Ready to give up....

Options
Lostfan51
Lostfan51 Posts: 3 Member
in Motivation and Support
I just signed up two weeks ago and I have been doing pretty well staying within my calories limits. A few times I have even been below the limit and only once went over. I used to grab fast food a lot and had soda every day. But for the past 2 weeks I did not buy any fast food and only had a soda a few times. But I got on the scale and have not lost a pound!!!

I admit I have not started any exercise yet and I have a desk job. I just turned 50 so I know that my age makes it slower to lose weight. But I would have thought that cutting down on my calories for the first two weeks would have been enough of a change to show some results. I was really excited and ready to make some changes and stick with this, but now I feel like giving up.
«1

Replies

  • smilesalot1969
    smilesalot1969 Posts: 392
    Options
    what are you eating? can you make your diary public so i can try to help :)
  • Lostfan51
    Lostfan51 Posts: 3 Member
    Options
    I just changed it to public. The McDonalds meal was out of frustration.:smile:
  • schustc
    schustc Posts: 428 Member
    Options
    There is a lot to this, starting with. 1. Do u weigh and measure everything? 2. Sometimes our metabolisms slow as we age, so that might be to blame, 3. Did u overestimate activity level? Lastly, did u have a lot of sodium yesterday? If u did, u could be holding water and actually have lost but don't know it yet
  • cmeroar68
    cmeroar68 Posts: 40 Member
    Options
    Don't give up YET! Sometimes your body just needs time to catch up to what you are trying to tell it!
    Hang in there!!
  • allycat54
    allycat54 Posts: 67 Member
    Options
    Try to stay off the scale for awhile.
  • DefyGravity1977
    DefyGravity1977 Posts: 300 Member
    Options
    You have only been at this for two weeks. The weight didn't come on overnight and it will take longer to take it off. Give it time. The first month or so your body will fight all the changes that are being made and it can be frustrating. I know...it has taken 5 years for me to lose 80 pounds as of this morning. One day, one step at a time. Give your body time to adjust and the weight will come off.
  • freyamaclachlan
    freyamaclachlan Posts: 22
    Options
    Just stick to it eat healthy and no less than 1200 calories a day, try and fit more activity into your day walk to where you can instead of driving, drink at least half your body weight in water a day, get plenty of sleep and you really should try and get a good workout in your day try Jillian Michaels fitness videos like 30ds most of them are only 20 minutes long but very effective, and if you feel like giving up again remember you have a massive group of people here for when you need that kick in the bum to keep going. :D
  • Slim7Dee
    Slim7Dee Posts: 17
    Options
    Ok, I personally think you are possibly calorie counting, but not eating sensibly.

    Your daily intake should include your fruit and vegetables, plenty of water and your proteins - not overdoing your carbs.

    I try to eat 2 - 3 pieces of fruit a day minimum and take plenty of vegetables with my evening meal. Try not to eat too late in the evening.

    Also, exercising is good and with that you burn off calories. If you burn off say 200 calories, then I would only reward yourself with half of that for the time being.

    You will get there. Best of luck and don't give in. The fact that you posted this message suggests to me that you don't want to give up just yet.
  • schustc
    schustc Posts: 428 Member
    Options
    I see LOTS of sodium high foods, not sure if u are not logging water or not drinking enough, and more importantly, very very little nutritious food. Fruits, veggies, lean meats, complex (whole wheat bread) carbs. Add those things and limit the salty snacks to one a day or less... you will feel better!!
  • Lostfan51
    Lostfan51 Posts: 3 Member
    Options
    I will give it some more time. I actually feel better and less bloated, but was discouraged when I stepped on the scale.
  • Happyirisheyes
    Happyirisheyes Posts: 121 Member
    Options
    Don't give up. You have to take each day at a time. Do your best for today and if you have a bad day, don't beat yourself up because you have a whole new day tomorrow to try again. Weight loss isn't easy - if it was we'd all be skinny. Don't be too hard on yourself, you will have bad days but you will have lots of good days too and we are all here to support you :flowerforyou:
  • MrsBully4
    MrsBully4 Posts: 304 Member
    Options
    I looked at your diary and on your non-McDonald's days you don't seem to be eating very much, with a lot of your calories from processed foods like pretzels. I think your protein also seems low. I would try increasing my protein intake per day (aim for 100g per day) and trying to get more of my carbs from things like brown rice and whole grain bread. That should help make you feel fuller for longer. Increasing your veggies would probably help too!

    They sell packets of brown rice that you can microwave easily if you'd like to try it. A very simple and fast dinner is a 4oz serving of lean meat (whatever meat you like), 1 cup of brown rice, and something tasty and healthy to top the brown rice with like sliced avocado, tomato, or purple onion. It seems to me that your dinners are very low in protein, and probably not very filling.

    A tip I've read is to have a serving of cottage cheese (half a cup) as a bedtime snack to keep your body from burning any of your own lean protein during the night. Add a bit of fruit and it's a very tasty and satisfying little snack.

    I hope some of this helps! Losing weight is different for everyone, you will probably have to tweak things a bit to get to where you want to be. Please don't give up!
  • schustc
    schustc Posts: 428 Member
    Options
    I am not terribly younger (in my 40s) so it can be done! Also, unless u are really close to your goal weight, within 20 pounds or so, I would think 1200 is too low. That is my opinion though. I need to lose around 80 and my target is around 1600~1800 average per day(varying high days and low days through the week~i am doing something different this week to shake a stall, but have been at it for over 4 months to lose 40+lbs)
  • Cdngal08
    Cdngal08 Posts: 18 Member
    Options
    it appears from your diary that you are eating alot of empty calories...try more fruit veggies and protiens....let your carbs come from them, instead of pretzels etc....just a suggestion
  • kytte
    kytte Posts: 323 Member
    Options
    make sure you are tracking your inches too, not just the lbs. they will be a better indicator of fat loss than the scale, especially if you are exercising.
    some medications can also slow your progress so if you are on any talk to your doctor about it, that's what i did and we are trying new things :)
  • androidgal
    androidgal Posts: 46 Member
    Options
    Whatever you do NEVER EVER GIVE UP!!! YOU WILL GET THERE IF YOU KEEP GOING...

    losing weight when you get older is harder, no doubt about it, I know as I am 53 and struggling to lose about 3 stone over the last few years...lost 1 stone when I went raw however find it hard to stay on raw especially in winter and also when i get difficult things to deal with in life......emotional eating kicks in.....but im never going to give up ...why because I AM WORTH IT!! & LADY SO ARE YOU!!! IF you were not bothered you would not be here now right????

    Just keep going ........this will be like most of life a rollercoaster some ups and some downs.....but you will get there....:flowerforyou:
  • nsalerno90
    nsalerno90 Posts: 68
    Options
    You really need to eat some real food. No wonder you are frustrated. . . bet you are hungry too! Add lots of vegetables and fruits to increase your fiber, give up the soda (diet too) and increase your water. It is going to take some time for your body to adjust to a change but it is going to be so happy to get some real food that it will start to work more efficiently. With that said, it does take longer for those of us who are a bit older (I am 45) but you will feel better more quickly than the scale will move and that is some incentive. I lose very slowly but I have already lost some inches and can wear clothes that I haven't been able to put on in over two years. Take your measurements, drink your water and give yourself a chance. This is a great site for support - you can choose as much or as little as you want - and it will work.
  • Elizadolots
    Elizadolots Posts: 178
    Options
    Give up and then what? Gain more weight? Live more unhealthy?

    D'you know, my weightloss is almost non existent but it is the fact that I am not giving up trying that makes me feel ok about myself.

    Keep going! You'll get there!!
  • fanakar
    fanakar Posts: 23
    Options
    I think you need a bigger deficit if you want to see results faster. Right now, you're eating under your caloric goals, but on most days it's less than a 100 calorie deficit. You will lose the weight, but at that rate it might take you more than a year. At this point you're almost eating the same as you would to maintain your current weight. I'm not saying you need to eat less because you are already around 1200 calories a day. But I think the only way you are gonna see results is if you exercise. Aim to burn 300 to 500 calories a day. There is a controversy around here about the concept of "eating back your calories" in which people eat more food to compensate for the burned calories. But the other side to that is you are decreasing your daily caloric deficit and, I believe, sabotaging yourself. I don't recommend this, but it's up to you if you want to try. The good thing is, everyday is a new day and a chance to start over and experiment. Just because you have not been successful so far does not mean you won't be successful in the long run. But if you give up, failure is guaranteed.
  • ZugTheMegasaurus
    ZugTheMegasaurus Posts: 801 Member
    Options
    Weight loss doesn't always make sense, at least not in the way we think it should. In an ideal world, more trying would immediately show more results; unfortunately, that's not how it works. Instead, people lose weight in different ways. Some people tend to see a slow consistent trend. Some people stop and start. Some people lose and gain and lose and gain. When it comes to just starting out, some people see a sudden drastic drop right away and then slow down. Other people see nothing for weeks and then experience a sudden big loss.

    All you can do is keep at it. Keep looking for ways you can improve, make little changes to be healthier as you go along. Eventually, you will see results. Maybe not when you'd like, but they will happen.

Categories