Its not coming off!

Sarahsue94
Sarahsue94 Posts: 96
in Health and Weight Loss
I am 5'4" and weigh 160 lbs (most people are suprised when I tell them I weight that much). For the past few months I have been working out in the gym at my uni but probably not eating the best. Since I have been home for break I have been eating a lot better and working out. I give myself a little over 1500 calories every day and to interval training on the treadmill for 20 min followed by strength training (Sworkit app on phone) for another 20 minutes. But the weight just isnt coming off!! I feel great because of my routine but wish I could shed some pounds. What am I doing wrong?

Replies

  • melsinct
    melsinct Posts: 3,512 Member
    Make your food diary public and we may be able to help!
  • changejen2013
    changejen2013 Posts: 87
    You aren't creating enough of a deficit in your calories. Whether its you are eating too many calories or you are building muscle too quickly, you need to review whats up and switch it around a bit.
  • KatieJane83
    KatieJane83 Posts: 2,002 Member
    You need to open your food diary. Also, you say you've only been tracking since you got home on break. How long has that actually been? My guess is you just haven't given it enough time.
  • Sweetandsour23
    Sweetandsour23 Posts: 11 Member
    Maybe you are eating too little? Yes, that could be a problem, especially if you are working out. Make sure you eat adecuate and balanced; you need to give your body enough carbs and protein to do the workouts, build muscle and burn fat. Also, how are you hydrating? Are you drinking enough water? Sports drinks are not necessarily good because of the amount of sugar, but there are other alternatives so you keep well hydrated during workouts. On a daily basis aim for at least 2L of water + whatever hydrating drink for your workouts. MAke sure you eat frequently as well rather than few big meals.

    That has worked for me in the past =) I wish you the best luck and count on me for support!
  • Sarauk2sf
    Sarauk2sf Posts: 28,072 Member
    How accurately are you measuring, weighing and logging your food? What is your gross intake on average?
  • KatieJane83
    KatieJane83 Posts: 2,002 Member
    You aren't creating enough of a deficit in your calories. Whether its you are eating too many calories or you are building muscle too quickly, you need to review whats up and switch it around a bit.

    Wait, why would building muscle too quickly be a problem? Not that that's really possible, you need to be eating at a surplus to do that.

    And how do you know she's eating too much? 1500 certainly doesn't seem to high and we don't even know if she's eating back her exercise calories.
  • Sarahsue94
    Sarahsue94 Posts: 96
    You need to open your food diary. Also, you say you've only been tracking since you got home on break. How long has that actually been? My guess is you just haven't given it enough time.

    How do I open my food diary? and its been since mid december so almost a month
  • Nacho12
    Nacho12 Posts: 155 Member
    You don't say how long you have been doing this. I would give it a little time. I am older than you but weighed 165 when I started in August. It has taken me over four months to get to 147. Sometimes it took two or three weeks to get down one pound! You look great and I would say just keep at it, keep doing the workouts and you will notice a difference over time.
  • ChristyRunStarr
    ChristyRunStarr Posts: 1,600 Member

    How do I open my food diary? and its been since mid december so almost a month

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/account/diary_settings


    Sometimes it takes longer than a month. And I agree with the food scale so you know you're really eating 2 oz of beef/meat ect.
  • KatieJane83
    KatieJane83 Posts: 2,002 Member
    You need to open your food diary. Also, you say you've only been tracking since you got home on break. How long has that actually been? My guess is you just haven't given it enough time.

    How do I open my food diary? and its been since mid december so almost a month

    Go into Settings, select Diary Settings, and choose Public.
  • linda6032
    linda6032 Posts: 7 Member
    I had that same problem when my goal was 1600 calories a day. I do 45 minutes a day on the treadmill and exercise bike, and 20 to 60 minutes a day walking. I was just staying the same -- up 2 pounds, down 2 pounds, up 1 pound, down 1 pound, etc.

    I lowered the calorie intake to 1400 calories a day and began to VERY SLOWLY lose (total of 1/2 to 1 pound a week). Lowered it again to 1200 calories a day and now I am happy with the results, losing 1-2 pounds a week so far.

    I am a vegan -- Don't eat most meats, except fish and occasionally chicken or turkey -- and I have to watch myself with sweets. I can fit one in occasionally, but then I am hungry afterward until my next meal.:wink:
  • evanick528
    evanick528 Posts: 15 Member
    Id recommend a scale or something so that you can really know what your portions are. You would be surprised with how much of what you eat. I know I was. Once I really started measuring what I ate, it was easier to lose weight. Also, try more of a deficit and you'll probably lose weight faster.
  • Ezzie
    Ezzie Posts: 665 Member
    My 'expert' in the weight loss program I'm in ( through our local hospital) strongly suggests 30 minutes of cardio MOST days of the week, (5 or 6). Means finding your target heart rate and being IN that zone for those 30 minutes. It's working for me. Treadmill etc didn't do it, ZUmba does, 60 minutes of dancing makes me happy,sweaty, and I managed to lose over the holidays.

    Course you have to watch the calories as well.
  • KatieJane83
    KatieJane83 Posts: 2,002 Member
    Just checked out your diary and you are NOT consistently logging. I went back about 2 weeks and saw about 4-5 days that had nothing logged. I also saw several days of very low calorie intake, I'm not sure if you didn't finish logging on those days or just ate very little.

    You need to log consistently, everything you eat, every day, and make sure you hit your target cals.
  • LivingtheLeanDream
    LivingtheLeanDream Posts: 13,342 Member
    do as the other folk have suggested, the amount of food you can eat can be deceiving, I remember measuring out my fav cereal Special K and 30g of it was miniscule and wouldn't bascially fill a hole in your tooth lol - that was a good lesson though! same with other foods, we think we've eat a certain amount of cals but if we're guessing then its going to be more :)
    It takes time, weight doesn't come off quickly, you didn't gain it overnight so be patient, keep logging, and exercising and you should see great results - at your age you should lose a bit more quickly that us older ones, but 1lb per week is a good average loss for you. If I'm lucky I lose around 1/2lb a week but I'm down to just having 7lbs til I reach goal now. It took me 7 months to lose 10lbs!! which is SLOW but I stuck with it and am feeling the benefits and I know this time I'm gonna get to my goal and remain there for good :)

    All the best with your journey. You CAN do this :)

    Ruth
  • Sarahsue94
    Sarahsue94 Posts: 96
    i made my diary public, last weekend wasnt logged because It was crazy
  • Sarauk2sf
    Sarauk2sf Posts: 28,072 Member
    i made my diary public, last weekend wasnt logged because It was crazy

    You need to accurately log and assess after about 4 weeks. Water weight fluctuations make progress week to week challenging. Without accurate logging, you cannot assess what is going on.
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,432 MFP Moderator
    You aren't creating enough of a deficit in your calories. Whether its you are eating too many calories or you are building muscle too quickly, you need to review whats up and switch it around a bit.

    Wait, why would building muscle too quickly be a problem? Not that that's really possible, you need to be eating at a surplus to do that.

    And how do you know she's eating too much? 1500 certainly doesn't seem to high and we don't even know if she's eating back her exercise calories.

    There is actually no need to worry about building muscle. It's not happening while on a calorie deficit.


    OP, your estimated BMR alone is above 1500 calories... you are young and active and eating less that most 50 year old women I know, eat more. Try eating 1800 calories a day to see if that helps. Also, you can alter your macro's to around 35/40/25 (c/p/f). This will help eliminate some water weight and give you enough protein to help maintain your muscle mass.'


    Also, you may be allotted 1500 calories but most days you track, you don't even hit 1300. Feed your body.
  • KatieJane83
    KatieJane83 Posts: 2,002 Member
    i made my diary public, last weekend wasnt logged because It was crazy

    There's definitely more than just last Saturday and Sunday that aren't logged. Do what Sarauk2sf recommended, you need to really be honest with yourself in your logging and give it time.
  • melsinct
    melsinct Posts: 3,512 Member
    I agree with others, the problem is obvious: you aren't logging accurately so you are very likely NOT eating 1500 calories a day. You didn't log from last Wednesday until Monday. Log accurately, INCLUDING weekends, for 2 weeks...I bet you will see a change. You can't fool your body by not logging. It knows the truth :wink:
  • prokomds
    prokomds Posts: 318 Member
    Are those 5 pounds in your ticker 5 pounds that you've lost over the past month or two? In that case, what's the problem? If you're losing a half pound a week or more, on average, then you're doing the right things.

    Weight loss when you're already fairly small is slooooooooooooooooow :)

    It's been a month, and from the sound of it it was a month where you were far from consistent. I think you've got the right idea, just have to stick to it a bit more closely.

    If it's been 2-3 months of strictly following your regiment, and you haven't seen any progress, then it would be time to reevaluate. For now, give patience a try. Good luck!
  • dare2love81
    dare2love81 Posts: 928 Member
    i made my diary public, last weekend wasnt logged because It was crazy

    How can you be sure you're eating the right amount if you're not logging? :huh:

    Not sure it's an accurate question to wonder why you're not losing anything if you're not logging and having "crazy" days.
  • EatClean_WashUrNuts
    EatClean_WashUrNuts Posts: 1,590 Member
    You're settings are not correct.

    Your BMR is estimated at 1567. By this calculation and what you are consuming, you are maintaining. Go into your settings and change your weight loss to what you want; however, I caution to not go below a healthy diet of 1200 calories/day.
  • FiestyIrish
    FiestyIrish Posts: 42
    Don't worry about what the scale says! Track your measurements instead. I stalled about a year ago after 10 pounds, but my measurements kept dropping so I knew everything was still going strong. You'll hit highs and lows with your weight, but those measurements can keep you motivated.

    Listen to what others are saying about your calories too. If you go too low now, it will be practically impossible to maintain later.
  • prokomds
    prokomds Posts: 318 Member
    You're settings are not correct.

    Your BMR is estimated at 1567. By this calculation and what you are consuming, you are maintaining. Go into your settings and change your weight loss to what you want; however, I caution to not go below a healthy diet of 1200 calories/day.

    Sorry, but this is not true :)

    Your BMR is how many calories you would burn in a coma, more or less. Any daily activity (as in, getting out of bed) leads you to burn more calories than your BMR - this number is called your TDEE, which is dependent on how active you are. You are recommended to eat your BMR at minimum, but less than your TDEE if you intend to lose weight. Eating right at your TDEE would cause you to maintain
  • KatieJane83
    KatieJane83 Posts: 2,002 Member
    You're settings are not correct.

    Your BMR is estimated at 1567. By this calculation and what you are consuming, you are maintaining. Go into your settings and change your weight loss to what you want; however, I caution to not go below a healthy diet of 1200 calories/day.

    Incorrect. BMR (basal metabolic rate) is the amount of calories you need to exist in a bedridden/coma state, just to keep your body functioning. You should NOT be taking a deficit from your BMR. The number you should be taking a deficit from is your TDEE (total daily energy expenditure) which is your BMR + all the calories you need to do things like walk, talk, eat, go to work, etc. If you don't include workouts in your TDEE minus deficit, then you get to eat back those exercise calories too (this is how mfp is set up)
  • prokomds
    prokomds Posts: 318 Member
    You're settings are not correct.

    Your BMR is estimated at 1567. By this calculation and what you are consuming, you are maintaining. Go into your settings and change your weight loss to what you want; however, I caution to not go below a healthy diet of 1200 calories/day.

    Incorrect. BMR (basal metabolic rate) is the amount of calories you need to exist in a bedridden/coma state, just to keep your body functioning. You should NOT be taking a deficit from your BMR. The number you should be taking a deficit from is your TDEE (total daily energy expenditure) which is your BMR + all the calories you need to do things like walk, talk, eat, go to work, etc. If you don't include workouts in your TDEE minus deficit, then you get to eat back those exercise calories too (this is how mfp is set up)

    Hahahaha, yay us. We wrote almost the same thing!
  • KatieJane83
    KatieJane83 Posts: 2,002 Member
    You're settings are not correct.

    Your BMR is estimated at 1567. By this calculation and what you are consuming, you are maintaining. Go into your settings and change your weight loss to what you want; however, I caution to not go below a healthy diet of 1200 calories/day.

    Incorrect. BMR (basal metabolic rate) is the amount of calories you need to exist in a bedridden/coma state, just to keep your body functioning. You should NOT be taking a deficit from your BMR. The number you should be taking a deficit from is your TDEE (total daily energy expenditure) which is your BMR + all the calories you need to do things like walk, talk, eat, go to work, etc. If you don't include workouts in your TDEE minus deficit, then you get to eat back those exercise calories too (this is how mfp is set up)

    Hahahaha, yay us. We wrote almost the same thing!

    Lmao! Just noticed that!
  • Starlage
    Starlage Posts: 1,709 Member
    i made my diary public, last weekend wasnt logged because It was crazy

    You need to accurately log and assess after about 4 weeks. Water weight fluctuations make progress week to week challenging. Without accurate logging, you cannot assess what is going on.

    Yeah I've always been told the same- your body takes like 4-6 weeks to adjust to any change in diet or exercise routine, so be consistent with the calorie amount and types of exercise for a 6 week period, then you can assess whether your calorie amount is working or not.

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