Exercise + calorie count but no weight loss, suggestions?
xina86
Posts: 12 Member
Hello,
I have been counting calories and doing exercise for about a month now, going from eating loads not counting cals and doing absolutely no exercise, to doing exercise 3-5 times a week and trying to stay at 1,200 per day. I have gone over my 1,200 a day a few times but considering i was having probably near to 3,000 before and staying at the same weight i thought i would have lost something by now. On friday my scales said i'd gone down 2lbs but now they've gone up to start point again.
I've read possible explanations - dehydrated and drinking more will help lose weight quicker (?), Insulin resistance, thyroid problem and not eating enough cals. Looking at my diary, do any of these seem right? Any suggestions how i can start the weight loss. Im getting very frustrated and discouraged.
Thanks
I have been counting calories and doing exercise for about a month now, going from eating loads not counting cals and doing absolutely no exercise, to doing exercise 3-5 times a week and trying to stay at 1,200 per day. I have gone over my 1,200 a day a few times but considering i was having probably near to 3,000 before and staying at the same weight i thought i would have lost something by now. On friday my scales said i'd gone down 2lbs but now they've gone up to start point again.
I've read possible explanations - dehydrated and drinking more will help lose weight quicker (?), Insulin resistance, thyroid problem and not eating enough cals. Looking at my diary, do any of these seem right? Any suggestions how i can start the weight loss. Im getting very frustrated and discouraged.
Thanks
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Replies
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Hi! Do you use a heart rate monitor? If not, invest in one, they're a few good ones that aren't expensive. Calculating your THR (Target Heart Rate) and staying within that range is the best thing for losing weight more efficiently.0
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Hmm, i dont have one. How do you know what your target heart rate is?0
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Your diary is closed right now.0
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Are you weighing your food? Tracking absolutely EVERYTHING? Milk in your tea & coffee? Oils used for cooking?
It's basically scientifically impossible to eat at a deficit and not lose weight.0 -
Target heart rate--220 minus age take this answer times 60% and 80% this is your target heart range.0
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Do you own a food scale?0
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instead of dropping cals so low you should have just started counting, restricted your cals to say 2500 and introduce exercise into your schedule...I'm sure the weight will start to come off but once it stops eating at 1200 cals were do you go from there. Starting at 2500 would help with any plateaus....once you hit a wall your able to reduce your cals over a longer period of time0
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It's hard to tell when your diary is closed?0
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My diary is now available to see, didn't realise it wasn't public. I do have food scales and weigh everything. Have fry light instead of oil and dont drink tea/coffee.
I have been counting chocolate, maybe i should eat more savoury food to fill those cals instead?0 -
In my experience, it doesn't really matter what you eat as long as you're eating at a deficit. Fruit and veggies will be more filling than chocolate so if you can substitute some lean protein, fruit, and veggies for some of the candy/cookies you'll stay fuller.0
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This will help you figure out your THR ~> http://www.wikihow.com/Calculate-Your-Target-Heart-Rate .
Also, make sure when you're eating less that you don't under eat and cause your body to go into 'starvation mode'. Also, it's best to workout before you've eaten, that way your body burns the stored fat instead of using the food you just ate for fuel during your workout.0 -
Also, looking at your food diary, you may want to cut back on the sugar intake! Even though you're under calories, the overage in your sugar intake can still cause you to retain weight!0
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Since you've only recently began exercising there's a good chance that you're just retaining fluid. I would revisit this in a couple more weeks.0
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This will help you figure out your THR ~> http://www.wikihow.com/Calculate-Your-Target-Heart-Rate .
Also, make sure when you're eating less that you don't under eat and cause your body to go into 'starvation mode'. Also, it's best to workout before you've eaten, that way your body burns the stored fat instead of using the food you just ate for fuel during your workout.
Substrate utilization during the training bout is really not important. She can eat when she wants provided total intake is appropriate and performance needs are met.0 -
Are you sure on the Tae Bo burn? Have you tested it with a heart-rate monitor? I would suspect that it's a combination of a mildly overstated burn on that exercise + some fluid retention from beginning new exercise.0
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Hi, I've just looked at your food diary, do you ever eat breakfast? If not I suggest you eat breakfast and try and cut dwn in the sweets.
A lot of my calories are made up of sweet things which is probably why I haven't lost weight for 6 weeks so let's cut out the sweets together and watch our weight disappear.0 -
If you use MFP and log your exercise then you need to eat 1200 + exercise calories, you have probably dropped your food intake too low.0
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Well you really aren't eating healthy.
1) You aren't eating breakfast. Eat some fruit, eggs, or at least drink some milk.
2) You're eating chips and fried food. NO! No wonder you aren't losing weight. You should be eating fruits,veggies, lean meats (turkey, fish, chicken.) And no not fry, broil, or grill. and stay away from sweets and junk.0 -
There is a saying that rings very true...you can't out-exercise poor nutrition. Not all calories are equal, so a few things to keep in mind:
1. Have a protein at each meal (while losing weight limit the red meat)
2. Drink at least 80oz of water each day. Rule of thumb: Pee pale ) You'll feel like you live in the bathroom for a while, but then your body adjusts to it and actually craves it. By the time you are thirsty, you are already behind the game...c'mon! Drink up!
3. Log EVERYTHING - you would be surprised how many useless calories you can add to your daily routine...gum, cough drops, a handful of this or that...
4. Pre-plan your meals for the week... HUGE to success - if you have a plan, you won't be tempted to eat something on the fly.
5. For me, I make my lunch my heaviest meal...that way I have plenty of time to burn off extra calories by the time I go to bed...and I don't eat after 8:00p.m.
Keep blogging and let us know how you are doing! Hope this helps! ) Cheering you on!
PJ0 -
I notice 3 eating tendancies that if changed could help.
1 - eat a more balanced diet. For you that appears to mean more protein & less sugar. Read about glycemic index & the difference between your high glycemic value foods & a low glycemic diet.
2 - don't skip breakfast. This may seem counter intuitive, but waking up your metabolism in the morning starts the day burning calories. Your body is probably staying in a "starvation mode" where it is trying to conserve the few calories you are giving it. This too is something you can google to find info on.
3 - drink more water. I don't know if you just aren't listing it in your journal or not, but this too is a topic you may want to read up on.
You may also find one other tip helpful...
4 - try interval eating. This last idea is the quirkiest & not something I've personally tried but I know some who swear by it. , It is a variation of the starvation mode mentioned in #2 above. It involves keeping your same caloric intake for the week, (i.e. 1200 x 7 for you), but changing the timing for eating them. To do this on 2 approximately equally spaced days reduce your calorie intake to @ 500, but on the other 5 days increase it to 1480 which would be the offsetting balance. The theory is that if spaced out over the 3 meals the 500 cal intake is still enough to keep your body from going into starvation mode, while it is acclimated to burning your normal 1480 which causes the weight loss on those 2 days.
Best wishes & God bless.0 -
@SideSteel. I disagree.. Fried foods and too much sugar will wreak havoc on any weight loss goals therefore the TYPE of fuel used is as important as the AMOUNT.0
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What exercise are you doing? Duration, intensity etc?
What has your sodium intake been like? It's not important, but can cause fluctuations on the scale. Edit: Now I see your diary is open, your sodium intake is usually quite low but it does fluctuate quite a bit. Than can cause scale weight fluctuations.
You're not that overweight so insulin resistance is an unlikely culprit, thusly your sugar intake is rather irrelevant to weightloss. Drinking more water has no bearing on weightloss. Thyroid is Dr. only territory. Calorie intake could be a culprit - do you weigh your food? How are you calculating exercise calories, do you eat them back?0 -
Well you really aren't eating healthy.
1) You aren't eating breakfast. Eat some fruit, eggs, or at least drink some milk.
2) You're eating chips and fried food. NO! No wonder you aren't losing weight. You should be eating fruits,veggies, lean meats (turkey, fish, chicken.) And no not fry, broil, or grill. and stay away from sweets and junk.
2) Do you believe that eating fried foods at a caloric deficit prevents weight loss?0 -
@SideSteel. I disagree.. Fried foods and too much sugar will wreak havoc on any weight loss goals therefore the TYPE of fuel used is as important as the AMOUNT.
I've lost 57 lbs. eating fried food and sweets sometimes by dieting alone. Wasn't able to exercise much until recently due to medical reasons. If I feel the urge to have a treat and have the calories and other macros available, I eat what I want. It has worked so far.0 -
Well you really aren't eating healthy.
1) You aren't eating breakfast. Eat some fruit, eggs, or at least drink some milk.
2) You're eating chips and fried food. NO! No wonder you aren't losing weight. You should be eating fruits,veggies, lean meats (turkey, fish, chicken.) And no not fry, broil, or grill. and stay away from sweets and junk.
Broiling and grilling are two of the best ways to cut fat and end up with really amazing, flavorful food. I can't imagine why these methods would be on anyone's list of things to avoid.0 -
Check out the book "Wheat Belly". I have been stuck at the same weight for months even with counting calories and exercising 5 times per week. Nothing has worked. Last week I read this book and decided to cut out wheat and gluten, and most sugars - eating only meat, dairy, and vegetables. I lost 2 lbs in a week. Definitely sticking with it!0
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Cutting back on fried foods and sugar will get you to your goal a lot faster and more efficiently. But hey, DO YOU!0
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@SideSteel. I disagree.. Fried foods and too much sugar will wreak havoc on any weight loss goals therefore the TYPE of fuel used is as important as the AMOUNT.
I've lost 57 lbs. eating fried food and sweets sometimes by dieting alone. Wasn't able to exercise much until recently due to medical reasons. If I feel the urge to have a treat and have the calories and other macros available, I eat what I want. It has worked so far.
It has worked for me too as long is within my calories goal. About sugar intake I dont mind to go over if they come mostly from fruit.
Strict diets never work for the long run0 -
Hi , I just looked at your dairy and it looks to me that you are not eating breakfast, just a vitamin pill. You need to spread your calories over the day instead of mainly mid to late in the day. I also noticed you have a lot of calories in unhealthy good. Good luck and keep trying.0
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@SideSteel. I disagree.. Fried foods and too much sugar will wreak havoc on any weight loss goals therefore the TYPE of fuel used is as important as the AMOUNT.
How exactly does that happen, unless you are referring to the fact that they are calorie dense and therefore more likely to put you over your calorie goal?0
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