No weight loss

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bethsmth
bethsmth Posts: 6
in Motivation and Support
I've been walking at least 2-3 miles a day and staying pretty close to my cal intake and I've not lost a pound. I don't get it.

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  • LavenderBouquet
    LavenderBouquet Posts: 736 Member
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    How long have you been doing this for? Do you log and eat back your exercise calories? Also, how close are you to your goal weight?
  • PamelaGatorMom
    PamelaGatorMom Posts: 348 Member
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    When you say you are staying close to calorie intake...are these healthy choices? I can eat junk sometimes & stay under but it doesn't help with my weight loss. I only see a difference when I do higher fiber, lower fat foods. Also I log EVERYTHING I eat!! Being diligent to log all food items is key.

    In addition for me personally, I HATE eating breakfast but I make myself eat something within an hour of waking up or I can go all day without eating & that's not good either. I've found this has helped with my weight loss.

    And are you "eating" the calories you burn while walking? if so you are back to square one, you have to burn more than you eat to lose weight so I never "eat back" my calories from exercising.

    Just remember that everyone is different & things that work for others may not work for you.
  • LavenderBouquet
    LavenderBouquet Posts: 736 Member
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    And are you "eating" the calories you burn while walking? if so you are back to square one, you have to burn more than you eat to lose weight so I never "eat back" my calories from exercising.

    Technically MFP automatically keeps a deficit for you already, regardless if you eat them back. Not eating them back will just give you an even larger deficit than you already chose. In some cases this can be bad as it puts you in too high of a deficit.
  • jlshotpost
    jlshotpost Posts: 1
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    Hi Beth,

    Sounds like your doing all the right things and 2-3 miles a day is great workout overall and you should be losing something if you have calculated your BMR correctly. Some of the calculators that are out there are at best, a guide of your BMI and BMR and you would only need to be slightly off, in terms of your calorific requirements, to maintain your current weight level without realising it. Try consciously reducing your calorific intake by a 100 or so calories a day but maintain your current exercise regime or increase it if you are able. then if the weight still not coming off, reduce by another 100 calories but no lower than 1200 calories a day at a minimum.

    Remember 3500 cals = 1lb in weight. So if your BMR is 2000 for example but your body is taking on an additional 116 calories a day over and above your BMR, which is easier than you think, then over a 30 day period then you are still going intake an additional 3500 calories and put on 1.lb of weight. Now deduct that from the 2-3 miles a day you are burning off you should be losing weight, and if your'e not then its simply the math that's not quite right. other things you could try;

    Increase your Water intake
    Increase your overall Nutritional RDA of the right Vitamins and minerals for you.
    You could investigate High Intensity training as this may help.
    Look at your sugar intake as unexpended sugar simply turns to fat and your body cant process both the glucose stores and expel the unwanted fat at the same time very easily.
    Check your body'as Acidity/ Alkaline levels as the body can process and expel fats a lot easier if its slight more Alkaline than acidic.

    Hope that helps and dont lose heart you will get there.

    Regards


    Jonnie
  • PamelaGatorMom
    PamelaGatorMom Posts: 348 Member
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    Technically MFP automatically keeps a deficit for you already, regardless if you eat them back. Not eating them back will just give you an even larger deficit than you already chose. In some cases this can be bad as it puts you in too high of a deficit.

    I do agree to a point, I have friends who work out really hard & burn WAY more calories than I do walking, however right now my normal exercise is a 2 mile walk like the OP...I personally feel that I don't need to eat back those calories...however I like I stated above everyone's body is different therefore each person needs to find what works best for them.
  • PamelaGatorMom
    PamelaGatorMom Posts: 348 Member
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    Increase your Water intake

    This too I meant to mention it.
  • bethsmth
    bethsmth Posts: 6
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    Thank you everyone for such quick replies. I'm on a 1200 cal intake right now. I admit I'm not eating very "clean" :( I had a hard time eating 1200 cals a day so I was picking higher cal food. I'm going to try to eat cleaner and increase my water intake a lot. I rarely get in 3 servings of water a day :(
    I have 50 lbs to lose:(
  • bethsmth
    bethsmth Posts: 6
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    My BMR say's 1475. What exactly is that?
  • dani_1977
    dani_1977 Posts: 557 Member
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    more water try to work yourself up to 8. then more if you can

    and 1200 is NOT enough, unless you are 16 year that weighs 120 lbs.

    google BMR. it will explain it. But basically that should you new goal... not 1200


    adjust your bmr ever 5lbs or so
  • jillybeanpuff
    jillybeanpuff Posts: 144 Member
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    your BMR is what you need to eat to stay alive. If you were in a coma in the hospital they would tube-feed you 1475 calories a day to maintain the function of your heart, lungs, liver, etc. You need to eat at LEAST this many calories a day. So no more 1200 calories, that's why you aren't losing any weight. Also, if you are exercising, and only eating 1200 calories, you are netting less than that. Your body thinks you are starving. Eat more food and you will lose weight :)
  • bethsmth
    bethsmth Posts: 6
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    I find it so hard to eat that amount in "clean" food. that is a lot of food. LOL I will start eating more and drinking more water.
    Again, thank you everyone for such quick replies and such healthful info
  • ekaustin7
    ekaustin7 Posts: 185 Member
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    That can be really frustrating, but I'm sure a lot of us (me included) have been in the same boat. My mom always told me that it takes about 21 days for you to make a habit of something and for it to start to show. When I started dieting, I felt like I was starving myself and spending hours in the gym, only to lose about half a pound a week. Stick to it, and soon the weight will just start to fall off.
  • ekaustin7
    ekaustin7 Posts: 185 Member
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    Jilly - I was always under the impression that your BMR is what you need to eat per day to MAINTAIN your current weight. I was always told (and taught in a human nutritional needs course in college) that the only way to lose weight is to create a calorie defeceit... burn more calories than you eat. But once you're at your goal weight, then you increase your net calories to your BMR so you essentially "break even" and don't gain or lose anything.
  • lelaspeaks
    lelaspeaks Posts: 163 Member
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    Thank you everyone for such quick replies. I'm on a 1200 cal intake right now. I admit I'm not eating very "clean" :( I had a hard time eating 1200 cals a day so I was picking higher cal food. I'm going to try to eat cleaner and increase my water intake a lot. I rarely get in 3 servings of water a day :(
    I have 50 lbs to lose:(

    THIS is why you're not losing weight.
  • EvanKeel
    EvanKeel Posts: 1,904 Member
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    Jilly - I was always under the impression that your BMR is what you need to eat per day to MAINTAIN your current weight. I was always told (and taught in a human nutritional needs course in college) that the only way to lose weight is to create a calorie defeceit... burn more calories than you eat. But once you're at your goal weight, then you increase your net calories to your BMR so you essentially "break even" and don't gain or lose anything.

    No, your TDEE is what you'd want to eat if you wanted to maintain your weight. Your BMR is just what it takes to keep you alive. You'll notice in several calorie equations (the Harris-Benedict equation, for example) that they use BMR, in addition to another number that represents daily activity, to find a total that you should eat to maintain your weight. From there you'd subtract to create a deficit.
  • rachealmiles
    rachealmiles Posts: 15
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    Jilly - I was always under the impression that your BMR is what you need to eat per day to MAINTAIN your current weight. I was always told (and taught in a human nutritional needs course in college) that the only way to lose weight is to create a calorie defeceit... burn more calories than you eat. But once you're at your goal weight, then you increase your net calories to your BMR so you essentially "break even" and don't gain or lose anything.

    Hi

    I'm no expert and I don't know correct terms but BMR is what you need to stay alive and the figure that you are thinking of is BMR plus what you burn in day to day life this is what you reduce to create a deficit. The BMR is already lower than what you burn.

    I hope that makes sense :-)
  • jillybeanpuff
    jillybeanpuff Posts: 144 Member
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    Jilly - I was always under the impression that your BMR is what you need to eat per day to MAINTAIN your current weight. I was always told (and taught in a human nutritional needs course in college) that the only way to lose weight is to create a calorie defeceit... burn more calories than you eat. But once you're at your goal weight, then you increase your net calories to your BMR so you essentially "break even" and don't gain or lose anything.

    No, your TDEE is what you'd want to eat if you wanted to maintain your weight. Your BMR is just what it takes to keep you alive. You'll notice in several calorie equations (the Harris-Benedict equation, for example) that they use BMR, in addition to another number that represents daily activity, to find a total that you should eat to maintain your weight. From there you'd subtract to create a deficit.

    Exactly. To eat at a deficit and lose weight you should eat your TDEE-20%. Never eat below your BMR. You should eat between these two numbers, above BMR and below TDEE

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