It is really as simple as cals in minus cals out?

I would like to know this as well! Two summers in undergraduate I had one real meal/day (busy job/no fridge/new city etc) at about a thousand calories a day. I barely lost any weight those summers. Same weight when I was back in school and eating a lot more than those summers- same weight throughout the two years. I'm starting to think that's my body's happy weight we want to stay at.

Well, yes and no: yes in general, and then again there can be some foods which make you bloated or or inflamed or retain water etc. and so you weigh more than if it didn't. In a perfect world, though, if you need 1500 or 2000 or 1200 calories daily(random examples) to maintain your weight and you eat less than that after your daily exertion, then it should result in losing weight. Since there are so many pollutants etc. in the world, and our bodies, these days in food, water, air, etc., these unknown factors can really mess up metabolism and hormones etc.

It pretty much is. And a food scale is a must. I didn't realize how off track I was until I bought one of those.

And now I'm just going to sit back and wait for s*it to hit the fan as people come into this thread and argue that it's not...*grabs some popcorn*

For weight control it is as simple as calories in, calories out. However, you are correct that not everyone can be a size zero or whatever...people have different shapes and different body compositions as well. Scale weight can be somewhat arbitrary which is why I pay little attention to it and always shake my head and the many people who obsess about it.

At 5'10", 180 Lbs and 19/20% BF, I look much different than my best buddy who is of the same stats except he is 15% BF. My other buddy is roughly the same stats, but he has never lifted a weight in his life and has a much higher BF% than I do...so he looks much different too and we all have different waste sizes...my best best buddy is a 32 (and clothing is lose), I'm a 34 (perfect fit) and my other buddy is a 36.

I will never be a size zero, it would be scary if I was. My hips and frame would not fit in a zero even if I lost all my excess weight. So, yes, it is true that genetically it is just not possible for some people to be a size zero.

Whether you can or not, I don't know. Just be the best "you" you can be, whatever your size.

It's that simple, except cals in and cals out are complex equations that vary by person.

And clothing size is only tangentially related, as everyone said.

How tall are you?

The reason I asked about the food scale is because I see a lot of foods, especially fruits or rice, entered as "1 cup". Even using measuring cups, the amounts can be off by a surprising amount because of how packed the cup is and how "full" the cup is filled.

Yes, macros is your fat/carb/protein. Your protein amounts look very low. Upping those can help retain your lean body mass, which is important towards keeping your metabolism up.

ETA: I really do not think being vegan has anything to do with your holding on to the weight. I am not vegan or even vegetarian, but plenty of people who are have not had problems. It just becomes more difficult to get enough protein.

People think my SIL and I are the same weight and size. I cannot fit into a size ten jeans even at my goal weight. She can wear a size four easily. So body composition is in play here. My legs are nice and thin and hers are not. That is where she carries her weight. I have wide hip bones. We only weigh five pound difference.

Look below my post. It's not accurate I weighed myself just now 189 POUNDS and a month ago? 210 pounds.

so yes.

IT IS THAT SIMPLE

For weight loss it is cals in vs cals out, but body composition (which you seem to be asking about) is a different thing, that is where macros and resistance training come into play. As far as fitting into a specific size (like size 0), I believe that is a different thing again -- skeletal structure (height, hip width) will prevent some people from getting small enough to be certain sizes. Clothing size designations have nothing to do with health IMO.

THIS ^^^ so totally true.

In answer to your question, is it calories in/calories out?

Yes.

and

No.

If your maintenance is 2500 and you drop 500 for a week (barring any major illness or allergies) you will lose weight. Now here's where it gets complicated. There are two things to consider.

1. Metabolic adaptation
2. Composition.

First, your metabolism will adapt to your calorie intake, over time your 500 cals dropped will not help with weight loss, you'll either need to up cardio or drop more calories. And repeat. This is why dropping 500 cals is crazy, drop 100, drop the lowest amount you can to still lose weight. If that's 0.1kg a week then fine. Because if you drop 500 cals now, what happens in 6 weeks? Another 500? Then what? Before you know it you'll be doing 12 hours of cardio a day and eating a stick of celery

Second, your composition matters a lot. I could drop 10 pounds pretty easily but I want to make sure I retain muscle whilst keeping fat low. So my macros count a lot. If I just ate 100% carbs (for example) I might lose weight if I'm in a cal deficit but over a few weeks I will look like crap.

So Macros are super important. If you don't get them right not only will you not lose fat as efficiently but you'll look a lot worse than you would if you took a few minutes to figure out what you should be hitting.

I am 5'5
I don't have a food scale, my husband would consider that to be something that would be a no no I think in our house hold. I have had ED issues in the past, and that I still struggle with so to actually have grams to my food would maybe not be so wonderful. You see a lot of 1 cup or 1/2 cup because that's the measuring cups that I own.
I will start by upping my protein and maybe adding in weights to see if that's the trick. Possibly up my calories I have been readin around and it looks like I'm on the low end.

So basically even thought I am working out doing Insanity and I feel like I am eating right and following close to what MFP has layed out I'm somehow still doing it wrong. Very frustrating indeed.

That's a shame that you cannot have a food scale.

When guessing some foods, the difference in what you think the calories are and what they truly are can amount to hundreds, especially in foods such as spreads and high calorie foods.

I am 5'5
I don't have a food scale, my husband would consider that to be something that would be a no no I think in our house hold. I have had ED issues in the past, and that I still struggle with so to actually have grams to my food would maybe not be so wonderful. You see a lot of 1 cup or 1/2 cup because that's the measuring cups that I own.
I will start by upping my protein and maybe adding in weights to see if that's the trick. Possibly up my calories I have been readin around and it looks like I'm on the low end.

So basically even thought I am working out doing Insanity and I feel like I am eating right and following close to what MFP has layed out I'm somehow still doing it wrong. Very frustrating indeed.

I wouldn't say you have been doing it wrong. If you want to get lean/muscular, though, you will need to do things a bit differently. It is possible to just lose enough fat that you simply uncover the muscle you already have, but if your diet is low in protein, you are losing a disproportionate amount of muscle along with fat when you lose weight.

If you've never lifted weights before, you can make a lot of progress and gain strength even eating at a deficit if you eat enough protein (1g/lb lean body mass) and follow a good strength training program with progressive overload. Its pretty easy to do and I bet that will get you closer to the look you want. I am vegetarian so I get a lot of protein from Greek yogurt, but you can get protein from soy products, beans, and vegan protein powder -- there are a lot of good rice, pea, and hemp protein powders and that is a really easy, convenient way to do it.

If you have specific questions about how to start, you might try posting your questions in this group, they are generally pretty helpful and knowledgable.

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