Help...Look at my diary.

vgpeterson1984
vgpeterson1984 Posts: 51 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Ok so i have been on MFP for about a year. I am 5'7", Female, and 28
Six months ago the weight was coming off (i lost 26 lbs)...i have not changed much as far as activity/food.
I go to yoga twice a week (where i sweat) and workout at least two other times a week.
My food choices are not always great but relativly well rounded.
Two weeks ago i bought an ellitpical and have worked up to 30 minute sessions.

I have been stuck at 239 for five weeks....why am i just maintaining?

Thank you!
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Replies

  • naculp
    naculp Posts: 225 Member
    I would suggest NOT eating out every single day
  • knwitall
    knwitall Posts: 420 Member
    It could be that you're eating a lot of processed food. Try adding more fresh fruits and veggies and other non processed foods. Also, try cutting back on going to fast food restaurants as well and drink more water. :)
  • The_New_Christina
    The_New_Christina Posts: 818 Member
    I would suggest NOT eating out every single day

    ^^THIS^^
  • AnnaYESiCANdoIT
    AnnaYESiCANdoIT Posts: 86 Member
    looks like you eat alot of fast food and pre packaged food which is not good. it contains alot of sodium. try and eat cleaner like more fresh meats and fresh veggies and fruits. also, its good to switch up your workouts because after some time your muscles and body get used to the same old thing and so you need to "trick" them by doing different exercises.
  • AnnaYESiCANdoIT
    AnnaYESiCANdoIT Posts: 86 Member
    I would suggest NOT eating out every single day
    YES this^^^^
  • photorific
    photorific Posts: 577 Member
    Or the fact that you're right at or OVER your caloric goals every day. (I only went back about a week, but half of those days were over by 200-500 calories.)
  • foodisfuelforlife
    foodisfuelforlife Posts: 54
    Your breakfasts are really little compared to the rest of your day- maybe if you ate more in the morning you would not need big meals! Also clean and green is gooooood :)
  • kerr2010
    kerr2010 Posts: 219 Member
    I only scrolled through a weeks worth, but here is my opinion. Keep in mind I am not an expert. First I think that you need to start tracking your sodium. Based on some of your choices you are probably higher than the recommended intake. Try drinking your 8 glasses of water everyday so that you aren't retaining. That should make a difference within a week or two. Also you need to add some more fruits and veggies to your diet (high fibre) and try to eat less processed.
  • FitPhysique
    FitPhysique Posts: 284 Member
    looks like you eat alot of fast food and pre packaged food which is not good. it contains alot of sodium. try and eat cleaner like more fresh meats and fresh veggies and fruits. also, its good to switch up your workouts because after some time your muscles and body get used to the same old thing and so you need to "trick" them by doing different exercises.

    ^^^^This. Also, if you do eat out try not to eat so much fast food. Good luck.
  • KaitieBean
    KaitieBean Posts: 24
    Pack a healthy lunch from home when you go to work instead of going to fast food restaurants on your breaks! You'll definitely start to notice a change if you clean up your eating habits a little more :)

    Congratulations on your success so far! Don't get discouraged!
  • deb3129
    deb3129 Posts: 1,294 Member
    You are over your calorie goal on a LOT of days, and on the days that you are under, it is not enough to offset the overage. Also, your sodium intake is really high. I would try to stay under calorie goal consistently, and try not to eat out as much and eat less processed foods.
  • FitPhysique
    FitPhysique Posts: 284 Member
    Or the fact that you're right at or OVER your caloric goals every day. (I only went back about a week, but half of those days were over by 200-500 calories.)
    Totally agree. They do add up over time.
  • crystalflame
    crystalflame Posts: 1,049 Member
    Track your sodium and try not to go over your allowed amount too much - which means eliminating a lot of the fast food. Also, you should probably manually adjust your settings so you start eating a lot more protein and fewer carbs. That should fill you up better and help with the days where you go over by several hundred calories. Try to eat healthier carbs too, not just the breads that come with the fast foods... fruits and veggies are so important!
  • yeahforme
    yeahforme Posts: 18 Member
    I am in the same boat, except I am currently on medical leave due to a back injury (I am also an above the knee amputee). I am doing 100+ crunches and along with multiple other core exercises that are making me sweat as well. I just got the go-ahead from the doc and started walking some trails in my area - am only to 15 minutes at this point however look to getting it back up to 30. I understand your frustration. I think our bodies sometimes rebel against us because they liked being overweight - who knows why.

    Since I am a true believer in visualization, I am making it a daily ritual to remind my body that it really wants to be thin. I have quite a ways to go...
  • postrockandcats
    postrockandcats Posts: 1,145 Member
    Well, you eat out a fair bit, you seem to be over more than you are on target and there are a lot of processed foods there. Try eating cleaner with less salt and bring your food from home more. Add some veggies, too!

    Oh, and your diet is WAY unbalanced. A tub of hummus for dinner? 2 cups of suffing? Come on now. This isn't how to eat well! Try subbing half that stuffing with a salad or green beans. It's the small changes that make a difference.
  • MyOwnSunshine
    MyOwnSunshine Posts: 1,312 Member
    Your diet consists almost entirely of fast food and processed carbs. Try eating more lean protein, fruits and vegetables. Cut out the fast food, except as a treat once in a while. Cook healthy, whole foods at home and balance your calories throughout your day.
  • Akimajuktuq
    Akimajuktuq Posts: 3,037 Member
    I eat completely differently than you, so I'm not sure that you would appreciate any advice from me. However, my diary is open to everyone if you would like to take a look at what is working for me.
  • MoreThanMommie
    MoreThanMommie Posts: 597 Member
    My advice would be to start tracking your sodium. That helped me a ton. I had no idea how much I was consuming.
  • simplydelish2
    simplydelish2 Posts: 726 Member
    I think you get the picture - eating out, eating processed foods, and being over your calories many days will cause the scale to stay put or creep higher. You can exercise all you want, but without a good eating plan you won't lose weight.

    Eat clean - fresh fruits, veggies, lean meats. If meals out are because of time - cook a couple of big pots of stuff on the weekend and eat them during the week.

    Good luck!
  • MehiraDeOro
    MehiraDeOro Posts: 117 Member
    I would suggest NOT eating out every single day

    You can even save more money by making homemade meals at home too. You should definitely start eating more raw/whole foods especially veggies.
  • misty0413
    misty0413 Posts: 212
    Oh honey its not a plateau . You need to add a sodium tracker, I did after a month and was shocked and I was eating healthy. You should take your lunch to work the money you save from eating out can be put towards a reward system. exercise does not matter if you are eating poorly. I go out to eat maybe twice a month and its healthy been on for 4 months have lost every week. consistency is the key. eating healty 7 days a week plus exercise cheats should be for special occasions, and not for a whole day one snack. Please add me if this doesn't sound too harsh.
  • PinkPaintedLady
    PinkPaintedLady Posts: 67 Member
    like everyone else, I am no expert...my advice for you (after skimming through your diary) is to incorporate more fresh, unprocessed food (ie. fruits, vegetables, whole grains). Like quantity, QUALITY of your calories is also important, you will find that you'll be much more satisfied and full throughout the day. I also suggest evening out your caloric intake throughout the day...instead of eating a 200 cal breakfast and 1000 cal lunch, aim for bigger breakfasts that way by lunchtime, you won't feel the need to go grab some fatty, high calorie fast food. I wish you luck, and hopefully you can come off of this plateau!
  • K3atie
    K3atie Posts: 10 Member
    Hi, i know the feeling, i dont seem to be loosing, and i am trying to am around my bmr per day, slightly higher at weekends. perhaps you ned to track sodium and sugar and logging drinks, milky coffee can add a great deal to your daily calorie intake.
    I would say that looking at your diary quickly that you might want to thin about the hidden sugar in the fruit drinks.

    i think if you had a bigger breakfast that would help as well, i am rying a protein shake and most days a mid morning portein bar (PHD diet whey) which fills me up and stops reaching for biscuits!

    keep going we will get there!
  • Enough99
    Enough99 Posts: 4
    I agree, cut back on the processed foods. Protien with every meal and snack. Eat 250 to 300 caloires every 3 hours to maintain your metabolism. Focus on fruits, vegetables, whole grain and protein...If cutting back on fast foods and processed foods is a challenge maybe start with lunch and make it the night before to take to work: salad with lite vinergerette dressing, protein such as chicken or tuna, fruit... whole wheat roll or bread if making a sandwich, or toss the chicken or tuna with brown rice or wheat pasta, all sorts of "light recipes" out there to be creative with and fit with your liking. The amount of sodium you are getting from the processed foods is way out there. Good luck.
  • PixiePickle
    PixiePickle Posts: 68 Member
    All of the above, and I know it's widely debated already on many posts before, the whole eating back your exercise calories debate....it's one thing to eat them back but if you're eating above the calorie goal (including those you've earned) then you can't really expect to be loosing. :huh:
    I agree with everything the others have said & I always try and be conservative with my calories burnt because I don't have a HRM, MFP calories burnt can sometimes seem like a high burn to me.
    Good luck :flowerforyou:
  • budercup
    budercup Posts: 9 Member
    drink more water and same as above not so much fast food, try protein bars,drinks etc...good luck
  • markpmc
    markpmc Posts: 240 Member
    waay too much fast food. I totally get that you're down to one big meal per day. But it's the wrong food.

    Add more to your breakfast. I do eggs and oatmeal (protein & carbs).
    Start brown bagging a 600 cal lunch.
    Reasonable dinner (salad and veggies).

    Remember this is more of lifestyle change than a diet change.
  • ladybarometer
    ladybarometer Posts: 205 Member
    Well, really, if your concern is losing weight - portion control is the way to go.
    Eating out isn't the problem, actually, personally, it helped me.
    I mean, I didn't go out and get bic macs, but I did eat out ever so often and eat frozen entrees - and with that, I got my appetite under control. So... it's whatever helps.
  • needamulligan
    needamulligan Posts: 558 Member
    There is more to losing weight than eating fewer calories than you expend. I know that if I eat out for 2 meals a week it will slow my weight loss to a stop. I'm attributing that to the sodium. Also, in my case, I really have to watch my carbs. Carbs and alcohol also stop my progress for a period of time even if I can account for the calories.

    As someone still deep in this struggle, I would take a careful look at sodium and avoid eating out. Try eating foods that you make from healthy, fresh ingredients. V8 is really high in sodium even if it is a quick and easy way to get some vegies into your diet. Try eating more real fruit and vegies. Also, preparing meals from scratch is SO much cheaper than eating out or buying processed food.
  • LowFatMama
    LowFatMama Posts: 625 Member
    Same as above, eating too much fast food. I would limit it to maybe once a week, and when you do go, make the healthiest choice you can at which ever place you go. Taco Bell has a Fresca menu that is much lower in calories than the rest of their menu. At burger joints, I would stick to salads & ask for lemon wedges instead of dressing and squirt on top of salad or opt for a viniagarette dressing.

    I would also suggest no carbs after lunch. For dinner have your protein with some greens or steamed vegies- no butter. And stop eating at least 2 1/2 -3 hours before bed time. Make extra protein for dinner, it goes great cut up on a salad for lunch the next day :) thats what i do!

    Hope these are helpful..... but i believe cutting out the fast food & pre packaged foods (boxed rice, chips etc.) will really help you out.

    Good luck girl :D

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