Only lost 7 lbs in a month...

apittmanrn
apittmanrn Posts: 200 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Ok that doesn't sound that bad but...I started MFP (again) on Jan 2. My baseline start that MPF gave me was about 1400 calories, I think. Here's how it panned out...

Week of Jan 7th- 2 days over cals, but 674 under weekly goal
Week of Jan 14th- 3 days over cals, 373 over weekly goal

The second week, I was starving and I started reading up on Eat more to weight less, TDEE, BMR, In Place of a Road Map...I did the Scooby Workshop calculator. My BMR is 1968, and figured in the calculator to a 20% reduction to be 1889 cals. I changed my MFP calculator to 1865 cal/day.

I am 5'6", 262 lbs. I might exercise 3x/week. I had a personal trainer tell me once that its 80% diet. I'm working on that exercise part, but truth be told, I'm lazy. :grumble:

So in 30 days, I have only lost 7 lbs. I religiously weigh, measure and chart my intake correctly. I understand, just from past weight loss, that being morbidly obese, a small reduction in calories should result in a large weight loss. What I am doing wrong?? Check my diaries out, be brutal...tell me the truth. But I am never hungry, I have enjoyed this lifestyle change where I am not starving, binging, purging, eating only protein, etc...so I hope it just needs more time!

Please tell me its gonna work!!! :(
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Replies

  • CaffeinatedConfectionist
    CaffeinatedConfectionist Posts: 1,046 Member
    Give it time! I know it's hard, but accepting that you can't rush things, and looking at weight loss as something that will probably take a year or more (I've been at this for getting on for two years, because I have a tendency to get off track) will make it easier to be patient.

    I see from your diary that you're pretty consistently over on sodium, so part of the problem is likely to be water retention. Try cutting out some of the processed foods that you eat, like some of the fast food or prepackaged food like the Lean Cuisines and ramen, and see if that helps, both in terms of dropping water weight and for general health.

    You also don't often hit your protein macro (I'm not sure what percentages your macros are set at) so try upping your protein, which will you keep fuller longer - although it doesn't sound like hunger is much of a problem for you - and which is helpful in retaining lean body mass. Try adding in some dairy (more of that greek yogurt, or maybe some cottage cheese, though cottage cheese often has heinous amounts of sodium), more fish, beans and lentils, and dark, leafy green vegetables.

    But my primary advice would just to be patient, give it time, and be proud of the 7 lb you've lost so far. :drinker:
  • quietmama
    quietmama Posts: 24
    Hi, I just took a look at some of your food diaries and it seems like you're always way over your sodium. You could be retaining water. Try watching your sodium intake more closely for a week and see if that makes a difference. 7 pounds in a month is still good. They recommend 1-1 1/2 pounds per week so that's not bad. Maybe keep track of your sugar intake also. I have a hard time with my sugar. Its over quite often. A lot of its from fruit though so I don't get to stressed unless its one of those days when I get into the baking cupboard and eat all the chocolate chips!hahaha
    :happy:
  • carijok
    carijok Posts: 32
    Seven pounds is pretty good, that's almost two a week! I started at the same time as you and have been pretty strict with myself and have lost about thirteen to- date. I looked at your food diary for the last three days. If you're serious about dropping weight faster you should stick to whole foods as much as possible, cut out refined flour products and sugar, and eat way more veggies. Daily exercise will also help. Feel free to add me :)
  • kayduro
    kayduro Posts: 249 Member
    Congratulations on losing 7 lbs in one month! That's a great accomplishment!
  • AnabolicKyle
    AnabolicKyle Posts: 489 Member
    Agree with other posters.

    IMO your diet looks pretty decent would definitely add more vegetables!!! Doesn't seem like you eat any. Also processed grains are the devil(mommy said) but plenty of people get incredible lean eating pasta/bread but I always stay clear of them if possible.
  • apittmanrn
    apittmanrn Posts: 200 Member
    Give it time! I know it's hard, but accepting that you can't rush things, and looking at weight loss as something that will probably take a year or more (I've been at this for getting on for two years, because I have a tendency to get off track) will make it easier to be patient.

    I see from your diary that you're pretty consistently over on sodium, so part of the problem is likely to be water retention. Try cutting out some of the processed foods that you eat, like some of the fast food or prepackaged food like the Lean Cuisines and ramen, and see if that helps, both in terms of dropping water weight and for general health.

    You also don't often hit your protein macro (I'm not sure what percentages your macros are set at) so try upping your protein, which will you keep fuller longer - although it doesn't sound like hunger is much of a problem for you - and which is helpful in retaining lean body mass. Try adding in some dairy (more of that greek yogurt, or maybe some cottage cheese, though cottage cheese often has heinous amounts of sodium), more fish, beans and lentils, and dark, leafy green vegetables.

    But my primary advice would just to be patient, give it time, and be proud of the 7 lb you've lost so far. :drinker:

    I think my macros at 40/30/30. I have a crazy aversion to protein only. I lost A LOT of weight eating almost a keto diet, therefore in my brain I'm trying to wrap around the fact that I can eat more carbs and still lose weight. But obviously I'm eating too many. :wink:

    I am trying to work on the veggie part. I have an unhealthy aversion to them. Green smoothies, Mashed cauliflower, tomatoes, and roasted broccoli. That's about the extent. And I haven't even been eating those. Le sigh. Thank you for your help!

    My sodium is terrible. My "homemade" spaghetti sauce clocks in at over 2,000 mg per cup. Must be fixed immediately.

    @ kay and cari, thank you so much. Sometimes just a good "good job and keep trucking" helps a lot!!
  • EvgeniZyntx
    EvgeniZyntx Posts: 24,208 Member
    Adjust attitude.
    Weight loss is not linear.
    7 a month is great.

    Are your goals also fitness related or just weight loss? Ask yourself that.
  • apittmanrn
    apittmanrn Posts: 200 Member
    Kyle, I hate vegetables. Help!
  • apittmanrn
    apittmanrn Posts: 200 Member
    Adjust attitude.
    Weight loss is not linear.
    7 a month is great.

    Are your goals also fitness related or just weight loss? Ask yourself that.

    Thank you. I needed this!!
  • Redladystl
    Redladystl Posts: 351 Member
    I'm in the same boat with you. I haven't looked at your diary but from reading the above comments they are on point. Too much sodium is like sand bags!
  • kelly101386
    kelly101386 Posts: 389 Member
    7lbs in a month is a fantastic achievement! The slower you lose it, the less likely you will be to put it on! I have been doing this 6 months now, started at 224lbs. Aside from the recommendations, try measuring inches as well as they can be vital when you don't lose weight.
  • wmoomoo
    wmoomoo Posts: 159 Member
    You are doing great losing those weight, keep up the good work. I do have some questions

    1) are you deducing your calories from your BMR or TDEE? BMR is the amount you should be at least eating to maintain life. You should be eating 20% off TDEE.

    2) are you mixing up your exercises? Do you know if you are calculating your exercise burn correctly? MFP sometimes over-estimated burned calories.

    3) are you messurimg your food? Sorry, didn't go over your daily.

    But if you have done everything right, then just give it time. You will get to your goal. :). Good luck
  • RepsnSets
    RepsnSets Posts: 805 Member
    Ive lost three pounds. All the posts on here of people losing so much weight in less than a month was making me sad but then I realised, not everyone is the same. What is good for one member is not necessariIy good for the other. I measured myself last night and discovered I lost alot in inches this past month. I think I need to throw my scale out the window.
  • AnabolicKyle
    AnabolicKyle Posts: 489 Member
    I dump loads of salt on mine!!!

    Since Iam not eating French fries Iam like F it. Iam under the impression that sodium intake doesn't really affect blood pressure that much but not sure what the medical community has to say. Diet looks pretty solid, as long as you can maintain your pace in 6 months people won't recognize you.

    Affect/effect for the life of me I can never figure these out.
  • HardRockCamaro
    HardRockCamaro Posts: 147
    My BMR is 1968, and figured in the calculator to a 20% reduction to be 1889 cals. I changed my MFP calculator to 1865 cal/day.

    20% off of 1968 = 1575
  • CaffeinatedConfectionist
    CaffeinatedConfectionist Posts: 1,046 Member

    I think my macros at 40/30/30. I have a crazy aversion to protein only. I lost A LOT of weight eating almost a keto diet, therefore in my brain I'm trying to wrap around the fact that I can eat more carbs and still lose weight. But obviously I'm eating too many. :wink:

    I am trying to work on the veggie part. I have an unhealthy aversion to them. Green smoothies, Mashed cauliflower, tomatoes, and roasted broccoli. That's about the extent. And I haven't even been eating those. Le sigh. Thank you for your help!

    I am often off with my macros, myself. I have mine set pretty similar to yours, and also have a hard time netting my protein. I usually try to hit at least 100g, and will make a protein shake if I'm low, but some days, like today, I just run out of time. :grumble:

    The only thing I can think of to suggest as far as hating vegetables is just to keep trying different ways of preparing them. For example, I absolutely loathe brussels sprouts if they're made from frozen or if someone boils them to death, but I could eat my body weight in fresh brussels sprouts sauteed with bacon and chestnuts. I also like to just sautee a bunch of veggies with a little oyster sauce...mmm. And of course, like you say, roasted! I adore roasted broccoli and roasted asparagus. You could maybe try adding them to soups and things like that, especially if it's soup that gets pureed, so you don't have to worry about coming face to face with a giant chunk o' vegetable that you despise.
  • apittmanrn
    apittmanrn Posts: 200 Member
    I dump loads of salt on mine!!!

    Since Iam not eating French fries Iam like F it. Iam under the impression that sodium intake doesn't really affect blood pressure that much but not sure what the medical community has to say. Diet looks pretty solid, as long as you can maintain your pace in 6 months people won't recognize you.

    Affect/effect for the life of me I can never figure these out.

    I'm gonna try Mrs. Dash or something. Like I said, a "Mr. Alabama body builder champion" trained me a few years ago when I lost like 80 pounds. But I ate nothing but chicken, EW, oatmeal, brown rice, and plain steamed vegetables. Literally. No fruit, no bread, no dairy. Putting a steamer bag of broccoli in the microwave literally makes me gag in my mouth...

    Edited to say...unless you have hypertension, salt shouldn't really be an issue. Unless you are like me, and could possibly be bloated like a blowfish...haven't noticed that yet! (I'm an ER nurse).

    Lasix, here I come... :)
  • CaffeinatedConfectionist
    CaffeinatedConfectionist Posts: 1,046 Member
    My BMR is 1968, and figured in the calculator to a 20% reduction to be 1889 cals. I changed my MFP calculator to 1865 cal/day.

    20% off of 1968 = 1575

    ...also this... Whoops on not catching that... :embarassed:
  • caroleannlight
    caroleannlight Posts: 173 Member
    7 lbs a month is great progress. I have averaged that since starting and have over a 100 to lose. Just keep on going. Some people have a spurt at the beginning some people (like me) have steadier weight loss. Progress is progress just keep consistent.
  • apittmanrn
    apittmanrn Posts: 200 Member
    My BMR is 1968, and figured in the calculator to a 20% reduction to be 1889 cals. I changed my MFP calculator to 1865 cal/day.

    20% off of 1968 = 1575

    20% off my TDEE is 1889. According to all my nice MFP eat more to weight less folks, you shouldn't eat below your BMR.

    Sorry. shoulda said 20% off my TDEE. It does look like i meant BMR. Whoops....
  • xsmilexforxmex
    xsmilexforxmex Posts: 1,216 Member
    7lbs in a month is great! Especially since you say you arent huge on working out! If you want to lose more maybe try adding a daily walk? Even just a mile 3x a week will help and is a great start... I seriously would have preferred to lose slowly and keep at it then have my 10lb loss only to think I was done changing and gain it back :/ Just keep at it, and maybe measure as well so if you do have a week/month that you don't lose you might see a difference in inches. Keep up the great work!
  • stumegsmum
    stumegsmum Posts: 34
    Adjust attitude.
    Weight loss is not linear.
    7 a month is great.

    Are your goals also fitness related or just weight loss? Ask yourself that.


    I have lost 7lbs this month too - it is hard to break out of the thought process that this is going to be a quick fix - I have always got really frustrated in the past when the scale hasn't moved down as fast as I would like. This time around, I am setting myself a challenge to log on for a month at a time, so each 30 days logged is an achievement in itself.

    Also 7lbs a month is six stone off over the course of a year - took me at least 17 years to put that much on.

    Keep going, you're doing great
  • Givemewings
    Givemewings Posts: 864 Member
    7lbs is great! Don't worry! It's working!
  • xsmilexforxmex
    xsmilexforxmex Posts: 1,216 Member
    My BMR is 1968, and figured in the calculator to a 20% reduction to be 1889 cals. I changed my MFP calculator to 1865 cal/day.

    20% off of 1968 = 1575

    20% off my TDEE is 1889. According to all my nice MFP eat more to weight less folks, you shouldn't eat below your BMR.

    Sorry. shoulda said 20% off my TDEE. It does look like i meant BMR. Whoops....

    This doesnt entirely make sense to me and I'm sure your math is correct, but if you want check out fat2fitradio.com/tools and do the body fat % calculator and the calories/BMR calculator.. it actually gives you your BMR and TDEE based off estimated activity level. It's the only way I can ever figure those numbers out.
  • harrietlg
    harrietlg Posts: 239
    wish I could lose 7lbs in a month! thats healthy btw!
  • Funsoaps
    Funsoaps Posts: 514 Member
    7 pounds is amazing that's almost 2 lbs a week. We ALL want it fast but truth is isome times if it comes off fast it can also go back on fast, slow and steady win sthe race,

    U can try increasing workouts to 4 days a week then after a month try 5 days.
  • losingweightfindingme
    losingweightfindingme Posts: 109 Member
    Congrats on the 7 pounds! 7 pounds in a month is fantastic!
  • jessicathomas15
    jessicathomas15 Posts: 46
    7lbs in a month is awesome! Well done, and try not to get disheartened! I've been on here since November and only lost 2 lbs, that's when you need to wonder haha! :)
  • Squidgeypaws007
    Squidgeypaws007 Posts: 1,012 Member
    The first weight you'll lose is glycogen stores - water weight, so you'll lose a lot quickly, then it'll slow down as you get to business. 7Ibs is awesome, now dig in :bigsmile: your food diary looks fine to me, but I'm hardly one to comment on stuff like that :laugh:

    Anyway, good luck feel free to add me if you want a cheerleader!! :flowerforyou:
  • Muldactus
    Muldactus Posts: 6,972 Member
    Here's a little something to think about.... your "only 7 lbs in a month" would end up with you losing 84 lbs over the course of a year. That's a phenominal accomplishment. Is it possible to lose faster? Yes. BUT it's not healthy. Your best results will come from a slow, steady loss of weight over a longer period of time, giving your body time to adjust to the changes. It does take perseverence and patience, but trust me - the end result is well worth it!!

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