Very slow progress

WendySPWarren

Hey guys! I just wanted a bit of advice/motivation.

I've been watching my cal intake and exercising, usually 3 times a week with 20-30 mins cardio and 20-30 mins of weights. I've been making a effort to make sure I reach my minimum cal intake, which is the biggest challenge for me. Every day, I get the message of "If you eat like this every day, you will have lost x-amount in 5 weeks." However, the actual amount i've lost has so far been a fraction of the estimated loss, at around 0.5kg a month (1Lb)
I started out being 60kg, and am now around 57.5kg-58kg, after 3 months of daily logging and increased exercise. Very frustrating, considering the first 3 months is typically when most people experience the most rapid changes. :[

I don't really weight myself often- I prefer to follow my progress by my waist measurements. When I first measured myself I was 82cm, and am now 72cm (4 Inches lost)- Though, when I first started measuring I'm fairly certain I was measuring from too high up, so it may not be accurate. There doesn't seem to be a very noticeable change on my waist in the mirror. The only visible change has been that my legs are more muscular and 'womanly' now.

I've always had a very small appetite and don't remember ever feeling starved. As a kid, I was underweight and had to be put onto a special diet to gain more fat. My mother was always concerned for me because I always found it hard to finish my dinner- I'd always go straight for the veggies/fruit and wan't often interested deserts or the usual sugary/fatty/empty carbs- This changed once I reached Adulthood, and I have steadily been gaining weight over the past 5 or 6 years. Though, in the past year I have been breaking my naughty food habits and aimed for a healthy medium.

Knowing that my progress has been so slow, it's becoming difficult for me to resist falling back into my old habits. Should I have my BMR professionally tested? Given the amount I eat, and the exercise I've been doing, I feel like the progress I've made is unusually slow.

I'd love to hear from other people who have experienced similar things.

SZY0006

Do you have any pictures of yourself from before you started dieting and exercising? It really helps to have a visual comparison. Sometimes we don't notice all the physical changes in our bodies because... well, we look at ourselves in the mirror every day. While doing the 30 Day Shred I only lost a few pounds, but inches just disappeared off my body. You probably HAVE lost the four inches off your waist - which is incredible, by the way! How tall are you? Because 58 kg sounds like a good, healthy weight if you're of average height. It could just be that your body is more or less maintaining what it considers to be a healthy weight.

As a sidenote: I know when I'm doing strength training, I have to up my cardio to lose weight!