5'7", 145 lbs, plateaued.
kaourika
Posts: 12
Provide your stats (height/weight/age/bodyfat% if you know it/etc)
Female, 24 years, 5'7. Hovering around 145 lbs. Bodyfat is 24% according to my calipers. Large and strong bones/frame genetically, but VERY weak.
What's your current gross intake of calories, on average?
NET CALORIES -- My weekly total, then that number divided by 7:
Week of Jun 17: 7673 = 1096 per day
Week of Jun 24: 9365 = 1337
Week of July 01: 9635 = 1376
Week of July 15: 7940 = 1134
Week of July 22: 8166 = 1166
Week of July 29: 10010 = 1430
Week of Aug 05: 9957 = 1422
Week of Aug 12: 8706 = 1243
Week of Aug 19: 10571 = 1510
Week of Aug 26: 10170 = 1452
Week of Sep 02: 8594 = 1227 **
This week: to date, 3442 = 1140
Notes:
- ** = latest menstrual cycle
- My earliest weeks may be artificially low because I was doing less weighing and more eyeballing/serving size guessing. For example, I'd have what I thought was a 'serving size' of peanut butter by dunking in a spoon and plopping out what looked like 2 TBLs. Once I started weighing peanut butter, I realized I had actually been eating more like 1.5 - 2 serving sizes. These days I weigh EVERY. THING.
- I still live with the parents so my numbers are kind of... up and down, mainly due to dinner. I got it all under control for breakfast and lunch, but then my mom wants me to eat something she made for dinner and I feel like a *kitten* for never joining in the family meals, so sometimes I do, and...ugh.
- The period where you see 1500-ish calorie weeks, I was in the early phase of my stall and getting frustrated. I began to read up on it. Reading a combo of "u gon git stervation mode" threads and "it might be water weight from stress and you might see a whoosh if you up your intake" threads convinced me to try upping my intake. Aaaand I think I gained a bit :[ It may have been water weight that I gained, but I sure as hell wasn't losing. I kept seeing 147s and 148s on the scale, so I got spooked and now I'm returning to my 1100 - 1200 days.
What's your current average intake of protein, carbs, and fats, in grams? (GRAMS, not percent!)
CARBS
Week of July 01: 405
Week of July 15: 213
Week of July 22: 214
Week of July 29: 633
Week of Aug 05: 470
Week of Aug 12: 570
Week of Aug 19: 955 (...bad week)
Week of Aug 26: 358
Week of Sep 02: 385
- In the last 1 week or so, I've been trying to add a pre-workout carb-ish snack. Trying to get my body used to eating carbs without exploding.
- Since summer began I've been eating fruits and veg fresh from my garden. That's a large portion of the carbs in recent weeks. FWIW. I NEVER eat pasta, grains, bread (single tear).
- I struggle with carbs. A lot. I always try to keep them as low as possible but dammit, sometimes I just want peanut butter.
FAT
Week of July 01: 666 (lol?)
Week of July 15: 582
Week of July 22: 534
Week of July 29: 613
Week of Aug 05: 666
Week of Aug 12: 508
Week of Aug 19: 556
Week of Aug 26: 622
Week of Sep 02: 543
PROT
Week of July 01: 506
Week of July 15: 517
Week of July 22: 635
Week of July 29: 559
Week of Aug 05: 536
Week of Aug 12: 500
Week of Aug 19: 586
Week of Aug 26: 777
Week of Sep 02: 582
Do you track all of your intake, daily? (Everything?)
Yes, always. If I pluck 5 blueberries off a garden bush and eat those, I will log them. If you see missing meals or days with low intakes, I was fasting.
Do you take cheat days or days off?
No, never.
How much weight have you lost so far and over what time period?
I started at 200 lbs so I've lost 55 lbs. It's taken about 2 years I guess? I did not go cold turkey; I started with minor lifestyle changes and progressed slowly to bigger things.
Describe your activity (exercise and non exercise) and did you change that activity withing the last couple of months?
I'm a few weeks into Stronglifts, which I do M W F.
I was doing 20-30 minutes of cardio on the off days. I read that this much activity could cause water retention, so I stopped it, hoping for a whoosh. No joy, so now I'm going to resume it.
I have a mix of days where I'm mostly on my feet and days when I'm mostly sitting.
Stronglifts stats:
Squat 65 lb, I could squat a LOT MORE if I had a squat rack but I don't yet.
Barbell Bench Press 60~65 lb
Barbell Row - 60~65 lb
Overhead press 40~45 lb
Deadlift 120~125 lb
The lower numbers I can do easily, the uppers I can do but with crap form (I'm sure I'll have fine form with them in a couple weeks)
Cardio stats: I am SO WEAK I can barely run for a minute and a half. So I run/walk/run for a minute each. Or if I'm really worn out or not feeling great, like yesterday, I just walk. Otherwise I get pukey.
How long have you been stalled and if it is not a complete stall please be very specific as to how much you have lost over the stalled period.
Hard to say due to water weight fluctuations, but I would guess 1.5 to 2 months.
Are you breastfeeding?
No.
Do you have thyroid issues/risks or PCOS?
Yes, I have PCOS. My doctor put me on Metformin and birth control 2-ish years ago to manage it.
I know I'm pretty insulin resistant (I'm sure you know that PCOS causes insulin resistance) because I had acanthosis nigricans. It faded a bit when I went on Metformin and lost some weight, and slowly disappeared once I began ultra low carbing. The acanthosis nigricans is 99% gone now. :]
My doctor recommended a low-carb, low glycemic index diet to me to help me with PCOS weight loss.
I sort of took this advice to the extreme and started a ketogenic diet. I was eating 25-30 grams carbs or less for a while. Why? Well, when I was eating 1000-1300 calories a day, I had to get that mostly from protein and fat or I'd be starving all the time. My body just seems to shred through carbs right away, leaving me feeling hungrier than when I started, and craving more.
This summer, I've raised my carbs to include some fruits and veggies. But I'm not sure this was the right thing to do. Should I go back to ultra low carbing?
MY GOALS:
- Bodyfat around 18-20%
- Weight at 125 - 135, depending on BF
- To be able to transition smoothly into a stable maintenance where I don't feel hungry all the time, and can eat like a normal human being again.
- To be able to eat carbs again without blowing up, having my PCOS get worse, or having my acanthosis nigricans come back :[
Food diary note: Ignore my goals. I have no idea what anything should be set to, so it's all kinda random right now. I end up missing those goals on my days.
Thank you for the incredible service you offer here. I can't even imagine how much of your free time you put into this. The level of generosity actually astonishes me. I'm very much looking forward to benefiting from your expertise.
Female, 24 years, 5'7. Hovering around 145 lbs. Bodyfat is 24% according to my calipers. Large and strong bones/frame genetically, but VERY weak.
What's your current gross intake of calories, on average?
NET CALORIES -- My weekly total, then that number divided by 7:
Week of Jun 17: 7673 = 1096 per day
Week of Jun 24: 9365 = 1337
Week of July 01: 9635 = 1376
Week of July 15: 7940 = 1134
Week of July 22: 8166 = 1166
Week of July 29: 10010 = 1430
Week of Aug 05: 9957 = 1422
Week of Aug 12: 8706 = 1243
Week of Aug 19: 10571 = 1510
Week of Aug 26: 10170 = 1452
Week of Sep 02: 8594 = 1227 **
This week: to date, 3442 = 1140
Notes:
- ** = latest menstrual cycle
- My earliest weeks may be artificially low because I was doing less weighing and more eyeballing/serving size guessing. For example, I'd have what I thought was a 'serving size' of peanut butter by dunking in a spoon and plopping out what looked like 2 TBLs. Once I started weighing peanut butter, I realized I had actually been eating more like 1.5 - 2 serving sizes. These days I weigh EVERY. THING.
- I still live with the parents so my numbers are kind of... up and down, mainly due to dinner. I got it all under control for breakfast and lunch, but then my mom wants me to eat something she made for dinner and I feel like a *kitten* for never joining in the family meals, so sometimes I do, and...ugh.
- The period where you see 1500-ish calorie weeks, I was in the early phase of my stall and getting frustrated. I began to read up on it. Reading a combo of "u gon git stervation mode" threads and "it might be water weight from stress and you might see a whoosh if you up your intake" threads convinced me to try upping my intake. Aaaand I think I gained a bit :[ It may have been water weight that I gained, but I sure as hell wasn't losing. I kept seeing 147s and 148s on the scale, so I got spooked and now I'm returning to my 1100 - 1200 days.
What's your current average intake of protein, carbs, and fats, in grams? (GRAMS, not percent!)
CARBS
Week of July 01: 405
Week of July 15: 213
Week of July 22: 214
Week of July 29: 633
Week of Aug 05: 470
Week of Aug 12: 570
Week of Aug 19: 955 (...bad week)
Week of Aug 26: 358
Week of Sep 02: 385
- In the last 1 week or so, I've been trying to add a pre-workout carb-ish snack. Trying to get my body used to eating carbs without exploding.
- Since summer began I've been eating fruits and veg fresh from my garden. That's a large portion of the carbs in recent weeks. FWIW. I NEVER eat pasta, grains, bread (single tear).
- I struggle with carbs. A lot. I always try to keep them as low as possible but dammit, sometimes I just want peanut butter.
FAT
Week of July 01: 666 (lol?)
Week of July 15: 582
Week of July 22: 534
Week of July 29: 613
Week of Aug 05: 666
Week of Aug 12: 508
Week of Aug 19: 556
Week of Aug 26: 622
Week of Sep 02: 543
PROT
Week of July 01: 506
Week of July 15: 517
Week of July 22: 635
Week of July 29: 559
Week of Aug 05: 536
Week of Aug 12: 500
Week of Aug 19: 586
Week of Aug 26: 777
Week of Sep 02: 582
Do you track all of your intake, daily? (Everything?)
Yes, always. If I pluck 5 blueberries off a garden bush and eat those, I will log them. If you see missing meals or days with low intakes, I was fasting.
Do you take cheat days or days off?
No, never.
How much weight have you lost so far and over what time period?
I started at 200 lbs so I've lost 55 lbs. It's taken about 2 years I guess? I did not go cold turkey; I started with minor lifestyle changes and progressed slowly to bigger things.
Describe your activity (exercise and non exercise) and did you change that activity withing the last couple of months?
I'm a few weeks into Stronglifts, which I do M W F.
I was doing 20-30 minutes of cardio on the off days. I read that this much activity could cause water retention, so I stopped it, hoping for a whoosh. No joy, so now I'm going to resume it.
I have a mix of days where I'm mostly on my feet and days when I'm mostly sitting.
Stronglifts stats:
Squat 65 lb, I could squat a LOT MORE if I had a squat rack but I don't yet.
Barbell Bench Press 60~65 lb
Barbell Row - 60~65 lb
Overhead press 40~45 lb
Deadlift 120~125 lb
The lower numbers I can do easily, the uppers I can do but with crap form (I'm sure I'll have fine form with them in a couple weeks)
Cardio stats: I am SO WEAK I can barely run for a minute and a half. So I run/walk/run for a minute each. Or if I'm really worn out or not feeling great, like yesterday, I just walk. Otherwise I get pukey.
How long have you been stalled and if it is not a complete stall please be very specific as to how much you have lost over the stalled period.
Hard to say due to water weight fluctuations, but I would guess 1.5 to 2 months.
Are you breastfeeding?
No.
Do you have thyroid issues/risks or PCOS?
Yes, I have PCOS. My doctor put me on Metformin and birth control 2-ish years ago to manage it.
I know I'm pretty insulin resistant (I'm sure you know that PCOS causes insulin resistance) because I had acanthosis nigricans. It faded a bit when I went on Metformin and lost some weight, and slowly disappeared once I began ultra low carbing. The acanthosis nigricans is 99% gone now. :]
My doctor recommended a low-carb, low glycemic index diet to me to help me with PCOS weight loss.
I sort of took this advice to the extreme and started a ketogenic diet. I was eating 25-30 grams carbs or less for a while. Why? Well, when I was eating 1000-1300 calories a day, I had to get that mostly from protein and fat or I'd be starving all the time. My body just seems to shred through carbs right away, leaving me feeling hungrier than when I started, and craving more.
This summer, I've raised my carbs to include some fruits and veggies. But I'm not sure this was the right thing to do. Should I go back to ultra low carbing?
MY GOALS:
- Bodyfat around 18-20%
- Weight at 125 - 135, depending on BF
- To be able to transition smoothly into a stable maintenance where I don't feel hungry all the time, and can eat like a normal human being again.
- To be able to eat carbs again without blowing up, having my PCOS get worse, or having my acanthosis nigricans come back :[
Food diary note: Ignore my goals. I have no idea what anything should be set to, so it's all kinda random right now. I end up missing those goals on my days.
Thank you for the incredible service you offer here. I can't even imagine how much of your free time you put into this. The level of generosity actually astonishes me. I'm very much looking forward to benefiting from your expertise.
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Hi!
Couple of questions:
- I see some homemade foods in your food diary. Do you use the recipe builder or select the closest entry in the database?
- when exactly did you start stronglifts? Were you doing strength training before that?0 -
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Thank you for looking into my case!Hi!
Couple of questions:
- I see some homemade foods in your food diary. Do you use the recipe builder or select the closest entry in the database?
- when exactly did you start stronglifts? Were you doing strength training before that?
I almost always build my recipes from scratch. I don't eat a lot of "recipes" though. If I do, they're low carb and generally from http://www.genaw.com/lowcarb/ .
The exception to this (and this may be what you are referring to) is the homemade cake I had recently. I just pulled that out of the database. I did do a bit of due diligence, by looking up the recipe and making sure it was v similar to what my mom had baked. Still, with those types of things it's hard to know what a "serving size" is, so I may have underlogged.
As was the case with that cake, I will have the rare not-low-carb cheat meal (mom's homemade pizza and her baked treats) and I'm too lazy to input the recipes for that stuff. But I emphasize this is RARE, like 1-3 times a month.
90% of the time, when my mom makes a treat, I DON'T eat. Which sucks. :[
Any specific foods or entries in my diary you want the details on, just ask.
I began Stronglifts on August 14th.
Even though it's hard for me to pinpoint where exactly my plateau began, I know that it was already underway when I began stronglifts. Frustration with my plateau was what led me to try to mix things up with strength training.
No strength training program before SL. Just the occasional flailing around with a 20 lb kettlebell.
But speaking of stronglifts......... I think I messed up my right shoulder by not having the right equipment (should have seen that coming :l ). It hurts a lot when I lift now. I am going to order a squat rack and temporarily lift lighter until I feel better. I really don't want to mess myself up this early in the game. I'll be upping the cardio temporarily to compensate.0 -
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Sorry - realized we had not followed up so bumping to the top.0
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Absolutely not a problem!Sorry - realized we had not followed up so bumping to the top.
Update on my situation: on the 15th, I had a cheat day
It was a birthday and I was frustrated so I just said screw it. NOT normal for me -- last time this happened was July 4th.
Next day, I did cardio and was surprised at how easy it felt. I went for an hour and could have gone longer. (Normally, around 20-30 minutes I'd feel like puking. My muscles would feel fine to keep going, but I'd be super nauseous and skin would itch really bad.)
In the few days since then I've had around 100 grams carbs a day, and cardio continues to be great.
The miracle of glycogens!
Haven't lost anything yet though. In fact I gained (I've been 148.4 the past two days
), but I'm near certain it's bloat from the carbs.
For Stronglifts I've just been hovering around 50 lbs for most lifts, and my shoulder hurts less every time I do the workout now, so it's healing.
I know I'm terribly weak, and my stamina is awful. I'm trying to change that. In the past I never worked out consistently, and mainly relied on restriction to lose weight. I guess that's what got me into this mess!0 -
Do you own and use a food scale?0
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I realize my posts tend to be a little tldr (sorry), so I want to summarize everything in one shot so you won't have to wade through my verbal effluent in order to get the info you need for your calculations:
- 24 yr female
- 145 lbs, 24% bf
- low carbing -- usually 20-30 grams a day
- ate 1200-1300 average net calories for about 2 months, weight loss stalled (was previously losing on that level of deficit)
- during stall, started doing stronglifts 3x a week
- and light cardio 2-3x a week on the off days
- otherwise, activity level: slug.
- logs ALL THE THINGS, no cheat days
- has PCOS, insulin resistance
- taking Metformin (1500 mgs/day) and birth control for both
- not really seeing measure tape results either. Waist has been stuck at 28-27" for months.
- why I'm posting here: because I still have 15-20 lbs to lose, calorie restriction ain't cutting it anymore, adding more activity didn't help, and all the broscience seems to be telling me I need to eat more to lose more but that didn't work either.
This summarizes the bulk of my stall. Again, at various points in the stall(such as right now), I have eaten more calories or more carbs -- but still saw no results.0 -
Yup! I weigh everything. For snacks like nuts or cheese, I even pre-weigh and put it into baggies with the weight written on them, to keep me from snitching extra out of the original container.Do you own and use a food scale?0 -
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Yup! I weigh everything. For snacks like nuts or cheese, I even pre-weigh and put it into baggies with the weight written on them, to keep me from snitching extra out of the original container.Do you own and use a food scale?
Thanks, and thanks for the summary. We will try to get back to you asap.0 -
Thank you!Thanks, and thanks for the summary. We will try to get back to you asap.
I really want to break this plateau, but this week I didn't have it in me to try eating even less. So (partially inspired by this article http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/3047-700-calories-a-day-and-not-losing ) I went in the opposite direction, and I've been eating more -- and experimenting with adding carbs back in.
Subsequently, my weight has shot up. I know it's just water weight, but I could use some assurance that I'm actually doing the right thing. It all just feels so counter-intuitive. Half of me thinks I should eat more, and the other half is convinced that the reason for my stall is because I ate too much. Very interested in your take on it.0 -
We are trying to get caught up on threads this weekend. However, 99% of the time, people stall as they are eating too much. The knee jerk 'eat more' response you you get on the main forums is usually not the right advice in the majority of the cases.0
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Hi!
You have had quite a bit of change regarding activity, intake and macro levels, as well as, per your initial post, accuracy of measuring.
In order for us to give a reasonable intake suggestion we need to have some consistent and steady data. With that said, could you set your intake to 1,450 calories with the following macros (get as close as you can - within 10g either side for carbs and protein and 5g for fat):
Protein: 125g
Fats: 60g
Carbs: 100g
Log as accurately as possible - weighing where you can, and get back to us with what your weight has done in 2 weeks, or earlier if you have any questions or concerns.
After the 2 weeks, we can take the data and make further adjustments to intake.0 -
Thank you very much! I'm excited to start eating these macros and see what happens.
Should 1450 be my goal every day, regardless of if I work out or not? In other words, should I be eating back workout calories so that MFP lists my net as 1450 on workout days? (Apologies if I missed a thread somewhere that already answers this.)0 -
Thank you very much! I'm excited to start eating these macros and see what happens.
Should 1450 be my goal every day, regardless of if I work out or not? In other words, should I be eating back workout calories so that MFP lists my net as 1450 on workout days? (Apologies if I missed a thread somewhere that already answers this.)
Hi! Sorry, I was not clear - the 1,450 is a fixed number every day (no eating of exercise calories back). We are really trying to get a baseline to see what direction to take.0 -
Okay, thanks!
Can you give me any rudimentary guidelines for cardio? Is there any danger of me over-cardioing, or is that more main forum hype? I'm running and walking 5x a week, but my stamina is still super low so it's not like I'm running for 2 hours solid or anything. I'm still doing baby-Stronglifts but unable to add weight due to injury.
Here's my first day of trying to follow your guidelines... success! I can definitely do this for the next 2 weeks.
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^^that is a thing of beauty!
Keep your cardio consistent with the amount previously done.0 -
Hey, so thanks again for all the help. I've eaten as directed (with some minor cheating, I confess!) for the last two weeks. I haven't seen any net loss. BUT, my period is going on at the moment. Maybe when it's done, I'll see some progress. I'll get back to you in a couple days with more details.
One thing that worries me is all this protein I've been eating. Kidney disease (and failure) runs in my family, and while mine were free of disease as of last time they checked, it still makes me a little uncomfortable.0
