Stagnant trouble.

Options
Gregthree
Gregthree Posts: 36 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Having issues with weight loss and being hungry this time of year. For me this is a very busy time of year. Work is much more labor involved, coaching two baseball teams and we are just much more busy with family events and get togethers. I have lost 55 pounds since December 2012 and am only 8 pounds away from the first goal I had set for my self. It was to get to 220. Yes I know, that is still overweight for me but I wanted to set something obtainable. With the extra work and being busy, I have not lost any weight for 4 weeks and am constantly hungry. I cannot seem to get enough food. The walks that got us here have been limited because of the game. My calories went from 2100 when we first started to around 1700 now. I am eating good foods not the quality foods that we were eating because of the on the run style that we are in right now, My question is, if I am feeling hungry all the time and not losing weight a sign of not getting enough foods. I have read that under eating is not good for the body or am I in that stage of the body is satisfied where it is at and keep at it it will change and weight once again will come off.

Any suggestions or guidance will be helpful.

PS. My wife is in the same boat. She too has lost around 50 pounds over the same period but has settled into a rut as well.

Replies

  • ladynocturne
    ladynocturne Posts: 865 Member
    Options
    I would recommend calculating your TDEE

    http://www.fitnessfrog.com/calculators/tdee-calculator.html

    Subtract 500 calories for 1lb a week, 750 for 1.5lbs, or 1000 for 2lbs from that number.

    It sounds like you are extremely active and may need to up your calories even more to obtain a reasonable deficit for weight loss. Maybe consider going at a slower pace, like 1lb a week instead of 2lbs?

    I could do some calculations for you, but I'd need your current height and weight.
  • 1princesswarrior
    1princesswarrior Posts: 1,242 Member
    Options
    With such a busy schedule are you remembering to drink enough water? You may actually be thirsty instead of hungry.

    Also figure out your TDEE with your lifestyle. There are also many sites that will calculate your TDEE and ask what your goals are and tell you how much you should be eating.

    For example: www.iifym.com
  • Gregthree
    Gregthree Posts: 36 Member
    Options
    I am 6-3 now 228 pounds (glad to give that number) male and am busy but not exercise active but am active and strenuous at work. Even if I say I am desk ridden the tdee is saying I need 2575. So I need 2075 to lose 1 pound a week. MFP says I only need 1760. So I am guessing there is an issue there. Should I go for the 2075 calories and see what happens?
  • ladynocturne
    ladynocturne Posts: 865 Member
    Options
    I am 6-3 now 228 pounds (glad to give that number) male and am busy but not exercise active but am active and strenuous at work. Even if I say I am desk ridden the tdee is saying I need 2575. So I need 2075 to lose 1 pound a week. MFP says I only need 1760. So I am guessing there is an issue there. Should I go for the 2075 calories and see what happens?

    Yeah except you're not desk ridden lol. I'd go by whatever setting is closer to what you're actually doing on a weekly basis, if it's in between, take an average of the two.
  • Gregthree
    Gregthree Posts: 36 Member
    Options
    With such a busy schedule are you remembering to drink enough water? You may actually be thirsty instead of hungry.

    Also figure out your TDEE with your lifestyle. There are also many sites that will calculate your TDEE and ask what your goals are and tell you how much you should be eating.

    For example: www.iifym.com

    Yes I am drinking lots of water. A minimum of 4 16.9 bottles of water a day. Plus anything I get out of the fridge.
  • Gregthree
    Gregthree Posts: 36 Member
    Options
    I am 6-3 now 228 pounds (glad to give that number) male and am busy but not exercise active but am active and strenuous at work. Even if I say I am desk ridden the tdee is saying I need 2575. So I need 2075 to lose 1 pound a week. MFP says I only need 1760. So I am guessing there is an issue there. Should I go for the 2075 calories and see what happens?

    Yeah except you're not desk ridden lol. I'd go by whatever setting is closer to what you're actually doing on a weekly basis, if it's in between, take an average of the two.

    So It is possible to need more calories now than what I started with back in December just because I am more active. So then when things slow down again, I should reduce what my intake is!!!!!
  • ladynocturne
    ladynocturne Posts: 865 Member
    Options
    I am 6-3 now 228 pounds (glad to give that number) male and am busy but not exercise active but am active and strenuous at work. Even if I say I am desk ridden the tdee is saying I need 2575. So I need 2075 to lose 1 pound a week. MFP says I only need 1760. So I am guessing there is an issue there. Should I go for the 2075 calories and see what happens?

    Yeah except you're not desk ridden lol. I'd go by whatever setting is closer to what you're actually doing on a weekly basis, if it's in between, take an average of the two.

    So It is possible to need more calories now than what I started with back in December just because I am more active. So then when things slow down again, I should reduce what my intake is!!!!!

    Yes when things slow down, recalculate. Exactly. =)
  • Gregthree
    Gregthree Posts: 36 Member
    Options
    Wow. Not sure about this. If iaverage the desk job with moderate then need to consume 2950 calories to stay the same so that means I want 2450 to lose a pound a week. That seems like a lot of food to eat again.
  • ladynocturne
    ladynocturne Posts: 865 Member
    Options
    Wow. Not sure about this. If iaverage the desk job with moderate then need to consume 2950 calories to stay the same so that means I want 2450 to lose a pound a week. That seems like a lot of food to eat again.

    Well you're going to have to increase to maintain someday, so look at it as training.

    Just remember that when you add more grams of food, you will up your waste storage in your bowels temporarily. It will also naturally up your sodium intake and may result in water weight. So if you don't see your weight budge for a week, that's completely normal. Some people even see a small gain, it will eventually come back down. Don't panic.
  • Hunnib23
    Hunnib23 Posts: 61 Member
    Options
    I went through this a few weeks ago. Then I cut my calories and I stall and even gained back and last week I raised them back up and am dropping again.
    I can't remember the website but I did some research and this is what I found:

    To maintain current weight your weight by 16 (228*16=3648)
    To lose weight, you multiply your weight by 12.(228*12= 2736)
  • Phrick
    Phrick Posts: 2,765 Member
    Options
    Wow. Not sure about this. If iaverage the desk job with moderate then need to consume 2950 calories to stay the same so that means I want 2450 to lose a pound a week. That seems like a lot of food to eat again.

    Well you're going to have to increase to maintain someday, so look at it as training.

    Just remember that when you add more grams of food, you will up your waste storage in your bowels temporarily. It will also naturally up your sodium intake and may result in water weight. So if you don't see your weight budge for a week, that's completely normal. Some people even see a small gain, it will eventually come back down. Don't panic.

    Also keep in mind that you won't enter your exercise separately with the TDEE method, if and when you do any, because with that method it is already taken into account. I'm not clear from your post if you're never exercising outside of work, or if you are but not frequently, or...? But anyway that is something to remember.
  • ladynocturne
    ladynocturne Posts: 865 Member
    Options
    Wow. Not sure about this. If iaverage the desk job with moderate then need to consume 2950 calories to stay the same so that means I want 2450 to lose a pound a week. That seems like a lot of food to eat again.

    Well you're going to have to increase to maintain someday, so look at it as training.

    Just remember that when you add more grams of food, you will up your waste storage in your bowels temporarily. It will also naturally up your sodium intake and may result in water weight. So if you don't see your weight budge for a week, that's completely normal. Some people even see a small gain, it will eventually come back down. Don't panic.

    Also keep in mind that you won't enter your exercise separately with the TDEE method, if and when you do any, because with that method it is already taken into account. I'm not clear from your post if you're never exercising outside of work, or if you are but not frequently, or...? But anyway that is something to remember.

    Excellent point, I forgot to add that. Yes when using the TDEE method, you wouldn't eat back your exercise calories if they are already accounted for in your TDEE calculation.
  • Gregthree
    Gregthree Posts: 36 Member
    Options
    Wow. Not sure about this. If iaverage the desk job with moderate then need to consume 2950 calories to stay the same so that means I want 2450 to lose a pound a week. That seems like a lot of food to eat again.

    Well you're going to have to increase to maintain someday, so look at it as training.

    Just remember that when you add more grams of food, you will up your waste storage in your bowels temporarily. It will also naturally up your sodium intake and may result in water weight. So if you don't see your weight budge for a week, that's completely normal. Some people even see a small gain, it will eventually come back down. Don't panic.

    Also keep in mind that you won't enter your exercise separately with the TDEE method, if and when you do any, because with that method it is already taken into account. I'm not clear from your post if you're never exercising outside of work, or if you are but not frequently, or...? But anyway that is something to remember.

    First off lose the bag. We are all friends here. LOL. My wife and I are up to around 3 miles almost nightly but that has been reduced because of the games or rain. So, yes, we have been active as far as walks when we can but no weight training except at work. Never been one for weights.
  • Gregthree
    Gregthree Posts: 36 Member
    Options
    Was playing with the MFP program last night and found the settings. I say that I had the 2 pounds a week checked, that is why it was 1760 calories. I dropped it to one pound a week and the calories went to 2230. I will give this a go for the next few weeks and see what happens. Will feel strange eating that extra 500 calories but it will be nice not being hungry and feeling guilty about it.
  • Phrick
    Phrick Posts: 2,765 Member
    Options
    Not ready to drop the bag yet :laugh:

    If you jump headlong into eating the extra 500 daily, be assured your scale will show a small increase for the first week or two as your body adjusts. If you are cool with that, then by all means dive in. If you want to avoid that, however, it's generally recommended to increase your calories by 100-200 per day for a week at a time till you reach your new, higher calorie goal. This will minimize if not completely eliminate the upward bump on the scale. Glad to have you as a friend!

Categories