Can't seem to lose weight!
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Are you above 12% body fat? If so, then you do not need to worry about starvation. There has never been concrete evidence that going below 1200 for a woman and 1800 for a man is going to cause any harm. The only time it will is when you are at critical levels of body fat.
The military did a study a while back where they had fit soldiers (men) eating 1500 calories a day. They were sleep deprived, and exercised extensively (sometimes burning 3000+ calories a day). Their LBM was monitored. Guess what, they all lost fat and none of them lost any LBM until they reached around 6% body fat.
I have been following a 1200 calorie diet for a while now. I have had DEXA scans taken routinely. I have lost only fat and no muscle. My body fat is around 14% currently.
If you are in doubt about whether women should eat low, then I would suggest going to VENUSINDEX.COM and check out their results for the contests. They all ate 600-1200 calories and got in phenomenal shape.
Plus, we should all know by now that it makes no difference how many meals you eat per day. It does not effect your metabolism at all. Eat once, twice, or many times a day. Just stay within your calories. The body does not go into "starvation mode" if you skip a meal.
There is some truth to the body slowing down bodily functions to conserve energy. The slow down is maybe a couple hundred calories, if that. However, this only really happens when your body gets very close to its critical levels 12% for women. Thyroid functions and cortisol will rise at those levels to protect the body from dipping in to its survival reserves -- the body needs a certain amount of fat to protect itself. If you can see your abs clearly, then you are at those levels. If not, then you have nothing to fear.
I'm sorry but this is so irresponsible. This girl is 19. She doesn't need to be starving herself to lose weight. Encouraging her to eat the same number of calories as your average person suffering from anorexia is a terrible idea!
As for the OP, there are dozens of resources out there to help you calculate a healthy number of calories. Plenty of healthy food blogs to help you plan meals. Can you lose weight at 600 cals/day? I'm sure you can. Should you? No and you don't have to.0 -
I know what it is like to be extremely overweight. I know what it is like to lose weight slowly. I do not endorse eating like this forever. Lose the weight quick , feel good about yourself, and then switch to maintenance eating. Why diet longer than you have to?
Do what works for you. Don't criticize someone for wanting faster results and doing it in a way that is safe and backed by research.
I see to many people give up on diets because they don't see results fast enough. I would rather someone diet for a shorter period of time and then maintain it by eating more.
Shame on you for bringing anorexics into this. They eat nothing and actually starve themselves to unhealthy levels. They don't eat low calories for a short while and then eat more when they are still at healthy levels.0 -
you're never going to loose weight eating so little. instead of focusing on different foods to eat try increasing the portion size of the foods you DO eat.
Of course she'll lose weight eating that little! People here act as if someone's metabolism keeps dropping to match their intake. If someone's metabolism was really burning 600 calories a day, they'd be very thin and pretty close to their deathbed. If someone is overweight and eating that little, they will lose.
Instead, let's focus on why it's not healthy for the OP to eat that little constantly. Your body needs nutrients in order to stay healthy, and you probably don't get them eating that little. It also has an effect on your psychology and can lead to eating and mood disorders. You are combining emotions with food, which can lead to disaster. You want to please your bf instead of yourself. If something happens in the relationship, you could go from eating 600 calories a day to eating 300 calories a day, or maybe 4000 calories a day, to cope with it.
So in short, you can and will lose weight on an extremely low calorie diet, but it is not healthy for your body or for your mind. Weight loss should never be your only goal, but overall health should be.0 -
Here is what I suggest doing for those struggling with weight loss. Go check out Venusindex and adonisindex.com
They back up all their claims with actual study citations.
They have a calorie calculator that works on measurements and weight as opposed to weight alone . You start off eating low calories when you have the most fat to lose and increase as you lean down. It allows you to lose the weight the fastest way without losing muscle. It slowly teaches you how to fat for your new body.
It has worked for thousands.
There are a lot of us on this site for logging our food .
You want truth and no pseudo science then check it out.0 -
you're never going to loose weight eating so little. instead of focusing on different foods to eat try increasing the portion size of the foods you DO eat.
Of course she'll lose weight eating that little! People here act as if someone's metabolism keeps dropping to match their intake. If someone's metabolism was really burning 600 calories a day, they'd be very thin and pretty close to their deathbed. If someone is overweight and eating that little, they will lose.
Instead, let's focus on why it's not healthy for the OP to eat that little constantly. Your body needs nutrients in order to stay healthy, and you probably don't get them eating that little. It also has an effect on your psychology and can lead to eating and mood disorders. You are combining emotions with food, which can lead to disaster. You want to please your bf instead of yourself. If something happens in the relationship, you could go from eating 600 calories a day to eating 300 calories a day, or maybe 4000 calories a day, to cope with it.
So in short, you can and will lose weight on an extremely low calorie diet, but it is not healthy for your body or for your mind. Weight loss should never be your only goal, but overall health should be.
Listen to this guy. I think I remember you saying earlier in this thread that you're anemic? You need to eat more to make sure you're getting enough iron.0 -
Here is what I suggest doing for those struggling with weight loss. Go check out Venusindex and adonisindex.com
They back up all their claims with actual study citations.
They have a calorie calculator that works on measurements and weight as opposed to weight alone . You start off eating low calories when you have the most fat to lose and increase as you lean down. It allows you to lose the weight the fastest way without losing muscle. It slowly teaches you how to fat for your new body.
It has worked for thousands.
There are a lot of us on this site for logging our food .
You want truth and no pseudo science then check it out.
Or I could eat 2000 calories a day and still lose weight. I'd rather lose weigh slowly and enjoy food than eat 1000 calories and pass out everyday.0 -
Please disagree with me , but do not call me a liar.
There are a lot of people from adonisindex.com who use this software and eat 1000 calories a day and get into awesome shape . Go check out the pictures.
I never actually called you a liar. I said it would likely work.
You may have seen many people give up from lack of results. Many others give up from lack of food and energy. Encouraging a girl who has a self professef fear of eating more just seems irresponsible0 -
Sorry op for hijacking your post. I mean well and I really do want you to succeed. I want you to lose the weight you want and do it right. I never meant to imply that you have to eat that low if you don't want to. If you are comfortable with eating the calories you are eating and you are not losing weight then you can always add more exercise. If that is not an option then I have offered another option.
Again, I am sorry. No more comments from me . I still urge people to check those sites out. I do not get any money from them . I just want to see people getting informed of the latest research and get the results they want the easiest way possible. Life should not be a weight loss struggle. It is too precious for that.0 -
:drinker: The exchange in this thread was VERY helpful to me & I wish people who had the technical knowledge that you both do, were more like you guys & less like the headless underwear model, 8 pack wearing-profile pic fear mongerers who stoop to ridiculous levels to get their points across, rather than letting their points stand on merit. Regurgitated BS doesn'nt help anyone. :drinker:
ETA: this was a whole lot longer, but this is the crux of what I wanted to say :laugh:0 -
1) at 5ft5 and 12st, you are not horrendously overweight at all.
2) at 600 cals a day of processed crap, you're doing yourself damage - you already said you are anaemic, and this is due to your diet.
3) you need to get over the fear of the scale going up - if you eat right and exercise it will go down - some days you will have fluctuations but this doesn't mean that the plan "isn't working". From the info you've given here, I would highly advise to just throw the scales to the bottom of a dark cupboard for a few months whilst you get things back on track
4) if you need inspiration for food, look a people's diaries here, loads of us have open diaries and it's great to take a look to see what others are doing - my own diary isn't perfect (could still do with more fresh fruit and veg but it's getting there) but it's a good example of how to hit ~1300 cals a day without any trouble.0 -
So I should eat more? Are you sure? Has anyone got a certain diet plan they can send me as I'd love to just follow word for word a diet rather than make one up myself!
To make sure you don't gain weight, make sure you don't eat anything processed/saturated fat.
I mean going up to 1200 a day with 600 based on chocolate, crisps etc, is never going to be beneficial.
My eating plan currently is high fat/high protein, but I am working out alot on this.
Try something along the lines of;
- 3 egg whites for breakfast (add spinach if you like)
- Snack mid morning of blueberries or almonds or apple.
- Lunch of lean protein (chicken, turkey, cod) + Salad/green vegetables (you can up your calorie intake with lots of gorgeous vegetables. Kale, Spinach, brocolli, cabbage, pak choi) + sweet potato
- Snack mid afternoon of blueberries or almonds or apple
- Dinner of lean protein (chicken, turkey, cod) + salad/green vegetables + brown rice if you would like some carbs
Clean simple food is key. You can work in little treats as well, I have one cheat meal a week, but upping your calories and eating a balanced diet, will not do you any harm. Other people may tell you to do things differently.
Different things will work for different people, but this is one example of a well rounded healthy diet, in my opinion.
Ps. At 27 I can just say, gorgeous is in the eye of the beholder. The guy clearly likes you or he wouldn't be dating you. He won't like you starving. Worry less about your weight, focus on it in a healthy fashion and instead make sure you enjoy every second of being with the gorgeous boy!
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Thank you so much to everyone who's commented, I don't feel so alone now which is a lovely feeling! To everyone saying 'if the guy you're seeing wants you to lose weight ditch him' he's actually saying the complete opposite, he says he loves the way I am and think I'm going to end up hurting myself if I keep worrying about my weight, except he's perfect! I was shocked he even liked me! I wanna be perfect for me though, not him.. I was losing weight before I even met him. On the plus size, we had a long talk about it yesterday and he is a fitness + nutrition instructor so he has written up a personal diet plan for me and told me I have to stick to it
lucky me!
The only problem is I've lost 30 pounds so far but feel bigger (looks wise) then I did before! Which makes no sense.
Thank you dannimirko1 ill try fit that advice into my diet.
If anyone else has advice please message me! Either on this it add me as a friend!
& to the people saying I need help and a therapist.. I'm okay thanks ????0 -
The only problem is I've lost 30 pounds so far but feel bigger (looks wise) then I did before! Which makes no sense.
This is something I can relate to and I know why (for me at any rate) it is the case - I never relaised *how* big I was, my self image has always been very similar, my brain thought I looked size 12. Once I started properly focussing on weight loss, I became more aware of my apearance, but because I wasn't as aware of it before, I am physically unable to see the progress that I know must have occurred because the scale has moved.
So I'm just going to keep plugging away, and I'm pretty sure I'll notice the change, probably after another 12lbs or so sadly!0 -
I think that might be it although when I first lost weight I felt great! I think it's because I'm getting more and more worried about not losing it how I did before, before I lost about 3-4 pounds a week now I'm struggling to lose one! I only lost 3 a couple day back because I did this military diet but that's unhealthy and hard to keep the weight off! 0
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For most people with excess body fat, starvation mode is a myth:
http://www.aworkoutroutine.com/starvation-mode/
Now does your body slow down a bit once it catches on to a reduced calorie diet? I think so. Every time I've dieted I've noticed a decline in energy about 1 week into a diet, and while I can usually lose the first 10 pounds fairly easily, I seem to hit a plateau after that for a few weeks before things "break free" again.
But according to the above article, if you have excess body fat and you eat a caloric deficit, you will, and must lose weight.
Only when you get down to a life-threatening body fat percentage - single digits - can you literally go into "starvation mode" where no more weight can be lost.
Are there some medical exceptions to this? Probably. But if you are dieting and not losing weight the most probable culprit is that you are not accurately calculating your food intake and your daily energy expenditure.0 -
Yes, it's a no brainer - when you create a caloric deficit you will lose weight, and when you create caloric excess, you will gain wait. The question is what kind of weight will you lose (or gain)?
As OP just mentioned, she lost weight but felt bigger. Seems her body fat remained high, which suggests she lost muscle weight. That is normal behavior of the body, that's how it acts. However, a simple trick of adding weight lifting exercises (doesn't even need to be free weights) will ensure that whatever foods you do eat while dieting will feed the muscle and not fat. That's how you gain/lose body fat, and not muscle.
But you will need a strict diet and stick with it. You will need proteins to feed the muscle. Carbs and fats are important in muscle building process, but proteins are the building blocks, so you will need plenty of it. Again, I shoot for 40% of my total intake, that's about 1 gr per body lbs.
Dieting will make you feel like you lack energy at time. For that might need to up your carb intake. Carbs supply the energy to the body. Stay away from sport drinks that have calories through. A simple trick to have workout energy is to eat a meal that has more carbs about 2 hours before the workout. The pre and post workout meals should be rich in carbs, so a salad won't do.
One last point, when I am talking about lifting weights, I don't imply you will looks like those monsters on tv. Few people will ever come close to this. Muscle is your friend though.
I lied, one more point. The old saying "you become what you eat" is kind of true. Sure you can lose weight on a McDonald's diet, but you will look like a bloated clown too. Eat lean and healthy and you will look fit. After a while it becomes a lifestyle.
I am glad your boyfriend works out and is a nutrition specialist. Doing it together is much easier.
Stick with your diet plan and exercise and be patient. Don't watch the bathroom scale every day. Once a week is plenty. Make sure you keep track of total body weight and body fat so you know what kind of weight you are losing.0 -
you're never going to loose weight eating so little. instead of focusing on different foods to eat try increasing the portion size of the foods you DO eat.
Of course she'll lose weight eating that little! People here act as if someone's metabolism keeps dropping to match their intake. If someone's metabolism was really burning 600 calories a day, they'd be very thin and pretty close to their deathbed. If someone is overweight and eating that little, they will lose.
Instead, let's focus on why it's not healthy for the OP to eat that little constantly. Your body needs nutrients in order to stay healthy, and you probably don't get them eating that little. It also has an effect on your psychology and can lead to eating and mood disorders. You are combining emotions with food, which can lead to disaster. You want to please your bf instead of yourself. If something happens in the relationship, you could go from eating 600 calories a day to eating 300 calories a day, or maybe 4000 calories a day, to cope with it.
So in short, you can and will lose weight on an extremely low calorie diet, but it is not healthy for your body or for your mind. Weight loss should never be your only goal, but overall health should be.
my comment was from experience at her age. overweight and eating WAY too little all i managed to do was drop a few lbs (which she has already done) and then nothing so i kept eating the same amount plus walking as exercise and guess what i wound up fainting from the combination. still that didn't stop me until i fainted a 3rd time which resulted in a trip to the doctor because my parents were so concerned and of course had no idea what i was doing to myself. no i didn't have an eating disorder but i was desperate to have a body like the models in magazines and was willing to eat as little as possible to get it (keep in mind this was in the late 80s/early 90s when kate moss was the new "it" girl).0 -
Yes, it's a no brainer - when you create a caloric deficit you will lose weight, and when you create caloric excess, you will gain wait. The question is what kind of weight will you lose (or gain)?
As OP just mentioned, she lost weight but felt bigger. Seems her body fat remained high, which suggests she lost muscle weight. That is normal behavior of the body, that's how it acts. However, a simple trick of adding weight lifting exercises (doesn't even need to be free weights) will ensure that whatever foods you do eat while dieting will feed the muscle and not fat. That's how you gain/lose body fat, and not muscle.
But you will need a strict diet and stick with it. You will need proteins to feed the muscle. Carbs and fats are important in muscle building process, but proteins are the building blocks, so you will need plenty of it. Again, I shoot for 40% of my total intake, that's about 1 gr per body lbs.
Dieting will make you feel like you lack energy at time. For that might need to up your carb intake. Carbs supply the energy to the body. Stay away from sport drinks that have calories through. A simple trick to have workout energy is to eat a meal that has more carbs about 2 hours before the workout. The pre and post workout meals should be rich in carbs, so a salad won't do.
One last point, when I am talking about lifting weights, I don't imply you will looks like those monsters on tv. Few people will ever come close to this. Muscle is your friend though.
I lied, one more point. The old saying "you become what you eat" is kind of true. Sure you can lose weight on a McDonald's diet, but you will look like a bloated clown too. Eat lean and healthy and you will look fit. After a while it becomes a lifestyle.
I am glad your boyfriend works out and is a nutrition specialist. Doing it together is much easier.
Stick with your diet plan and exercise and be patient. Don't watch the bathroom scale every day. Once a week is plenty. Make sure you keep track of total body weight and body fat so you know what kind of weight you are losing.
Thank you for constantly helping
So I should eat 5 times a day.. My food today is:
Breakfast:
Bran cereal with milk
Banana
Green tea
Glass of water
Snack:
Cereal bar
Lunch:
Grilled chicken
Broccoli
Carrots
Green tea
Water
Snack:
Blueberries
Apple
Dinner:
Steak
Broccoli
Brown rice
Carrots
Green tea
Water
I'd love to know good workouts for losing weight if you have any?
Do you think that is a good meals plan for the day? Thank you again for helping me x 0 -
I'd love to know good workouts for losing weight if you have any?
Anything that gets your heart rate up and burns maximum calories is the best for weight loss. So lots of cardio with steady, moderate intensity routines broken up by some interval training. Then you can target different body parts with strength training to make sure your body looks fit as the fat comes off. The workouts themselves don't make you lose weight; the calories deficit does. But the workouts add to your deficit and create strength that helps your body become efficient and look good.0 -
Here are my small notes on your diet:
For breakfast you might want to use skim milk, at least while you're dieting for fat loss. When you get tired of cereal, replace it with fat free cottage cheese, fat free yogurts, egg whites, etc. I love making wraps - wrap some lean ham with ricotta cheese, and veggies.
I hope you like broccoli. I don't, but I eat it. However, often times I replace it with cauliflower or green beans. Also asparagus, spinach, and onions. These are all good fibrous veggies. The point is, you have choices, mix it up, otherwise you will be sick and tired of these meals in a week or two.
Green tea is great for fat burning because it has no calories and contains caffeine. Drink it throughout the day, but dinner might be late if it affects your sleep time. Good healthy body needs 8+ hours of sleep. That's when all the magic happens.
Make sure your portions are properly sized. With these 5 meals you should not go hungry in between them. Eat them every 2.5-3 hours.
I assume dinner is your first meal after the workout, since it's biggest. If you workout in the morning, make the meals before and after the biggest.
Replace rice with potato and yams every once in a while so you don't get bored of rice.
Add fish if you can.
Don't forget vitamins and omega 3s.
Overall I think it looks great!
On the exercise, start with what you love doing. I don't mean to be pushing for weights. If you love hiking, biking, running, do that. Any activity is better than none, however, I strongly believe weight exercises are best. But if you hate lifting, then what's the point? No one can be successful doing things they hate. So either learn to love it, make it fun, or do something different.
Personally I workout 6 times a week and my workouts last 45-60 minutes. I recommend you start with 3 times a week, every other day, and move up from there. Maybe on days off you can do hiking, running, or whatever cardio. Whatever that keeps you body moving.
The thing about cardio is that you need to push your body to get into that fat burning zone. That means you need to get quite intensity going and push your heart rate up. It's probably better that do sprints then just run at constant rate. With lifting weights it's a bit different. Keep it intense too, no long breaks, keep focused; but the whole fat burning process occurs during some 18 hours following the exercise while your body is repairing the muscles using all these nutrients you supply it through your diet.
As far as specific exercises, start with ones that work out multiple body parts at once. That way you can fit them in shorter periods of time. These include bench presses (do them with dumbbells), squats, lunges, planks. Whichever exercise you do, do a few sets of it, say 3-5, with 20-30 seconds of rest in between. Keep it intense and focused. 30 minutes each time and you're done.
One other thing. You asked for good exercises for loosing weight. The truth is that they are really the same as for gaining weight. Your diet makes your body lose or gain weight. The exercise can be the same. There are no magic exercises and target fat. Doing 1000 sit ups will give you awesome 6 pack underneath all that fat. Exercise doesn't target fat, it targets muscle, and building lean muscle burns fat.
There are many workout plans out there, look them up and try them out. Go through one for a few weeks and try another. Mix it up as well, have fun. Challenge yourself. Challenge your boyfriend, mom, or dog. Whatever it takes. You can start with upper body for one workout, legs for another, arms and abs for another. Or, you can do pulling exercises one day, pushing another. It would pay off if you have a workout plan so you know what exercises and how many sets you need to do each time.
Sometimes I do exercises and increase weight with each set. Sometimes I start heave and decrease with each set. Sometimes and go with low sets and take 6-10 seconds to complete each rep. Sometimes and I have great achievements and sometimes I can barely get through one (but it's important that you do).
And I do all this in my basement with minimal equipment. I haven't had a gym membership in years. If gyms are your thing, go for it. If you find them intimidating, get a balance call and a few dumbbells, and you're off to a great start.
I personally hate cardio. Running, jogging, stepmaster, are not my thing. I hate sweating. I like to lift weights and ride my bike in an evening. I do lots of it. I often pull 60 lbs worth of my kids in a bike trailer. Fun for them, exercise and fun for me.
I am only trying to steer you were my experience brought me. You will get many opinions here. Try them out, follow what works for you, but especially that makes you happy and healthy.0
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