Not Losing weight : (

samy143
samy143 Posts: 3 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I've been eating better and exercising 6 days week for about a month nd half , but not really seeing any results?
I'm 20 years old, 5'7", and a month and half ago i was 190 lbs. Now the scale says I'm 198. :( I've been exercising 6 days week for at least an hour, somedays running, elliptical, others toning. I've got about 60-65 lbs to lose, and I just can't see any of it coming off. And yet I've GAINED 8 LBS. Im so discouraged and just want to give up. I don't know what to think. and ALSO im INDIAN so my food can consist of chapati, dal and rice ... any suggestions..?????

I burn around 700-900 calories at the gym.. well thats what the machines say.
my diet includes:
morning: banana, glass of soy milk and 1 slice of whole wheat bread
snack: almonds 10-12
lunch: salad, 1-1.5 chapati(no oil) with indian curry
snack: greek yogurt with grapes
snack: apple at 6:00
dinner: 1 chapati, rice, dal and some kind of vegetables that my mom cooks
before i go to sleep i have warm milk
also sometimes i have cookie here and there ..if im craving something sweet..i usually have cheat day every sunday...

Replies

  • SnivyToast
    SnivyToast Posts: 25 Member
    How many calories are you eating each day?

    Also it is often better to look at measurements and the fit of clothing than the scale.
  • aproc
    aproc Posts: 1,033 Member
    1.) The machines are not accurate. Your probably barely burning half of what you think.
    2.) Without knowing your calories or macros, nobody can know whether you might be undereating or overeating.
  • d2footballJRC
    d2footballJRC Posts: 2,684 Member
    Diary isn't open so we can't see that.
    Also when people say they aren't losing, one thing I ask is, are you sure you are logging everything. You say you have a cheat day every sunday, what does that consist of?

    Remember that working out will also take on some water to help you repair, most likely not 8lbs though.

    Are you drinking enough water is another thing. There is a lot of factors to look at here. How are your sodium levels?
  • luvsyoga
    luvsyoga Posts: 90 Member
    I can go months without losing weight...... but I measure with a measuring tape and I lose lots of inches!!! Don't give up!!!
  • jonnythan
    jonnythan Posts: 10,161 Member
    You gave a lot of info, but left out the most important detail: how many calories you eat each day. I suspect that's what you're missing.
  • crewealexfan
    crewealexfan Posts: 7 Member
    concentrate more on maintaining a caloric deficit rather than pinning all your weight loss hopes on exercise. yes exercise is a great commodity when losing weight, but you should be primarily ensuring you are counting calories correctly in order to lose weight .
  • TAsunder
    TAsunder Posts: 423 Member
    You'd have to be working quite vigorously to burn 700-900 calories in an hour. For me, only the most intense activities burn more than 10 calories per minute.

    I agree with the suggestion to drink a lot of water. Whenever you are hungry, drink water, wait 5 minutes. Sometimes that makes the hunger go away for me because I am so used to mistaking thirst for hunger.

    Also, Indian food is often cooked with ghee which is extremely calorie dense -- over 100 calories per tablespoon. Do you know if your mom is using it and if so is she using it liberally?
  • slimnicola01
    slimnicola01 Posts: 38
    Interested to follow this - I have previously lost weight by exercising three days a week and watching diet, since I have upped exercise to most days I am not loosing, yet still watching diet. I haven't got soo much to loose and wonder if the increase in exercise is having a detrimental effect on my weight loss.
  • shaneabner
    shaneabner Posts: 8
    Don't get hung up on the factor of what the scale says... Your body weight can vary day to day as much as several pounds in an hour. Unfortunately, for women they have to factor in the monthly visitor which tells their body to retain water.
    Plus, if you are eating to few calories your body can and will hit starvation mode... Not good. You will not lose a thing as your body is self preserving.
    On the flip-side, you may be eating to many calories. Some of the foods you listed are high in calories, so you may have to look at the portion sizes.
    All in all, is your level of fitness getting better? Can you do more minutes than you could previously? How do your clothes feel?
  • monikamarczak
    monikamarczak Posts: 1
    If you are new to the exercise program, your body may be going through little shock and it i holding on to the caloric intake until it learnes that this "stress" you are putting it thru is not temporary. Make sure you are eating enough and I agree to log everything because a cookie is 220 calories:( measurments are more important tan scale but please know that I understand your frustration when you wish to see a change and u dont. I would suggest for you to begin on changing your mindset to send a positive message associated with exercise: so dont look at the negative but say to yourself "I am taking control back! I am exercising to become healthy! (the weight loss in just he extra perk)I am finally sticking to something 6 days a week. Soon the brain will associate positive feelings with the exercise thus it will realease "happy" hormones that will aid the weight loss. Otherwise, you maybe exercising but if you worry about it you maybe decreasing your cortisol levels and the body goes into stress mode. I hope it helps....FYI my scale is stuck for last 4 weeks and I am eating 1200 calories and doing a bootcamp 4 days a week with cardio the other two. My workout partner lost 11 pounds and I lost nothing so I know your pain, but you have to think of it differently
  • tsdaughe
    tsdaughe Posts: 88
    700-900 calories burnt in one hour is rather high. Unless you are maxing out your heart rate or above the whole hour. I wear a heart rate monitor and for instance, yesterday, at the gym I did intervals on the treadmill up and down between 3.2 and 8.0 for 55 minutes. I was sweating and heart rate was up to 185 and that burnt 556 calories. As others have said, without seeing your diary and how many calories you are eating it is very hard to say what the problem is. I would say you are over estimating calories burnt and underestamating calories you eat on cheat days.
  • darrenhough1976
    darrenhough1976 Posts: 3 Member
    It's all an equation. Read the articles below, this really helped me when I was starting out. You don't have to be a bodybuilder, but remember that if there's one group that knows how to get very, very lean, it's bodybuilders. Keep at it, remember that everyone is different and it might take some time to figure out what works for you.

    http://www.t-nation.com/free_online_article/sports_body_training_performance/nutrition_for_newbies_part_1

    http://m.askmen.com/sports/bodybuilding_100/130_fitness_tip.html

    A great article about metabolism boost from gaining muscle - evidently it isn't as much as most people think:

    http://articles.latimes.com/2011/may/16/health/la-he-fitness-muscle-myth-20110516

    And I'd be very suspicious of calorie burn readouts on exercise machines - they are very often skew high and will lead you to believe you've done more than you think.
  • tsdaughe
    tsdaughe Posts: 88
    On the flip side you may be eating too little. If you are at 1200 calories a day and working out and even burning say 500 calories a day and not eating those back you are in that case eating too little and your body may be holding on to everything. The scale is finicky so also try tracking measurements. I will have weeks at a time where my scale goes up a few lbs but I lose as much as an inch on my waist or hips.
  • samy143
    samy143 Posts: 3 Member
    I guess i am under eating. because some of the days i would burn up to 700-1000 calories in my 2 hour gym session and would only eat up to 1000-1300 calories. I dont check my weight anymore because if i see the scale go up it makes me depressed and i feel like giving up

    But i have felt change in my mood. I feel more happy than before.
  • SailorSarah311
    SailorSarah311 Posts: 172 Member
    Some people think that you should eat the calories you burned in the day. Are you doing that? Are you weighing yourself at the same time of day? Our weight fluctuates during the day, so it might say one thing in the morning and another at night.
  • KatjaNZ
    KatjaNZ Posts: 186 Member
    You lost 8lb in six weeks, that's not too bad. Muscles are heavier than fat, so excessive exercise will improve your toning and your clothes should already show a difference.
    Don't eat too little, it slows your metabolism down and you won't lose weight. Keeping track of your calories would really help, as mentioned before.
    Good luck!
  • samy143
    samy143 Posts: 3 Member
    i didnt lose 8 lbs. i gained 8 lbs
  • sphira
    sphira Posts: 132 Member
    Have you taken measurements? You might be losing inches. Maybe ask you mom to measure all ingredients so you can get a better idea of how many calories are in the food. I am Indian as well and was surprised how fattening some items are even though you think it is pretty healthy. I completely understand how you feel as I am struggling as well. Just keep at it and try not to weigh yourself too often. Also you might want to get a HRM to know your actual burn.
  • annakow
    annakow Posts: 385 Member
    Muscle weight a lot my dear. If you are exercising 6 days a week you are losing weight but gaining muscles...you may be in better shape.
  • nettie3692
    nettie3692 Posts: 1
    Your daily intake of calories appears to be quite high, and high in fat. Are you putting every single thing down in your food diary? It's the only way it will work - even if you have had a bad day, you have to be completely honest. When I first joined the gym, I was kidding myself that because I was exercising a lot, I could pretty much eat what I wanted. Once i got my head around the fact that I needed to reduce my calories quite drastically (around 1200 - female) and up my cardio and weights to keep burning off the fat, I have lost 41lbs since last May.

    It might be worth speaking to a personal trainer at your gym who can give you diet and an excercise programme tailored for you. Mine has done and it's great. Also mix up the exercises that you do otherwise your body will get used to doing the same thing.

    Yes muscle does weigh heavier than fat - my personal trainer is 7lbs heavier than me but doesn't carry an inch of fat - hers is all muscle. However, you would need to have lost a lot of weight and done a lot of weight training type exercises to for that to be the case, just quite yet. I really think your diet needs addressing.

    Good luck.
  • iheath
    iheath Posts: 7 Member
    I had this issue as well. So i bought a new weight scale (weight watchers from bed bath and beyond) and then i also bought a food scale to measure the weight of food (biggest losser brand from bed bath and beyond) I have noticed a HUGE change. I also scan the things i eat so i get the nutrition off the labels.

    Sounds like you are gaining muscle first and also what is your total calorie intake. Dont give up!!!!!
  • diannethegeek
    diannethegeek Posts: 14,776 Member
    Muscle weight a lot my dear. If you are exercising 6 days a week you are losing weight but gaining muscles...you may be in better shape.

    It's very difficult if not impossible to add muscle while on a caloric deficit. Strength training will preserve and strengthen the muscle that exists, but even professional body builders eating all the right things only add about a pound of muscle a month. There is simply no way someone eatiing 1200 calories a day has miraculously added 8 pounds of muscle.
  • jonnythan
    jonnythan Posts: 10,161 Member
    Muscle weight a lot my dear. If you are exercising 6 days a week you are losing weight but gaining muscles...you may be in better shape.

    It's very difficult if not impossible to add muscle while on a caloric deficit. Strength training will preserve and strengthen the muscle that exists, but even professional body builders eating all the right things only add about a pound of muscle a month. There is simply no way someone eatiing 1200 calories a day has miraculously added 8 pounds of muscle.

    Doubly so when all the exercise OP is doing is cardio and "toning," which I presume means a bunch of lunges and curls and 2-lb dumbbells.

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