Frustrated

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OK-so for those of you that are going to come on here and just be cruel *you know who you are* Please...just don't. I'm looking for genuine and KIND advice.

I've been working my @$$ off...getting up before 5AM daily to work out. On the weekends I do a lighter workout routine...started Ballet Classes or take the dog for a long walk. I've started incorporating the circuit at my gym into my routines because I know I need to get strength training and cardio in...

My weight is not budging. Not a little. I'm stuck firmly at 142-145.

I want to get back down to what USED to be my usual weight at 135 before I started birth control pills.

My food diary is open to the public...I have some days that I didn't finish logging-not because I went over-but because I end up doing something that night or got busy with something.

I've been trying ot eat my calories back since I had tried aiming for a deficit every day before and it wasn't doing anything. Per advice I got from people on MFP, I started to eat almost all of the exercise calories back without going over...

NO results. Nothing...Other than the birth control I don't know what else I could be doing wrong. Going off BC is not an option. I do not want children....until the husband gets *SNIP SNIP*....I am staying on it.

Any advice?
«1

Replies

  • kini324
    kini324 Posts: 239 Member
    Options
    Are you tracking your measurements too? I've been at the same weight range for five months now, but I'm still losing inches. I'm gaining muscle from the weight program I'm doing. If you haven't, start today and give it four weeks to see if the tape measure is moving.

    I know how much it sucks!!! Hang in there.
  • rms171
    rms171 Posts: 30 Member
    Options
    Please do not be down. Weight loss is not easy and the fact that you are dedicated to food and exercise in your life are both highly commendable feats. For every one of you there are thousands of people on the couch unwilling to acknowledge they need to take better care of themselves.

    From looking at your diary I see a couple of things going on over the course of a few days.

    *Breakfast intake is sporadic. 250-300 calories is a good start if not more.
    *Most gurus will tell you bananas should be minimized or eat half of one. They are delicious for a reason, but they are also one of the more caloric heavy fruits you can consume.
    *Try to reduce the carbs and fat even more and shift the nutrition into protein. Regardless of what MFP is telling you, we need at least 75 grams of protein a day if not more. Protein makes you feel full for a longer period of time and the body digests protein more effectively than carbs. Look at your Wednesday dinner, the biggest chunk of it was bread. Balance as needed as I believe you mention you are diabetic.
    *Ensure that the fat intake is that of the good fats, not the saturated ones.
    *Drink more water (hard to tell if you are short or just forgetting to log), but get to your quota.
    *While we cannot see it, check your sodium intake. If its high or near a goal, reduce it.
    *Break diary into AM and PM snacks so you see how you are balancing your meals during the day (so others can see as well). *The visual of what you are eating during the day is very helpful. Some MFP'ers break their diaries into hours during the day (i.e. 7-10, 10-2, 2-6, 6-10, etc. Your call.
    *A diet is not simply calories in v. calories out. It is about quality of chow, not just minimizing it. Items like wine are nice, but as you can see they consume good chunks of daily allowances.

    While this week is not a good one for me as I'm on vacation, take a look at my diaries the last couple of weeks and you will see how I've balanced my food plan out to keep fat and carbs down or at bay while mixing up meals so I don't grow up,

    GIVING UP IS NOT AN OPTION. Everyone is cheering for you.
  • MSeel1984
    MSeel1984 Posts: 2,297 Member
    Options
    Are you tracking your measurements too? I've been at the same weight range for five months now, but I'm still losing inches. I'm gaining muscle from the weight program I'm doing. If you haven't, start today and give it four weeks to see if the tape measure is moving.

    I know how much it sucks!!! Hang in there.

    I have been gradually losing a little in the inch department. It's slow moving but it is changing a little.

    Thanks for the positivity and encouragement :)
  • Glasgow_Vegan
    Glasgow_Vegan Posts: 209 Member
    Options
    It could be water retention from your muscles repairing themselves.
  • rml_16
    rml_16 Posts: 16,414 Member
    Options
    Talk to your doctor about a different pill or some other form of BC (NOT THE SHOT!!!).

    BC affects people differently. I never had an issue with weight on the pill, but I'm having your exact problem now that I'm on Mirena. No matter what I do, how much or little I eat, how much or little I exercise, I can't lose weight. And it's been going on more than a year.

    I gain, then maintain for a while and then gain. And I'm not eating more or exercising less. It's all hormonal. The only way to fix it is to change my BC.
  • MSeel1984
    MSeel1984 Posts: 2,297 Member
    Options
    Please do not be down. Weight loss is not easy and the fact that you are dedicated to food and exercise in your life are both highly commendable feats. For every one of you there are thousands of people on the couch unwilling to acknowledge they need to take better care of themselves.

    From looking at your diary I see a couple of things going on over the course of a few days.

    *Breakfast intake is sporadic. 250-300 calories is a good start if not more.
    *Most gurus will tell you bananas should be minimized or eat half of one. They are delicious for a reason, but they are also one of the more caloric heavy fruits you can consume.
    *Try to reduce the carbs and fat even more and shift the nutrition into protein. Regardless of what MFP is telling you, we need at least 75 grams of protein a day if not more. Protein makes you feel full for a longer period of time and the body digests protein more effectively than carbs. Look at your Wednesday dinner, the biggest chunk of it was bread. Balance as needed as I believe you mention you are diabetic.
    *Ensure that the fat intake is that of the good fats, not the saturated ones.
    *Drink more water (hard to tell if you are short or just forgetting to log), but get to your quota.
    *While we cannot see it, check your sodium intake. If its high or near a goal, reduce it.
    *Break diary into AM and PM snacks so you see how you are balancing your meals during the day (so others can see as well). *The visual of what you are eating during the day is very helpful. Some MFP'ers break their diaries into hours during the day (i.e. 7-10, 10-2, 2-6, 6-10, etc. Your call.
    *A diet is not simply calories in v. calories out. It is about quality of chow, not just minimizing it. Items like wine are nice, but as you can see they consume good chunks of daily allowances.

    While this week is not a good one for me as I'm on vacation, take a look at my diaries the last couple of weeks and you will see how I've balanced my food plan out to keep fat and carbs down or at bay while mixing up meals so I don't grow up,

    GIVING UP IS NOT AN OPTION. Everyone is cheering for you.

    I've wanted to figure out how to break down the diary into hours because I do schedule snacks (I've just been doing that in the food notes at the bottom because I don't know how to change the setting/hours-could you tell me how-that would be helpful for me too LoL)

    I do drink water but usually forget to log it. I drink a bottle during my workout, another bottle before lunch and usually an additional bottle between lunch and bedtime...I'm just horrible about logging it.

    I do love my carbs...it's a bit of a struggle to give them up....plus I need to keep some in my diet because I need to keep my blood sugar from bottoming out-on the other hand, I do need more protein in my diet. I've been trying to work some in.

    Thanks for all your great advice! If you can tell me how to fix the settings so I can show when I'm eating snacks, etc, I'd appreciate it. Thanks!
  • Anna800
    Anna800 Posts: 637 Member
    Options

    My food diary is open to the public...I have some days that I didn't finish logging-not because I went over-but because I end up doing something that night or got busy with something.
    Well then you can come back the next day and finish logging. I think you need to eat less carbs. I'm not someone who is for a low carb diet, however you eat a ton of bread everyday and hit your limit on your carb goal. For myself I try to do only one serving of nuts a day, so I can't have cashews as a snack and peanut butter later. It's too much fat in one day.

    Your metabolism might be slow because you don't eat much for breakfast. Are you lifting weights? That also helps with your metabolism.

    You can change the settings on your diary to also track sugar.
  • MSeel1984
    MSeel1984 Posts: 2,297 Member
    Options
    Talk to your doctor about a different pill or some other form of BC (NOT THE SHOT!!!).

    BC affects people differently. I never had an issue with weight on the pill, but I'm having your exact problem now that I'm on Mirena. No matter what I do, how much or little I eat, how much or little I exercise, I can't lose weight. And it's been going on more than a year.

    I gain, then maintain for a while and then gain. And I'm not eating more or exercising less. It's all hormonal. The only way to fix it is to change my BC.

    Boo-I figured as much. The pill has helped my female problems but been nothing but trouble elsewhere. The monophasic for me was bad news bears so I'd rather not go that route...and the IUD freaks both me and my husband out. I've heard scary stories about...sharp things in that area *shudder*
  • alpine1994
    alpine1994 Posts: 1,915 Member
    Options
    I understand how you feel! I went a month without the scale budging, and I finally lost a pound this week. I was so frustrated because as we all know, this is hard! We put so much on the back burner so that we can find time to exercise and eat right. However, during that time I was trying to figure out why what the scale says is so important. I couldn't come up with anything. I am the ONLY person who sees the number on the scale. EVERYONE sees my body.

    So I started to focus on inches and how my clothes fit, how I looked in the mirror, etc and it has renewed my motivation. I see muscles! I see abs! My pants are gigantic now! These are the things I really wanted in the first place. So now, I have changed my goal to body fat % instead of pounds, and incorporated fitness goals (a certain time on my next 5K, bike miles, etc). I feel like I have a much better outlook now, because I'm focusing on using food as fuel for my next workout, not restricting as much as I can so I can see a lower number on the scale tomorrow morning.

    I know it's hard and frustrating. Trust me, I've had a few breakdowns the past month. But the more I read these posts, the more I know that focusing on pounds lost isn't necessarily the best thing to do for our health, especially those of us that are so close to our "goal weight".

    Good luck, and feel free to friend me! I know there has been a lot of negativity on the boards but there doesn't have to be any on your friend list :)
  • rml_16
    rml_16 Posts: 16,414 Member
    Options
    Talk to your doctor about a different pill or some other form of BC (NOT THE SHOT!!!).

    BC affects people differently. I never had an issue with weight on the pill, but I'm having your exact problem now that I'm on Mirena. No matter what I do, how much or little I eat, how much or little I exercise, I can't lose weight. And it's been going on more than a year.

    I gain, then maintain for a while and then gain. And I'm not eating more or exercising less. It's all hormonal. The only way to fix it is to change my BC.

    Boo-I figured as much. The pill has helped my female problems but been nothing but trouble elsewhere. The monophasic for me was bad news bears so I'd rather not go that route...and the IUD freaks both me and my husband out. I've heard scary stories about...sharp things in that area *shudder*

    That kind of side effect is very rare. Honestly, if not for the weight issue, I would love it. But I wonder if you would have the same issue. The Mirena has progestin, which is the same as the shot. But there are so many options with pills, it's worth trying to find something that works for you.
  • slynnalex
    slynnalex Posts: 38 Member
    Options
    I'm in a similar situation, actually gaining weight as I reduce calories and increase exercise. I'm losing some inches I guess, at least that's what seems to be happening based on how my clothes fit. Today I woke up very tired and discouraged after I stepped on the scale. My plan is to stick w/ this and hope that at some point the weight starts to come off again. Its been years since I've had a regular exercise routine and I'm really enjoying having that time for myself. I'm interested in understanding whether or not I should use my exercise calories; I'm trying not to do that so that the weight might come off faster... any comments are welcome.
  • slynnalex
    slynnalex Posts: 38 Member
    Options
    This makes sense, but how do you calculate body fat? I need to lose 15-20lbs to get to a healthy weight according the the BMI calculation. I'm starting to incorporate a little jogging into my exercise - walk some jog some to get my heart rate up. My husband thinks that this issue of gaining weight while reducing calories and increasing exercise is due to pre-menopause.
  • schicksa
    schicksa Posts: 123 Member
    Options
    Ok, firstly you're pretty small so don't get too discouraged about needing to lose a lot! I've been 150-155lbs since I hit puberty, and that's with swimming through high school, college, and being an endurance athlete now. So yes, Kini34 is right, check your measurements!

    When dieting, plateaus are totally normal and frustrating as all hell. Especially for women, guys tend to have it a lot easier than us as usual and lose weight more steadily and in greater amounts. Typically when things tend to level out, it's good to switch it up to give your body something new to adjust to; helps to get a jump start out of it.

    I did take a look at your food log for a few days, and if you're really concerned with losing those last few pounds here's what may help:
    -seems like you're getting in a lot of carbs and bread items. These are delicious (I am a carb queen myself) but also tend to be empty calories. Try cutting down on these a little bit and adding more in the fruit/vegetable department. I hate vegetables so I try to pair them with some sort of dip; either Wholly Guacamole (this stuff is AWESOME) or the Marzetti non-fat ranch dip cups. Also try the veggie chips or straws; they're kind of like chips and they are really really good. If you're still hungry, maybe add in a little bit more dairy, as long as you're not lactose intolerant. Raw nuts are a great option; technically they're a healthy fat and not a carb. Emerald makes some mixes that I really like, the Peanut Butter and Chocolate and Cinnamon Sugar ones are my favorite. Just watch how much of them you eat; 1/4 cup is a full serving. Also, make sure to get some protein in there. I didn't see much meat; are you a vegetarian? If so make sure you're getting your protein intake; peanut butter is good but it's more of a healthy fat. Tofu is good for this; if you don't like the texture, you can chop it up really fine into whatever you're sauteeing up and flavor it to your liking.
    -Watch your diet soda intake. They trigger the reflex in your body that says "SUGAR" and make you hungrier. Instead try some sparkling water (Deer Park makes a less expensive one, and I love the Orange flavored Pellegrino), Crystal Light, or Green Tea.
    -For as much as you're working out, it doesn't seem like you're eating enough. If you don't get enough fuel in, your body tries to store stuff up and it makes it hard to lose weight. I know you said you're trying to hit your calorie total for the day; that might get eaten up by the extra carbs you're taking in at the moment. Most of the nutrition programs I've followed have said 4-5 small meals per day, every 3 hours. Don't eat in the later evening, but if you get hungry try some dairy (I like a glass of skim milk). Try pairing up a couple food items with each snack/meal, like a healthy fat and a vegetable, protein and vegetable, fruit and dairy....

    A lot of what I learned I got from the Meltdown program; they have an online version called Meltaway that I did once I moved. Not going to lie; it's pretty tough (or at least it was for me) but it definitely works. It's expensive, but might be worth checking out. And you're already doing enough working out to meet what they do there, it would just be a dieting change. wemeltyou.com is their site.

    Hope that helps! Keep on keeping on; it looks like you're really dedicated, just need to switch up the variety a bit.
  • MSeel1984
    MSeel1984 Posts: 2,297 Member
    Options
    I understand how you feel! I went a month without the scale budging, and I finally lost a pound this week. I was so frustrated because as we all know, this is hard! We put so much on the back burner so that we can find time to exercise and eat right. However, during that time I was trying to figure out why what the scale says is so important. I couldn't come up with anything. I am the ONLY person who sees the number on the scale. EVERYONE sees my body.

    So I started to focus on inches and how my clothes fit, how I looked in the mirror, etc and it has renewed my motivation. I see muscles! I see abs! My pants are gigantic now! These are the things I really wanted in the first place. So now, I have changed my goal to body fat % instead of pounds, and incorporated fitness goals (a certain time on my next 5K, bike miles, etc). I feel like I have a much better outlook now, because I'm focusing on using food as fuel for my next workout, not restricting as much as I can so I can see a lower number on the scale tomorrow morning.

    I know it's hard and frustrating. Trust me, I've had a few breakdowns the past month. But the more I read these posts, the more I know that focusing on pounds lost isn't necessarily the best thing to do for our health, especially those of us that are so close to our "goal weight".

    Good luck, and feel free to friend me! I know there has been a lot of negativity on the boards but there doesn't have to be any on your friend list :)

    Hey-thank you so much for the encouraging words...I am wearing roughly the same pant size that I have been since Freshman year of High School..but my clothes fit well-bought my first pair of matchstick jeans and I look good in them.

    It does help to not focus on the number so much...And I will certainly friend you! :D
  • vim_n_vigor
    vim_n_vigor Posts: 4,089 Member
    Options
    Talk to your doctor about a different pill or some other form of BC (NOT THE SHOT!!!).

    BC affects people differently. I never had an issue with weight on the pill, but I'm having your exact problem now that I'm on Mirena. No matter what I do, how much or little I eat, how much or little I exercise, I can't lose weight. And it's been going on more than a year.

    I gain, then maintain for a while and then gain. And I'm not eating more or exercising less. It's all hormonal. The only way to fix it is to change my BC.

    I ended up with emergency abdominal surgery because of Mirena on top of weight gain. :grumble:
  • vim_n_vigor
    vim_n_vigor Posts: 4,089 Member
    Options
    Talk to your doctor about a different pill or some other form of BC (NOT THE SHOT!!!).

    BC affects people differently. I never had an issue with weight on the pill, but I'm having your exact problem now that I'm on Mirena. No matter what I do, how much or little I eat, how much or little I exercise, I can't lose weight. And it's been going on more than a year.

    I gain, then maintain for a while and then gain. And I'm not eating more or exercising less. It's all hormonal. The only way to fix it is to change my BC.
  • schicksa
    schicksa Posts: 123 Member
    Options
    Also, my doctor told me that the IUD's and rings generally tend to lean more towards weight gain as a symptom. Others may have a differing opinion. I've done really well on the lower-hormone versions (right now I'm on LoEstrin 24, before i was on Ortho Tricyclin and that was good too, just expensive). Both my best friend and I had a lot of problems with Yasmin; gained about 10 lbs and felt like I had Mono. What's important on that one is you find one that best works for you; if what you have now works for you hormone/energy-wise, I wouldn't lean towards changing that as a first response.
  • MSeel1984
    MSeel1984 Posts: 2,297 Member
    Options
    Ok, firstly you're pretty small so don't get too discouraged about needing to lose a lot! I've been 150-155lbs since I hit puberty, and that's with swimming through high school, college, and being an endurance athlete now. So yes, Kini34 is right, check your measurements!

    When dieting, plateaus are totally normal and frustrating as all hell. Especially for women, guys tend to have it a lot easier than us as usual and lose weight more steadily and in greater amounts. Typically when things tend to level out, it's good to switch it up to give your body something new to adjust to; helps to get a jump start out of it.

    I did take a look at your food log for a few days, and if you're really concerned with losing those last few pounds here's what may help:
    -seems like you're getting in a lot of carbs and bread items. These are delicious (I am a carb queen myself) but also tend to be empty calories. Try cutting down on these a little bit and adding more in the fruit/vegetable department. I hate vegetables so I try to pair them with some sort of dip; either Wholly Guacamole (this stuff is AWESOME) or the Marzetti non-fat ranch dip cups. Also try the veggie chips or straws; they're kind of like chips and they are really really good. If you're still hungry, maybe add in a little bit more dairy, as long as you're not lactose intolerant. Raw nuts are a great option; technically they're a healthy fat and not a carb. Emerald makes some mixes that I really like, the Peanut Butter and Chocolate and Cinnamon Sugar ones are my favorite. Just watch how much of them you eat; 1/4 cup is a full serving. Also, make sure to get some protein in there. I didn't see much meat; are you a vegetarian? If so make sure you're getting your protein intake; peanut butter is good but it's more of a healthy fat. Tofu is good for this; if you don't like the texture, you can chop it up really fine into whatever you're sauteeing up and flavor it to your liking.
    -Watch your diet soda intake. They trigger the reflex in your body that says "SUGAR" and make you hungrier. Instead try some sparkling water (Deer Park makes a less expensive one, and I love the Orange flavored Pellegrino), Crystal Light, or Green Tea.
    -For as much as you're working out, it doesn't seem like you're eating enough. If you don't get enough fuel in, your body tries to store stuff up and it makes it hard to lose weight. I know you said you're trying to hit your calorie total for the day; that might get eaten up by the extra carbs you're taking in at the moment. Most of the nutrition programs I've followed have said 4-5 small meals per day, every 3 hours. Don't eat in the later evening, but if you get hungry try some dairy (I like a glass of skim milk). Try pairing up a couple food items with each snack/meal, like a healthy fat and a vegetable, protein and vegetable, fruit and dairy....

    A lot of what I learned I got from the Meltdown program; they have an online version called Meltaway that I did once I moved. Not going to lie; it's pretty tough (or at least it was for me) but it definitely works. It's expensive, but might be worth checking out. And you're already doing enough working out to meet what they do there, it would just be a dieting change. wemeltyou.com is their site.

    Hope that helps! Keep on keeping on; it looks like you're really dedicated, just need to switch up the variety a bit.

    Very VERY helpful advice! I'm not vegetarian, I just don't eat meat often (more becaues of the cost and expense...I do make things like very lean steak, chicken and fish at home, just not usually. Get lots of protein from nuts *discovered all natural peanut butter at the local dutch market-you can watch them grind it FROM the peanuts! Amazing*, eggs and dairy products. I try to limit cheese because I love it but don't want to go overboard). I have been wondering about my calories a lot...it's difficult for me to grasp the concept of eating more to lose weight...I'm sure I can eat more and would enjoy it.

    I know lately I've had more empty calories. Made some of these healthIER chocolate chip cookies-they're still not a health food, but I've been craving chocolate. No excuse.

    I try to do sandwich thins with lunch-though I used to do salads every day for lunch (need to get more fresh produce-we're running out since it's the end of the week) and I think I felt fuller when I did that. I don't want to go too low on carbs because I'm a type I diabetic and on an insulin pump so I need a certain amount to keep from bottoming out...but I do need to shift where I get the carbs from...more from legumes, lentils, whole grains (got a fab 9 grain hot cereal that I love) and fruit, like you said...

    Thanks for the great advice!
  • rml_16
    rml_16 Posts: 16,414 Member
    Options
    Talk to your doctor about a different pill or some other form of BC (NOT THE SHOT!!!).

    BC affects people differently. I never had an issue with weight on the pill, but I'm having your exact problem now that I'm on Mirena. No matter what I do, how much or little I eat, how much or little I exercise, I can't lose weight. And it's been going on more than a year.

    I gain, then maintain for a while and then gain. And I'm not eating more or exercising less. It's all hormonal. The only way to fix it is to change my BC.

    I ended up with emergency abdominal surgery because of Mirena on top of weight gain. :grumble:

    That seriously sucks. I know it happens. Thankfully it hasn't caused that kind of problem.

    I did have to get an ultrasound shortly after insertion to make sure it was where it was supposed to be because the strings migrated up.

    The tech told me that she'd done a few where not only had it fallen out and the women didn't know, but they were pregnant. I don't know how you wouldn't notice it falling out, though.

    What I do know is, I'm up 20 pounds in the three years I've had it and I'm DONE. Back to the pill for me.
  • MSeel1984
    MSeel1984 Posts: 2,297 Member
    Options
    Also, my doctor told me that the IUD's and rings generally tend to lean more towards weight gain as a symptom. Others may have a differing opinion. I've done really well on the lower-hormone versions (right now I'm on LoEstrin 24, before i was on Ortho Tricyclin and that was good too, just expensive). Both my best friend and I had a lot of problems with Yasmin; gained about 10 lbs and felt like I had Mono. What's important on that one is you find one that best works for you; if what you have now works for you hormone/energy-wise, I wouldn't lean towards changing that as a first response.

    Well...if I did break down and do the IUD, I'd do the copper one, not a hormone one...I'm just so afraid of having something in there....not to be graphic :(