I'm confused...

Menopause (just kidding :laugh: ) It is not just the caloric count but what type of calories you are eating....maybe too much Fat or Carbs. Break it down, if you have not done so already.

I've just started here as I've recently gained 20 pounds since the spring. I've entered my food/exercise this week, and each day it's telling me I should already be losing ( I normally eat less than 1400 calories/day). So why then am I continuously gaining? My Dr. ran tests on me for medical reasons...none found.

Your body loses weight in chunks, not linear. I have found that you can do everything right and your weight loss seems to plateau but if you are patient and keep exercising and eating at a deficit (however slight) you will lose it, it will suddenly "whoosh". There are so many variables for the scale; water retention, digestion, hormones, allergies, sodium, carbs, water intake, DOMS, inflammation, the list goes on. People mistakenly think they lose or gain weight when they eat more or less because of these fluctuations.

Losing weight requires tremendous patience. You will not lose it when you want it or where you want it. The body does its thing. Some apparent plateaus can last a month or so. You cannot make it happen faster. You must focus on two things; calories and exercise. Nothing else matters. Scales and metrics don't matter. The day in and day out grind of exercise and calories are all that matters. It is not very exciting until things fall into place. You get your victories and you ride one victory to the next.

The scale is a trend tool. The scale is good but put it away and only check once a week and only use it as a trend tool. It will fluctuate, it does not matter. Take front side and back progress pictures at least once a month. You will see differences that the metrics won't tell you and it's that little bit of NSV that will keep you going until the next victory.

To say eat more is wrong.

To say eat less is wrong.

To find the exact calories needed for YOU to be in a healthy sustainable calorie deficit is the right answer. Wait, if you need to adjust by 100 do it, wait, adjust, wait, adjust, wait. The tortoise wins this race.

All that matters is calories. A healthy balanced diet within a calorie budget for a deficit that is right for YOU is all that matters for weight loss. Don't make it complicated.

Some people can eat at a big calorie deficit and some people can't. Everyone is different. Even a small calorie deficit puts your body in a state of flux with hormones as such, add a new workout routine, and those will make more spikes. This is a huge waiting game and requires much patience. Add in emotional eating issues and then you have more complications.

Also people play mental accounting games with calories just like with finances. Make steps to make sure you are making accurate measurements. Packaged foods can have MORE than they say but not less (they get in trouble if less so they would rather error with MORE).

If you typically intake sodium at a certain rate your body adjusts, but if you make a sudden change then you will see a spike.

Exercise is for making your lean body mass pretty (especially lifting weights) for when the fat is gone. Losing fat with no muscle is ugly and cardio alone will not make you pretty. You cannot out exercise too many calories.

What is the exact number of calories for you?

We’ve been trying to figure out an exact NUMBER of calories that everyone should be eating, without recognizing that everyone is slightly different. In truth, the calories aren’t the end game. Your body is. So the EXACT amount of Calories that are right for you is the EXACT amount that will allow you to maintain your ideal bodyweight no matter what some calculator or chart says.

In other words, an online calculator might tell you that you need to eat 2,500 calories
per day to maintain your ideal bodyweight. But the only way to know for sure if this is
the right amount for you is to test it out. If you gain weight or can’t lose weight eating
that much, then you know you need to eat less to lose weight no matter how many
calculators and text books say otherwise.

This doesn’t mean your metabolism is broken, it just means the estimate of your needs
was just a bit off.

-John Barban (The Body Centric Calorie Guide from the Venus Index and Adonis Index Manuals)

The good thing is you don't have to worry about the starvation mode myth if you are fat. Only skinny people have to worry about starvation mode. It does not mean you have the capability to eat at a large calorie deficit if you have emotional eating disorders or other issues going on, but at least you don't have to be afraid of it anymore.

The Theory of Fat Availability:
•There is a set amount of fat that can be released from a fat cell.
•The more fat you have, the more fat can be used as a fuel when dieting.
•The less fat you have, the less fat can be used as a fuel when dieting.
•Towards the end of a transformation, when body fat is extremely low you
may not have enough fat to handle a large caloric deficit anymore.

At the extreme low end, when your body fat cannot ‘keep up’ with the energy deficit
you've imposed on your body, the energy MUST come from SOMEWHERE. This is
when you are at risk of losing lean body mass during dieting (commonly referred to
as ‘starvation mode’). This happens at extremely low levels of body fat, under 6% in
men and 12% in women [Friedl K.E. J Appl Phsiol, 1994].

-Brad Pilon and John Barban (from The Reverse Taper Diet in The Adonis Index and Venus Index manuals)

Maybe look at your sugar. You aren't counting it but if you add it in I bet you may be way over? idk. Are you working out?

First of all no need to be uncomfortable about not exercising. It's not a requirement for weight loss. We're the same age but I can't determine anything else to even say if 1400 is good for you. Have you run your numbers? What's your BMR? TDEE? I did notice that you are having quite a lot of things that I would consider 'non-food' and snacks so that is one thing that I would suggest for you to work on.

How much did you eat before? Did you happen to track your 'normal' day before you started on this journey? for most people cutting about 1000 calories from normal would work but that also depends how big you are to start with. For me it's about right.. I'm 5'6 and my SW was 220. I'm eating about 1800 NET a day and I don't work out either. I have a desk job and walk about 30 min 5x/week to work.

Also you may want to check your sodium and sugar levels. Many people will say it won't matter but I have found that for myself excess of either one stalls my loss and also makes me feel like garbage.

I changed my settings to lose one pound a week and it upped my calories to 1650. I only eat around 1400 and still gaining...What am I doing wrong? Is it possible to gain no matter how many/how little cals you consume?

I am assuming you are either eating more than you think you are, not burning as much as you think your are or have a metabolic issue.

I suggest weighing all solid foods and measuring liquids to start

I read some good reponses so far. Maybe you are not eating enough foods that are nutritionally adequate. Are your 1400 calories consisting of foods that are high in nutrition? Check out the book called Eat to Live by Joel Fuhrman. It is a great source of information regardings foods/nutrition. Good luck!