it's starting to get to me.

On the face of it, everything appears to be going in the right direction. You seem to be under your calories in your diary regularly, and are losing. You don't mention much about exercise. So, the question has to be, what are you feeling down about? The speed of your loss? The tub of extra chocolate ice cream in the bottom of the freezer saying 'eat me' or something else?

@MonicaT1972 Would you be willing to share how you changed your diet. For me, I have lost a few tenths of a pound only to gain it back. I always seem to have calories left over as through exercise burn so many. I try not to go over the 1200 I have set up as my daily goal and achieve it most of the time. My progress has been very slow as in many instances I lose nothing.

You're doing a great job. Maybe you need to reward yourself for little things like doing your exercise and sticking to your calorie goals. Getting to the goal can take a long time. Rewards for doing the things that get you there can provide some immediate gratification.

I can't speak for you ladies, but 1200 calories or less messed me up big time. I dropped some water weight and then all progress stopped. The scale went up and down by a pound every so often, but for weeks it was just this plateau. I was doing all the right things and NO progress. So, based on some tips here on MFP, I bumped up to 1400 calories.

I was so afraid to gain, but then....progress! After a few more weeks, I realized although it was progress, it was super slow. .4 lbs this week, .2 the next. So I bumped to about 1600. Now, I'm losing about 2-3 lbs. per week depending on my activity levels and whether or not I eat back half my exercise cals.

I guess my point is, if you are struggling for a long time with what you are doing, then maybe shift gears? I see a lot of skinny girls prancing around here eating MORE calories than me....a 5'3" chick with over 100 lbs. to lose. I learned that in order to know what your body wants/needs, you gotta play with the numbers.

Sticking to the same routine and not seeing results is devastating to a person's motivation. I'd rather risk the possibility of gaining a little if it means I will find my boundaries. MFP put me at 1200 calories, and it just wasn't working. I had to find that middle ground where my body burned the most fat.

Are you open to changing up your diet for possible success. I work with a trainer that trains girls for bikini and fitness competitions. She put me on the right track for diet success along with exercise, it's not easy but it had worked wonders....30 lbs in 10 weeks!

I would love to know!! Please send me a message on what to do or post it here..thanks

Me too, please:flowerforyou:

It looks like you do the same workouts most of the time. Maybe you need to change it up and add some strength training. Do some elliptical or treadmill, add incline or speed, whatever. If you are in a plateau, it means your body has gotten used to the normal routine and you need to mix it up.

I can't speak for you ladies, but 1200 calories or less messed me up big time. I dropped some water weight and then all progress stopped. The scale went up and down by a pound every so often, but for weeks it was just this plateau. I was doing all the right things and NO progress. So, based on some tips here on MFP, I bumped up to 1400 calories.

I was so afraid to gain, but then....progress! After a few more weeks, I realized although it was progress, it was super slow. .4 lbs this week, .2 the next. So I bumped to about 1600. Now, I'm losing about 2-3 lbs. per week depending on my activity levels and whether or not I eat back half my exercise cals.

I guess my point is, if you are struggling for a long time with what you are doing, then maybe shift gears? I see a lot of skinny girls prancing around here eating MORE calories than me....a 5'3" chick with over 100 lbs. to lose. I learned that in order to know what your body wants/needs, you gotta play with the numbers.

Sticking to the same routine and not seeing results is devastating to a person's motivation. I'd rather risk the possibility of gaining a little if it means I will find my boundaries. MFP put me at 1200 calories, and it just wasn't working. I had to find that middle ground where my body burned the most fat.

Just what you have said motivates me..I started at 1200 and NOTHING...then tried 1300 and lost 3lbs..been stuck for a couple of weeks so now Im at 1500/1600 so I hope its not going to make me gain.

I am willing to change my diet , it's just that extreems are not very attractive to me. I don't want to cut things out of my diey completly because there is no way i will be able to eat like that forever. I want something that i can sustain long after the pounds are gone.

I work out 30 minutes every day with jillian micheals body revolution. I also do a few days on the stationary bike. I don't half *kitten* it at all.
I eat back my calories because last year i was biking 1 hour a day 5 days a week on 1200 and wasn't losing so i am assuming i need to eat more. I try to net 1200 so eat about 1450. I find it hard to add more of healthy foods.
I'm discouraged by the lack of progress, i still have 25lbs (minimum, more like 30) to lose. I'm like when will my pants ever be too big?
I made my boyfriend hide the scale as to not focus on that.. and since then i've been feeling worse because i'm seeing how my clothes fit and it's like nothing has changed. Everyone around me is like oh your gaining muscle but i know you can't gain muscle like that.

If you are willing to experiment to see how your body responds you can try what I posted to another in your thread. If it is something you can try for 2 weeks and see what happens then go from there. You may like the results. You can slowly re-introduce certain foods you love and see how your body handles them. I know it's not easy, but if it's something you are willing to try it might work and get you starting again on getting the results you desire

I was feeling the same way, I lost 30 pounds, then nothing. Couldn't lose another pound to save my life, hovering between 199 and 205 for MONTHS. I found out last week that my thyroid is slow, and I am lactose and gluten intolerant. I was completely fatigued. Without exercising this week (I start again tomorrow now that I am not so tired), I am down 8 pounds. All I did was cut the dairy and the gluten. I was happy to find out I can still eat rice, p[otatoes, and sweet potatoes. There have been some cravings, but for the most part, I just feel BETTER. Hope it helps

True...Thyroid issues are the other monkey wrench in a lot of people's progress. Doc found out mine is hypoactive about 6 months back. Put me on Synthroid and my hair started falling out. Freakin scary!! Stopped taking the meds. It makes it harder for me, but I'm 30 lbs down, and I will fight my way down to my goal weight at .2 lbs. for the next 10 years if I have to.

Patience is vital. It doesn't happen in a matter of weeks. For some people, even months or beyond a year. You keep doing what you are doing and it will show and pay off.

Check out this group.

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/10118-eat-train-progress

Knowledgable moderators who will take a look at your situation and give you a plan for success. You also mentioned you wanted to avoid extremes and this group advocates moderation for sure.

ETA: Not a plan for success in that they will do everything for you, but they will troubleshoot things with you and give you some solutions and a gameplan.

@MonicaT1972 Would you be willing to share how you changed your diet. For me, I have lost a few tenths of a pound only to gain it back. I always seem to have calories left over as through exercise burn so many. I try not to go over the 1200 I have set up as my daily goal and achieve it most of the time. My progress has been very slow as in many instances I lose nothing.

My trainer has me on a very strict diet, it's not for everyone but it gets me results that I can live with and I am prepared to do it for a lifetime. I eat clean, no processed foods (with the exception of my International Delight in my coffee in the morning) no sugar, no wheat, and no red meat. She has me consuming 135g of protein, 30 of fat and 75 of carbs. The calories are roughly in the 1200 range daily but it's the macros that she has me focus on. My carbs are from fruit and veggies and whole grains. I eat every 3 hours having 5 meals a day. I don't ever feel hungry this way. I still have monthly cravings like every other woman though, it doesn't cure that unfortunately.

Thank you for letting us know what you do. Yes, that's the eating plan I have been told is best.

It is normal to get discouraged after a couple of months- but you have lost 10 lbs! A lot may have to do with your age, amount of exercise, hormonal imbalance and pre-diabetes or a low functioning thyroid. Losing weight slowly means you will keep it off longer - but if you are feeling discouraged because you believe you should have lost more - change things up... try different exercise, focus more on the happy foods of fruits and veggies - and do not loose sight of your goals! Light weights 2 x aweek can also add a great impact to building muscle... more muscle burns more calories -