Desperately need advice! Gained all weight lost ..

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awillz101
awillz101 Posts: 13
in Health and Weight Loss
I've always been on the heavier side and about a year ago I lost 40 pounds - and lost it quickly. I used this website and had a 1200 calorie a day diet and worked out 5 days a week. I plateaued about 6 months in and essentially gave up and I gained it all back. So I've started from the beginning a month ago - 1200 calories a day, working out 5 times a week and drinking lots of water and the scale has maybe budged 4 pounds. I'm not sure what I'm doing wrong - if anything. Any tips if anyone has been through the same situation and how they got through it? Really need to lose about 60 pounds or so!
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Replies

  • Ooupsy
    Ooupsy Posts: 3 Member
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    Hell, I am in the same spot you are!.... Starting all over today, getting pretty sick of it, litterally killing myself hiking 7 to 10 miles at a fast pace with lots of hills and the weight just piles on. Hopefully we can both get back on track!
    Good luck!

    I'd be happy loosing 10 right now!
  • fmebear
    fmebear Posts: 172 Member
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    It may be possible that your body needs more calories than 1200. I was at 1200 and lost for a bit then stopped. I kicked up the calorie intake to about 1700 and now losing weight again. It sounds counter-intuitive but it does work. Just a thought.
  • Faye_Anderson
    Faye_Anderson Posts: 1,495 Member
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    1200 calories a day is not enough, especially when you're working out. Go to http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/ and work out your BMR/TDEE with activity added and choose "lose fat - 20%" to see how many calories you should be eating, and then you don't have to worry about exercise calories, I can tell you I have around 40lb to lose and am consistently losing 1-2lb per week eating 1810 calories :flowerforyou:
  • awillz101
    awillz101 Posts: 13
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    It's strange, right! Props to you for sticking to it though - it's tough. Thank you :) I hope things get better for you as well! Let me know how the journey goes!
  • tmauck4472
    tmauck4472 Posts: 1,785 Member
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    Just continue to work at it. You may not see the scale move a lot but you should see a difference in your body. Just don't give up
  • annepage
    annepage Posts: 585 Member
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    Just don't give up when you plateau. Patience and the mindset are important. It'll take a while to get used to it again. Just build up slowly.
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
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    open your diary
  • wibutterflymagic
    wibutterflymagic Posts: 788 Member
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    My first thoughts are 1) you should be higher then 1200 and 2) are you eating back your exercise calories?? If you aren't eating back your exercise calories then your body isn't getting 1200 calories it's getting well below 1000 and that isn't healthy. You don't have to starve yourself to lose weight. Your body needs fuel to function and if you aren't giving it the fuel it needs it will hold onto every ounce you do give it.
  • jonnythan
    jonnythan Posts: 10,161 Member
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    One of the biggest mistakes I see people make when trying to lose weight is slaving over cardio, day in and day out. It's absolutely not necessary and is genuinely counter-productive.

    You shouldn't be doing something you hate in order to lose weight and get in shape. It's not necessary, and the mental state it puts you in is poor for your health, motivation, and weight loss. This is why people yo-yo with their weight. They do crap they hate and deny themselves things they enjoy. They lose weight, but then they get sick of it, and their bad old habits creep back in and they gain the weight back. It's madness.

    The reality is that you don't need 7, 10, 15 hours of cardio every week to lose weight. It's much more important to find something you ENJOY doing and do it 2 or 3 times a week for 30-60 minutes. That's all you need for good cardiovascular health. The other side of the coin is muscles - you really need to do HEAVY resistance training at least 2 times a week. A good weight workout can be less than an hour. But losing weight DESTROYS your muscle mass unless you work it hard, and muscle is what keeps your metabolism cranked.

    A couple pounds of muscle mass burn more calories in a week than all that cardio.

    Just run a calorie deficit, work those muscles, and get some FUN cardio a couple of times a week.
  • 3laine75
    3laine75 Posts: 3,070 Member
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    I've always been on the heavier side and about a year ago I lost 40 pounds - and lost it quickly. I used this website and had a 1200 calorie a day diet and worked out 5 days a week. I plateaued about 6 months in and essentially gave up and I gained it all back. So I've started from the beginning a month ago - 1200 calories a day, working out 5 times a week and drinking lots of water and the scale has maybe budged 4 pounds. I'm not sure what I'm doing wrong - if anything. Any tips if anyone has been through the same situation and how they got through it? Really need to lose about 60 pounds or so!

    i did the exact same - lost 60 then put back on about 50. this time i'm going to gradually increase my cals when i get close to goal and keep logging on here for at least a year whilst maintaining as i just eat crap when i'm not keeping an eye on it.
  • martintanz
    martintanz Posts: 280
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    Good for you getting started again. I wonder though, why did you give up after losing 40 lbs? Is there something else going on in your life you need to address first that is hindering your progress?
  • _chiaroscuro
    _chiaroscuro Posts: 1,340 Member
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    If you lost quickly, plateaued and gained it all back, I don't understand why you'd set yourself up for disappointment by doing the same thing you did last time. Why not try losing weight slower but in a way you can sustain for life? Try a different path by figuring out what your caloric needs are, eat at a reasonable deficit incorporating a variety of nutritious foods you enjoy, incorporate strength training to limit loss of lean muscle while you lose fat, and do a dance of victory?

    For my part, I'm lifting 3x a week and using TDEE-20% and it's slower but I know the flub is going away forever.
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/654536-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12
  • awillz101
    awillz101 Posts: 13
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    1200 calories a day is not enough, especially when you're working out. Go to http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/ and work out your BMR/TDEE with activity added and choose "lose fat - 20%" to see how many calories you should be eating, and then you don't have to worry about exercise calories, I can tell you I have around 40lb to lose and am consistently losing 1-2lb per week eating 1810 calories :flowerforyou:

    Thank you so much! Just put all my information in and it's extremely helpful as well as your advice! I'll definitely be increasing my calories - that's just what I needed to hear! :smile:
  • SStrauss79
    SStrauss79 Posts: 124 Member
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    Eat more calories
  • Greenrun99
    Greenrun99 Posts: 2,065 Member
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    Lifestyle change, eating properly for your body to function will help you succeed instead of seeing this as a diet or something you are going to start and stop when goal reached. Read up on TDEE and BMR and all that fun stuff and see if that is something that you maybe interested in as others have suggested.
  • trogalicious
    trogalicious Posts: 4,583 Member
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    1200 calories a day is not enough, especially when you're working out. Go to http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/ and work out your BMR/TDEE with activity added and choose "lose fat - 20%" to see how many calories you should be eating, and then you don't have to worry about exercise calories, I can tell you I have around 40lb to lose and am consistently losing 1-2lb per week eating 1810 calories :flowerforyou:

    Listen to this advice. Why?
    If you can't eat the way you're eating for the rest of your life (ie 1200) what do you think is going to happen when you eat more again? It'll come back.
  • Wickedone1973
    Wickedone1973 Posts: 43
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    You said you have lost 4lbs in a month. Sounds about right to me. Just keep doing what you are doing.
  • ktdidit78
    ktdidit78 Posts: 29 Member
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    If you're serious about it, then educate yourself about what your body NEEDS. 1200 calories a day probably isn't even in the ballpark to being enough for you. Food is fuel - and when you're exercising, you need more of it.

    Also, you need to learn an entirely new lifestyle and relationship with food during and after your weight loss, because it you go back to your usual patterns after you hit your weight goal, you're going to gain it all back.
  • MumOfADuo
    MumOfADuo Posts: 294 Member
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    I've always been on the heavier side and about a year ago I lost 40 pounds - and lost it quickly. I used this website and had a 1200 calorie a day diet and worked out 5 days a week. I plateaued about 6 months in and essentially gave up and I gained it all back. So I've started from the beginning a month ago - 1200 calories a day, working out 5 times a week and drinking lots of water and the scale has maybe budged 4 pounds. I'm not sure what I'm doing wrong - if anything. Any tips if anyone has been through the same situation and how they got through it? Really need to lose about 60 pounds or so!

    Not eating enough. Guaranteed.
  • AliceNov2011
    AliceNov2011 Posts: 471 Member
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    One of the biggest mistakes I see people make when trying to lose weight is slaving over cardio, day in and day out. It's absolutely not necessary and is genuinely counter-productive.

    You shouldn't be doing something you hate in order to lose weight and get in shape. It's not necessary, and the mental state it puts you in is poor for your health, motivation, and weight loss. This is why people yo-yo with their weight. They do crap they hate and deny themselves things they enjoy. They lose weight, but then they get sick of it, and their bad old habits creep back in and they gain the weight back. It's madness.

    ^^^This!

    If your good health is dependent on something you hate, you will fail. Make lifestyle changes that make you happy. Eat foods that are delicious and find activities you enjoy. Good health is not a punishment.

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