I /should/ be losing, but instead I'm gaining. Help!

Stick to the calories intake it recommends including when it adds calories back for your workout. MFP is already assigning you with a caloric deficit so on the days you workout you need to eat a little more to make sure you're body has enough fuel to get you through it effectively. To few calories in a day and you slow down your metabolism. Also, you're calories should be spread out during your day. Your metabolism is like a campfire. It takes much more fuel and work to reignite a campfire that is down to embers. It's much better to periodically add a log or two to keep it going. Food is the fuel for your body's campfire. Your metabolism will stay higher if you periodically fuel your body. It takes a lot more food/fuel to get it started/elevated if you go too long without. Eat 5-6 times a day (including healthy snacks). It's also about quality food. Avoid things in boxes, bags, cans or coming from a restuarant. Be wary of foods with more than five ingredients. Put simply...cook for yourself as much as possible.

On the exercise side...running just isn't going to cut it and could actually be contributing to your weight gain. Running messes with your hormones in a way that makes you hungry and can causes you to actually keep and put on weight. As mentioned in an earlier post, you need to start doing resistance/strength training. Muscle helps you burn more calories when you're not working out so you can lose fat and inches faster. Join a gym, take some classes that aren't strictly aerobic (e.g. Zumba, spinning, any kind of dance aren't any better than running...classes that include using dumbbells are good), work with a trainer for a few sessions or more and you'll see your body transform. Dumbbells, kettlebells, suspension training, rubber bands, bodyweight, barbells are all your friends and will get you to your goal.

Also, it might suck but you're going to have to cut out or really cut back on the alcohol. Alcohol has 7 calories per gram and creates nearly no metabolic boost in your body (in other words your body doesn't burn any calories digesting it). Protein and carbs have only 4 calories per gram and cause up to a 25% metabolic boost. Fat is 9 calories per gram but has up to a 10% metabolic boost.

Also, get a body fat test so you know your body fat percentage. Tracking total weight lost can be deceiving because muscle is more dense than fat. Once you begin weight training you can see your size drop but not your total weight and it becomes frustrating if you don't know your body fat percentage and understand what that means. One pound of muscle is the same as one pound of fat (one of my BIG pet peeves is when someone says muscle weighs more than fat...a pound is a pound is a pound). However, one pound of muscle takes up about a quarter of the space in your body that fat does. That means you could lose 20 pounds of fat but only see a 10 pound total weight loss because you also gained 10 pounds of muscle. Focus on fat loss than weight loss.

Not only did I lose 65 pounds 4 years ago and maintain that with a combination of weight/resistance training and healthy eating. I'm now a personal trainer and have helped my clients do the very same thing. It's not an easy process but it's the only one that works long-term and science has proven it. Consistency in eating and exercise is important. You can not make up for a bad day that's way over calorie budget by eating way under and exercising like a mad person the next day. Whatever calories your body doesn't use by the time you go to sleep gets stored as fat. Stay within your budget every day. No one has ever said it's easy but most would agree that it's worth it.

Hi, I'm 5ft 8 1/2 in tall with a large frame and I'm heading for 156lb. I let MFP calculate my calorie intake and presently it is 1620 based on a weight of 242lb. I try to do a minimum of 30min exercise 3x per week and I have my activity set on sedentary so ANY activity I do has an affect on my weight. I joined MFP 27 April and I've lost 38lb in nearly 6 months.

I'm juggling my weight loss efforts around my household and our budget. I eat what the others eat but I watch the portion size. I drink rum occasionally but I have diet coke with it and limit myself to 2 drinks. I have a wicked sweet tooth so I keep it under control by having a piece of cake (cut in two sometimes) or grapes or lollies (although I'm finding the lolly thing is messing up my sugar total) - in general this is working really well as I don't have cravings. If I'm a bit late to have lunch I do get hungry but it's controllable. Yes I exercise but because my activity level is set on sedentary I can log washing the car; vacuuming the house; spending a few hours preparing a meal, etc. There are only a few occasions where my weight has increased over the week, but this is offset by the regular losses.

I don't get too technical - I just see it as it is and try and keep within the numbers. I DO NOT EAT BACK MY EXERCISE CALS. I notice where you try to consume between 1200 and 1500 calories per day. I wonder whether this is a level you have set yourself as mine is a straight 1620 per day and that's it..

I do admire you for asking for help. It is so very easy to just turn the other way and give up, but PLEASE DON'T. There are soooo many people about who will help and support you and I'm sure you will start losing soon. Keep smiling and believe in yourself because as I've finally realised that's the key - I'm doing this for ME.

GOOD LUCK!! If you would like to add me as a friend, just send me a request :flowerforyou:

with the rider about measuring your food for accuracy
I think you don't eat quite enough.
You need to keep at or above your bmr, which is not 1200
mfp calculates to let you eat back your exercise calories so eat most of them back.

What I would avoid as many people have said is all the salt and processed food. There is a lot of salt in some cheeses and in some trail mixes. keep your eyes open for that.

If you are going to visit families at dinner time make sure they know you would like "pot luck" rather than a "treat" of takeaway. Some people are embarrassed to cook for guests, you could offer to cook the whole meal for them as a special event if you think they won't be offended.
Many of my guests come over and cook at my place, but I'm an Aussie and we're pretty cool with all that. No I'm not a bad cook, they are just repaying the favour.
You are more likely to get a wholesome meal from whatever the family eats than the corporate entities provide.

I see you arent eating smaller meals throughout the day, just huuuuge meals. Some of these foods arent really that good for you. You are doing a great job half the time but need some direction. Try eating and drinking water every few hours, limiting sodium and cutting alcohol. Maybe you need to be eating more?

I looked at your diary and it appears that you are hitting your calorie goals but here are the two things that I would recommend:

1. Measure your food - I made this same mistake when I started here. I thought that I had a good idea of my portions and that I was eating smaller portions than I thought they were. When I purchased a food scale and started measuring I found that I was actually eating twice the amount that I was logging. Once I got the scale I went from a "plateau" to losing immediately

2. Cook your own meals when possible - Looks like you are eating out a lot and the problem with that is that you cannot really be sure that they are really serving the portion sizes that they are reporting or that they are using the ingredients that they are reporting. This could vary from place to place. In addition there is a lot more sodium in those food. The more foods you prepare, the better is is for you to ensure the correct calories.

All in all, good job on logging and good luck with your weight loss.

^^This is probably the best advice.

If you are not losing weight in the longer term (ignore weekly fluctuations as they are usually due to water weight) you are not at a deficit. Based on the intake I saw in your diary, you should be losing at that level of calories (assuming your higher calorie days do not negate the lower ones - you should take an average over the last month to see where you actually are). The most likely explanation is that you are eating more calories than you think you are.

Edited to fix typos

I AGREE with sooo many things people have written here and I will just throw in my two cents that really helped me (mainly cause I'm an emotional eater) -- DO NOT CONFUSE THIRST WITH HUNGER. Best. Advice. Ever. (For Me).

Also, I work in a coffee shop that sells donuts, premixed powdered sugary drinks, etc and for me, it's hard to be around it every day but I am trying to cut that crap out because I know eating out at work and other places has made me gain 7 lbs in the past month and it's not good. Also, I'm a fan of the sweet drinks, but honestly, a hugely bad thing to be drinking when wanting to lose weight. My doctor told me to "stay the hell away from those drinks because they are your enemy". I only drink them about once a month IF I feel like I want to and IF I hit my goal for the last week of the month. :drinker:

ALSO, I've been reading a book called "The pH Miracle To Weight Loss" by Robert O. Young. It talks about how the body needs to be ALKALINE (so eat a lot of alkaline rich foods) to lose weight. My doctors agree with this book because the know from personal experience that having an acidic body (and diet) is not good for anyone and can actually cause cancer (amongst other things) because cancer thrives in acidic conditions. (I know Cancer doesn't have much to do with losing weight, but good fact nonetheless). Haha. OKAY So I've said more than planned... hope it helped!!! :bigsmile:

HI there! I am the same height as you and almost same weight, about 171 right now and I have gained 15lbs since starting on MFP:noway: :noway:

One thing for sure is that weighing food should make a big difference. I was shocked when I weighed my oatmeal to see that when I measure out 1/2 a cup, its actually more calories than the box, because it comes to more than 40gms, so now I weigh everything. Even using tablespoons to measure stuff like hummus and peanut butter, I found that the spoons were over what the weight was. This 'should' make a difference.

Also regarding alcohol, I find that when I drink, for whatever reason, the scale goes up and stays up. Not like a temporary increase from bloating or water weight, but seems to stick around. That being said, when I was younger I enjoyed drinking with friends and if you really enjoy that, then you should, but try lower cal options like someone else suggested, shots, or drinks with diet soda.....Best of luck to you!

Don't stop drinking, losing weight shouldn't effect your social life just pick lower calorie drinks. Try to be consistent, eat 3 meals a day and 2 snacks, mix up your workouts so your body doesn't get used to it. I'm always on a diet this is the first time I'm taking it seriously, I tend to lose 2lb then gain 2lb and it is so frustrating, take it one day at a time and good luck :-)

I don't drink so it's no issue for me.

Tell the boys you are watching your figure (they're watching it too), LOL.