General advice on what I'm doing?!

kattbuckland

Hi, I'm new to fitness pal. I'll introduce myself - I'm 24 years old, 5'9 and weigh 178lbs. I've always been a little overweight ever since I can remember and I don't think I've ever been under 168lbs. I've always dieted here and there but this is the first time I've taken it quite seriously. I'm using my weight as a guide but I don't really care what I weigh - I'm more concerned with being in my BMI range/being fit and healthy (and obviously looking good!) - but weight is a good indicator of how I'm doing. I've been using fitness pal for just over a month. The first few weeks I didn't really take it seriously - I ate healthy but would end up buying a pizza one night, and only exercised once a week. In the past month I've lost 6lbs which I was pretty happy about - so I decided to try and be a bit better. At my last weigh in I was 178.2lbs and I've been really good this month. I've stuck to the same eating habits (minus the pizza!); I'm eating 1200 calories a day and stick to the percentages of fat/protein/carbs. My daily foods are usually: breakfast - one piece of whole meal toast, a banana and a cup of tea. Morning snack - apple and usually a Graze snack box. Lunch - typically either a wrap or roll (usually wholemeal, with lettuce, salad cream and Quorn) or a salad (lettuce, cucumber, sweet corn, salad cream and Quorn). Afternoon snack - clementine. Dinner - varies from home made casseroles (literally just veg, Quorn and stock), to stir fry (no oil), salads, home made kebabs (whole meal pitta bread, lettuce, cabbage, Quorn and home made sauce using water, thickening granules and spices). My dinners vary but are always healthy. I also drink approximately 3 litres of sugar free squash a day. I'm very particular with my calories, very specific with portions and always include everything (including the sugar free squash!). If I'm below my 1200 calories at the end of the day, I'll eat some fruit or crackers to get my calories up. This week and a bit, I've also burnt between 300 and 600 calories a day through exercise. Most mornings I've jumped on the treadmill for 30 minutes (only 7 minutes jogging at 5mph hour as that's all I can handle, and the rest walking at 4mph). I've also walked to and from work (approximately 80 minutes in total at around 3mph) and have done about 15 minutes of strength training a day (although nothing strenuous). I was so pleased with my progress in the past week or so that I was really looking forward to jumping on the scales. When I did, however, EXACTLY 178.2lbs...
I've lost nothing this week - and although I'm not too fussed about weight - I can't understand how I haven't lost anything. Scientifically it doesn't make sense. Am I doing something wrong? Can someone give me a bit of advise?

bcattoes

You likely didn't lose due to the new exercise routine. When you increase exercise your muscles will store water for repair. You may still have lost some fat, even though you don't weigh less.

My general advice -

1. eat a little more. You don't have enough to lose to warrant eating such low calories at your height and age. Especially eat more when you exercise.

2. Also, add some strength training to your exercise routine. Weights, resistance bands, body weight exercises, whatever you prefer.

3. Eat some fat. This will help with #1 above. Your body needs fat to function and some nutrients can't be absorbed without fat. Add a little extra virgin olive oil to your cooking, eat some nuts, nut butters, seeds or avocado. Low fat diets are not healthy for most people.