Anyone else frustrated by "All I did was..." posts?

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  • RoseTears143
    RoseTears143 Posts: 1,121 Member
    Not sure if you have a lot or a little left to lsoe but you might want to look into food intolerances believe it or not. Even a mild food allergy can cause issues with weight. It doesn't mean you break out in full blown hives or run to the bathroom when you eat the food your body is rejecting. Water weight and having a really hard time losing weight could mean you are eating something that offends your body.
  • melindasuefritz
    melindasuefritz Posts: 3,509 Member
    no
  • AshleyPaleo
    AshleyPaleo Posts: 121
    You said you eat very little red meat? Why?
  • danasings
    danasings Posts: 8,218 Member
    OP, I also think you should increase your calories....but I would recommend that you do it slowly, like 100 more a day the first week, then 100 more a day the second. Going straight from netting @1000/day to netting @1400/day will more than likely show up as weight gain, and you seem like that would freak you out. When I was netting very low and stuck at a "plateau" of sorts, I slowly increased my intake and started losing again. PM me if you have any questions, best of luck.
  • _DaniD_
    _DaniD_ Posts: 2,186 Member
    You're already within a healthy weight range, what is it you're trying to accomplish? At this point, I would suggest throwing your scale out.
  • ArroganceInStep
    ArroganceInStep Posts: 6,239 Member
    Here and on many other sites I always see posts like "I just stopped drinking soda and I lost 15 lbs!" or "All I did was switch from full fat to skim and I lost 5lbs!" and it's getting really frustrating to me.

    I only drink water (at least 2Q a day) or plain unsweetened loose tea (maybe 2 cups of coffee a week, if that). I only use unsweetened almond milk in cooking. I eat mostly clean, I hardly ever eat red meat, I take my vitamins, I count my calories, my only vice is going over on sugar sometimes and even then, it's still usually under 35-40g a day. I calculated my exact protein/fat/carb needs and most days I hit them as close as possible, I almost never eat my exercise back, I NEVER get even CLOSE to maintenance calories, I work out 4-5 days a week and while I know I'm getting stronger, neither my measurements nor my weight has changed at all in over 2 months.

    I keep telling myself the only thing missing from the equation is patience, but I've been eating mostly-clean for years and I don't know how much else I can cut without driving myself insane - I'm already close to that point when I get mad at myself for eating HALF A HANDFUL OF RAISINS as a CHEAT.

    Anyone else in the same boat? Any advice or suggestions? One condition, anyone who mentions Keto diet is going to get smacked.

    That's not true if you haven't been losing weight, sorry.
  • MireyGal76
    MireyGal76 Posts: 7,334 Member
    You've gotten some great advice for the most part.

    Check out this link (sorry if someone has already posted it):
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/963088-level-obstacles-lose-weight-target-fat-easy

    It is imperative that you fuel you body. It's no different than a vehicle - you aren't going to get very far if you are running on fumes... and if you have no gas in the tank, you can really mess up your system.

    I know you said that you don't feel hungry, but that doesn't mean that you are well nourished. A parallel example: I am chronically dehydrated. I never drink water. I am never thirsty. But when I force myself to drink two glasses of water, all of a sudden it's like my body realizes... HEY I LIKE THAT STUFF!!

    I would recommend easing into a higher net calorie goal. It is my opinion (emphasis on MY OPINION) that you exercise a lot, and you don't eat enough to sustain the demand on your body - and therefore you are stalling.

    I know I am much taller than you (6'1") but I am netting around 2000 cals PLUS exercise cals and my body fat is quite low. I only work out once or twice a week, and have a desk job.

    I am quite certain that your body needs more fuel to function properly.

    You seem pretty strict when it comes to your diet, so I don't think you need any help there. :)
  • Rilke
    Rilke Posts: 1,201 Member
    I won't lie...you guys are not the first to tell me I wasn't eating enough but yeah, I was stubborn and refused to believe it.

    And someone said, I must be run down trying to exercise on 1200 calories and..yeah, I very often am (it doesn't help that I'm only getting maybe about 6hrs sleep a night) - which is why even though I *want* to strength train at least 4 days a week, I tend to only get there 2-3 days.

    I am gonna trust you guys, increase my daily and MAKE SURE I get AT LEAST 1300 NET a day and keep my nutrition balanced - I am just going to trust my body to use these calories to give me the energy I need to get to the gym at 4:45am, to build those muscles and get me where I need to be.

    And yeah, I know my BMI is in the healthy range, my goal is lower my BF% which I naturally translated into "a cut" which translated into being below maintenance but - you guys are all right - I've BEEN doing that and it HASN'T WORKED. So I will trust, and give my body more fuel.

    Thanks for all the advice and replies guys!! MFP is definitely one of the friendliest, most helpful places to get advice and encouragement!

    Good for you for being willing to change things, and best of luck.
  • geekyjock76
    geekyjock76 Posts: 2,720 Member
    You set your activity level incorrectly with the Katch-McKardle formula - you are moderately active by exercising four to five days a week. That kicks up your TDEE to 2035 calories which gives you 1785 to eat and lose half a lb per week. Thus, for someone at 26% bodyfat, and very active, eating 1200 calories was way under what you should be eating. In addition to the lack of sleep, you were adding extra stress to your endocrine system by eating so little.
  • savithny
    savithny Posts: 1,200 Member
    And someone said, I must be run down trying to exercise on 1200 calories and..yeah, I very often am (it doesn't help that I'm only getting maybe about 6hrs sleep a night) - which is why even though I *want* to strength train at least 4 days a week, I tend to only get there 2-3 days.

    I've been doing a bunch of reading on sleep deprivation and its effects, and this could be a much bigger deal than most people think. Much bigger deal. Chronic sleep deprivation causes major disruptions in metabolic hormones, they're finding. One researcher reported anecdotally that as a side effect of an experiment that required subjects to get a full 8.25 hours of sleep every night? The subjects lost an average of a pound a week without otherwise dieting.
  • 1ConcreteGirl
    1ConcreteGirl Posts: 3,677 Member
    You set your activity level incorrectly with the Katch-McKardle formula - you are moderately active by exercising four to five days a week. That kicks up your TDEE to 2035 calories which gives you 1785 to eat and lose half a lb per week. Thus, for someone at 26% bodyfat, and very active, eating 1200 calories was way under what you should be eating. In addition to the lack of sleep, you were adding extra stress to your endocrine system by eating so little.

    This guy knows what's up.
  • Timshel_
    Timshel_ Posts: 22,834 Member
    When people post they aren't losing weight there are a few things to look at that normally come to light. It can be one thing or many things though.

    - Not logging everything (food and drinks).
    - Not properly logging portions or calorie count correctly.
    - Over estimating calories burned durning exercise
    - Consistency over months (not binging a day or two a week, every week).

    Other issue tend to be:

    - Not enough calories to energize your metabolism
    - Not enough exercise
    - Need to include strength training

    Rarely do you find:

    - Metabolic or medical issues
    - Something else.
  • iulia_maddie
    iulia_maddie Posts: 2,780 Member
    no
    Oh no, you didn't!!
  • downinaggieland98
    downinaggieland98 Posts: 224 Member
    I don't think you're eating enough. If your daily caloric burn is almost 2000 calories and you're only eating 1000-1200 AND working out - your body is starving.

    You need to up your caloric intake.....it sounds funny at first but try it. Up your caloric intake to 1,600 - 1,800 for a week or two and see what happens.

    Completely agree!
  • morkiemama
    morkiemama Posts: 894 Member
    You set your activity level incorrectly with the Katch-McKardle formula - you are moderately active by exercising four to five days a week. That kicks up your TDEE to 2035 calories which gives you 1785 to eat and lose half a lb per week. Thus, for someone at 26% bodyfat, and very active, eating 1200 calories was way under what you should be eating. In addition to the lack of sleep, you were adding extra stress to your endocrine system by eating so little.

    This.

    Also, you can read this for further understanding:

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/974888-in-place-of-a-road-map-2k13

    In conclusion, you need to eat more.

    On a side note, wearing an HRM all day will not give an accurate TDEE reading. HRMs are meant for steady state cardio readings. It does not work for strength training either. Nor does it function properly in extreme temperatures (like a sauna, etc.). :)

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