Slow/No weight loss

JasmineRose14

I get so annoyed with people who are always whining that they cant loose weight, and I look at their diaries and they eat like hell and don't work out-

So I guess I deserve to be totally humbled-

So my diaries are 100% accurate, I even logged on my cheat day- why, WHY am I not loosing weight?!

I have not lost anything in 2 weeks- nothing! This can not be a platau because I havent lost enough and I am still huge!!!

ZombieEarhart

If it was me, here's what I would look at:

-Your sodium seems consistently over by a wide margin, so you're probably retaining water
-You need to eat back more exercise calories to get closer to your net calorie goal
-But also, if you're using MFP calorie burn estimates, you are probably burning way less than you think. I saw more than one day with over 1000 calories burned, that would be an exhausting day for me, one that would require rest and repair. If you are really working out that much, you're probably retaining water to mend your overtaxed muscles.

Hope that helps, keep in mind that I've only been doing this a few months so these are just based on my own experiences.

ZombieEarhart

I just wanted to add- think about investing in a heart rate monitor. I have a polar F4 that I love. You need to get an accurate measure of your calories burned. I take the burn my HRM gives me and subtract 2-3 calories per minute for my BMR, which the polar does not take into account.

So today, for instance, I did walking/jogging intervals for 60 minutes and my HRM said 572, so I subtracted 172 for my BMR (about 3 calories per minute) and logged 400. I worked up a good sweat, and my muscles were absolutely feeling it. There is physically no way I could burn 600 calories doing 30 minutes of eliptical, so I really think your exercise estimates are doing you a big disservice.

rachaelbmh

This might sound lame, but have you considered turning the dialogue around? You said "This can not be a platau because I havent lost enough and I am still huge!!!" What about switching the thought pattern around and thinking "It's not where I want it to be, but I'm doing my best" - honestly, the words we think/say have a bigger effect on our outcome than we might first think. Just an idea..

kellijauch

She's right. Positive self talk is important. It's like a placebo or a self-fulfilling prophecy. Whatever you think Is what it will be. I tell myself all day long, "I am getting skinnier and skinner every day" so don't say you are huge, tell yourself I am getting smaller. Just keep working out and eating healthy. Cardio. It will help. You'll see. Give it time

AJinBirmingham

I can't see your diary, but when I stopped losing weight, I changed a few things to get the scales going again:

I changed my exercise routine. I've spent so much time on the elliptical climber that my body has gotten very efficient at it, which means it doesn't work as hard. So for cardio, I mixed in the easy elliptical, the treadmill, the stationary bike and even the great outdoors.

On the weight training side - I've been doing the same, heavy things for sooooo long - I took on a new personal trainer who's revamping my entire routine. My muscles are confused, and sore again after a work out. Great!

I'm also working more yoga and pilates into my down time, and being sure to do different things with both of those too. (If you don't care for classes, YouTube is a great source of freebies - all you need is a mat.

I hope that helps and wish you every success.

smn76237

Do you have a food scale that you weigh everything with? Sometimes it's just a matter of underestimating your portion sizes.
Also your 'cheat' day was just 2 days ago...chinese food and mcdonald's all has a ton of sodium and you're probably still retaining water from that.
As another poster said, your calorie burns from exercise are huge...and probably not accurate.

jkal1979

I'm not sure if you just don't check the water glass, but it might be a good idea to start tracking your water intake to ensure that you are getting enough.

There is nothing wrong with a cheat day but it might be a good idea to limit that to one meal instead of every single meal that day.

kgoodman0108

By looking at your diary - too much sodium and way too many carbs. Even eating a small portion of Doritos is a waste of calories. You aren't getting any filling nutrition from that. I would also recommend getting rid of anything that is "low fat" or "fat free". By having less fat, it has more calories coming from carbs.

tammycolbert

I'm not sure if you just don't check the water glass, but it might be a good idea to start tracking your water intake to ensure that you are getting enough.

I was just thinking the same thing. Alot of sodium but no water logged.

crazybookworm

I would definitely work on lowering that Sodium intake. 4,027 mg's is a lot for one day. Sodium can cause bloating and water retention.

I would also recommend ditching a lot of those processed/fast foods. I noticed from your diary that you eat a lot of take out/fast food. Try to limit yourself(if you can) to take out only once a week. I don't see a lot of fruit and veggies either. Try adding a cup of fruit and/or veggies to each meal. Fruits and veggies are loaded with all of natures good stuff and they help keep you full, too!

I noticed you have chips almost every day as well. Maybe keep those for a weekend treat? Try subbing chips for air-popped popcorn, kale chips. Or some whole grain crackers with a tablespoon of salsa. I love pairing carrots and celery(or any veggies) with hummus. It give me that salty crunch I am after!

Also, when is the last time you changed up your exercise routine? It is important to change up your routine often. It keeps your body guessing. If you do generally the same routine day after day, your body get's used to it, and doesn't have to work as hard. Keeping it fresh, keeps your body out of routine! Change it up about every 4-5 workouts.

To sum it up:

Revamp that workout
Watch the sodium
Reduce the processed/fast food
Moderate your guilty pleasures

Hope this helps!

wswilliams67

Agreed on your logging. You should try eating a much cleaner diet. Your sodium should be between 1500-2300mg/day. AMA recommends no more than 0.40 TEASPOONS of sodium. That's less than 1/2 a teaspoon per day.

When you shop, the trick is stay on the perimeter of the store, avoid the aisles as much as possible. The basic rule is "If it's in a box or a plastic bag... do not eat it."

Definitely drink more clear water.

MyM0wM0w

By looking at your diary - too much sodium and way too many carbs. Even eating a small portion of Doritos is a waste of calories. You aren't getting any filling nutrition from that. I would also recommend getting rid of anything that is "low fat" or "fat free". By having less fat, it has more calories coming from carbs.

Too right! You are eating an enourmous amount of sodium. I didn't read all the food entires, but that much sodium and that many carbs indicates you're eating a lot of processed food (or take out).... I'd lower the MFP carb goal to 150-175. I'm extremely sensitive to carbs and if I raise mine above 140-150 I stop losing (or start gaining) weight..it doesn't seem to matter what the calorie counter says. I'd also lower the sodium to under 2000. NOt only can sodium cause water retention and bloating it can cause a stroke.

What an earlier post said is correct, I'd check those calorie burns with an HRM or from a different web site than you're getting them. SOme of those are insanely high and likely not right (they could be of course).

If your carbs are high then your fiber should be high, other wise you're eating empty calorie dense foods that likely have little nutritional value.

hungryhobbit1

In agreement with what others have said about the "cheat day" concept. A cheat day for me would be going out to dinner and not sweating the calorie total. Starting the day with a 30 ounce regular Coke has your body just swimming in sugar, and then adding a Mountain Dew on top of that at lunch before your body has even dealt with the sugar from the Coke doesn't help. (+ all the fast food meal items and the processed sugar they contain.)

If I go way over on sodium it can take days for the scale to inch back down again. It hasn't always been this way but it's part of being almost 40, I guess. In addition to being bad for your morale because you see I higher number on the scale, it's bad for your overall health especially if you are showing any signs of hypertension.

I try to treat myself to things that are really a treat. Like really good cheese, or a delicious pasta dish from a good Italian restaurant (or from home if I can't afford it.) Treating yourself to fast food is not really a kind thing to do to your body.

Spread out your calories more throughout the week and add in little bonuses for yourself when you can afford them (calorically or otherwise) rather than going crazy on fast food.

Regarding calories burned: I use the elliptical trainer too, and I don't go by the MFP numbers. They are waaay too high. Since I don't have a heart rate monitor right now I use the numbers on the machine which seem a lot more honest. Today, I burned 328 calories in 40 minutes on the elliptical, MFP would set that to something ridiculous like 700 calories.

jondyalec1

By looking at your diary - too much sodium and way too many carbs. Even eating a small portion of Doritos is a waste of calories. You aren't getting any filling nutrition from that. I would also recommend getting rid of anything that is "low fat" or "fat free". By having less fat, it has more calories coming from carbs.

^^^^^^THIS^^^^^^

hungryhobbit1

Looking though your diary again, if you wanted to make one simple change to try to improve things, stop eating chips every day (even in the small portions you are) and replace that serving of chips with fruit or a vegetable. A lot less sodium, more fiber, and fewer carbs.

Sarah_LM

I think your calorie burns are way off, I weigh 262lbs and when I cycle like a maniac for 30 minutes, I'm lucky if my hrm says I did 300 calories, not 400+. I've not used an elliptical in a loooong but I really don't think 600 + calories in 30 minutes is accurate. I would buy a decent hrm and use that.