Not losing weight..what am I doing wrong?

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Hello All!

I am new to the myfitness pal community :-) I am a little frustrated and confused and hoping some of you can provide me with your input/experiences. I've been working out for six days a week for three weeks straight now. I burn anywhere from 650-1,000 calories per workout. I am on a 1200 calorie "diet" and NEVER go over my calorie count. I weight 161 and I am 5'3. I have yet to lose a pound. The first week I went up two pounds and now the third week, I am back at the weight in which I started. What could I possibly be doing wrong? Am I supposed to eat the calories I burn off during my workout? I'm feeling very frustrated and unsure of what I need to do to remedy this issue. Any advice or suggestions? Thanks :-)

Replies

  • freelancejouster
    freelancejouster Posts: 478 Member
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    If you're not eating back your exercise calories, you're likely well below your BMR and your body is holding onto your extra weight. If you net just over your BMR, you should lose weight much easier.
  • kmmpink
    kmmpink Posts: 63 Member
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    Search: In place of a roadmap
    This will help you.
  • Melo1966
    Melo1966 Posts: 881 Member
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    Yep you have killed your metabolism and need to eat more. The fire needs fuel to burn.
  • rduhlir
    rduhlir Posts: 3,550 Member
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    Am I supposed to eat the calories I burn off during my workout?

    Yes.
  • jenniferwren
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    in short, as I'm here atm lol, you don't sound like you're eating enough cals, you can only be netting a few hundred per day and your body has gone into starvation mode, yes, eat back your exercise cals, also what are your bmr/tdee numbers?
    there are some proper experts on here who will give you the technical low down, but that's how I understand it xxxx
  • babymaddux
    babymaddux Posts: 209 Member
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    you're simply not eating enough. you never go over 1200 calories and burn up to 1000. that means your body is trying to sustain itself on 200 net calories.
  • wwmorrow
    wwmorrow Posts: 118 Member
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    If you are only eating 1200 calories and then burning 650-1000 then you aren't eating nearly enough. I know it doesn't really make sense to "eat them back" because you think that's defeating the purpose, but MFP has already given you a calorie deficit. I would eat more and see how that works out.
  • tRiNaBeAnZz
    tRiNaBeAnZz Posts: 114 Member
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    Hey there!
    May I ask what type of workout you are doing? I started TurboFire back in January and it took a good month before I lost any weight. I worked out 6 days a week, ate 1200 calories and really watched my sodium and sugar intake. After the first month I lost two pounds, and since then about a half pound or pound per week.

    I am much shorter than you and close to goal weight.
    Height: 4'11
    SW: 124
    CW: 116.5
    GW: 112

    You can add me if you'd like a workout pal. :)
  • meganana
    meganana Posts: 3 Member
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    If you're working out that much, then you 100% need to be eating more!!! You need to figure out your BMR (google it!) and then use the Harris Benedict equation to figure out how much you need to be eating. 1200 isn't a magical weight loss number— it's actually way too low for almost everyone who's not over 50 years old and completely sedentary. When I started losing weight I was eating 1200, but I ended up plateauing and starting occasionally fainting and feeling dizzy randomly as well. After upping my calories to 1500 - 1800 (depending on how much I worked out that day) I've been losing more weight (almost 30 lbs so far!) and feeling a hundred times better. It can feel scary to up your calorie intake, but just make sure you're eating clean (avoid processed foods like the plague, even if they say "low calorie" or "low fat") and the weight should start coming off. Good luck!
  • Percoboist
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    I'm no expert, but have you measured yourself? Depending on what kinds of workouts you are doing, it's possible you are also gaining more muscle than the fat you've burnt off. Muscle is heavier than fat, so that could be part of it. I also agree though that you need to make sure you are eating enough. The body goes into some kind of starvation mode when it doesn't get enough calories on a regular basis that doesn't help you to lose weight at all.
  • dawnemjh
    dawnemjh Posts: 1,465 Member
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    Besides all the good advice you have already gotten, a couple more t hings to consider:

    How are you estimating your burn? What are you doing to burn 600-1000? Do you use HRM or BOdymedia device to estimate burn?

    SEcond, do you weigh/measure everything that goes into your mouth and count it in your diary??
  • jmomma160
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    You need to watch your salt intake as well. I had stopped and gained for "female" reasons but now I am back on track. Salt makes you retain fluid but it's most likely you are eating too little. Your body will shut down to try to maintain all the nutrients its taking in to keep from going into starvation mode
  • redraidergirl2009
    redraidergirl2009 Posts: 2,560 Member
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    Hello All!

    I am new to the myfitness pal community :-) I am a little frustrated and confused and hoping some of you can provide me with your input/experiences. I've been working out for six days a week for three weeks straight now. I burn anywhere from 650-1,000 calories per workout. I am on a 1200 calorie "diet" and NEVER go over my calorie count. I weight 161 and I am 5'3. I have yet to lose a pound. The first week I went up two pounds and now the third week, I am back at the weight in which I started. What could I possibly be doing wrong? Am I supposed to eat the calories I burn off during my workout? I'm feeling very frustrated and unsure of what I need to do to remedy this issue. Any advice or suggestions? Thanks :-)

    Are you sure you're burning that many calories? Do you use a hrm?I am around your height and weight and I was way overestimating how much I was burning before I got a hrm. I don't eat back more than a few of my exercise calories because eating them all doesn't work for me, but if you haven't tried it, give it a shot for a week.
  • roniron23
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    Yes, I use a HRM every workout to make sure I am as accurate as possible regarding the amount of calories I burn.
  • HollyTsab
    HollyTsab Posts: 120 Member
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    I am the same height as you and it's a struggle to lose actual lbs at times for me. One thing to remember especially if you're new to working out at that intensity.

    It is not unusual to gain some weight at the begining of any program. This perhaps might help you. is a part of one of Chalene's blogs:

    The temporary weight gain explained: When someone starts a new exercise program, they often experience muscle soreness. The more intense and "unfamiliar" the program, the more intense the muscle soreness. This soreness is most prevalent 24 to 48 hours after each workout. In the first few weeks of a new program, soreness is the body trying to "protect and defend" the effected or targeted tissue. Exercise physiologists refer to this as delayed-onset muscle soreness, or DOMS. This type of soreness is thought to be caused by tissue breakdown or microscopic tears in muscle tissue. When this happens the body protects the tissue. The muscle becomes inflamed and slightly swollen with fluid retention. This temporary retention of fluid can result in a 3- to 4-pound weight gain within a few weeks of a new program. Keep in mind that muscle soreness is not necessarily a reflection of how hard you worked. In fact, some people feel no signs of muscle soreness, yet will experience the muscle protection mechanisms of water retention and slight swelling.

    Keep up the great work. Look at how you feel and how your clothing is fitting. If you haven't calculated your burn into your daily cals then yes, what everyone said above about not eat enough is true. It's easy to burn that much during a workout if you're doing something high intensity and you're really pushing yourself.
  • roniron23
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    My workout plan consists of some type of cardio for 60 minutes, six times a week. (Treadmill, bike, elliptical, etc.) I also lift light weights once a week. I do abs about two-three times a week, as well. Myfitnesspal gave me the 1200 calorie number based upon my current weight and goals. I was afraid that I wasn't eating enough but I can't even begin to think of how I can add more calories...I'm pretty full on the 1200 I eat now! But I guess I will give it a try and see if this helps! Thanks everyone for the valuable feedback!
  • JJordon
    JJordon Posts: 857 Member
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    80% of what you do is diet. You're not eating enough. Metabolism is shot now. Either follow MFP's way or find a intake calculator on http://www.calculator.net/calorie-calculator.html or some place.