help, i barely eat and workout everyday and still gain..

skittles9878
skittles9878 Posts: 6 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hello I am Katie I'm a 24 yr old female I am 5'3 160 lbs I started this app and I am supposed to consume 1200 cal a day and I always work off any calories I consume If I even eat at all I hike for two hours walk three miles and weight lift for 1hr everyday. Does anyone have any advice as I am some how still gaining weight...
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Replies

  • TheNewDodge
    TheNewDodge Posts: 607 Member
    Do everything you're doing now, only much differently.
  • rbarragato412
    rbarragato412 Posts: 42 Member
    EAT EAT EAT!! From what I've been learning, it's pretty important to eat all of your calories, even the ones you burned off!
  • Nicolee_2014
    Nicolee_2014 Posts: 1,572 Member
    Do everything you're doing now, only much differently.

    LOVE IT.
  • cgrout78
    cgrout78 Posts: 1,628 Member
    so you're eating 1200 calories a day and burning off 1200 a day??

    How are you conscious??
  • Sqeekyjojo
    Sqeekyjojo Posts: 704 Member
    Hello I am Katie I'm a 24 yr old female I am 5'3 160 lbs I started this app and I am supposed to consume 1200 cal a day and I always work off any calories I consume If I even eat at all I hike for two hours walk three miles and weight lift for 1hr everyday. Does anyone have any advice as I am some how still gaining weight...


    Well, if eating next to nothing and exercising everyday isn't working for you.....try doing the complete opposite.
  • gr8xpectationz
    gr8xpectationz Posts: 161 Member
    You're starving yourself, it's not healthy. Your body is responding as if there's some kind of famine, and it's trying to hold tight to every single calorie it can. And your metabolism is eating away at your muscles for energy.

    This is NOT a good approach for healthy, sustainable weight loss.

    It's hard to offer more advice without knowing your height, weight, how much you're hoping to lose, and seeing your food diary.
  • smantha32
    smantha32 Posts: 6,990 Member
    Eat more and stop working out so hard.
  • Erikalynne18
    Erikalynne18 Posts: 558 Member
    best advice: EAT. Seriously. Food is your friend and if you don't eat you are just asking for more trouble! :(
  • megsmom2
    megsmom2 Posts: 2,362 Member
    yup...do the opposite of what you're doing. less exercise...more food! (not going crazy with food...more healthy choices to a bit higher calorie level.) Slower, steadier, less obsessive will get you where you want to go.
  • ChaseAlder
    ChaseAlder Posts: 804 Member
    If you are burning 1200 calories a day, you should be eating 2400 minimum, IMO. 1200 is the amount you should be eating to lose at the rate you've chosen (say, 2lbs per week). You're already at the deficit. Your calorie count shouldn't say 1200 at the end of the day... it should say 0.
  • jwdieter
    jwdieter Posts: 2,582 Member
    Weight can bounce up and down daily. If you're just starting, you can't expect a straight line. Especially as a woman. Also, burning off 100% of intake is not sustainable.
  • Inshape13
    Inshape13 Posts: 680 Member
    Do everything you're doing now, only much differently.

    Way to get to the point!

    and here is an explanation of why it is not working-

    http://www.builtlean.com/2010/04/27/starvation-mode-are-you-eating-enough/
  • MellifluousGirl
    MellifluousGirl Posts: 20 Member
    Read the book 'Eat to Live' by Dr. Fuhrman (available at most libraries). It changed my life.
  • alpenpam
    alpenpam Posts: 27
    Do everything you're doing now, only much differently.

    *applaud*
  • skittles9878
    skittles9878 Posts: 6 Member
    Thank you guys and I'm 5'2 160 I'm hoping to get back to 115 at the end of my days I've been having anywhere from 0 to 1400 on my logs
  • matanane73
    matanane73 Posts: 4
    Well you said you weight lift for 1 hour everyday so I would say it's muscle gain. I'm no professional but that would be my guess. 1 hr everyday .. are you trying to be a body builder? The best thing that worked for me was jogging/running and a healthy (healthier than my norm) diet.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,993 Member
    Hello I am Katie I'm a 24 yr old female I am 5'3 160 lbs I started this app and I am supposed to consume 1200 cal a day and I always work off any calories I consume If I even eat at all I hike for two hours walk three miles and weight lift for 1hr everyday. Does anyone have any advice as I am some how still gaining weight...
    So a little over a week? Hmmm, sounds like you're retaining water and more water (since you lack calories to cover your energy expenditure).
    Your method isn't working and you're basically wasting 3 hours a day with what you're doing if you aren't consuming enough calories.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 28+ years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
  • skittles9878
    skittles9878 Posts: 6 Member
    Thank you I also dont think I drink enough water as it makes me extremely nausiated I drink about a bottle a day and coffee or tea otherwise and I am not on any medications. I will try consuming more calories a day any healthy recommendations as I am typically a junk food eater, iI've been laying off the sugars been eating fish and sandwiches lately...
  • smantha32
    smantha32 Posts: 6,990 Member
    Well you said you weight lift for 1 hour everyday so I would say it's muscle gain. I'm no professional but that would be my guess. 1 hr everyday .. are you trying to be a body builder? The best thing that worked for me was jogging/running and a healthy (healthier than my norm) diet.

    Nah, no way she's gaining muscle. She's not taking in enough calories.

    Water retention probably.
  • fitmusiclifeviola
    fitmusiclifeviola Posts: 99
    So it sounds like going into starvation mode, possibly converting fat to muscle (do you feel better/more energetic? If not I'd guess Starvation; if the latter that supports added muscle perhaps) may be what you're dealing with, but I'll take a different tact. I wonder about the accuracy with which you report the exercise and food here. If you underestimate the portions you use then it's easy to over eat. I say, be conservative with your estimates. That means underestimate exercise strenuousness and overestimate the # of calories you consume. Actually measure your portions, weigh them, know exactly what's in it. Stick to whole foods primarily based around fruits, & vegetables.
    For exercise, make sure to remember if you hike for 3 hours for instance, (and is that actually happening every single day?), is it all actual work you're doing, or is it 45 minutes of hiking followed by 1.5 hours of sightseeing, and 45 minutes of work. Also, if you take a machine's guess to the # of calories you're consuming, know that often those estimates are based on taller, heavier men than you, so they probably over state what you work off.

    Above all, take heart, keep going and trying, there are many ways that make weight an inaccurate measure of fitness. Keep doing what you know is best for you, and your weight will go to the correct #.
  • auroranflash
    auroranflash Posts: 3,569 Member
    Your body hates dramatic changes and will fight you tooth and nail. When you put it under a lot of stress (over exercising, undereating), your hormones go all out of whack and you will not lose fat. You will, however, lose muscle, which is a huge reason why crash dieters tend to gain back more than they lose.

    What you're doing is not sustainable and will eventually lead to injury from over training as well as malnutrition. You do not need to make dramatic changes in diet and activity to see results. Just try to stay active and eat at a reasonable deficit.

    And please drink more water. One bottle a day is not enough, especially if you are exercising to that extent.
  • skittles9878
    skittles9878 Posts: 6 Member
    I've been looking at every thing I eat scan it with this app and using the app to calculate calories. When I hike it is everyday and mostly uphill and its straight hiking times. And I do notice I have more energy and move quicker, able to do more everyday it seems. I am wondering if lack of water may be a role, would that effect my weight?
  • Ready2Rock206
    Ready2Rock206 Posts: 9,487 Member
    I'd try eating, more water, and therapy.
  • melindasuefritz
    melindasuefritz Posts: 3,509 Member
    EAT EAT EAT!! From what I've been learning, it's pretty important to eat all of your calories, even the ones you burned off!
  • lina011
    lina011 Posts: 427 Member
    Eat more and stop working out so hard.

    yep totally agree " your poor body and what your doing to it.......... give it a chance to absorb some calories and step back from the crazy exercise.
  • marciebrian
    marciebrian Posts: 853 Member
    It's like the trolls aren't even trying anymore

    I know, right? almost insulting:grumble:
  • lrobrn
    lrobrn Posts: 17
    You need to eat your calories allowed each day. I was trying to eat less and the loss was slow so I started doing what the site instructs and have been losing 2-3 pounds a week for the last couple of weeks. I still have a hard time eating my daily allowance but I'm still losing and my cloths are fitting differently.
  • rob1976
    rob1976 Posts: 1,328 Member
    so you're eating 1200 calories a day and burning off 1200 a day??

    How are you conscious??
    There is an argument to be made that she isn't conscious...
  • Lawreedee
    Lawreedee Posts: 1 Member
    You sound like me (minus 20 years anyway!) - similar weight & height - listen to all of these posts about EATING MORE!!! 1200 isn't enough for the workouts you are doing! Don't give up, but don't burn yourself out either - and sometimes it's more encouraging to keep track of your belt loops & how much better you feel by exercising/eating healthy, than by jumping onto the scale every day! Good luck!
  • jofjltncb6
    jofjltncb6 Posts: 34,415 Member
    It's like the trolls aren't even trying anymore

    If their objective is to cause me to lose all faith in humanity, then it's working. I'm one, maybe two threads like this from ragequitting/flouncing/epic meltdown/sudden deactivation.

    OP, if this is legit, then where would you get the idea that eating 1200 daily calories and burning ~1200 exercise calories netting ZERO calories would be a good idea? Pro-tip: It's not.

    If you're going to follow MFP's recommendation for 1200 calories...(and I personally believe this is a *horrible* starting point)...then at least follow it correctly and eat back your exercise calories.

    And check out this link: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/952996-level-obstacles-lose-weight-target-fat-easy

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