Trying to lose weight and keep gaining

lisardore
lisardore Posts: 3
in Health and Weight Loss
I need help, I have been trying to lose weight for about a year and all I have done is gain. I've tried weight watchers and my fitness pal. I am gaining about .5-1 pound a week. I'm eating healthy, counting calories and trying to exercise more...any suggestions? I'm beyond frustrated!

Replies

  • 2dayirunforme
    2dayirunforme Posts: 171 Member
    Can you open your diary?
  • Crochetluvr
    Crochetluvr Posts: 3,347 Member
    Wish I could help, but your diary is hidden so I cant see what you are eating.

    ETA - I should add, if you have been doing this for a year, have you taken your measurements to see if you are losing inches?
  • conniemaxwell5
    conniemaxwell5 Posts: 943 Member
    It's hard to say without seeing your diary but I would guess you're not eating enough. Can you open your diary?
  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,286 Member
    If you've put on 30+ pounds in the last year, your not "consistently" eating in a deficit, or you a medical dysfunction and should see your PCP.
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
    do you have food scale..?
    weight everything?
    log everything?

    if you are gaining then you are eating more than you take in ..

    unless you have a thyroid issue or something...
  • wswilliams67
    wswilliams67 Posts: 938 Member
    Either your thyroid is having trouble or you are not eating at a deficit. Don't trust any cardio exercise machines' calorie burn. They are usually WAY off. If you are eating at a deficit and exercising regularly then you should be losing.
  • lisardore
    lisardore Posts: 3
    I just opened my diary. I have only been gaining the .5-1# for the last 2 months but the weight loss has been very limited for the last year. I often don't log my exercise bc I don't want to add those extra calories into my total. I usually run for about 25 min 2-3xs a week and walk the rest of the days for about 45 minutes. I know I am low in vitamin d and have had my thyroid checked...it's normal or so they say
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
    just checked your diary and I do not think you are logging everything..last four days you are like 1100, 1000, 1200, and 900...

    or have you been eating that low for a very long time? If yes, maybe metabolic damage or slow down...

    but if you thyroid is OK and you are barely eating 1200 you should be losing...
  • herblackwings39
    herblackwings39 Posts: 3,930 Member
    If you got your calorie goal from MFP your deficit was figured without exercise. That's why you're supposed to be eating those burned calories back. Now you have your original deficit plus all the calories you burn while working out.
  • lisardore
    lisardore Posts: 3
    I have been logging everything and have recently been trying to eat all 1300 calories within the last 2 days. I'm wondering, after a lot of research if I shouldn't try to get closer to the 1400 calorie mark?
  • fluffykitsune
    fluffykitsune Posts: 236 Member
    You've only logged the last week this month.
    You need to stay consistent.
  • PikaKnight
    PikaKnight Posts: 34,971 Member
    Do you use a food scale?
  • CrazyAnimalLady
    CrazyAnimalLady Posts: 104 Member
    It seems like the calories you eat have a lot of processed stuff or is generally not healthy, maybe if you concentrated on eating more whole/clean foods it would help. I'd also recommend you always eat a minimum of 1,200 calories and try to incorporate some weight lifting instead of just doing cardio. Weight lifting is great for burning calories and building muscle, when you build muscle you burn calories for days not just for the duration of the exercise. Good luck!
  • savithny
    savithny Posts: 1,200 Member
    Despite all the talk about exercise, weight loss is mostly about diet. Most people who just start to exercise but don't pay attention to diet will start eating more to compensate (even if they don't realize it).

    First step should be to log, religiously, for several weeks. WRite everything down, including the cream in your coffee, the condiments on your burger, the scraps from your kids lunch that you ate because they didn't finish theirs. The oil you sautee in, the peanut butter on the knife you lick. Every caloric beverage. Everything. DOn't guess. Don't grab the first thing from the MFP database and say "Oh, I ate mashed potatoes -- this entry for 1/4 cup made with skim milk and no butter will PERFECTLY represent a ginormous serving of restaurrant potatoes!"

    DOn't even necessarily worry about your goal. Set your goal to "maintain" or something like that. Your object here is to be absolutely clear-eyed about your intake. I've seen people say they don't count salad dressing or cooking fat or the butter on their bread or the sugar in their coffee, or or or .....

    Give yourself a baseline of knowing what you eat and what it adds up to.
  • Erikalynne18
    Erikalynne18 Posts: 558 Member
    I have been logging everything and have recently been trying to eat all 1300 calories within the last 2 days. I'm wondering, after a lot of research if I shouldn't try to get closer to the 1400 calorie mark?

    My advice? YES. I eat around 1700 PLUS exercise calories and I am STILL losing. Mind you I have an active job, but I found the "eat more" method has really helped me :) If you ask a really fit member on here how much she eats, it's probably way more than 1200. Need to fuel your body, especially if you are doing all that running! :)
  • nickalow11
    nickalow11 Posts: 99 Member
    MFP starts me at 1200 calories. I use a BodyMedia to keep track of my burn, and they work together to figure out my actual calorie goal for the day. That being said, I would highly recommend you start logging everything as closely as possible. This will help you get a better idea of what is going on. I've also found that making changes slowly will also give you a better idea. If you start working out more, try it for a few weeks, to see how your body reacts. Same with the intake. If you up your calories, stay around the same place for a couple weeks. Too many changes at once make it hard to single out what really works and what doesn't. Hang in there!
  • Erikalynne18
    Erikalynne18 Posts: 558 Member
    Also... LOG LOG LOG! :) Everything, everyday!

    I'm on day 215, I think the consistency has really helped keep me on track and caused a steady decline :) Once I started logging it all I started to notice the real issues (portion control, and type of foods) and could deal with them :)

    Best of luck!
  • MrsJ0826
    MrsJ0826 Posts: 7
    There is a lot of good info here, and I agree.... you have to track EVERYTHING because it adds up. Consistency is Key! Oh an be sure your drinking plenty of water.
  • lambchristie
    lambchristie Posts: 552 Member
    Lisa,
    In reviewing about 2 weeks worth of your food diary I see the following
    1) you are not consistent
    2) you have high sodium counts
    3) you have high sugar counts
    3) you utilize 'quick add' calories which doesn't give you true calorie count or the other macros you track
    4) you rarely log water; so you either drink and don't log it; or you are not drinking enough

    Until you become honest with yourself you are going to keep on this same path.
    I would suggest logging everything you eat (utilize the scan app on your phone if you have a smart phone; it helps a lot!!!).
    Become friends with your measuring cups & spoons; and a good food scale so you know exactly what you are consuming.

    Be kind to yourself. You can do this!

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