very active + 1600 calories = nothing!

Wow, thanks for all the responses.

I had a few minutes and looked briefly at a TDEE calculation...definately need to eat more. I guess my biggest worry is that when i eat more, I tend to bloat up very quickly...so my goal is to keep it clean, but eat more calories....>CLEAN CALORIES!!! which is a struggle for me..when i hear "eat more" i think of all the junk out there i could eat!

And as for my students....i try to be a good role model, I work with them on setting goals and acheiving goals and not focusing on a number on the scale...in fact we do body fat %'s not weights for all of them. Our "gym" is a full fitness center and the great outdoors, so we do a lot of real life teaching, and not a lot of old school "gym class" stuff. Right now they have the choice of playing basketball or walking/running laps with their friends (we are taking advantage of the sunshine and getting their vitamin D)

So bottom line, i need to stop and think of the advice I'd give to others and give it to myself!

And my other problem is I need to find a workout plan and COMMIT to it....instead of just doing a little of this and a little of that, i need to find something and be consistant!

Oh, and not pigging out or cheating too much the weekend will help too!

Do this and you *will* lose weight:

1) Three meals a day: breakfast, lunch, and dinner. That's it. No snacks, and no "in between" meals.

2) Give up sugar. No sugar in coffee, soda, or on cereal. Give up fruit juice -- it's mainly just another form of sugar. Water is the only liquid you need.

3) In the beginning, establish a very regulated moderate calorie diet. Don't follow any sort of fad. Just pick a selection of foods that add up to a normal balanced diet -- whole grains, veggies, fruit, dairy, a little meat, etc. But start out by having exactly the same three meals each day -- the same foods and the same amounts. Weigh the portions on a scale. Consider frozen dinners. Healthy Choice, Lean Cuisine, Kashi, Smart Ones, and probably other brands have several that are low in calories and saturated fat, moderate in salt, and high in fiber.

4) Weigh yourself every day on a 0.2 lb. accuracy scale. Your weight should go down over every couple of days. If it doesn't, eliminate items from your diet or reduce the size of portions until your weight does go down. (If you don't have a 0.2 lb. accuracy scale, I'd recommend the EatSmart Precision Plus Digital Scale, which is sold on Amazon.)

5) When you have achieved a weight losing diet, then you can start making adjustments to add variety, but make sure that you keep losing weight.

6) Maintain your exercise.

Do this and you *will* lose weight:

1) Three meals a day: breakfast, lunch, and dinner. That's it. No snacks, and no "in between" meals.

2) Give up sugar. No sugar in coffee, soda, or on cereal. Give up fruit juice -- it's mainly just another form of sugar. Water is the only liquid you need.

3) In the beginning, establish a very regulated moderate calorie diet. Don't follow any sort of fad. Just pick a selection of foods that add up to a normal balanced diet -- whole grains, veggies, fruit, dairy, a little meat, etc. But start out by having exactly the same three meals each day -- the same foods and the same amounts. Weigh the portions on a scale. Consider frozen dinners. Healthy Choice, Lean Cuisine, Kashi, Smart Ones, and probably other brands have several that are low in calories and saturated fat, moderate in salt, and high in fiber.

4) Weigh yourself every day on a 0.2 lb. accuracy scale. Your weight should go down over every couple of days. If it doesn't, eliminate items from your diet or reduce the size of portions until your weight does go down. (If you don't have a 0.2 lb. accuracy scale, I'd recommend the EatSmart Precision Plus Digital Scale, which is sold on Amazon.)

5) When you have achieved a weight losing diet, then you can start making adjustments to add variety, but make sure that you keep losing weight.

6) Maintain your exercise.

I've written an essay about losing weight on my blog that talks somewhat more generally about how to lose weight. Here's a link to that essay: http://bobday.net23.net/?p=27

Do this and you *will* lose weight:

1) Three meals a day: breakfast, lunch, and dinner. That's it. No snacks, and no "in between" meals.

2) Give up sugar. No sugar in coffee, soda, or on cereal. Give up fruit juice -- it's mainly just another form of sugar. Water is the only liquid you need.

3) In the beginning, establish a very regulated moderate calorie diet. Don't follow any sort of fad. Just pick a selection of foods that add up to a normal balanced diet -- whole grains, veggies, fruit, dairy, a little meat, etc. But start out by having exactly the same three meals each day -- the same foods and the same amounts. Weigh the portions on a scale. Consider frozen dinners. Healthy Choice, Lean Cuisine, Kashi, Smart Ones, and probably other brands have several that are low in calories and saturated fat, moderate in salt, and high in fiber.

4) Weigh yourself every day on a 0.2 lb. accuracy scale. Your weight should go down over every couple of days. If it doesn't, eliminate items from your diet or reduce the size of portions until your weight does go down. (If you don't have a 0.2 lb. accuracy scale, I'd recommend the EatSmart Precision Plus Digital Scale, which is sold on Amazon.)

5) When you have achieved a weight losing diet, then you can start making adjustments to add variety, but make sure that you keep losing weight.

6) Maintain your exercise.

Please Ignore this. All you need is a reasonable caloric deficit.

I suggest you set your activity level as very active and your weight loss goal/week at no more than 1 lb/week (this should give you well over the 1600 that you are getting now). Since you don't have a lot to lose a goal of more than 1 lb/week is much too aggressive and may lead to the loss of a large % of lean mass as opposed to mostly fat.