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labyrinth84
labyrinth84 Posts: 90
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi,

Some general advice needed to keep me going...

I've been following the 1200 calorie allowance, and doing extra fast, long walks for exercise. I feel like I have lost weight, but have lost NOTHING.

The way I feel I expected to have lost at least 3lbs, I feel that much better! But the scales don't lie:

Last week:
Weight : 11st 2lbs/ 70.8kg (with clothes & shoes) so told to deduct 2lbs.
Height: 5ft 7.3''
BMI : 24.2
Body Fat : 29.4%

Today:
Weight: 11st 2lbs (with clothes & same shoes) so deduct 2lbs
Height: 5ft 7.7''
BMI: 24
Body Fat : 30.2%

I use the same scales in Boots pharmacy...I presume using the same is for the best.

Can anyone offer some advice on what I may be doing wrong? I've just bought some SlimFast shakes to replace a meal a day in hope I will start seeing some results and keep my determination up!
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Replies

  • beckarini
    beckarini Posts: 78 Member
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    Worth tracking your sodium in your macros- looks like you have eaten quite a few ready/processed meals which are super high in sodium!
    Don't worry about one week - the results won't show immediately. Weigh in again in a few weeks and if you're exercising and eating at the correct deficit, the scale will shift.
    Read 'In Place of a Road Map v.2' on the forums (http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/654536-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12) and work out your correct TDEE and BMR and eat at a sensible deficit from there.
    I started out thinking I had to eat 1200 every day, but since I've upped my exercise and my calories to about 1650 I feel much better :)
    Good luck!
    (Edited to include link)
  • brevislux
    brevislux Posts: 1,093 Member
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    How much are you trying to lose?
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
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    having replacement shakes wont teach you to eat healthy balanced meals... personally i wouldt bother, real food is far too delicious!!!

    plus its one week... get an exercise routine in place, eat back your exercise calories and be consistant and you should get results!
  • melaniecheeks
    melaniecheeks Posts: 6,349 Member
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    The scales DO lie.

    Why has your height increased?

    And how long have you been trying?
  • labyrinth84
    labyrinth84 Posts: 90
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    Hi :)
    Thank you for your responses.

    @beckarini, I have eaten alot of processed. We do usually make homemade foods, but in the year we've been doing that I've put all the weight on. So I presumed, as processed usually have all the cal/fat/carb/sugar values, it would be better for monitoring. I'm thinking of homemade stews and soups may be my only option of homemade and low cals/fat. Thank you for your advice, I will take it :)

    @brevislux. I want to be down to my usual 9.5stone. So 1.5 stone ideally. I was 8.5stone for a few years but did not look healthy at all so I certainly don;'t want to go that far.
  • KNarrainen
    KNarrainen Posts: 135 Member
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    Hi there,

    One week is nothing in terms of your weight loss, if a month has passed and you haven't lost anything then maybe you need to look at what you are doing.

    But I am very confused as to why you seem to have got taller.

    Always use the same scales, but maybe get some at home that you can make sure are calibrated correctly.

    The scale in a shop may have drifted and you wouldn't know.
    Take your time, make sure you log everything so you can draw conclusions correctly, you will get there, just don't expect too much too soon.
  • liesevanlingen
    liesevanlingen Posts: 508 Member
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    Also, at your height, you're not exactly heavily overweight. So it can be harder to lose, as your body starts hanging on to the weight. Give yourself a bit more time,do measurements as well. Sometimes if you've eaten a lot of high-sodium foods, your body starts retaining water and that can mess up your weight by several lbs.
  • labyrinth84
    labyrinth84 Posts: 90
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    @Tavistocktoad I was thinking maybe if I had the shakes and fruit for snacks with one substantial meal it may kick-start my body into weight-loss mode. Food is delicious and a shake probably is not! I am obviously being fat too impatient, I have never dieted before and heard you usually see the most loss in the first week...so was really deflated. Like you say. I need to give it more time and determination. Thank you :)

    @melaniecheeks I have no idea how my height has increased- I was wearing the same shoes and my hair was in exactly the same style- down and flat! I've been trying a week...am I being ridiculous? Like said to Tavistocktoad, I'm new to the dieting life and clearly very impatient!
  • AntWrig
    AntWrig Posts: 2,273 Member
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    You cannot expect your body to progress in the way or at the rate your mind wants to.
  • feistymoon
    feistymoon Posts: 152
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    1200 Calories is perhaps not enough. Your body has been used to having more than this. It could be that having such a small amount of food has resulted in your body slowing your metabolism. There's some science to back this up, have a look online and you will see. But i'm not giving a science talk lol, I just know what worked for me. I need more than 1200 :D

    Try upping it to 1450 per week (i.e. half pound per week goal) and eat back at least half of your exercise calories.

    If what I suggest doesnt work, sure you've only lost one more week.

    Good luck, xx
  • labyrinth84
    labyrinth84 Posts: 90
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    @KNarrainen. The height increase has stumped me too...I'm well past the age of growing upwards haha. Maybe this is a sign that the shop-scales are not reliable, I will purchase some for at home. I have logged all food, and even over-estimated portions if I was unsure or if packs weren't marked clearly. I will take your advice of carrying on and not expecting to be Loser-of-the-Year in one week! Thank you :)

    @liesevanlinge. I may not be overweight as a generalization, but a life-time of being between 8.5stone-9.5stone has left me feeling very heavy and sluggish now I've topped 11stone. My bone structure is tiny, my arms, shoulders, legs...I had to have a c-section for my daugher because my pelvis is so tiny! My BP is also through the roof at the moment, which I'm thinking may be the extra strain on my body. I carry all extra weight around my bust and middle, which is the worst place to carry it. I have started to log measurements : Waist 31'', Hips 39'', Bust 39'', Arms 11'', Thighs 21''. I will keep note of the sodium, I never knew it had an effect. Thank you :)
  • labyrinth84
    labyrinth84 Posts: 90
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    You cannot expect your body to progress in the way or at the rate your mind wants to.

    I will stop expecting overnight miracles :)
  • labyrinth84
    labyrinth84 Posts: 90
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    1200 Calories is perhaps not enough. Your body has been used to having more than this. It could be that having such a small amount of food has resulted in your body slowing your metabolism. There's some science to back this up, have a look online and you will see. But i'm not giving a science talk lol, I just know what worked for me. I need more than 1200 :D

    Try upping it to 1450 per week (i.e. half pound per week goal) and eat back at least half of your exercise calories.

    If what I suggest doesnt work, sure you've only lost one more week.

    Good luck, xx


    I will certainly give this a try, but making sure I'm not having unhealthy snacks to up the cals. I will also try to fit more exercise into my life, and watch the body measurements. Thank you :)
  • Sarauk2sf
    Sarauk2sf Posts: 28,072 Member
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    Those devices are terribly inaccurate for body fat measurements. Both the BF% and weight get thrown off by fluctuations in hydration levels.
  • labyrinth84
    labyrinth84 Posts: 90
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    Those devices are terribly inaccurate for body fat measurements. Both the BF% and weight get thrown off by fluctuations in hydration levels.

    I hope so! I think I will stay away from the upsetting body fat measurements and stick to old-fashioned tape measure. The whole thing really stumped me, I felt amazing on my way to the store so surely something has changed :)
  • Sarauk2sf
    Sarauk2sf Posts: 28,072 Member
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    Those devices are terribly inaccurate for body fat measurements. Both the BF% and weight get thrown off by fluctuations in hydration levels.

    I hope so! I think I will stay away from the upsetting body fat measurements and stick to old-fashioned tape measure. The whole thing really stumped me, I felt amazing on my way to the store so surely something has changed :)

    I did a write up of the various methods - here is the extract about BIAs

    Bioelectrical Impedance (BIA)

    These are the scales that you stand on or hold, such as the Omron or Tanita Scales. They involve running a light electrical current through your body.

    The main issue with these devices is that hydration levels can significantly impact the readings. Also, there are inaccuracies due to the distribution of body fat as the current only runs through part of your body (in the case of scales, the bottom half and in the case of handhelds, the top half). The other main issue is that they use data gathered from other testing methods, which have their own accuracy issues (see above) and apply those variables to predict your BF%.

    The error rates seen are as high as 8% and this method is not even a very good long term tool as where you lose your weight from and hydration levels can vary.

    http://weightology.net/weightologyweekly/?page_id=218
  • labyrinth84
    labyrinth84 Posts: 90
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    The scales that I have used, tell you to grip two handles for a few seconds. If this is measuring the top half, then thats where most of my weight is stored. My thighs are bigger than they used to be, but I still have slim legs and quite like the fact theres no longer a gap between my thighs when my ankles are together :) My butt is bigger too, but as I never had one- I love it!! My top half is my problem, and I will take your advice and not take the devices measurements as gospel. If I feel better, and if measurements improve then what scales say shouldn't matter too much :)
  • lauren3101
    lauren3101 Posts: 1,853 Member
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    Hi :)
    Thank you for your responses.

    @beckarini, I have eaten alot of processed. We do usually make homemade foods, but in the year we've been doing that I've put all the weight on. So I presumed, as processed usually have all the cal/fat/carb/sugar values, it would be better for monitoring. I'm thinking of homemade stews and soups may be my only option of homemade and low cals/fat. Thank you for your advice, I will take it :)

    @brevislux. I want to be down to my usual 9.5stone. So 1.5 stone ideally. I was 8.5stone for a few years but did not look healthy at all so I certainly don;'t want to go that far.

    As already said, you are eating a lot of processed foods which contain a LOT of salt - worryingly most of the things in your diary have been listed as zero salt which isn't right. You could simply be retaining water.

    You can eat low calorie using proper homemade foods and don't have to limit yourself to stews and soups. Remember, it's not the homemade foods that made you gain weight, it's too much food in general. Check out the recipe section here, it's worth a look. Also, skinnytaste.com is brilliant for ideas.

    You should also look at the possibility that 1200 cals is too low. Too many people join here and go 'I want to lose 2lb a week - quicker is better, right?' Wrong. Slower is better. You aren't seriously overweight, so set it to 1lb or 1/2lb a week and see how that goes. Good luck!
  • Xhell_on_heelsX
    Xhell_on_heelsX Posts: 299
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    I have high blood pressure also..ever since I had my daughter. You do want to watch your sodium intake not just for blood pressure monitoring purposes, but having extra sodium in your system will make you hold on to any water weight. I'm not one to give advice on drinking water because I'm probably the worst at doing so, but if you do try to drink the 8 glasses a day it will help with your sodium in your system and let your body begin letting go of any water weight. Hope this helps a little = ]
  • crystal9999
    crystal9999 Posts: 73 Member
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    I have high blood pressure also..ever since I had my daughter. You do want to watch your sodium intake not just for blood pressure monitoring purposes, but having extra sodium in your system will make you hold on to any water weight. I'm not one to give advice on drinking water because I'm probably the worst at doing so, but if you do try to drink the 8 glasses a day it will help with your sodium in your system and let your body begin letting go of any water weight. Hope this helps a little = ]

    ^^^This, drink plenty of water, that's why people tend to lose alot the first week, because of the increase in water intake. Drinking more water encourages your body to let go of retained water.

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