Seriously! I need help! This is starting to piss me off!

tk2007
tk2007 Posts: 38 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Okay, so I started myfitnesspal several months back because another fitness diary that I won't name was making me eat 1000 calories a day and...well that didn't seem right. That week I had jumped from 123 to 130 in a week (I'm certain of this because I weighed myself every week). There didn't seem to be a reasonable cause; it's not like I changed my diet in that week, but for precation I moved here and used this instead to lose weight and go back. Well, in the past few months all that has happened is I've gotten flabbier and I just today noticed I blew up to 135 and my waist has gotten wider!!! What is this bull***?!! On top of this, I've been running for 3 YEARS!! Why am I getting fat now?!! I'm 24, so it can't be aging!
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Replies

  • mockchoc
    mockchoc Posts: 6,573 Member
    Since you've been starving yourself before it's going to take a little while to even out and then you'll start losing. Give it a month at least. Don't freak out.
  • slim4health56
    slim4health56 Posts: 439 Member
    Congrats on losing 15 lbs! I took a look at your food diary from today, and you ate just over 900 calories and you say you're running, too. Would you consider eating 1700 calories as MFP recommends?
  • katrinagelderbloem
    katrinagelderbloem Posts: 3
    I'm with you. I walk with a double buggy for 90mins everyday with groceries up and down hills. I was eating 1200 cals, In 2 weeks have put on 8lb, feel like crap, no clothes fit
  • FirecrackerJess
    FirecrackerJess Posts: 276 Member
    I'm with you. I walk with a double buggy for 90mins everyday with groceries up and down hills. I was eating 1200 cals, In 2 weeks have put on 8lb, feel like crap, no clothes fit

    @katrinagelder

    Sorry, I know this is off topic but, If that is you, in your profile picture, I just want to say WOW! Congrats!!! I can only hope to see results like that! Good job!
  • joshdann
    joshdann Posts: 618 Member
    if I had to guess, I'd say your measurements when logging food are pretty far off. 1/2 cup of milk? that's 4oz, barely more than two swallows for me. 1/4 cup of general tso's chicken? That's two tablespoons... that can't be right. that would be like one and a half pieces of chicken. They may be accurate, I don't know you :). I'm just saying they seem like they're not. You're basically nibbling all day.
  • katrinagelderbloem
    katrinagelderbloem Posts: 3
    ahhhh bless you! yes thats me. the more i exercise the less i eat the more the weight goes back on
  • elisa123gal
    elisa123gal Posts: 4,324 Member
    You are not getting "old" but "older" if you think you're going to keep your highschool figure...that is not so. Many people keep growing after college...filling out. especially men. I no way think I want to be as thin as I was college. I don't thin it is possible.

    So it could be a combination of you starving yourself and the fact that you are getting older.
  • JuliMagenta
    JuliMagenta Posts: 79 Member
    First of all: I know how you feel! Even we all kind of know that the scale is not the best way to check our success we care pretty much.
    But, don't let it put you down. You have to stay strong.


    But, I'd also recommend you to eat more. I don't know how tall you are, but 1260calories a day + running, looks a little low.
    Maybe try 1600 or 1500 and eat at least half of your exercise calories, to make sure, you get all the energy you need for running and living :)
  • nelinelineli
    nelinelineli Posts: 330 Member
    Well there are really only two explanations for this:
    1. It's temporary (my waist/weight go up for a couple of pounds every month for a bit).
    2. You're really eating over your maintainance. If the other site suggested 1000 I'm assuming you're pretty small. If your caloric needs are pretty low, there's a chance you might inadvertently eat too close to maintainance. You literally cannot gain weight out of nothing, so there must be something off with either your intake or your exercise estimations.
  • tk2007
    tk2007 Posts: 38 Member
    I'm a shorty. 5'3"
  • Railr0aderTony
    Railr0aderTony Posts: 6,803 Member
    if I had to guess, I'd say your measurements when logging food are pretty far off. 1/2 cup of milk? that's 4oz, barely more than two swallows for me. 1/4 cup of general tso's chicken? That's two tablespoons... that can't be right. that would be like one and a half pieces of chicken. They may be accurate, I don't know you :). I'm just saying they seem like they're not. You're basically nibbling all day.

    1/4 Cup = 4 Tablespoons.
  • tk2007
    tk2007 Posts: 38 Member
    Yeah, it was that much actually. I literally just grabbed two pieces of chicken and broccoli from someone else's plate and figured I'd count it. I'm weird like that lol
  • nelinelineli
    nelinelineli Posts: 330 Member
    I'm a shorty. 5'3"

    I'm 5'3.75'' and below 130 lbs so we should have roughly the same caloric needs - 1200 is about right. Now if you are eyeballing your food then there's a chance you're eating well into your 1400/day which will bring you too close to maintenance - let's say 1550 - and at a 150 calorie deficit a day you'd need about a month to lose a pound. My maintenance is 1580ish.
  • slim4health56
    slim4health56 Posts: 439 Member
    ahhhh bless you! yes thats me. the more i exercise the less i eat the more the weight goes back on

    So, when you exercise, do you adjust your caloric intake or are you also starving yourself?
  • tk2007
    tk2007 Posts: 38 Member
    I'm a shorty. 5'3"

    I'm 5'3.75'' and below 130 lbs so we should have roughly the same caloric needs - 1200 is about right. Now if you are eyeballing your food then there's a chance you're eating well into your 1400/day which will bring you too close to maintenance - let's say 1550 - and at a 150 calorie deficit a day you'd need about a month to lose a pound. My maintenance is 1580ish.

    Here's another question too. Is that 1200 in net calories or general calories? I run 3 miles 4 days a week + add on an additional 2-4 mile walk, so that's a significant deficit there.
  • nelinelineli
    nelinelineli Posts: 330 Member
    I'm a shorty. 5'3"

    I'm 5'3.75'' and below 130 lbs so we should have roughly the same caloric needs - 1200 is about right. Now if you are eyeballing your food then there's a chance you're eating well into your 1400/day which will bring you too close to maintenance - let's say 1550 - and at a 150 calorie deficit a day you'd need about a month to lose a pound. My maintenance is 1580ish.

    Here's another question too. Is that 1200 in net calories or general calories? I run 3 miles 4 days a week + add on an additional 2-4 mile walk, so that's a significant deficit there.

    I have tried both eating my calories back (when I was doing 30DS - so roughly 150 extra calories a day), eat partially (basically go up another 100 calories while I was running) and also not eat back at all. In the end they all seemed to have the exactly expected result weight-loss wise.
    The major differences were psychological: eating back my calories (to about 1300 a day) made me feel a whole lot better and less prone to lying to myself (under-estimating what I eat or forgetting to log a bite of something - I'm not saying you're doing that but a starved brain does play tricks on you...).
    My rule with this is to try something for at least a month before I change gear. Because the natural monthly cycle and water retention and all that can easily hide results. So my advice is to choose a deficit you are comfortable with (whether you're eating back or not is up to you, just choose a method you like) and stick with it for a month. Then reassess.

    Edited to add: I've also noticed that running/walking estimates on MFP are way too high for me. So if you're eating back... plan for it. Unless you have a HRM to help you out.
    For small people like us, there's very little wiggle room - 50 calories one way or the other a day is a whole lot.

    Edited again to add: I've read again your "symptoms" and I must say they sound like a normal thing for a female. Getting flabbier = normal, waist measurement increasing now and then = normal. I'm not sure how often you weigh yourself but keep in mind you're going to go up and down few pounds monthly no matter what.
  • Donald_Dozier_50
    Donald_Dozier_50 Posts: 395 Member
    Yeah, it was that much actually. I literally just grabbed two pieces of chicken and broccoli from someone else's plate and figured I'd count it. I'm weird like that lol

    Yes it is a fact that ALL food consumed counts but the problem if it comes off of someone else's plate it does not get weighed or measured. I recommend stickling to eating off of your plate only.
  • katrinagelderbloem
    katrinagelderbloem Posts: 3
    ? im not starving, Im not hungry. Just eat what a need and is mostly 1200
  • slim4health56
    slim4health56 Posts: 439 Member
    ? im not starving, Im not hungry. Just eat what a need and is mostly 1200

    The point is, to both you and the OP, you will need to eat back the calories you burn. If you're on a 1200 calorie diet and you also say you're exercising, you're not eating enough if you only eat 1200 calories a day.
  • joshdann
    joshdann Posts: 618 Member
    ? im not starving, Im not hungry. Just eat what a need and is mostly 1200

    The point is, to both you and the OP, you will need to eat back the calories you burn. If you're on a 1200 calorie diet and you also say you're exercising, you're not eating enough if you only eat 1200 calories a day.
    based on what?
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
    If this is a sudden and unexplained weight gain, I'd suggest seeing a doctor. While prolonged undereating can cause your metabolic rate to slow, it will not happen overnight and will not be dramatic. It will happen slowly and make it gradually harder to lose weight.

    This sounds like it could be a food intollerance or hormonal disorder or some other condition that can be identified and managed.
  • themumbler86
    themumbler86 Posts: 19
    Also (and I'm not being a wise *kitten*) make sure you've ruled out pregnancy.

    One of my friends dieted for 2 months, gained a clothes size and got very frustrated about it, and then realised she was actually pregnant.
  • cafeaulait7
    cafeaulait7 Posts: 2,459 Member
    If you are flabbier and run a lot and have a big deficit, it's possible you are losing too much lean mass while you lose weight. The body likes to use muscle for fuel, no doubt! If you think that could be it, lift some weights and eat for them, especially protein. Just look up how to preserve lean mass as you lose, in other words.
  • d6melanie
    d6melanie Posts: 84 Member
    if I had to guess, I'd say your measurements when logging food are pretty far off. 1/2 cup of milk? that's 4oz, barely more than two swallows for me. 1/4 cup of general tso's chicken? That's two tablespoons... that can't be right. that would be like one and a half pieces of chicken. They may be accurate, I don't know you :). I'm just saying they seem like they're not. You're basically nibbling all day.

    1/4 Cup = 4 Tablespoons.

    Thank you for correcting that I almost just had a heart attack about my tracking! (But fair point to the OP too, it's not much food!)
  • kimosabe1
    kimosabe1 Posts: 2,467 Member
    ADD CALORIES! U aren't eating enough! This happened to me several months ago & I increased calories by 100 per week and this stopped. I am at 1350 right now about to move to 1400....
  • cem614
    cem614 Posts: 54 Member
    Girl, you need to eat more! I'm 5'4" and lose weight eating 1400 calories daily, even when I don't exercise. I'd say the 1200 would be okay if you weren't running and walking all of that mileage. Try adding 200 calories if you are going to do all that running.
  • Binkie1955
    Binkie1955 Posts: 329 Member
    I looked at one day of your diary. but I did look at your goals. and what you actually did. I don't think you know what you're doing. you're eating carbs and not eating fats and proteins. basically, you're carbo-loading for your running and starving your body of nutrition (fats and protein). most of your diet is fruit and grains. so yeah you're going to get some weird responses from a body trying to survive what amounts to lots of stress (running) and abuse (no nutrition).

    go to one of the keto calculators and reset your goals on calories, fats, proteins and carbs and then GET TO THE GOALS. switch your emphasis from low calorie to low carb and increase your intake of fats and proteins dramatically then see what happens after a month or so.

    I run and swim and I would never eat what you eat.
  • KANGOOJUMPS
    KANGOOJUMPS Posts: 6,474 Member
    language check?
  • CallMeCupcakeDammit
    CallMeCupcakeDammit Posts: 9,377 Member
    Are you logging every single thing you put in your mouth? I can't tell if you're just not eating a lot, or if you're missing a lot of entries in your diary. Get a digital scale and start weighing your food, if you're not doing it now. You don't need a large calorie deficit if you only have 15 lbs to lose. I honestly wouldn't be making it a habit to eat under my BMR very often, if I was at your weight.

    Take a look at this thread, because Sara gives good pointers on filling out your diary. http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/925464-fitting-it-in-giggity
  • CallMeCupcakeDammit
    CallMeCupcakeDammit Posts: 9,377 Member
    language check?

    English here!

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