Please Analyze my Food Diary

I am not sure if anyone mentioned it or not but I dont see any exercise logged. Your progress will be much slower if you do not get some form of activity in and log it. There are a lot of great groups out there that can give you ideas to start with and they dont take a lot of time. It is slow going and normally I am like you, the progress is extremely slow but since I have been on here and I am tracking everything and doing my daily workout, I am down 4 lbs in a couple of weeks. I have a lot of great and positive ladies who are friends on here if you would like to add me I am sure they will motivate and keep you from giving up.

Best of luck.....Anything worth obtaining is worth fighting for.....

Joanne

First, I say congratulations for signing up on MFP. Second, you only joined a month ago. Your body may still be trying to figure out what you're doing to it. Keep on tracking your calories and working out. Watch your sodium, cut your sugars, drink lots of water, and occasionally reward yourself. Once your metabolism and body recognize the change you're making, you will see better results.
Second, there are often underlying contributors. A bloodwork panel can identify any unknown metabolic issues, hormonal or otherwise.
Third, I am a true believer in MFP. I've watched it work in me, and in so many others. Don't give up.
Best of luck to you.

Oh and don't forget, a loss is a loss girl!!! It can be frustrating, but don't forget to celebrate the small things!

It would be great if it was as simple as "calorie in = calorie out" but it just doesn't work like that. There are so many things that are at work with weight loss, including hormones.
It seems like your diary is all over the place from 1200 to 2000 calories a day.
i would also definitely look at reducing carbs and eating more fruit and veg.
Don't eat back your workout calories.

You're drinking too many of your calories and watch refined carbs and sodium. Best of luck to you!

I didn't read everything but I would weigh all food and use a heart rate monitor to see what you are burning. This overestimates by a ton and so doesn't the machines.

As for eating back exercise calories YES!!!! MFP already gives you a deficit and you do not want a larger one as it can stall weight loss!

Your choices aren't bad but maybe you are consuming too many calories? I don't know your height or weight so I could be wrong. Do you eat back your calories after you workout? If so try NOT eating them back and/or try mixing up your workout routine with cardio and strength days. I hope some of these tips help

I tend to agree that the quality of calories matters - try to focus on clean eating. I'm struggling with this right now but giving it my best shot. While I don't want to start another "please analyze my dairy" thread, I am VERY open to any feedback that more experienced MFP'ers might have (PM Me!!) . And feel free to take a look at my dairy for some snack and meal ideas!

Good morning, and great advice. Sometimes it is not how much you eat it is the kinds of food you eat. Calories are not all the same. Veggies and fruit metabolize differently in your body. The same thing with sugar. I stay away from butter and use I can't believe it is not butter and other substitutes. I weigh everything. I count everything that I eat. Even little bites of food. Do not beat yourself up over not losing right away. It took time to put the weight on, and it is going to take time to take it off. The main thing is to be honest with yourself. For example, was it really a ½ cup of rice or was it really 1 cup? How much exercise are you doing? Exercise is a key to losing weight. You have to think this is a lifestyle change not a diet. You may have to tweak your food and see maybe you are not eating enough or maybe you are eating too much. Keep Punching All Is Possible! It Is A Choice! No Excuses! Do Not Quit!!

One you don't seem to be getting enough water. I'd also try to cut down the carbs some. I find that is the only way that I can loose. Best of luck! Don't beat your self up slow and steady you can do it. I've been leading a new life style since Feb 17th last year and have lost 58 lbs. Lots slower than some. You can do it! Friend me if interested.

Wow, there's a lot of random advice here! Don't eat too much in the evening? Don't eat carbs?

No-one ever got fat eating in the evening or eating carbs. Your body doesn't know the time, and carbs don't make you fat. Too much food makes you fat.

I would say you have two possibilities here, You are either eating too much sodium, causing water retention, or you are eating too many calories.

Are you weighing and measuring everything correctly? You would be amazed at how easy it is to underestimate.
What are your stats? Height, weight, activity level, BF%?

Thank you.

Yes, I weigh and measure everything, especially when I am cooking dinner. The ONLY place I can see coming off track is when I make a dish that has four servings, but the servings are not measureable (so for example, if I make a pasta dish, instead of saying it makes four, one cup servings, it just says four servings. So I eyeball the entire meal and take 1/4. But even if I am off, it wouldn't be by much and I am usually anwhere from 500-200 calories under. However, maybe from now on I will weigh the entire, finished meal and take 1/4 of it according to the scale?)

Height: 5'9"
CW: 211lbs
Activity Level: Workout 4x a week.
BF%: Not sure...

How intensive are your workouts and how long for? Do you do strength training? What is your lifestyle like around your workouts? Do you have a desk job, etc?

Pretty intense. They are 30 minutes and I am heavy breathing through most of it. It is mostly strength training.
I am a teacher, so usually on my feet (but today am at my desk, and on MFP, becuase of a test my students are taking all day)
I am a mother of three, including a four month-old. I am lucky if I get to sit down once between the hours of 5 and 9 PM.

It could well be that you aren't eating enough then, as you have a fairly active lifestyle.

These are your results from fat2fit:

Sedentary (little or no exercise, desk job) 2080
Lightly Active (light exercise/sports 1-3 days/wk) 2383
Moderately Active (moderate exercise/sports 3-5 days/wk) 2686
Very Active (hard exercise/sports 6-7 days/wk) 2989
Extremely Active (hard daily exercise/sports & physical job or 2X day training, i.e marathon, contest etc.) 3293

I would put you down as moderately active, so a 20% calorie deficit from that is around 2150 cals a day.

Also bear in mind that you are strength training which can also make you gain.

My recommendations:

1. Take measurements as well as focus on the scale - very important while lifting weights.
2. Cut down the amount of sodium you eat.
3. Try upping your calories a little.

Weight loss is a lot about trial and error, it took me about 4 months to figure out what I need to eat at to lose weight. I would try upping your calories to 2000 a day for the next 4 weeks, and see how it goes. If you lose, great, you've found your ideal calories. If you gain/stay the same, then re-adjust.

It can be a long process, but the biggest thing I've learnt on here is that patience is key.

Sugar from fruit is natural sugar and high in fiber too. which are filling and good for you. I have noticed that when I add fresh fruit and veggies, I will fill fuller longer and will lose weight better.

I noticed on your food diary that your calories are kinda of all over, one day you have a lot left over, the next day a few left over. I think that maybe a look at how many calories your taking in may be an issue. Your body needs to maintain a certain amount of calories just to function.

You may have to tweek things for your body type . I am new to this process too and wish you all the success in the world.

I have not looked at your food diary, but I am finally having success with an added strategy. This is not a strategy that would likely work all by itself. It works when added to a whole foods, clean, vegetarian or omnivore diet that is mostly vegetables,.

I have been doing a whole foods, mostly organic, omnivore, low glycemic, fairly clean diet for decades. My health per blood tests and other standard measures (sans wt!) is above average. Yet, I cannot lose this 40lbs that I have gradually accumulated since the 1980s. In retrospect, this about the time I began eating less meat and more complex carbohydrates. I was already no-junk food person who had been eating strictly what I could bring home and cook from my local food co-op and farmers' mrkt. It follows that I would try low-carb diets that became so popular. I would lose a few pounds then stagnate and then they would come back. I tried going to the gym, because I recall that when I was dancing 5-6 days a week or when I college student and walking 4-6 miles daily I was thin. Yet, when I exercise aggressively now, I gain weight--and it is not from eating more. Exercise dampens my appetitle drastically. In fact, my doctor monitored me while on a super low cal diet, on which I lost a few pounds then stagnated. Does any of this sound like your quandry.

If so, evalutate your diet for water consumption (target = 8-12 glasses daily), adequate sleep, and nutrition. If you do a low-glycemic mostly vegetarian meals you are probably at a place where 50-75% of your foods are plants. Of these most should be vegetables and legumes. Fruit and nuts and seeds are key, but in much smaller portions. Whole grains--especially brown long-grain rice are another key piece in small quanitities. Moreover, my diet ranges 30-60% raw (more in the summer and less in winter).

If you are doing these things and staying within your recommended range of calorie & nutrition intake, then there is no way your diet has room for junk food or sodapop. If you have any highly processed food in your diet--even if it is a "health brand" eliiminate it. For example, I do not buy nor eat natural oat bran Os cereals; it is highly processed. I do buy and eat oatmeal.

If this is you, then you may be ready to ADD with what I am currently having success. If not, clean up your diet another notch for as many months as it takes for it to feel natural and set. It is adviseable to get professional guidance for this and the ADDITION I will share. I am not a medical nor nutritional professional. I am sharing only what is working for me and encouraging you to discuss what I share with your own nutritional and/or medical professional.

I have been reading about pH (acid & alkaline balance with the body). I am reading that our skin works best slightly acidic. Our blood should be slightly alkaline. In this light I learned that I was not eating enough green vegetables nor good fats. Also, in testing my tap water I found that it was very acidic, so that all my hydration could be preventing the release of my unhealthy body fat. I am eating more greens--especially parsley and am filtering and treating my water. I have lost nearly 4 lbs in 6 days. Already this is twice as fast a weight lost that I have every had AND it did not require a reduction in calories or change in physical routine--BUT it likely works only in conjunction with a healthly diet. I added a new piece of knowledge to my repetoire and shifted my vegetable profile a little and added more healthy fats.

This pH addition is new to me, so it will 6 to 12 wks before I am absolutely certain that this is the missing piece for which I have been looking. When I loose 12-15 lbs, I will be making a follow-up appointment with my own doctor.