Cannot lose weight no matter how hard I try

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olkw
olkw Posts: 2
in Health and Weight Loss
I have been trying to lose weight now for a while and cannot seem to do it.
I workout doing Jillian Michaels 5 times a week and my average day looks something like :

breakfast: oatmeal and smoothie (greek yogurt non fat, blue berries, spinach and protein powder)
lunch: stirfry (no sauce) with chick peas and apple/grapes
dinner: stirfry with chicken and spinach salad with fruit
snack: nature valley granola bar and fruit

I lose about 4 pounds but they always come back on, with my weight greatly fluctuating.
Do you think this would have anything to do with being on the birth control alesse?

Does anyone have any suggestions on what I should do ?
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Replies

  • jrs1987
    jrs1987 Posts: 3
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    Stop weighing, take photos daily instead.
    Seeing yourself get smaller and loosing inches is a better motivation than looking at the damn scales.
    If your exercing then your probably building muscle which weighs more. Your prob loosing inches rather than weight.
  • grubb1019
    grubb1019 Posts: 371 Member
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    How many calories a day are you averaging? It sounds like you are eating too little, if you are active and exercising 5 times a week you are going to actually need more calories.
  • jzammetti
    jzammetti Posts: 1,956 Member
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    Well, I cannot see your food diary, and I don't know how often you weigh, so i am just guessing here.

    Everyone's body will fluctuate from 3-5 pounds per day. If you weight every day without knowing that truth, it can be very frustrating. I weight only once a month, but when I had more to lose it was weekly (much less stress that way).

    As far as food goes, I think you should eat based on your TDEE. If you haven't calculated that yet, you can do it here: fat2fitradio.com

    Use the military body fat calculator first then the BMR calculator. Based on your activity level eat the amount of calories recommended. Remember this is just an estimate, but I find it to work.

    If you use TDEE, do not eat back your exeercise calories. i don't think your bith control matters...but I am not a doctor.

    I also agree that you should take measurements once a month to track loss other than actual pounds.

    Best of luck to you - don't give up!
  • RealWomenLovePitbulls
    RealWomenLovePitbulls Posts: 729 Member
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    what are you drinking throughout the day?? if its only water, good, but if ur drinking soda or something that could be ur problem
  • olkw
    olkw Posts: 2
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    On my fitness pal it told me to eat 1200 cals per day, but according to other sources such as the fat2fitradio its says to eat 1400.
    I am drinking water but maybe not as much as I should be. Besides water the only other thing I drink it green tea.
    Maybe I should up my calories?
  • Lily26Wal
    Lily26Wal Posts: 48
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    In more or less exactly the same postion as you!!! I have done jillians 30day shred up to day 11 (sustained a running injury so needed to rest) and i had actually gained weight!! gained weight!!! eating under 1200kcal running 3miles three times a week and doing jillians vid each night. the way i have stayed motivated is i measure my body waist, hips, arms, thighs, bum lol. and thats the way i know im loosing weight. I know how demotivating it is after putting in all that work and getting on those scales and it looks like theres no progress just stick with it!! Add me hunnni if you like and we can work together if your up for it. good luck
  • yeshualovesme
    yeshualovesme Posts: 121 Member
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    Up the cals to TDEE minus 15-20%. In the calculator (Scooby's is what I used), make sure you put moderately active. Unless you are slender and small, your BMR should be above 1400... I wouldn't eat below that!
  • Miss_Alishia
    Miss_Alishia Posts: 29
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    I was also stuck for a while when I was eating too few cals. I upped my calories to 1500, for a 700ish cal deficit per day. I love MFP but the cal goals it set for me were not working either. So, do some research, eat more food, and stick with it! losing weight is a lot of trial and error!

    I like this site, http://www.superskinnyme.com/calorie-deficit-calculator.html - I found a lot of really helpful info!

    Good luck!!!
  • aaakayofmpls
    aaakayofmpls Posts: 20
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    make sure you are food journalling,, something maybe hindering your workout hard work. Find it and work through it,, good luck
  • katevarner
    katevarner Posts: 884 Member
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    Yes, increase your calories by 100 or 150 and see how it goes for a couple of weeks. Water and green tea shouldn't be a problem. How many carbs are you eating? From your meal plan it's possible they are too high a percentage. I know that MFP recommends 65% of your calories from carbs, but most weight loss sites disagree there. That's for people who are already at or near their goal. Try eating more like 40% from carbs and 30% from protein and fats. If that doesn't work after a month or so, then you can always shake it up again.

    I like this site for figuring BMR/TDEE, etc.:

    http://www.1percentedge.com/ifcalc/
  • aaakayofmpls
    aaakayofmpls Posts: 20
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    and try this ,, workout 3 weeks,, and only lose .6,, yep .6 th of a pound each week.
    then it broke and now its atleast 2 - 3 lbs a week
  • kbmnurse
    kbmnurse Posts: 2,484 Member
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    Don't think you are eating enough
  • sarahslim100
    sarahslim100 Posts: 485 Member
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    I am the same. It wont budge despite being on a very healthy diet. I lost 6 kg on 1200 cal quite fast but not any more. Sometimes medicines do play a part. Research it and ask ur doctor about it. I find with excersise i need to be out of breath to make a change
  • lbesaw
    lbesaw Posts: 267 Member
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    My suggestion is to journal everything that you eat and drink---everything--if you cook with 1 tsp of olive oil--make sure you don't leave anything out. After a few days you should be able to see what's happening. Make sure you are eating enough or your metabolism will "shut down". I watch the carbs and fats and just try to stay within my daily calorie allotment. My exercise isn't license to eat more at this point so I never eat back the calories I burn. You CAN do it---if you have trouble a good doctor visit couldn't hurt to make sure it's not something medical that's hindering your progress. Good luck!!
  • mtdubree
    mtdubree Posts: 19
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    You probably have just hit a plateau continue your workouts and like others have said increase your calorie intake by 100-200 cause it does seem like your body isn't getting enough so it is holding onto everything. Just hang in there it will all come off all of a sudden and then you'll feel great :)
  • kingscrown
    kingscrown Posts: 615 Member
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    I find eating is a fine tuned experiment. Can't eat too much. Can't eat too little. Have to eat the right things to be healthy. May I suggest you take a look at the Eat Clean series of books by Tosca Reno. Though I don't follow her exactly I do follow a lot of the things suggests. I just count calories where she suggests not too.
  • jillica
    jillica Posts: 554 Member
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    NO EXPERT by far here, but here are some thoughts...

    Are overestimating calories burned?
    Are you underestimating calories consumed?
    Measuring yourself is a great idea to check your progress when the scale isn't moving like you think it should.

    As far a Hormonal Birth Control goes, I know it can affect different women in different ways. Mention it to your doctor.

    Good Luck!
  • seaKind
    seaKind Posts: 136
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    i have that same trouble! i'm at an ok weight right now, but would Love to lose that Last 10 lbs... and just can't :(

    anyways, here's some food for thought on BC. This lil 12 minute video is profound!!!!!!!!!!!

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=auv6c0-FsjU&feature=g-all-u
  • LorinaLynn
    LorinaLynn Posts: 13,247 Member
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    Sometimes the problem is trying TOO hard. IE, trying to exercise too much, trying to lose TOO many pounds per week. It's the equivalent of getting stuck in the snow and just gunning the engine. It's using up a lot of energy, but not making progress.

    Make sure your weekly goal is appropriate. You don't have much to lose, so you should be set to a half pound a week. MAYBE one pound a week, but not for much longer. If you're using MFP numbers, eat most of your exercise calories. Get good nutrition and adequate protein. And track your progress through more than just the scale. Progress photos are immensely satisfying for me.
  • fatmom51
    fatmom51 Posts: 173 Member
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    It appears that you are pretty close to your goal weight. Those last few pounds are going to come off more slowly. It's possible you have too little to lose, now, to lose 2 lbs. a week, and I may be wrong, but it sounds like 1,200 calories are a little low, too, especially if you're doing such vigorous workouts. Hang in there! It's also possible you're just at a plateau or that you've reshaped/toned/added muscle, so your weight loss isn't reflected on the scale. Good luck!

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