight loss.

amberlykay1014

If you are eating your TDEE you will not lose weight. TDEE is what you eat to stay at maintenance. Try eating -10% or -20% TDEE.

Have you figured out your BMR too? This is the minimum amount of calories you should be eating so your body can function normally. It's advised you shouldn't ever eat below this number.

For most calculators, the difference between TDEE - 20% and MFP's suggestions + your exercise calories are pretty similar, so just compare your numbers. For me, MFP came out to be way too few calories for me.

For example, I'm 5'4" and 136lbs. My BMR is 1362. At lightly active, my TDEE is around 2100. I usually eat around 1900 calories.

I hope this was helpful to you. Once you choose a plan, stick with it for at least a month to see if it works for you. Have patience. Most people don't start losing right away when they eat close to TDEE.

curlygirly80

Is 1570 your Tdee or BMR? That # seems a little low for TDEE but more like a BMR #. Have you run your #s thru Scooby's calculators to get yor #s?

Geeky_Girl

Also, I have read other people posting similar stories and it seems that this strategy doesn't work for everyone. I'm currently doing TDEE-20%, and it's working for me, but, again, I've heard of people following that formula for 6 months or better and gained. Typically, I think, you should give a new program 6-8 weeks to see if it works for you.

Just my opinion now.

KarenJanine

Is 1570 your Tdee or BMR? That # seems a little low for TDEE but more like a BMR #. Have you run your #s thru Scooby's calculators to get yor #s?

This.

1570 is very low for TDEE unless you are very small and light and completely sedentary, I think it is more likely to be your BMR.

You also say you are EATING 1570. Is this your total intake or your net? I.e. are you eating back your exercise cals?

princesselle1

I have deducted 20% off which gave me 1570.

I am 5ft 2in tall weight 143lbs goal weight 120lbs!

Macros- 40/35/25 p/c/f

BflSaberfan

When I put your stats into the calculator and allowing for 20% reduction 3-5 hours of moderate exercise I got 1756

ndj1979

You have to find what works for you. Just because someone else does Tdee - whatever does not mean it will work for you...although, it is true that it takes about 4-6 weeks for your body to adapt to any change.

If 1200 worked for you, maybe you should go back to it....

Do you lift weights? If no, why not?

ILiftHeavyAcrylics

Make sure you are weighing everything you eat. No eyeballing, no "free" foods, the only thing measured by volume should be free-pouring liquids.

I see a lot of "generic" entries in your diary. Enter your own recipes. That's the only way to be accurate.

I suspect you're underestimating your calories.

healthyKYgirl

You are close to your goal. So try TDEE*0.9=1770 (for lightly active with your DVD workouts).

Also, you aren't eating even the 1570 each day. You are still eating less then that even on exercise days.

princesselle1

I went into fitness frog and I tapped onto light exercise as I only do fitness dvd's. it gave me 1967 minus 20% 1577.

lin7604

I have deducted 20% off which gave me 1570.

I am 5ft 2in tall weight 143lbs goal weight 120lbs!

Macros- 40/35/25 p/c/f

TRUST me it is a slow process !!! I am also 5.2 ft and started at 142 lbs, it took me a whole year to lose 20 lbs! I started at 1200 too and i lost 0.5 ls-1.5 max a month, even when i upped my cals a few months later to 1400 i still only lost 0.5-1.5 a month MAX! i have NEVER lost any more. I hit many plateaus... at 1st i started off with just diet and hten 2 months later did 30 ds. then 2 months after that rin30 and then did 30ds again 4 months later and rin30 again right after. I then finally hit my goal 1 year to the date pretty much. I always ate my exercise cals back, so on exercise days i was eating up to 1650 cals. with out exercise 1350-1400. it's a very slow process but you will get there in time, don't worry... just keep at it! i am not trying to maintain and just seem to bounce up and down the same 3-4 lbs.

princesselle1

I have deducted 20% off which gave me 1570.

I am 5ft 2in tall weight 143lbs goal weight 120lbs!

Macros- 40/35/25 p/c/f

TRUST me it is a slow process !!! I am also 5.2 ft and started at 142 lbs, it took me a whole year to lose 20 lbs! I started at 1200 too and i lost 0.5 ls-1.5 max a month, even when i upped my cals a few months later to 1400 i still only lost 0.5-1.5 a month MAX! i have NEVER lost any more. I hit many plateaus... at 1st i started off with just diet and hten 2 months later did 30 ds. then 2 months after that rin30 and then did 30ds again 4 months later and rin30 again right after. I then finally hit my goal 1 year to the date pretty much. I always ate my exercise cals back, so on exercise days i was eating up to 1650 cals. with out exercise 1350-1400. it's a very slow process but you will get there in time, don't worry... just keep at it! i am not trying to maintain and just seem to bounce up and down the same 3-4 lbs.

Yes!!!! Oh my god I have just finished 30Ds and I am going to start ripped in 30 today! Feel so stressed. So do I eat back exercise calories the day I exercise? I thought that was calculated within the TDEE!

lin7604

ya it's calculated in your tdee but you might want to only do a -15% cut. too big of a deficit for us short people sometimes back fires on us. I haven't done tdee, only base cals and then exercise cals. The tdee thing confused me too much b/c i don't exercise daily.

freelancejouster

Most people eat about half their excercise calories back because they don't want to net too low.

MsPudding

One thing that struck me going through your diary is that you aren't actually eating 1,570 a day anyway. I've gone back to Saturday 16th February and could only see 1-2 days in all of that time that you've hit 1,570.

On top of that, when I've gone back before Saturday 16th Feb I'm seeing this:

15th Feb
Totals 903
princesselle1's Daily Goal 2,400

14th Feb
Totals 920
princesselle1's Daily Goal 1,817

12th Feb
Totals 606
princesselle1's Daily Goal 1,981

11th Feb
Totals 891
princesselle1's Daily Goal 1,817


I've gone back to 1st Feb in your diary - so the month that you say you've been eating at 1,570 and in fact on a load of days you've been eating under 1,000.

ILiftHeavyAcrylics

One thing that struck me going through your diary is that you aren't actually eating 1,570 a day anyway. I've gone back to Saturday 16th February and could only see 1-2 days in all of that time that you've hit 1,570.

On top of that, when I've gone back before Saturday 16th Feb I'm seeing this:

15th Feb
Totals 903
princesselle1's Daily Goal 2,400

14th Feb
Totals 920
princesselle1's Daily Goal 1,817

12th Feb
Totals 606
princesselle1's Daily Goal 1,981

11th Feb
Totals 891
princesselle1's Daily Goal 1,817


I've gone back to 1st Feb in your diary - so the month that you say you've been eating at 1,570 and in fact on a load of days you've been eating under 1,000.

This is a problem too. Definitely eat up to your goal. Do that consistently for a month and then re-evaluate.

ILiftHeavyAcrylics

I have deducted 20% off which gave me 1570.

I am 5ft 2in tall weight 143lbs goal weight 120lbs!

Macros- 40/35/25 p/c/f

TRUST me it is a slow process !!! I am also 5.2 ft and started at 142 lbs, it took me a whole year to lose 20 lbs! I started at 1200 too and i lost 0.5 ls-1.5 max a month, even when i upped my cals a few months later to 1400 i still only lost 0.5-1.5 a month MAX! i have NEVER lost any more. I hit many plateaus... at 1st i started off with just diet and hten 2 months later did 30 ds. then 2 months after that rin30 and then did 30ds again 4 months later and rin30 again right after. I then finally hit my goal 1 year to the date pretty much. I always ate my exercise cals back, so on exercise days i was eating up to 1650 cals. with out exercise 1350-1400. it's a very slow process but you will get there in time, don't worry... just keep at it! i am not trying to maintain and just seem to bounce up and down the same 3-4 lbs.

Yes!!!! Oh my god I have just finished 30Ds and I am going to start ripped in 30 today! Feel so stressed. So do I eat back exercise calories the day I exercise? I thought that was calculated within the TDEE!

If you calculated exercise into your TDEE then you don't eat them back.

lin7604

very good point, i never even check her diary... that is WAY too LOW!!!! min 1200 NET!

WendyTerry420

Make sure you are weighing everything you eat. No eyeballing, no "free" foods, the only thing measured by volume should be free-pouring liquids.

I see a lot of "generic" entries in your diary. Enter your own recipes. That's the only way to be accurate.

I suspect you're underestimating your calories.

I agree with Amber. You don't appear to be logging as accurately as you should be. Before changing your calories, make sure how many calories you are truly eating,

neandermagnon

Also, I have read other people posting similar stories and it seems that this strategy doesn't work for everyone. I'm currently doing TDEE-20%, and it's working for me, but, again, I've heard of people following that formula for 6 months or better and gained. Typically, I think, you should give a new program 6-8 weeks to see if it works for you.

Just my opinion now.

If they gained weight the either:

a) they miscalculated their TDEE, the usual reason for that is overestimating their activity factor. Occasionally medical issues like hypothyroid can slow the metabolism enough that the BMR calculation to be incorrect by a significant margain.

or

b) they were not tracking their calories carefully, and were actually eating more than they thought they were. Inaccurate measurements can mean someone can be eating 20-30% (or greater) more or less than they actually are. If someone thinks they're eating TDEE - 20%, but they're underestimating their food intake by 20%, they'll be eating their actual TDEE, and won't lose.


All the decent sources of information for using this method advise using feedback from real world results, and adjusting the calories based on that, because all a calorie calculator can do is give you a good estimate to use as a starting point. Assuming that someone is tracking their calories correctly, if they calculate their TDEE, and after 3-4 weeks are not losing weight, then the should either recalculate their TDEE, perhaps with a different activity factor, or just subtract 100 or 200 calories from their original number, and try eating that for a week or two, to see if that starts weight loss. If someone has a medical condition that may be slowing their metabolism, e.g. hypothyroid, then seeing a doctor to get the issue treated would be better than just lowering the calories to the number that enables them to lose, as the result would be being able to lose weight on a higher amount of calories and being better able to keep the body nourished.

This method is based on basic human physiology and maths, and as much as certain factors can result in someone's metabolism being slower or faster than the calculators predict, the method actually will work for everyone. Some adjustment of the numbers may be necessary and it's well accepted that the calorie calculators are just an estimate to give a starting point, but if you include that adjustment in as part of the method, AND track your calories properly, it WILL work. No-one is a "special snowflake" whose body breaks the laws of physics.

Not everyone will end up eating more using this method though... if someone got fat by overeating, then they will eat less as a result of using this method. The "eat more" part of the "tag line" for this method, really only applies to people who are in the habit of undereating, or who have failed at dieting in the past due to being too restrictive. The point is to find the "sweet spot" number of calories where you can lose at a slow and steady rate, and not feel deprived while continuing to lose successfully. Like I said, some may need to adjust the numbers somewhat compared to what the calculators predict, but it's worth it, rather than being constantly frustrated through not losing, or constantly run down, tired and hungry from undereating.

princesselle1

One thing that struck me going through your diary is that you aren't actually eating 1,570 a day anyway. I've gone back to Saturday 16th February and could only see 1-2 days in all of that time that you've hit 1,570.

On top of that, when I've gone back before Saturday 16th Feb I'm seeing this:

15th Feb
Totals 903
princesselle1's Daily Goal 2,400

14th Feb
Totals 920
princesselle1's Daily Goal 1,817

12th Feb
Totals 606
princesselle1's Daily Goal 1,981

11th Feb
Totals 891
princesselle1's Daily Goal 1,817


I've gone back to 1st Feb in your diary - so the month that you say you've been eating at 1,570 and in fact on a load of days you've been eating under 1,000.

I add my exercise in what ever I have done for the day and I don't eat that back!

auddii

Make sure you are weighing everything you eat. No eyeballing, no "free" foods, the only thing measured by volume should be free-pouring liquids.

I see a lot of "generic" entries in your diary. Enter your own recipes. That's the only way to be accurate.

I suspect you're underestimating your calories.

I agree with Amber. You don't appear to be logging as accurately as you should be. Before changing your calories, make sure how many calories you are truly eating,

Agree also.

alittlemopo

When you calculated your TDEE did you already caluclate your exercise/activity in, in other words did you calculate based on sedentary? or lightly active or moderately active. If you di dnot account for your exercise then you should be eating at least some of your exercise calories back. If you already allowed for it then you wouldn't.

That being said I agree with a few other posters you didn't meet your calories goals almost ever through the at least the whole month of February. You can't just set the goal to 1500 calories and still keep eating 1200, you need to eat closer to your goal calories.

AmyRhubarb

Have you taken measurements at all? Often you will see results with the measuring tape before you see them on the scale. Any difference in how your clothes fit?

Hang in there, it does take time. Make sure you're hitting your goals for calories and macros - and one thing that happens when you log the exercise, is it gives you exercise cals to eat back, which you can ignore if they are figured into your TDEE, but it also ups all your macros for the day.....I was doing that for awhile and finally realized that I was over on fat & carbs most of the time, and that was AFTER adding exercise cals, so I was REALLY over! That's why you will often see people log their exercise as ust 1 calorie burned, to track the minutes and work, but without changing the daily macros.

princesselle1

Also, I have read other people posting similar stories and it seems that this strategy doesn't work for everyone. I'm currently doing TDEE-20%, and it's working for me, but, again, I've heard of people following that formula for 6 months or better and gained. Typically, I think, you should give a new program 6-8 weeks to see if it works for you.

Just my opinion now.

If they gained weight the either:

a) they miscalculated their TDEE, the usual reason for that is overestimating their activity factor. Occasionally medical issues like hypothyroid can slow the metabolism enough that the BMR calculation to be incorrect by a significant margain.

or

b) they were not tracking their calories carefully, and were actually eating more than they thought they were. Inaccurate measurements can mean someone can be eating 20-30% (or greater) more or less than they actually are. If someone thinks they're eating TDEE - 20%, but they're underestimating their food intake by 20%, they'll be eating their actual TDEE, and won't lose.


All the decent sources of information for using this method advise using feedback from real world results, and adjusting the calories based on that, because all a calorie calculator can do is give you a good estimate to use as a starting point. Assuming that someone is tracking their calories correctly, if they calculate their TDEE, and after 3-4 weeks are not losing weight, then the should either recalculate their TDEE, perhaps with a different activity factor, or just subtract 100 or 200 calories from their original number, and try eating that for a week or two, to see if that starts weight loss. If someone has a medical condition that may be slowing their metabolism, e.g. hypothyroid, then seeing a doctor to get the issue treated would be better than just lowering the calories to the number that enables them to lose, as the result would be being able to lose weight on a higher amount of calories and being better able to keep the body nourished.

This method is based on basic human physiology and maths, and as much as certain factors can result in someone's metabolism being slower or faster than the calculators predict, the method actually will work for everyone. Some adjustment of the numbers may be necessary and it's well accepted that the calorie calculators are just an estimate to give a starting point, but if you include that adjustment in as part of the method, AND track your calories properly, it WILL work. No-one is a "special snowflake" whose body breaks the laws of physics.

Not everyone will end up eating more using this method though... if someone got fat by overeating, then they will eat less as a result of using this method. The "eat more" part of the "tag line" for this method, really only applies to people who are in the habit of undereating, or who have failed at dieting in the past due to being too restrictive. The point is to find the "sweet spot" number of calories where you can lose at a slow and steady rate, and not feel deprived while continuing to lose successfully. Like I said, some may need to adjust the numbers somewhat compared to what the calculators predict, but it's worth it, rather than being constantly frustrated through not losing, or constantly run down, tired and hungry from undereating.

Hi do u suggest I reduce my calories by 100 or use a scale to measure my food everytime?

SprinkledWithEmotion

Have you recalculated it? For every 5 pounds lost you need to recalculate your calories.

princesselle1

When you calculated your TDEE did you already caluclate your exercise/activity in, in other words did you calculate based on sedentary? or lightly active or moderately active. If you di dnot account for your exercise then you should be eating at least some of your exercise calories back. If you already allowed for it then you wouldn't.

That being said I agree with a few other posters you didn't meet your calories goals almost ever through the at least the whole month of February. You can't just set the goal to 1500 calories and still keep eating 1200, you need to eat closer to your goal calories.

I did lightly active as I do work out DVD 30 DS and today I have started ripped in 30. So shall I put in calorie burned 1. And put the actual figure in notes?

I

princesselle1

Have you taken measurements at all? Often you will see results with the measuring tape before you see them on the scale. Any difference in how your clothes fit?

Hang in there, it does take time. Make sure you're hitting your goals for calories and macros - and one thing that happens when you log the exercise, is it gives you exercise cals to eat back, which you can ignore if they are figured into your TDEE, but it also ups all your macros for the day.....I was doing that for awhile and finally realized that I was over on fat & carbs most of the time, and that was AFTER adding exercise cals, so I was REALLY over! That's why you will often see people log their exercise as ust 1 calorie burned, to track the minutes and work, but without changing the daily macros.

Do I just put in 1 calorie in exercise and put the figure in notes. Otherwise how will I know how many calories I'm losing? My legs are toned and that's about it. My belly, bust and arms haven't changed.