Not losing weight after MONTHS of dieting

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lightningblxnde
lightningblxnde Posts: 16
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi Everyone!

Like so many people do, I'm experiencing a bit of frustration with my weight loss goals. I don't have much to lose, but sadly I work in the entertainment industry and would have a lot more work available to me if I could drop a pants size. I am 5'9" tall and 137 pounds. My goal is around 125. I work out lightly 6 days a week (4 days doing intervals for 35 minutes on an elliptical burning 300-350 calories, 2 days of about 30 minutes of toning exercises), but otherwise I am a student and fairly sedentary. I've been sticking to a diet of about 1200 calories a day for several months (I have not been eating back my exercise calories), but I've had practically no results from this. I just switched my weight loss goal to a pound a week instead of 1.5 pounds per week, and MFP upped my calorie requirement to 1300, so I'm going to try to shoot for that now. Regardless, I'm getting frustrated at my lack of results and could really use some help!

I am working on adding in more fresh fruits and vegetables to my diet, but unfortunately it is tough because I am on an extreme budget and school/work don't allow me to get to the grocery store very often. As a result, I often end up eating the same foods for a long period of time. So in addition to my weight loss question, does anyone have any tips on eating healthy on a budget? Or for when you are cooking for one?

Thanks in advance for the help!
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Replies

  • rileysowner
    rileysowner Posts: 8,239 Member
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    I just took a very quick look at your food diary. I noticed a few entries of "Pumpkin Pie". Now don't get me wrong, you can lose weight eating pie, even eating it every day, if the amount of calories in that piece of pie is correct. However, unless you entered the recipe for that pie yourself, or you took it off a label (assuming the label is accurate), you have no real idea of the calories in it. If you just select it from the food database here, it very likely could be way off.

    Second, how carefully are you measuring your portions. A digital kitchen scale is one of the most important tools I use in my weight loss. If I estimate the amount of something, I am almost always wrong and have much more than I think I do. Those errors very quickly add up.
  • lightningblxnde
    lightningblxnde Posts: 16
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    Hi there! The pumpkin pie was actually a recipe from Chocolate Covered Katie, a healthy dessert blog. I made it myself and entered all the information as a new recipe.

    As far as portions go, I'm quite meticulous, and I do have a food scale that I use for pretty much everything. Thanks for the tip, though!
  • walleymama
    walleymama Posts: 174 Member
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    If you are not losing weight after all this time then you are not in a caloric deficit. Which would be darn near impossible if you were really eating only 1200 calories per day and doing all the exercise you say you are. I'm not accusing you of anything other than falling into the same traps many people do of underestimating what they eat and overestimating their exercise.
  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,021 Member
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    It's in the math.............your eating at maintenance.
  • CyberEd312
    CyberEd312 Posts: 3,536 Member
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    Not able to see your diary so really can't help you..... Best of Luck though...
  • AmyRhubarb
    AmyRhubarb Posts: 6,890 Member
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    Couple of things - no clue how old you are, but I'm 45, an inch shorter, and went from 145lbs to 135lbs, dropping a full pants size, while eating 1800+ cals a day.

    The fact that you are sticking to 1200, exercising and NOT eating back exercise cals could be part of your problem. Sounds counter-intuitive, but food is fuel - your body doesn't want to let of of anything if you're not feeding it very much, and then burning off more in exercise. It adjusts to the low intake and metabolism slows to match it.

    MFP is set up so that your daily goal has a deficit built in already - meaning eat to goal every day, do zero exercise, and you'll lose weight. That's why they add the exercise cals back into your goal when you log workouts - you are supposed to eat those calories back to avoid a HUGE deficit, which can backfire on ya, stalling weight loss and causing problems. Your daily NET calories should be at or near goal.

    Another thing - MFP is an awesome tool, but can only do so much with the information you give it. With so little to lose, saying you want to lose 2lbs a week, or even 1.5lbs, isn't realistic - .5lb a week is more like it. Then go with the calorie goal it gives you, log your food and exercise, and eat those exercise cals back.

    I have had my best results with fat loss since eating the proper amount of cals. More energy, I feel great, look great, and am thrilled to see the fat and inches disappearing.

    If you really want to fine tune things a bit, have a read through this topic: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/974888-in-place-of-a-road-map-2k13 Great info there, and links to tools and instructions for getting a more accurate idea of how much you should be eating, and what numbers to stay in between - not eating too much, but not eating too little either. Good stuff.
  • lightningblxnde
    lightningblxnde Posts: 16
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    Thanks for all the replies. I am a bit perplexed, I guess, because I really do weigh everything I eat and rarely miss a day at the gym. I use a heart rate monitor as well, but I know those are generally only estimates.

    Several years ago, I struggled with anorexia--is it possible I could have permanently messed up my metabolism or something like that?
  • lightningblxnde
    lightningblxnde Posts: 16
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    Wow, thanks so much for the great reply, Amy! I'm 24 years old. I've definitely read the debates about eating back exercise calories or not. I'm thinking I should give it a try because trying to stay at 1200 is getting a bit old...I end up daydreaming about food more often than I probably should! Again, thanks for the advice!
  • Mr_Knight
    Mr_Knight Posts: 9,532 Member
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    I don't have much to lose, but sadly I work in the entertainment industry and would have a lot more work available to me if I could drop a pants size... I work out lightly 6 days a week (4 days doing intervals for 35 minutes on an elliptical burning 300-350 calories, 2 days of about 30 minutes of toning exercises), but otherwise I am a student and fairly sedentary...

    For comparison, here's what others in the "entertainment industry" do....

    http://www.popworkouts.com/henry-cavill-workout-superman/
  • lightningblxnde
    lightningblxnde Posts: 16
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    I don't have much to lose, but sadly I work in the entertainment industry and would have a lot more work available to me if I could drop a pants size... I work out lightly 6 days a week (4 days doing intervals for 35 minutes on an elliptical burning 300-350 calories, 2 days of about 30 minutes of toning exercises), but otherwise I am a student and fairly sedentary...

    For comparison, here's what others in the "entertainment industry" do....

    http://www.popworkouts.com/henry-cavill-workout-superman/

    Trust me, I definitely know there's more I could do for working out! But unlike those celebrities who have already made it big and can hire personal trainers and such, I am still a student and have minimal gym time--I already get to the gym right when it opens just to be able to fit a workout in during the day. Once I graduate I should have more time to push myself!
  • rileysowner
    rileysowner Posts: 8,239 Member
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    I don't have much to lose, but sadly I work in the entertainment industry and would have a lot more work available to me if I could drop a pants size... I work out lightly 6 days a week (4 days doing intervals for 35 minutes on an elliptical burning 300-350 calories, 2 days of about 30 minutes of toning exercises), but otherwise I am a student and fairly sedentary...

    For comparison, here's what others in the "entertainment industry" do....

    http://www.popworkouts.com/henry-cavill-workout-superman/

    Trust me, I definitely know there's more I could do for working out! But unlike those celebrities who have already made it big and can hire personal trainers and such, I am still a student and have minimal gym time--I already get to the gym right when it opens just to be able to fit a workout in during the day. Once I graduate I should have more time to push myself!

    You don't need a gym to have an intense workout. Using just bodyweight exercises you can get an amazing workout in about 30 minutes. I used a program called the Home Workout Revolution, and it was quite good, and you would likely find the workouts quite intense. You can also check youtube. Search for zuzkalight for another option. This workout from here uses weights, but you can do the move without them http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K9ao34rD_wE

    I just did a search and picked one of the first ones that came up. You could start with ZWOW #1 and work through them.

    As I said, a gym is not needed to get a great workout.
  • lightningblxnde
    lightningblxnde Posts: 16
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    Wow, those look great! I actually do those kinds of exercises on my non-cardio days. It definitely helps to be able to do them at home and on my own schedule. Thanks for the great addition to my repertoire!
  • rileysowner
    rileysowner Posts: 8,239 Member
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    You are welcome.
  • Lemongrab1
    Lemongrab1 Posts: 158 Member
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    You're simply not measuring your caloric intake correctly.
    I'm sure everyone has said this, but use a food scale. It's the only way to measure your intake correctly.
    Your body is not failing you, your math is.
  • Love4fitnesslove4food2
    Love4fitnesslove4food2 Posts: 711 Member
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    health > career. maybe leave the entertainment industry so that you don't have to fight your body just to be a contender in the fight for a job.
  • grantville
    grantville Posts: 1
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    OK I'm an older guy and hit the wall every now and then even walking 4 miles a day, etc. What really helps me drop weight at a steady and consistent rate is to eat my calories early and taper off to next to nothing by mid afternoon. I stay within my MFP range but eat my heaviest meal as my breakfast, then a moderate to light lunch. And a very light salad as my dinner by mid afternoon. Doing that I can lose a half pound a day consistently. I also do low carb because my metabolism was really messed up from years of low fat, high carb dieting. Wish you success in your efforts.
  • vwchic05
    vwchic05 Posts: 3
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    I've recently hit a plateau losing the last 5 lbs...I didn't exactly hit a wall, the weight loss is just .....S L O W E R R R R lol....I guess its true. Maybe you need to vary your exercise routine. Do more cardio like running or spinning for a longer period of time. I found that whenever I do a spin class, I drop some weight that week. I think your calorie intake is reasonable. Just don't go below 1200. The lighter you are, the harder it is to shed the weight, so you need to double the effort. Don't worry, you'll get there :-)
  • jeffpettis
    jeffpettis Posts: 865 Member
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    If you have maintained your weight for the last couple of months you are not eating in a deficit you're eating at maintenance. Everyone is going to give you a hundred different reasons why you are not losing but the simple fact is there is a miscalculation somewhere. You are simply not in a deficit. You didn't ruin your metabolism, you don't need more strenuous workouts, your thyroid isn't jacked up, and you are not immune to weight loss, you are simply not in a deficit.
  • Pearl127
    Pearl127 Posts: 1 Member
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    Hi, I know from a life of dieting that it is possible to eat to few calories. try just eating back your exercise calories for a week and see what happens.
  • calliekitten9
    calliekitten9 Posts: 148 Member
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    Have you spoken to your doctor about this? Everyone is going to assume it has something to do with your food journal or your exercise routine....however it sounds like you have a food scale and you know how much you are burning so perhaps you need to figure out if there is something else going on.

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