Really discouraged..

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canadian_bacon
canadian_bacon Posts: 77
in Health and Weight Loss
I've been back on here for over a month now. I am 5'8 146lbs and I want to lose about 20 lbs. I set my calories to 1500 and workout almost every day (mix of weights and cardio). I eat back most of my excersize calories and I have been eating way healthier. I eat fruit and veggies almost every day now. I haven't gone over my calories very many times. I was losing at first but now the last week or so I've gained.. Any suggestions?

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  • ladyoflb
    ladyoflb Posts: 73 Member
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    Maybe your time of the month is approaching? That happens and it stinks!!!
  • JenniTheVeggie
    JenniTheVeggie Posts: 2,474 Member
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    I tend to lose in spurts. I guess it is a monthly thing and I have come to accept it. As long as you are eating healthy and moving more then you are doing it right.
  • CristinaL1983
    CristinaL1983 Posts: 1,119 Member
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    You are already in your healthy weight range so you might want to think about doing more weights. It might be easier to get to the shape you want by adding some more muscle rather than losing weight.

    You also don't seem to have too much of a deficit so measuring food correctly (scale not measuring cups etc...) could be vital if you really want to lose some weight.


    IDK what to say other than that... I'm shooting for a weight right about where you are right now (I'm 5'7'') which will put me at just under 20% body fat.
  • blonde20fan
    blonde20fan Posts: 233 Member
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    I am watching this thread. The same thing is happening to me!
  • lmelangley
    lmelangley Posts: 1,039 Member
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    If you haven't gone over in calories, don't worry too much. could be:
    1. Water retention
    2. muscle gain (have you taken your measurements?)
    3. constipation
    4. any of a handful of other things

    I know this time is the hardest, but if you hang in there, you'll start losing again! If you haven't seen any change in another week or two, try shaking it up a little. I find having one really high calorie (but good nutrition) day can get me losing again.
  • kaefer13
    kaefer13 Posts: 9
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    Could be that you are gaining muscle? Measure yourself, (MFP, in it's progress setting helps you keep track) you could be changing your body composition, gaining muscle and loosing fat (muscle weighs more than fat). You could be looking slimmer and more toned even when weighing a little more.
  • PikaKnight
    PikaKnight Posts: 34,971 Member
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    Have you also tracked your measurements? More often then not, people have found they've lost inches even when the scale hasn't moved.

    For other advice...

    MFP does expect you to eat your exercise calories back. But I wonder - did you pick the right activity level? Did you set your goals at the aggressively 2lbs/week? Maybe try re-calculating and pick 1lb/week loss and make sure you pick the right activity level. Don't pick sedentary just because you think it'll help you lose faster.

    Or, if you want, check out this link by MFPer Heliotsdan - It'll give you a detailed walkthrough (with pictures even) on finding your TDEE and calculating what you should be eating.
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/654536-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12

    Or for a different version to figure out your TDEE, as well as some great advice...check out:
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/833500-what-do-i-do-common-sense-cliff-notes
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/844040-raspberry-ketones-for-the-rest-of-us


    Also, if you are worried about the calorie intake, I also suggest you read this thread that has numerous people who met their goals and are maintaining. Some for years and they also provide their calorie intake and how often they work out.
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/816542-let-s-hear-it-for-maintainenance


    For more information about fitness and nutrition, I highly suggest checking out and joining this group: (Read all the stickies. It's great information to know.)
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/10118-eat-train-progress
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/865230-resources-and-references


    Yes, this is can all be overwhelming and complicated , but you are more than welcome to ask questions on the post.
    One of the things that I have found that has been one of the best methods for me to get fit is to understand fitness. To understand where all these figures, etc come from.

    The good thing is once you get the hang of it - it is something you'll be aware of constantly and you'll get a better understanding about your eating habits.

    So I HIGHLY suggest making the effort to take every chance to educate yourself. Even if you don't end up going with any of these methods, calculations, etc - at least you understand what they are, where others are coming from, and maybe they will still be able to help you figure out what is best for you.
  • Ramshots
    Ramshots Posts: 13 Member
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    The best thing to do is not freak out over a slight gain in a week or two. I've logged my weight daily since May 5, 2012 and there have been times when I've gained and did nothing different. I've had a couple of weeks in a row with weight gain or staying even. That is usually followed by a sizeable drop. You can't be so narrowly focused. You have to consider the long term trend. Take a deep breath, stick with your plan and evaluate in 2 or 3 weeks. I'm sure you will be fine.
  • emacb123
    emacb123 Posts: 254 Member
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    I tend to lose in spurts. I guess it is a monthly thing and I have come to accept it. As long as you are eating healthy and moving more then you are doing it right.

    Yep. Me too. I tread water for weeks at a time. I am not perfect, and I slip sometimes.

    So I re evaluate, readjust, keep my head down and PLOD through. When I know I'm doing it right and still not seeing it on the scale I keep going.

    Patience. You can do this!


    ETA: zero loss the month of Jan. 4lb loss 2/8. I don're expect to see the scale move for another couple of weeks now.
  • victay3
    victay3 Posts: 14 Member
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    I had the same problem I had been working out everyday cardio and weights for a month. I ended up gaining weight instead of loosing it was not muscle because my clothes were fitting tighter. So I went to the Dr. And had my blood checked. It seems I have very low Vitamin D and my hormones are very out of wack. The Dr has put me on 1000 more IU. So I am praying that will help me. But you might want to go get your hormones and vitamins checked. After doing a little research on vitamin D deficiency it can cause you to not loose weight.
  • bksmission2skinny
    bksmission2skinny Posts: 1
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    I felt totally the same. Don't give up because weight loss goes in spurts. I wasn't loosing anything and one morning I woke up and I was down 4 pounds. Your body will take its time adjusting to loosing weight on its own timetable. Just keep doing what your doing and you will be amazed. I feel your pain though, patience has never been my strong suit, but I speak the truth :)
    Oh Btw... talk about discouraged. I am 5'8 and my goal weight it 148 ! I am 156 ( suddenly jealous of you LOL)
  • Ultragirl2374
    Ultragirl2374 Posts: 390 Member
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    Same thing is happening with me :(
  • silvajewl
    silvajewl Posts: 7
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    I was having the same issue. I did a couple things...and it seems to be working.

    1.) started wearing a heart rate monitor during my workouts. MFP tends to be off with the amount of calories they give you when you use their exercises. Also, the elliptical and other like equipment were OVER estimating my calories burned by almost 2x(example: elliptical said I burned 700+ and my heartrate monitor put me at 450).

    2.) add more cardio...you can never do too much cardio, just make sure that you're fueling your body.

    3.) re-evaluate your calories....just make sure you've selected to right amount. If anything, just cut another 50 from each day.

    Hope this helps :)

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