Still not really losing

I started with a 1200 calorie a day diet while I lost weight I was really tired and miserable. I uped my calories to 1350 which still allowed me to loose but I felt better overall. Lost about 4 lbs and now I'm starting to gain a bit back. I am still sticking to my calorie intake most the time being a bit under and working out pretty hard almost every day. I am a 23 year old female who is 5 foot 6 inches. Any advice would be great. Thanks everyone !
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Replies

  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    I started with a 1200 calorie a day diet while I lost weight I was really tired and miserable. I uped my calories to 1350 which still allowed me to loose but I felt better overall. Lost about 4 lbs and now I'm starting to gain a bit back. I am still sticking to my calorie intake most the time being a bit under and working out pretty hard almost every day. I am a 23 year old female who is 5 foot 6 inches. Any advice would be great. Thanks everyone !

    at 5ft6 and 130somethign pounds you are not overweight, you just maybe need to 'tone up' a bit....

    my advice would be to set your calorie goal at lose 1/2lb, eat back your exercise calories (if you dont already) and try and make sure you eat plenty of protein and good fat, aim to get your 5 portions of fruit and veg a day and look at a decent full body strength training routine so lose a bit of bodyfat.
  • DeanBurrows
    DeanBurrows Posts: 116 Member
    Sounds like you are gaining Lean Muscle to me.

    Keep it up :D
  • jesz124
    jesz124 Posts: 1,004 Member
    Sounds like you are gaining Lean Muscle to me.

    Keep it up :D

    Haed/desk. Yeah because it's soooo easy to gain lean muscle when your a girl. We just have to look at a pair of 3k pink dumbbells and thats it, we buff up straight away!! :explode:

    OP I'd work out your TDEE and take about 15% - 20% from it to produce a small deficit, rather than trying to stick to around 1300.
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    Sounds like you are gaining Lean Muscle to me.

    Keep it up :D

    you can gain lean muscle by eating 1300 calories?!

    and there was me thinking lifting heavy and eating in a calorie excess built muscle... how silly of me!
  • DeanBurrows
    DeanBurrows Posts: 116 Member
    Sounds like you are gaining Lean Muscle to me.

    Keep it up :D

    Haed/desk. Yeah because it's soooo easy to gain lean muscle when your a girl. We just have to look at a pair of 3k pink dumbbells and thats it, we buff up straight away!! :explode:

    OP I'd work out your TDEE and take about 15% - 20% from it to produce a small deficit, rather than trying to stick to around 1300.

    What on earth are you chatting?

    1350 is a good rough estimate for her age and height, so eating less will do no good, 1350 does sound like a good number as her TDEE will be around 1600.

    So if she is 'working out pretty hard every day' then it is quite likely that she is gaining Lean Muscle, your assumption of whatever you thought i was getting at is totally misguided and immature.
  • DeanBurrows
    DeanBurrows Posts: 116 Member
    Sounds like you are gaining Lean Muscle to me.

    Keep it up :D

    you can gain lean muscle by eating 1300 calories?!

    and there was me thinking lifting heavy and eating in a calorie excess built muscle... how silly of me!

    I eat below my TDEE and still gain Lean Muscle.

    Some people are so dumb on this forum, you could be 4 foot and eating 1300 calories is excess, the number is determined on other factors
  • blanhe2
    blanhe2 Posts: 88
    are you eating your exercise calories, especially when you are working out as hard as you are? What does MFP suggest for cal target + exercise?
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    Some people are so dumb on this forum, you could be 4 foot and eating 1300 calories is excess, the number is determined on other factors

    you may well be 4 foot, but the OP clearly isnt, she says she is 5ft6, so i doubt 1300 is an excess...
  • nyemu
    nyemu Posts: 43
    How are you doing in terms of inches lost? I haven't lost any scale weight in the past 3 weeks but my clothes are practically falling off.
  • ILiftHeavyAcrylics
    ILiftHeavyAcrylics Posts: 27,732 Member
    If you gained a lot overnight, it's probably water.

    If you've been gaining gradually over a period of time, you're probably eating more than you realize. Are you weighing/measuring everything?

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/872212-you-re-probably-eating-more-than-you-think


    Also you're already at a healthy weight. Why not focus on body composition rather than weight loss?
  • skylark94
    skylark94 Posts: 2,036 Member
    Sounds like you are gaining Lean Muscle to me.

    Keep it up :D

    you can gain lean muscle by eating 1300 calories?!

    and there was me thinking lifting heavy and eating in a calorie excess built muscle... how silly of me!

    I eat below my TDEE and still gain Lean Muscle.

    Some people are so dumb on this forum, you could be 4 foot and eating 1300 calories is excess, the number is determined on other factors

    I think you need to rethink who you're calling dumb. The OP said she's 5'6", not 4 feet. Unless she is not getting out of bed each day, 1,300 is too low. I'm 5'4" and eating an average of 2,000 calories. I'm gaining lean mass and dropping fat, but it is a slow and tedious process that requires lifting very heavy weights (8-10 rep range).
  • DeanBurrows
    DeanBurrows Posts: 116 Member
    Sounds like you are gaining Lean Muscle to me.

    Keep it up :D

    you can gain lean muscle by eating 1300 calories?!

    and there was me thinking lifting heavy and eating in a calorie excess built muscle... how silly of me!

    I eat below my TDEE and still gain Lean Muscle.

    Some people are so dumb on this forum, you could be 4 foot and eating 1300 calories is excess, the number is determined on other factors

    I think you need to rethink who you're calling dumb. The OP said she's 5'6", not 4 feet. Unless she is not getting out of bed each day, 1,300 is too low. I'm 5'4" and eating an average of 2,000 calories. I'm gaining lean mass and dropping fat, but it is a slow and tedious process that requires lifting very heavy weights (8-10 rep range).


    Le Sigh!

    Who ever said that the OP is 4 foot? I was proving the poster wrong of the assumption that 1300 can not be excessive by providing an example.

    The OP looks in good shape, and just toning up would be great, therefore weight gain is possible
  • LaLouve_RK
    LaLouve_RK Posts: 899 Member
    [

    at 5ft6 and 130somethign pounds you are not overweight, you just maybe need to 'tone up' a bit....


    THIS!
    I am 5'4" 3/4 and my original and healthy weight is between 125 to 130 lbs... Tone it up!
  • Hbazzell
    Hbazzell Posts: 899 Member
    To the ladies to are saying 1300 is not enough, do you mean 1300 net or total? I am asking because I am in her same boat.
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member

    Le Sigh!

    Who ever said that the OP is 4 foot? I was proving the poster wrong of the assumption that 1300 can not be excessive by providing an example.

    i think you'll find you told the OP that she was gaining lean muscle on 1300 cals....

    yet now you're saying that at 5ft6, 1300 cals is not excessive, so that wouldnt be the case?
  • DeanBurrows
    DeanBurrows Posts: 116 Member

    Le Sigh!

    Who ever said that the OP is 4 foot? I was proving the poster wrong of the assumption that 1300 can not be excessive by providing an example.

    i think you'll find you told the OP that she was gaining lean muscle on 1300 cals....

    yet now you're saying that at 5ft6, 1300 cals is not excessive, so that wouldnt be the case?

    You CAN gain Lean Muscle on 1300. You don't need to eat in excess to gain... it's called Newbie Gains
  • MJH2
    MJH2 Posts: 55 Member
    I have to agree that toning is more important than loosing. I would focus on inches lost rather than weight loss right now, ultimately muscles burns fat quicker. When I was within pounds of my goal a couple years ago, I started to focus on inches because my weight loss was .5 per week. I felt much much better when I tracked inches lost, the results were more encouraging than the weight loss. Good Luck!
  • AnabolicKyle
    AnabolicKyle Posts: 489 Member

    Le Sigh!

    Who ever said that the OP is 4 foot? I was proving the poster wrong of the assumption that 1300 can not be excessive by providing an example.

    i think you'll find you told the OP that she was gaining lean muscle on 1300 cals....

    yet now you're saying that at 5ft6, 1300 cals is not excessive, so that wouldnt be the case?

    You CAN gain Lean Muscle on 1300. You don't need to eat in excess to gain... it's called Newbie Gains

    to gain muscle yes but you should still lose weight.

    amirite?

  • Le Sigh!

    Who ever said that the OP is 4 foot? I was proving the poster wrong of the assumption that 1300 can not be excessive by providing an example.

    i think you'll find you told the OP that she was gaining lean muscle on 1300 cals....

    yet now you're saying that at 5ft6, 1300 cals is not excessive, so that wouldnt be the case?

    You CAN gain Lean Muscle on 1300. You don't need to eat in excess to gain... it's called Newbie Gains

    Your condescending attitude isn't doing much for your argument. You should provide some evidence, otherwise it's a baseless claim. Saying eating calories above 1300 = excess is just funny.
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    it's called Newbie Gains

    why didnt you just say newbie gains in the first place... would have saved a LOT of time....
  • DeanBurrows
    DeanBurrows Posts: 116 Member

    Le Sigh!

    Who ever said that the OP is 4 foot? I was proving the poster wrong of the assumption that 1300 can not be excessive by providing an example.

    i think you'll find you told the OP that she was gaining lean muscle on 1300 cals....

    yet now you're saying that at 5ft6, 1300 cals is not excessive, so that wouldnt be the case?

    You CAN gain Lean Muscle on 1300. You don't need to eat in excess to gain... it's called Newbie Gains

    to gain muscle yes but you should still lose weight.

    amirite?

    Of course yes, you can lose weight which is what i've done over the past 4 months, but from the OP's picture, granted it is hard to see but it looks like she is quite slim already, so that small weight gain could be LM
  • xidia
    xidia Posts: 606 Member

    Le Sigh!

    Who ever said that the OP is 4 foot? I was proving the poster wrong of the assumption that 1300 can not be excessive by providing an example.

    i think you'll find you told the OP that she was gaining lean muscle on 1300 cals....

    yet now you're saying that at 5ft6, 1300 cals is not excessive, so that wouldnt be the case?

    You CAN gain Lean Muscle on 1300. You don't need to eat in excess to gain... it's called Newbie Gains

    to gain muscle yes but you should still lose weight.

    amirite?

    Not necessarily, and not if you don't have an awful lot left to lose anyway, like the OP. Plus if it is new muscle mass, some of the weight may also be water as the muscle builds.
  • LottieLou13
    LottieLou13 Posts: 574 Member
    Sounds like you are gaining Lean Muscle to me.

    Keep it up :D

    Haed/desk. Yeah because it's soooo easy to gain lean muscle when your a girl. We just have to look at a pair of 3k pink dumbbells and thats it, we buff up straight away!! :explode:

    OP I'd work out your TDEE and take about 15% - 20% from it to produce a small deficit, rather than trying to stick to around 1300.

    What on earth are you chatting?

    1350 is a good rough estimate for her age and height, so eating less will do no good, 1350 does sound like a good number as her TDEE will be around 1600.

    So if she is 'working out pretty hard every day' then it is quite likely that she is gaining Lean Muscle, your assumption of whatever you thought i was getting at is totally misguided and immature.

    ^ Que?! :huh:

    I'm 30yrs old and the same height as the OP. My TDEE -20% gives me 1700. 1350 with working out is low, especially as she only has a few lbs to lose.
    And no. You cannot gain muscle on a calorific deficit. N00b gains will only get you so far and after a month they will go. In truth, you are getting stronger and cutting the fat over the muscle. You are not gaining muscle.

    To the OP...
    Work out your TDEE be honest with your activity level - if you are working out every day then put it as moderate. Then subtract 15-20% from that. The closer you get to goal the smaller the percentage you need in order to retain LBM and lose fat.

    :smile:
  • DeanBurrows
    DeanBurrows Posts: 116 Member
    it's called Newbie Gains

    why didnt you just say newbie gains in the first place... would have saved a LOT of time....

    Well i apologise, i should of said it sooner i guess.
  • DeanBurrows
    DeanBurrows Posts: 116 Member

    Le Sigh!

    Who ever said that the OP is 4 foot? I was proving the poster wrong of the assumption that 1300 can not be excessive by providing an example.

    i think you'll find you told the OP that she was gaining lean muscle on 1300 cals....

    yet now you're saying that at 5ft6, 1300 cals is not excessive, so that wouldnt be the case?

    You CAN gain Lean Muscle on 1300. You don't need to eat in excess to gain... it's called Newbie Gains

    Your condescending attitude isn't doing much for your argument. You should provide some evidence, otherwise it's a baseless claim. Saying eating calories above 1300 = excess is just funny.

    Learn to read brah!

    I said eating 1300 calories could be eating in excess for someone smaller, like 4ft like in the example.
  • ines25
    ines25 Posts: 107 Member
    You should not be worry of that gain this happen when you start to workout but after 2 or 3 weeks it goes away IS NORMAL and I think you are not eating enough and at the end u are going to mess up ur metabolism. You should be eating from 1600 to 1800 no lower than that you are 5'6 take from me I'm 4'11 and still lose weight at 1400cal
  • drusilla126
    drusilla126 Posts: 478 Member
    Sigh you're not eating enough. Go here. Read it. Know it. Love it. https://www.facebook.com/notes/motivation-mandy/step-5-counting-calories-its-longsorry/330200967094390
  • My tdee is determined to be 2235 by fitness frog.com if I take 20% off that I'm at 1788 calories a day. This sure does seem like alot to be eating and losing weight. Maybe ill try it for a week and see if I can get rid of a few more pounds. Opinions?
  • LottieLou13
    LottieLou13 Posts: 574 Member
    My tdee is determined to be 2235 by fitness frog.com if I take 20% off that I'm at 1788 calories a day. This sure does seem like alot to be eating and losing weight. Maybe ill try it for a week and see if I can get rid of a few more pounds. Opinions?

    One week is'nt long enough in order to gauge the effectiveness of a calorie change. You need to do it for a month really and try to avoid the scale apart from maybe once a week.

    (And 1788 sounds about right :smile: The 2235 is your maintenance number, so anything under that is a calorific deficit for you)
  • skylark94
    skylark94 Posts: 2,036 Member
    My tdee is determined to be 2235 by fitness frog.com if I take 20% off that I'm at 1788 calories a day. This sure does seem like alot to be eating and losing weight. Maybe ill try it for a week and see if I can get rid of a few more pounds. Opinions?

    It sounds like a lot because commercial diet programs have pounded the absolute minimum of 1,200 into our heads for so long. Low calorie diets yield rapid but rarely permanent fat loss.

    You need to try 1,800 for at least a month. I'd even go so far as to say give it 3 months. Healthy fat loss is not a rapid process. Eat your food, lift heavy things, and track body fat and measurements, not weight.