Confused about why I'm not losing weight... please help!
Replies
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It doesn't seem like there is a lot of fat in your diet... I know that "some" is needed. Do you cook your salmon in olive oil or anything?0
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I don't know the answer but ...
Do you weigh your pre-packaged pieces of fish?
I started to and found out that frequently, the portions are actually much larger than the nutrition label lists.
This can result in a much higher calorie count, especially with a fattier fish like salmon.0 -
It doesn't seem like there is a lot of fat in your diet... I know that "some" is needed. Do you cook your salmon in olive oil or anything?
I don't, I do cook the onions and zucchini in olive oil though. I estimated about 2 tablespoons per day (I use a mister, so getting a 100% accurate measurement is hard). I did not include the olive oil in the OP, but I should have :-)0 -
I don't know the answer but ...
Do you weigh your pre-packaged pieces of fish?
I started to and found out that frequently, the portions are actually much larger than the nutrition label lists.
This can result in a much higher calorie count, especially with a fattier fish like salmon.
I do weigh the salmon on a food scale, and the chicken as well :-)0 -
I agree - I would pick a number and try to stick to it as close possible for a week and see what happens. You may have to play around a bit to find the number that works for you. I think that your fats, etc, look fine (glad to see you do have some since not in original post
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Awesome, thank you for the input! I think I will shoot for 1500 a day for the next 3 weeks and see how that goes! :-)
Hopefully it helps! Over the past couple of years I have slowly come down from 215 to 175, but losing any farther has been super hard! I appreciate the advice!0 -
I am about the same height as you, and weigh around 150 lbs. I exercise about 200 min a week on average as well (cycling, running, walking). I was having some mixed results, playing around with daily calories to see where my "sweet spot" was for weight loss. I have been tracking the numbers for 3 weeks now.
Using a moving 7-day average and comparing this to weight loss I have determined that I need to eat around 1500 total calories per day to lose weight. When that number increased to 1600 my weight loss stalled, and when it hit 1700 I started to gain weight. So perhaps your total caloric intake is a bit high since your numbers are similar to mine.
I realize you may be sticking to what MFP or TDEE tells you, but as a wise person recently posted here, those numbers are meaningless if your own reliable data doesn't match up.
According to MFP I should be eating net 1330, but some days I exercise a lot and I always ate back all my calories so too many of those and suddenly I'm eating 1700 cal/day. According to the "TDEE - 20% method" I should be eating 1730 calories per day for weight loss, but that is too much - I started gaining again when I tried that.
So all of this is to say that I think you are eating too much, you are possibly hitting your maintenance level calories but not dipping low enough for weight loss.
I agree with this ^^ when I weighed more the TDEE-% worked wonders for me. But once I hit 173 lbs it no longer did. I am 5'5 also about 200 minutes per week of actual exercise (straight cardio) - my calorie goal per TDEE-% was 1720 per week I ate just over 1600 and gained!! Estimated of 1550 per day (and using zig zagging) worked perfectly for me. I keep a spreadsheet and make notes and always change things up when needed. Your body is not perfect science so you may need to lower those calories a bit.0 -
You didn't say if you weigh everything you eat. From what I see of your diary, you're not logging correctly though (I didn't read all the replies, sorry if someone mentioned it).
Spinach Egg White Omelet No Cheese - did you create that entry? Because it makes no sense. There's absolutely no way I'd make a spinach egg white omelet that has 132 calories, frankly, unless I cooked it in a ton of oil or something (and it has no fat in the entry, which makes no sense). My omelets have 270 calories but that's with olive oil, one egg, and some goat cheese! Otherwise for the spinach and egg whites it would be what... 30 calories total? You got to weigh your egg whites and your spinach, and enter those, plus the oil you use.
Same thing for the sauteed veggies. Weigh your veggies and add the oil, and enter that.
Bottom line, don't use user-made entries. Either make your own recipe and use that entry, or enter everything separately.
And weigh everything. It's unlikely you found two plums that weigh exactly 85g, like what you entered yesterday. Same with the other fruit... 1 cup of blueberries or strawberries can be anything from 50 to 100g, pretty much (ok... I exaggerate a little, but that's the idea). The quinoa is probably the worst culprit frankly, if you just use a measuring cup to weigh your 1/4 cup, you're probably actually eating over one serving every time. I'm guessing there's probably not exactly 5oz of smoked salmon in those packs you buy either.
To sum up : buy a food scale, use that instead of measuring cups and spoons, and make your own entries.0 -
It's a matter of trial and error...for all of us!! Try eating a little less cals or a little more each day. Stay consistent with whatever changes you do. Do you ever take rest days? Try it. Try eating/binging a little on the weekends...that kinda resets our metabolisms so the function more efficiently. Idk why you're not losing, but that's what I do. Just focus on eating 3 meals a day until you 'feel' full and workout. You should be seeing results.
Me = 3 meals/day, eat until feel full, walk/mow the lawn 30 mins/day, 5-7 days a week, drink only water and I overeat and drink 1-2 days on the weekends. I average 2-3 lb loss a week. HOWEVER, I do need to lose another 40.
How much are you trying to lose? It does get more difficult when you're closer to goal weight. Also, try weight lifting. Building muscles helps burn cals when you are inactive. You listed the food you typically eat...now is that every day or just your fave meals? You may not be taking in vital nutrition you think you should be avoiding. ??0 -
You didn't say if you weigh everything you eat. From what I see of your diary, you're not logging correctly though (I didn't read all the replies, sorry if someone mentioned it).
Spinach Egg White Omelet No Cheese - did you create that entry? Because it makes no sense. There's absolutely no way I'd make a spinach egg white omelet that has 132 calories, frankly, unless I cooked it in a ton of oil or something (and it has no fat in the entry, which makes no sense). My omelets have 270 calories but that's with olive oil, one egg, and some goat cheese! Otherwise for the spinach and egg whites it would be what... 30 calories total? You got to weigh your egg whites and your spinach, and enter those, plus the oil you use.
Same thing for the sauteed veggies. Weigh your veggies and add the oil, and enter that.
Bottom line, don't use user-made entries. Either make your own recipe and use that entry, or enter everything separately.
And weigh everything. It's unlikely you found two plums that weigh exactly 85g, like what you entered yesterday. Same with the other fruit... 1 cup of blueberries or strawberries can be anything from 50 to 100g, pretty much (ok... I exaggerate a little, but that's the idea). The quinoa is probably the worst culprit frankly, if you just use a measuring cup to weigh your 1/4 cup, you're probably actually eating over one serving every time. I'm guessing there's probably not exactly 5oz of smoked salmon in those packs you buy either.
To sum up : buy a food scale, use that instead of measuring cups and spoons, and make your own entries.
The Spinach Egg White Omelette is a recipe that I made :-) It's 15 TBS of Egg Beaters Egg Whites and 1 cup of spinach. use about 3 1-second sprays of olive oil (a part of the estimated 2 TBS I eat in total daily). But that recipe is one that I made, since I use the same recipe every day.
That could be useful for the plums though! And maybe the other fruits. I use the generic "plum" entry instead of weighing each plum I eat. I usually shoot to over-estimate (if I am eating any plum, I use the "large" plum entry). I think the fruit may be the best place where this feedback is helpful.
For example, I buy the salmon in packages marked 12oz. I weigh out 5oz each time :-) I weigh everything unless it's like... 1 zucchini (I don't check the exact grams since it's within a 20 calorie range or so.)
Realistically I don't think I can weigh *everything*, like when I am out with friends and hungry so I get a plum or an apple or something. But maybe when I am home I can work on that a bit more! Thanks.0 -
There is a few things I believe that every new MFP person should be told right off.... You need to get a HRM to accurately track the calories burned during your exercise or walks, You need to get a set of scales and keep your measuring cups, spoons and scales out on the counter... use them.. do not GUESS it. The First thing.... Talk to your doctor about your journey.. if you have real struggles or are honestly keeping accurate records and nothing works... This is what you should be sharing with your doctor! No one here can eliminate the possibility of any of the three things I suggested as to that being the problem or not being the problem... I know until I started measuring... I had NO idea what 3 oz of taco meat looked like... or one tablespoon of peanut butter... I could only guess.. and could not keep an accurate count of calories in and calories out. I just know its hard to get healthy.. its even harder when we think we are doing things right to find out we have not and that's why wee see no progress. The HRM.. will give you an accurate count of the calories burned on your walks... do not guess at these... DO you really know how much one mile of walking at my quick pace burns for me?
This is me trying to help.. I hope you view in a positive way! THanks!
I agree HRM is ideal!! I never bought one yet, but hope to soon. My treadmill tracks my burned cals of course. Well, before I entered my weight, I was burning "210 cals" at 4 mph 5% incline. Once I entered my weight, I'm really burning 365. This may be the opposite to your problem, but it shows how inaccurate you could be....
Also, are you eating back the cals you burned? If not, try doing so. If yes, try not doing it. You need to play with your regimen to see what works for you...and you need to switch it up. Moderate eating and exercise must be consistent, but in the forms you obtain those should be mixed up to confuse your body.
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Hi, you need to be brutally honest about what you're eating. I would go back to basics. Use a calculator online to work out your bmr then take 500 calories off it. Set you fitness pal to 40% carbs 40% protein and 20% fat. Scrap hours of cardio and get lifting! Tag 15 mins of HIIT on the end 4 times a week. On non training days eat 50grams less carbs. Watch the weight melt off. You can also eat 'normal' and the odd treat foods as long as you stick to your macronutrient intake (protein carbs and fats).
There's a piece of research I read recently which looked at 3 groups of dieters. All 3 groups reduced calories by 500 a day, 1 group did no exercise, 1 did 4 hours of aerobics a week, one did aerobics plus weights. The aerobics only group on average only lost 1 more lb than the no exercise group and the weights group lost 7lbs more during the period. Get lifting.0 -
So, I don't understand why I am gaining (a little) and not losing any weight!
A typical day's eating consists of:
Breakfast:
Spinach and Egg White omelette (no cheese)
1 cup of fresh strawberries/blueberries mixed
2 cups coffee with nonfat milk and truvia
Lunch:
1/4 cup dry quinoa (3/4 cup cooked) with curry powder
1 zucchini
1/2 chopped onion
Either 5oz of smoked salmon or 6 oz chicken
Dinner:
1/4 cup dry quinoa (3/4 cup cooked) with curry powder
1 zucchini
1/2 chopped onion
Either 5oz of smoked salmon or 6 oz chicken
Snacks:
2 plums
1 cup berries
2 cups cut celery
I drink at least 80oz of water every day.
I exercise 200 minutes a week on average. I do stationary bicycling, Zumba, and Pilates.
In addition to those 200 minutes, I walk an average of 2 miles per day.
I take GNC's Ultra Mega Green Women's Multivitamin and an Omega Vitals supplement.
I feel like I'm being pretty darn healthy, and I am planning on upping my working out time to 300 minutes per week.
I currently weigh 175.4 pounds. I started recording everything 3 weeks ago at 173.6. I have stuck to the above eating and exercise patterns very solidly for these 3 weeks (and most time before then, but I've only been tracking it for 3 weeks - these are not brand new eating/exercise habits). I am 5'5 and not very muscular. I already had testing done on my thyroid, and the results were normal. I am 22 years old and a woman. During the 3 weeks I have only deviated by 1 bowl of pasta for dinner, 4 glasses of wine, and 2 french macarons. My average calorie consumption is between 1500-1700.
Should I be gaining weight?? My clothes don't feel any looser, so I don't feel like I've gained much muscle mass. Could there be something else wrong?? My goal has been to lose 1-2 pounds per week, and any advice that would help me get there would be great!
Sound like you may need to change the type of workout you are doing. You said you wasn't very muscular...therefore I would start weight training 3x's a week. It will increase how many calories your body burn s every day and will increase you metabolism. Your weight may not go down at first but you will burn lbs in fat and slim down more in the process. Muscles make weight loss happen a lot faster especially when combined with a little cardio. happy lifting!!0 -
Well, based on what you put in your post (your diary is not public) about height, weight, and age, your BMR is approximately 1600. and you're eating 1500-1700 calories. This to me says you're eating in maintenance, not at a deficit. Yes you're exercising, but you're likely overestimating calories burned. If you feel the need to eat back your exercise calories, only eat back a portion (1/2 seems to work well) instead of all.
Eating at maintenance would be TDEE, not BMR.
^ This. I'm 5'4" and my BMR is 1600. I eat 1655 every day and I've lost 13 pounds these past 3 months. There is something else afoot. We need to figure out if it's 1500-1700 net or 1500-1700 actual.0 -
reduce your carbs... Change macro....more protein than carbs....I've checked your diary....your carbs are high that could be it.
Try to not go over in sugar too.
This should help0 -
You're weighing and measuring and logging consistently. Did you get your calorie goal from MFP? If so consider eating a portion of your exercise calories back since they weren't figured into your deficit. It may just take time.0
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Sound like you may need to change the type of workout you are doing. You said you wasn't very muscular...therefore I would start weight training 3x's a week. It will increase how many calories your body burn s every day and will increase you metabolism. Your weight may not go down at first but you will burn lbs in fat and slim down more in the process. Muscles make weight loss happen a lot faster especially when combined with a little cardio. happy lifting!!
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Soooo true!0 -
i took a look at your diary and read all of your follow up posts, and it really seems like you're doing everything right.
from my personal experience, it took me about a month of exercising regularly and watching my diet before i saw any results. i spoke to my personal trainer about it, and she said that it was often the most frustrating time for people because you gain muscle and even if you're losing weight you might not see it. how do your clothes fit? i know mine started feeling a little loose.
around the month mark i decided to up my calories because i was frustrated. i was only eating 1200/day and when i upped it to 1400/day i started losing weight very quickly. maybe you just haven't found the right number yet. sometimes just doing 100 calories less or 100 calories more can make a huge difference! definitely worth a shot if you don't start seeing results soon.0 -
We need to figure out if it's 1500-1700 net or 1500-1700 actual.
It's 1500-1700 actual, not net :-)
So far I am thinking that if I shoot for 1500 per day specifically and add in weight training, that could help. I know Pilates has helped some with my core, but that's about it. If I'm doing it 3x per week, how long should I be doing it? Is a kettle-bell enough? Should I be shooting for like 15 mins or 1 hour? :-) I'm pretty unfamiliar with weight training.
Thanks!0 -
Metabolism is a personal thing and different for everyone; and weight loss is far more complicated than calories in / calories out.
Perhaps better questions to ask should be am I healthy? Am I eating nutritious food? Can I move my body as much as I want without pain?
~Goth Bunnyy
Health At Every Size!
It's refreshing to see that some people do see that cals in/out is not the be all and end all.
It's most of the equation but it's still incomplete.
'Calories' are a human invention to describe units of energy. But bodies don't run on 'calories' as such, they react to the different types of foods you put in your body. If OP is struggling to lose weight (and I can't really see what is going wrong) it may be best to consult a doctor and consider changing the diet. Cutting out refined carbs and sticking mostly to lean protein can really help.
Tim Ferriss' 'Four Hour Body' book is a good read if you'd like to know more (with scientific evidence) about why a calorie isn't just a calorie, and why some of us need a little more help than just eating at a calorie deficit.0 -
It has only been 3 weeks....
Log accurately.
Weigh your food.
Stick to a plan for more than 3 weeks (think 4-6) and re-evaluate if you do not see any changes. (does not have to be on the scale weight either, track your measurements too)
You do not need to do things to 'trick' your body. Your body is pretty smart.
Consistency is important.
Keep in mind that it is quite difficult to gain any type of muscle while eating at a deficit, especially for women.0 -
1-2 pounds a week shouldn't be too hard at all and looking at your routine it seems like you should be seeing results.. Try this out. It's a diet solution known as Smack Fat. Guaranteed to have you losing weight in 30 days or less. There's detailed video proof on their site that will help you out too. Check them out here http://goo.gl/y4bN550
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the scale is evil.
try measuring instead of weighing yourself but only do it every 30 days. if you want to weight yourself only do it once a week or less.0 -
Hey, this is the OP again!
I wanted to thank you all for the advice, I followed a lot of it (picked 1500 calories per day, and tried to stick to that number as closely as possible!). I also started weighing some foods instead of measuring.
Your advice worked, I went from very little success to dropping 4.6 pounds in the last week! I assume that number will drop closer to 2 pounds per week as I progress, which I am down with :-)
Thank you all so much!0 -
Hey, this is the OP again!
I wanted to thank you all for the advice, I followed a lot of it (picked 1500 calories per day, and tried to stick to that number as closely as possible!). I also started weighing some foods instead of measuring.
Your advice worked, I went from very little success to dropping 4.6 pounds in the last week! I assume that number will drop closer to 2 pounds per week as I progress, which I am down with :-)
Thank you all so much!
Congrats. 0
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