So frustrated! Plateau?

Over estimate the calories you eat and underestimate the calories you burn, stay within your goal and you should lose weight! I'm staying under 1800 calories a day and always under 1000 net calories while I'm trying to lose weight and it works... 182 pounds now.

So I'm reposting this from my diary feed because I'm upset and I need validation or help or something (probably doesn't help that I'm starting to get tired from being up at 4:30a.m. to go run...)

" I'm so frustrated!!! How is it that I walk 40 minutes a day five days a week plus getting back to running 3x a week, stay within my calories and I'm not losing? I was feeling so good about myself and losing 12 pounds (the lightest I've been in about 3-4 years) but now I'm having a hard time focusing on that. I should have lost at least SOMETHING. What should I do? This is really making it hard to keep wanting to keep up with my calories. And this is despite me seeing about an inch to inch and a half loss around my waist.

And this is despite me trying out sedentary and logging everything vs. lightly active and only logging the run. And my pedometer says somedays I only burn 1,800 calories and some days 2,900. Even so, I'd think there would be a 1/2 pound loss at some point in the last month! " <end post>

I started this trying to get my portions under control so yeah, my diary has some naughty things in it. But if a calorie is a calorie and I'm sticking to goal plus weighing my food, what is the friggin' deal?!? Have I just completely missed something?

I would swap out either fiber or iron for sodium. Also you need to take a serious look at what your are eating on the days you are running.

I looked back in your diary about a week and you were over cals at least 4 of those days. That may be why.

That's because I had my activity set to lightly active then this morning I got all upset with myself and changed it back to sedentary which changed my goals to around 200 calories less. I really wish MFP calories would reflect the goal at that time instead of the current goal.

So, if restricting calories isn't working, you are going to address that by further restricting calories? I know the masses of MFP always say "calories in/calories out" and there is nothing more to metabolism that that; well they are WRONG. Our bodies are very complex and while calories play a role it is an over-simplification to say that it's the only factor in metabolism. As you are discovering.

Do you think you might have better success with focusing on long term health rather than just the number on the scale from day to day?

Why are your daily calories so high? 1700 is a lot to eat while you are trying to lose weight.

1700 is actually a pretty good number. If you're eating closer to 1200, I suggest you look into your calculations, because most of the time that is not enough

To op- There are several reasons you could stall in weight loss. Make sure your calculations for calories are correct, make sure you eat enough, make sure you're drinking enough, and do not stop! (Trust me, I did, and it's taken me a year to get back on track) Especially if you are still losing inches, do not give up Your weight loss isn't linear, you might step on the scale in a few weeks and see that you've lost several pounds!

Why are your daily calories so high? 1700 is a lot to eat while you are trying to lose weight.

No, not really. What do you suggest? 1200? :noway:

Some days I can eat 2500 and STILL lose weight. It all depends on how active you are.

Well, I was going to contribute to this thread and offer a reassuring statement like "Plateaus are natural. It's the body's way of adjusting to your changing lifestyle. You just have to continually adjust your exercise and diet, and you'll beat the plateau." But then I looked at your food diary, and it's pretty obvious why you're not losing.

First of all, you really need to work with a nutritionist and figure out what a good calorie target is for you. I don't think 1800 is it. I'm a 6', 210-lb male, and 1800 is my daily target. Your target should be much lower.

Secondly (and yet another really good reason to meat with a nutritionist), your food choices are terrible. I don't mean to be offensive when I say that, but, honestly, where are the real foods? Where are the fruits and vegetables? Burgers, sandwiches and tacos aren't real meals. I would highly recommend that you avoid the calorie-dense, fat-dense, sodium dense foods and instead go after nutrient-dense foods, low-glycemic carbs, lean proteins, legumes, nuts, etc. If you don't change your food choices, your weight loss will not be permanent.

Thirdly, reducing your calories is going to seem a lot harder if you don't break those meals up and eat more often per day. Right now, I see two huge meals and one snack in your diary. Consider breaking that up even further to 3 smaller meals and 2 to 3 snacks per day. That will make eating fewer calories per day a lot easier to cope with.

Lastly, be willing to shake up your exercise routine. Change something once per month. Otherwise your body will adjust, and you'll plateau again.

Good luck!

Weight watchers told me that my sedentary calorie use was 2400 calories / day. However, when I used a special scale/device at my doctor's office, I found out my true calorie burn is ONLY 1580 calories/day. So, when I had "cut back" to 1800 on WW, I was actually eating too much. To lose just over a pound/week, I now consume 1100 calories/day. Remember EVERYONE has a different resting metabolism rate. You may just have one that is lower than others (like me).

AND, what you eat DOES make a difference. Eating carbs encourages water retention. Many things are high in sodium! that will cause you to retain water weight. Focus on getting at least 75gm of protein a day. A good diet is one where you have 40% carb calories, 40% protein calories, and 20% fat. Keep your sodium under 2500/day. Try to hold your sugar consumption to 25 gm/day.

Measure everything. Do not eyeball anything. Always write down everything as you eat it.
My fitness pal grossly overestimates the number of calories you're burning, at least when you're walking. Ignore how many calories you have burned (i.e., don't eat extra because you've burned extra) and focus on staying below your "number", regardless of your exercise. You will lose the weight. Aim for a 500 calorie/day deficit.