Frustrated - the scale WON'T move!

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  • trogalicious
    trogalicious Posts: 4,583 Member
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    Your Height 5 feet, 9 inches. Your Weight is 159 pounds.

    Your Calculated BMI is: 23.5

    BMI Categories:
    Normal weight = 18.5-24.9
    Overweight = 25-29.9
    Obesity = BMI of 30 or greater

    So you are not overweight for your height...?? :bigsmile:
    Except BMI is just not that accurate. Body fat % > BMI.

    The OP and a lot of other folks just aren't picking up on the fact that the OP is existing at too large of a caloric deficit.

    THAT is why the scale isn't changing. Sure, sodium levels will cause water retention.. so will all of the working out..

    but the thing is, they aren't eating enough. If they focus on ANY magic number ... it's their BMR. They're likely eating way under that number.
  • budgester
    budgester Posts: 6 Member
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    Photos, take photos in you underwear, at the start.

    Then once a month.

    Do you look at people and say they are a lovely 85kg or do you say what a lovely figure they have.

    So I'd go with photos.
  • lauren3101
    lauren3101 Posts: 1,853 Member
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    Everyone is saying she eats too little based on her exercise, and seems to have missed the part where she says she eats back all her exercise calories. :huh:

    Based on your stats:

    BMR - 1445
    TDEE (based on moderately active) - 2240

    You don't want to lose much, so you only need a 10% deficit which will put you at about 2000 cals a day. Is this around what you are eating? (total calories, not net). If so, you are doing it right, so keep it up. If not, up it to that and DON'T eat back your exercise calories.

    Having said that, I don't understand your mentality at all. You are at a healthy weight, your clothes are looser, yet you are obsessing over a tiny amount of lbs. You don't want to weigh nearly 160lb. Why? Do you walk around with a banner stating your weight on it?

    My advice to you is throw your scale away.
  • lauren3101
    lauren3101 Posts: 1,853 Member
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    Oops
  • likitisplit
    likitisplit Posts: 9,420 Member
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    Ways to lose scale weight:

    - Cut your hair
    - Use the rest room
    - Take off your clothes
    - Amputate a limb
    - Spit
    - Shave
    - Take the change out of your pockets
    - Cut your finger nails
    - Remove your jewelry
    - Carry some balloons

    However, if you are more concerned with losing fat/growing muscle...well, sounds like you're doing that already. Keep up the good work!
  • JaneStanley8
    JaneStanley8 Posts: 27 Member
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    First three weeks were the same for me - nothing happening on the scales at all, but keep going - it will happen - it did for me - I'm now 18lbs down ....
  • hookilau
    hookilau Posts: 3,134 Member
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    Now I net about 1200-1300. I eat all my exercise cals and exercise at least 45 minutes every day. Lots of cardoi (running, stationary bike, walking, ellipticla) and some weight resistance - pilates reformer and starting back up with kettlebell. I eat well overall. 5"9' and 159lbs. Since Ihave been doing this the scale hasn't moved and stayed moved.

    Sorry, but I'm still stuck on NETTING 12-1300 cal per day with all that activity. I don't think it balances out. I also agree that focusing on a certain number on the scale is a bit left of center as well. Shrug. :flowerforyou: OP, I hope you find what works for you.
  • JaneStanley8
    JaneStanley8 Posts: 27 Member
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    Scale won't move? Follow these 4 easy step: 1. Open window. 2. Bend down. 3. Grab scale with both hands. 4. Throw scale out open window.

    This is DEFINITELY the BEST advice !!!! :laugh: :happy: :tongue:
  • mndamon
    mndamon Posts: 547 Member
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    the scale isn't moving because you aren't eating enough.

    and obsessing over 5lbs, whether that's where you want to be or not, isn't the end of the world.

    could have ended the thread with this comment, it about sums up what needed to be said
  • curlygirly80
    curlygirly80 Posts: 176
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    No one sees the number on the scale but you. Everyone will notice how baggy your clothes are getting. You should feel great about your accomplishments thus far. Keep it up obviously what you are doing is working. Just remember the scale holds nothing but a number that no one but you will see, so stop downing yourself because of it. Try another form of measure to track and watch your accomplishments from there. Proud of you and don't give up!
  • socajam
    socajam Posts: 2,530 Member
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    Plantfusion - Chocolate Protein, 60 g @ 780 in sodium
    Feta Cheese very high in sodium and all the other high sodium food that you eat.

    Personally if I was going to have the Plantfusion - Chocolate Protein, 60 g for breakfast, I would skip the Feta cheese for that day or a couple of days. With high sodium food you cannot have it both ways.

    In fact I would reduce my sodium from 2500 to 1800 for a couple of weeks to see if the scales will move.
  • CristinaL1983
    CristinaL1983 Posts: 1,119 Member
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    Everyone is saying she eats too little based on her exercise, and seems to have missed the part where she says she eats back all her exercise calories. :huh:

    Based on your stats:

    BMR - 1445
    TDEE (based on moderately active) - 2240

    You don't want to lose much, so you only need a 10% deficit which will put you at about 2000 cals a day. Is this around what you are eating? (total calories, not net). If so, you are doing it right, so keep it up. If not, up it to that and DON'T eat back your exercise calories.

    Having said that, I don't understand your mentality at all. You are at a healthy weight, your clothes are looser, yet you are obsessing over a tiny amount of lbs. You don't want to weigh nearly 160lb. Why? Do you walk around with a banner stating your weight on it?

    My advice to you is throw your scale away.

    Agreed. I looked back through OPs Diary and the average calories are around 1800 (gross not net) I don't think that doing TDEE-20% would put her into starvation mode.

    Like this person (Lauren?) said, with that little weight to lose, she could do TDEE-10% and add 100-200 calories/day if she wanted but I cannot see how everyone is saying that this is starvation mode.

    OP, are you being really careful to measure everything you eat? Weighing food? If so, and the inches are coming off, don't worry about it. You are in the healthy weight range and losing weight just to weigh less doesn't make too much sense. Nobody can see the number, just lie about it :laugh:
  • Proyecto_AN
    Proyecto_AN Posts: 387
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    Is not about the scale... it's about the inches...and getting stronger! faster! HEALTHIER! ;)
  • ekaustin7
    ekaustin7 Posts: 185 Member
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    Scale won't move? Follow these 4 easy step: 1. Open window. 2. Bend down. 3. Grab scale with both hands. 4. Throw scale out open window.

    Genius :drinker:
  • hgillesp
    hgillesp Posts: 46 Member
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    OP here. Thanks for all the support and suggestions. I am not trying to lose 5 lbs I am trying to lose 15 - I think that got lost in there somewhere. I do eat all my exercise calories. I recognize that it is great that clothes are fitting better, but here's the thing. It's not as though this weight I've gained was muscle. It's fat. I gained 10 lbs of fat. So... that is why I want to lose at least 10 lbs and that is why I don't understand why the scale isn't moving. If I never exercised before and suddenly started, it would make more sense to me that I am creating muscle. But I just don't see that as being the case here since I have always exercised. I have been 150 and was pretty happy at that weight. But... life, stress, time took their toll and the scale has crept up and now I want it back down. And I am a VERY careful journaler of food - I weigh everything. Everything. So that stuff is on track. I haven't always journaled my exercise. That's new and I usually use caloriesperhour.com for that since it tends to be a little more realistic.

    Again, many thanks.

    hg
  • lgtahoe
    lgtahoe Posts: 96
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    I am in a similar situation -- started really working out again (have always been active) in Jan and staying on top of my diet in Feb and I haven't seen much change in the scale (2 lbs from 1/31 to 3/6), so I'm not weighing myself anymore! I know what I'm doing is a lifestyle change and my clothes are fitting better. I will get on the scale once a month right after TTOM (have you taken that into consideration at all?), just so I know if I need to adjust my calories. Otherwise, I can't let the scale ruin my day anymore.
  • Catherinenistler
    Catherinenistler Posts: 3 Member
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    I am wondering what my intake should be then. I am 5'4 and weigh 150. On here, it states that my intake should be 1200 calories, so that is what i have been doing. Same with the other gal, my clothes fit better, but scale is still the same. Advice on intake of calories?

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