It just doesn't work!

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Either I must be completely crazy or something is just really wrong. I have now been on a diet since the 7th of january - that's more than a month now. I eat generally not more than 1200 calories per day and about 3-4 meals a day. I eat healthy things such as sallads, chicken, salmon, tuna, vegetables and yoghurts. I also excercise atleast 2-3 times a week for 60-120 minutes each time. I do pilates and simple dancing combined with core and "booty" classes at my gym. But still, I haven't lost more than maybe 0.3 kg! And my mesurements haven't decreased almost at all! I think, but I am not sure, that my hips might have become 0,5 cm smaller - but that is just nothing. What do I do wrong?

I am now considering to lower my calorie-intake to 1000 kcal and to not log my activities. this will mean that i will eat 1000 every day and if I excercise, then that willl not mean that I can eat more. On the other hand this feels really stupid, I do not want to starve myself. What should I do?

Pardon my lack of spelling and just general english - I'm from Sweden..
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Replies

  • heathernz
    heathernz Posts: 68 Member
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    My understanding is that when you reduce your calories, your body will end up thinking it is starving, resulting in the storing of fat... Therefore sometimes you need to boost your calories for a few weeks (perhaps to 1500) to get your metabolism working better - more fuel on the fire makes the fire burn more efficiently. Then reduce again for a while. Once again when weight loss stops, increase the calories again...

    I'm new on this plan, but so far so good!! I've found it hard to increase calories to 1500, but it seems to be working...
  • LuckyLeprechaun
    LuckyLeprechaun Posts: 6,296 Member
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    1. are you increasing your calories to compensate for the exercise you're doing? you must!
    2. how much are you trying to lose? the less you need to lose, the slower it will come off.
  • apolinaria
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    Thank you for your replies!

    I need to lose about 3-4 kg in 2-3 months! I always add up the calories burnt on activities and I have increased the intake, but still I do not lose any weight. I don't know what to do.
  • CinthyNair
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    you should never go below 1200, else, your body is gonna go into starvation mode. how much water are you drinking? try to up your water intake, it can boost your metabolism.
  • apolinaria
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    Thanks! That's a great tip! I've heard that u should drink one glas of water before each meal, does that sound good?
  • kwardklinck
    kwardklinck Posts: 1,601
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    I drink water with each meal and drink lots of water during exercise. Also, my body held on to the weight when I first started exercising. It took about a month for my body to get used to it and I began to lose. Try starting with 30 minutes 3 times a week and eating the cals MFP tells you to. Then slowly increase your exercise. Don't give up. It didn't come on all at once and it won't come off all at once.
  • SHBoss1673
    SHBoss1673 Posts: 7,161 Member
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    Thank you for your replies!

    I need to lose about 3-4 kg in 2-3 months! I always add up the calories burnt on activities and I have increased the intake, but still I do not lose any weight. I don't know what to do.

    So you're looking to lose 6 to 9 lbs. First I'll reiterate what Lucky said, I seriously doubt you have a correct weekly goal set up. I don't know your calorie numbers, or your personal weight and activity numbers, so I can't tell you how many calories are right for you. I could if you feel like sharing them, or at least I could tell you what you probably should be eating and exercising based on the averages and industry norms. But I'd need everything, height, weight, activity level, any medications, medical conditions, exercise schedule, access to your food diary.

    In any case 6 to 9 lbs is going to take a LOOOOONNNNNG time t lose, my last 10 lbs took me about 4 months (that's about 4.5 kilos if you're wondering).
  • urso99
    urso99 Posts: 37 Member
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    I sooo feel your frustration!! I felt the same way, but looking it over I need to EAT MORE! Look at it this way, if you drop even lower than 1200, what happens if you still dont lose, will you drop even lower say to 700 cals a day?? That would never work!

    Up your cals 300-400 calories a day. Give your body a boost, but eat healthy!! It seems crazy, but you have to eat more to lose!

    I am having a hard time right now myself grasping that. But I am willing to eat MORE and see, rather than eat LESS and be starving!
  • AKosky585
    AKosky585 Posts: 607 Member
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    I struggle with the same thing. For the longest time, I was eating less than 900 calories a day. I wasn't losing weight, but not gaining either. Now, I am having a hard time eating more because I feel like if I do, I will gain. I've been working hard to eat at least 1100 a day (healthy) the past 3 days, and today, I was down a pound! It doesn't make sense, but exercise and make sure you get in at least 1200 cals a day.
  • apolinaria
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    Thank you all for your help! I am really delighted to hear your advice...

    I have decided to increase my calorie-in to 1300 calories and then add up the training as extra (as usual, basically). I have a really hard time to actually eat that many calories (sometimes I have to eat up to 1700! when I train, but I do my best with extra healthy snacks between the main meals...

    SHBoss1673 - I would love some help! How do I give you access to my diary? I'm new at this, so sorry if it is a stupid question....
  • MariSama44
    MariSama44 Posts: 340 Member
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    peanut butter is a great way to get in extra calories after a workout if you have trouble eating more durring the day. It also has protien that noruishes your muscles after a workout.
  • lose2cruise
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    Whatever you do, keep plugging away at it. I lose weight very slowly and it took me a long time to get to where I am now. I plateaued for a while, but I really wasn't pushing myself and tracking my food. I've been back tracking since 2/8 and I'm seeing a difference. You can do this! Just keep posting, it is a good motivator. We are all here to make sure that we ALL succeed!
  • LisaNBorchers
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    It took me about a month to start to see a differance, I was working out 5-6 days a week and eating 1500 calories a day. After 1 month my trainer dropped me down to 1400 calories a day still going to the gym 5-6 days a week. (i have a bikini to fit into in 2.5 weeks)

    If you can, try adding a protien shake to your diet as well. Not sure if it is available there but I am taking Iso Flex - Chocolate Mint (yum) this adds 120 calories to your day, more if you mix with milk and is a great for after a workout.
  • mmccurrach
    mmccurrach Posts: 50 Member
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    What is your current height and weight? Also, if you open up your diary, everyone can see if there is something off. Are you drinking alcohol?
  • apolinaria
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    Ok guys, now my diary is public! It took a while to find where to arrange that haha

    Here are my stats as of today:

    Age: 19
    Height: 176 cm

    Measurements and stats

    Weight: 60.6
    Hips: 95,5 cm
    Waist: 68,5 cm
    Bust: 86 cm
    Thighs: 54 cm
    Arms: 24 cm
    Neck: 32 cm

    Goals
    Weight: about 57 kg
    Hips: 90-92 cm
    Waist: 60-63 cm
    Bust: Doesn't really matter (preferable existing atleast hahah)

    Thighs: 50-52 cm (but not really essential)

    Everything else is just a plus.

    I really, really want this over and done with until atleast the middle of may, but prefereable even in the end of april...

    Calories per day (as of yesetrday): 1300 kcal
    I eat a lot of bulgur, quinoa and lots and lots of chicken. I also love to eat fruits and vegetables!
    I have an issue with breakfasts, I tend to eat really small ones or almost none...

    Excercise:
    3-5 times a week
    This week looks like this:

    Monday: 60 minutes Power Pilates
    Tuesday: 30 minutes of Booty (that is legs and butt) and then 30 minutes of Core (belly, back and so on).
    Wednesday: 60 min of African Dance
    Thursday: 30 min Booty, 30 minutes Core
    Friday: 60 min Power Pilates
    Saturday: 90 min walk
    Sunday: 60-120 min Badminton

    I consider Monday, Friday and Saturday to be my "relaxing" days.
    I have some injuries in my knees that make it really hard for me to use machines of different sorts to train my legs and butt... That is why the Booty-classes are great. I also have very, very low bloodpressure, which means that when my pulse rapidly increases, I can, in worst case, faint. This means that I can, if I have a good day, at the best do 30 minutes of aerobics or run for about 15 minutes. On the other hand power-walking is great for me, I can do that for 2-3 hours if i have to hahah

    I do not drink alcohol on a regular basis. I drink at the most 1-2 times a month and then very moderate. Last time was actually this weekend and before that on New Years Eve.

    My diary here is not old at all, I previously used Caloriecounter, but when i got my phone, I switched here. But I have been following the same kind of pattern for about a month now.


    Do you guys have any comments on this? Should I do something different?
  • LuckyLeprechaun
    LuckyLeprechaun Posts: 6,296 Member
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    I can pick out one big thing right away... you really undercut your efforts if you skip breakfast. it revs up your metabolism and gets the fire burning, and without it, your body stays in the lower metabolic sleeping mode for hours longer than it needs to.

    Eat your breakfast! Even 200-250 calories of some protein and some carbs will make a difference. You don't have to eat "breakfast" foods. You can eat some chicken or some quinoa or whatever strikes you as appetizing, but it is "the most important meal of the day!"
  • LuckyLeprechaun
    LuckyLeprechaun Posts: 6,296 Member
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    and... be patient. you don't have a lot to go and the closer you are to your end goal the slower it goes. persevere in doing healthy things for your body and it will respond. but maybe not by April. or May. :flowerforyou:
  • SHBoss1673
    SHBoss1673 Posts: 7,161 Member
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    I agree with LL, technically Breakfast should be the biggest, most nutritious meal of the day, but for most of us that's just not happening, so the least you can do is make it functionally acceptable, by that I mean, eat enough to kick your body into work mode, and by all means, make sure you eat some complex carbs at breakfast, your body has been fasting for 8 to 12 hours, it needs fuel, it needs it fast, and it needs the kind of fuel that lasts until the next meal and beyond (complex carbs do all of these functions).

    OK, that said, now lets talk about this 1300 KCal thing, this is bad news IMHO. You gave me some great numbers to work with, and as such I did some calculations. I don't know how active you are, so I'll give you two estimates, both of which require more daily calories than 1300, even when you are trying to lose.

    so if you are considered lightly active (I.E. a desk job that you walk around a little bit with, and maybe you are active one day a week and one day on the weekend) then your TDEE (maintenance calories) should be somewhere around 1950 kcal/day. That means in order to maintain your current weight you need to eat that much, it's around 2200 if you are considered moderately active, I.E. your job is fairly active, and/or you do some kind of low intensity physical activity for about an hour or more a day 4 to 6 days a week.

    This is where the 1300 kcal is a problem. Even if you are only lightly active (1950 kcal), that means you are giving yourself a 650 calorie per day deficit, that's equivalent to over 1 lb per week (or almost 1/2 a kg per week). Sounds great except your body won't let that happen, you just don't have the reserves to do this, your body will start to panic, eventually (over the course of a few weeks) start slowing down your basic metabolic functions, and increasing the hormones that trigger fat storage. This won't usually completely stop weight loss but it will dramatically curtail it, and it will also force the loss of the wrong kind of weight, lean tissue (muscle, tendon, bone...etc) which will lower your metabolic rate, which makes you more lethargic, which makes you want to do less exercise, and makes you feel more tired...etc. It becomes a vicious cycle.

    So my recommendation is to up your calories to about 1500 (more if you are moderately active, maybe 1750 or so). You don't have a lot of fat to remove, and your body needs to be able to feel it can safely burn that fat, creating a large deficit will cause your body to slow it's rate of calorie burn, and will lower the percentage of calories burned from stored fat. And please eat your exercise calories! Eat at least 250 calories for breakfast making sure your eating at least 25 grams of complex carbohydrates (cereals, whole grains, vegetables, some fruit (not too much fruit), milk (watch the fat content, 1% or 2% milk is perfect), and some lean protein, and make sure you do at least 2 days a week of resistance training (and I mean hard resistance stuff, like weight training, or HIIT taining). These types of activity will reduce the cm's off your trunk (waist, hips, chest...etc). Remember, it's not about weight for you, it's about body fat %, you want to rev up your engine, tell your body it's ok to burn the extra fat, the way to do that is to feed your body and exercise, not to starve it. Also resistance training will strengthen your bones, as well as muscles.
    One note, when you raise your calories, you may actually gain a couple of pounds, don't worry about that, it's natural, and it's ok, give it a month or so, and this process will reverse itself in a HUGE hurry. You'll feel more energy, and weight will start to come off faster, and from the correct places. Trust the process, it really does work if you stick with it.

    hope this helps.
  • kwardklinck
    kwardklinck Posts: 1,601
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    Drink at least 6 bottles of water a day, watch your sodium intake, and try to balance your calories between the 3 meals. You must have a good breakfast to get your metabolism going. At night you might try some tea with lemon. It works as a diuretic to rid your body of extra sodium.
  • apolinaria
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    Hmm, thank you all for great answers!

    SHBoss1673 - Thanks for taking your time! I have a mixed job, sometimes I only sit att the office, meanwhile other days i travel around the city a lot and stand on my feet while giving lectures...

    I will try to do as you say. I will increase my calorie-intake to 1500 and eat a nice big breakfast (like this morning - cereals and milk + tea) and add an extra "big" snack before I train. Maybe a sallad or something so that I have the strength enough to actually do the excercises. I will also drink more as someone said and continue to work-out as I do. My weigh-in day will be wednesday mornings (good to get some extra motivation in the middle of the week I think). So let's see what will happen in a week. I'm just really happy over my hip-measurements from yesterday. I usually measure myself, but this time my boyfriend helped. I haven't been this small for over 2 years!