Not loosing; Getting discouraged!
NicoleFray
Posts: 82 Member
I started at 225ish after I had my son (now 16months) And am down to 197 and can't get down from it! I'm getting so frustrated!
I've actually been working out more and eating better and now I can't shed anymore lbs. I have been eating very good so I'm getting very discouraged. I workout 5-6 days a week for a hour. I run and do the bike. Also have a trainer 2 times a week. And nothing! I workout with a friend and she's down 6 lbs and started 2 weeks ago (I know shes new to working out and will loose more fast i understand that) and it sucks seeing my number stay the same!
Any advice? I'm not gunna stop working out but It's making it harder to push as hard and eat well when I feel like it's not doing anything!
I've actually been working out more and eating better and now I can't shed anymore lbs. I have been eating very good so I'm getting very discouraged. I workout 5-6 days a week for a hour. I run and do the bike. Also have a trainer 2 times a week. And nothing! I workout with a friend and she's down 6 lbs and started 2 weeks ago (I know shes new to working out and will loose more fast i understand that) and it sucks seeing my number stay the same!
Any advice? I'm not gunna stop working out but It's making it harder to push as hard and eat well when I feel like it's not doing anything!
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Replies
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How many calories are you eating a day? Do you weigh and measure that food for accuracy?0
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I'm at 1250 a day and burn about 2,000-2500 a day which is why I dont understand. Yes I have a food scale and my trainer looks at everything I eat.. No carbs after 4. She says she sees me looking thin but the scale doesn't move. As much as I hate it I'm a scale person lol so it sucks.0
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I'm at a plateau too. I can't say I've fixed it yet, but advice I've received is just change what you're doing. Your body gets used to things and adaps. Try a new kind of workout, eat different things (more, less, different types of foods)... It sounds like maybe you could be overworking your body a bit and need a rest. I'm obviously no expert, but I'm researching this now that I'm in it. Haha
Best of luck!0 -
Are your clothes getting looser? You might be building muscle which could lead to the scale not moving. As long as your clothing is getting looser, it doesn't matter what the scale says. Get a body fat reader and go by that, it's a much better metric.0
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Set your calorie consumption target for your ideal weight, not your current weight. Also, you are working out quite a bit, but is it all cardio? Add some resistance training in the form of weights to build muscle to increase your BMR and drop some of the cardio if you are strapped for time.0
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Are you eating back exercise calories? There is no way (I'm sorry) that you are burning 2,500 calories per day just through exercise. Are you saying that is your total DAILY burn including your BMR?0
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Do you mean your total daily energy expenditure is 2,000-2500 or just your exercise? If it's exercise that seems high. Either way, that's a pretty aggressive deficit. And why no carbs are 4pm?0
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Can you open your diary for us please?0
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Have you had your thyroid tested? If you are in as much of a deficit as you calculate you are you would be losing, so maybe the cals burned are grossly overestimated.0
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I'm at 1250 a day and burn about 2,000-2500 a day which is why I dont understand. Yes I have a food scale and my trainer looks at everything I eat.. No carbs after 4. She says she sees me looking thin but the scale doesn't move. As much as I hate it I'm a scale person lol so it sucks.
First, you aren't burning 2000-2500 calories a day working out. Second, eat more. If your calorie target is 1250 and you burn 500 calories from working out, you have 750 NET calories for the day. You should aim to end the day with 1250 NET calories (again, assuming that's your target). If you net less than that, you aren't fueling your body properly (think a car with half a tank of gas). So, your body is hanging on to all it can get and that is why you aren't losing weight.
And it's L-O-S-E, not L-O-O-S-E. :flowerforyou:Have you had your thyroid tested? If you are in as much of a deficit as you calculate you are you would be losing, so maybe the cals burned are grossly overestimated.
Wrong.0 -
Eating the "right foods" doesn't automatically guarantee weight loss. Please open your diary.0
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The last two posters have some valid points and Bear is dead on. Try upping your calorie intake a little.0
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Burning 200-2500 overall per day, as in your TDEE? Or through exercise? If the latter, how are you calculating your calorie burns? Because as others have said, that is awfully high.I'm at 1250 a day and burn about 2,000-2500 a day which is why I dont understand. Yes I have a food scale and my trainer looks at everything I eat.. No carbs after 4. She says she sees me looking thin but the scale doesn't move. As much as I hate it I'm a scale person lol so it sucks.
Carbs after 4pm makes no difference.
And even if you are a "scale person", grab yourself a measuring tape and a camera and starting tracking that was as well. The scale loves to mess with your head - I went six months without a change on the scale, but dropped a full size during that time. I laughed at my scale and went out to buy new jeans.
Other than that, make sure your numbers are all correct. Honestly 1250 seems like a low intake unless you are eating back at least some of your exercise cals. And make sure your burns are as accurate as possible - machines and MFPs estimates can be way too high. Invest in a good HRM if you can for a better estimate.0 -
Whatever you do, don't get discouraged! I lost 52 lbs Jan 2012 - Sept 2012 then I was stuck through April of this year - even with modifying my cal intake, changing up exercises, started lifting weights.... I WAS STUCK. I've never gone a day without logging in my food no matter how bad it was (even though MFP messed up my logging in and continues doing so), I basically started not caring so much and have now gained back 25 of what I lost. So, no matter how discouraging it is to be stuck, at least be proud of what you've accomplished and never give up - continue counting, continue with your exercise, drink lots of water and stick with it! I'm struggling everyday now with getting my calories where they should be and I'm working 13.5 hr days on average & getting almost no exercise, take out has become the staple in my life and I feel miserable every day. I would give anything to get back where I was.... GOOD LUCK TO YOU!!!!0
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Have you had your thyroid tested? If you are in as much of a deficit as you calculate you are you would be losing, so maybe the cals burned are grossly overestimated.
Wrong.
How is that wrong? caloric deficit = weight loss, the larger the deficit the larger the weight loss, though a larger portion of said weight loss will come from lean muscle vs. fat if the deficit is too large. And over time you will slow your metabolism down to where you though you have a 1500 cal/day deficit, may only be 1200 or so due to the lowered metabolic effect of your body shutting down non life sustaining functions, and loss of lean muscle.0 -
The last two posters have some valid points and Bear is dead on. Try upping your calorie intake a little.
I don't think that is something we can recommend until we get more information. If someone is not losing weight, it is rarely because they are not eating enough.0 -
The last two posters have some valid points and Bear is dead on. Try upping your calorie intake a little.
I don't think that is something we can recommend until we get more information. If someone is not losing weight, it is rarely because they are not eating enough.
^^^ This. You don't maintain your weight eating at a deficit, especially a deficit as large as you say you have.0 -
Have you had your thyroid tested? If you are in as much of a deficit as you calculate you are you would be losing, so maybe the cals burned are grossly overestimated.
Wrong.
How is that wrong? caloric deficit = weight loss, the larger the deficit the larger the weight loss, though a larger portion of said weight loss will come from lean muscle vs. fat if the deficit is too large. And over time you will slow your metabolism down to where you though you have a 1500 cal/day deficit, may only be 1200 or so due to the lowered metabolic effect of your body shutting down non life sustaining functions, and loss of lean muscle.
Caloric deficit only equals weight loss if the body is being fueled properly otherwise. If a person is not eating enough and not providing the proper nutrition and/or energy for their body, they will not lose weight unless, as you said, the body starts cannibalizing itself for energy (which is clearly not what anyone wants).
So, say someone has entered a goal of losing a pound a week. They would have a daily 500 caloric deficit BUILT IN (this point is often misunderstood) to their target that MFP provides. If that person NETS whatever their MFP target is (let's say it's 1500) every day, they will lose a pound a week. If that same person NETS 1000 calories a day, their body probably wouldn't be getting the proper fuel for them to function so their body will likely hold on to everything it can. Therefore, the dreaded plateau and posts such as this one where the OP is frustrated and discouraged.0 -
The last two posters have some valid points and Bear is dead on. Try upping your calorie intake a little.
I don't think that is something we can recommend until we get more information. If someone is not losing weight, it is rarely because they are not eating enough.
Untrue. It actually happens quite often on this site. Just search it and you will see.0 -
Don't get discouraged!! Very recently I had posted a similar post frustrated and not understanding why the scale wasn't moving. It took about a month of a steady weight training routine for my body to get used to it and allow the weight to come off. Now I am losing at a decent rate and am back in the grove so to speak. I know that I personally could not survive off of 1250 calories!I I would be on the verge of a binge constantly... I always make a point of eating most or ALL of my exercise calories, I do not want to compromise my metabolism by eating 1200 calories a day like I see a lot of people on here doing. Trying to find this "prime" calorie range can be difficult and is a case of trial and error, but since i've upped my calories I have actually started to lose more weight and I am having more energy to complete my workouts. Not sure what your stats are, but i'm 5'8" and my BMR is around 1550 calories (without exericise), and I also have a desk job. I found that MFP gave me a very low calorie range of 1320, I don't eat that little EVER. I stick to my BMR and eat my exercise calories and it is working for me. Good luck, if you want a buddy to keep you accountable or seek advice add me
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Have you had your thyroid tested? If you are in as much of a deficit as you calculate you are you would be losing, so maybe the cals burned are grossly overestimated.
Wrong.
How is that wrong? caloric deficit = weight loss, the larger the deficit the larger the weight loss, though a larger portion of said weight loss will come from lean muscle vs. fat if the deficit is too large. And over time you will slow your metabolism down to where you though you have a 1500 cal/day deficit, may only be 1200 or so due to the lowered metabolic effect of your body shutting down non life sustaining functions, and loss of lean muscle.
Caloric deficit only equals weight loss if the body is being fueled properly otherwise. If a person is not eating enough and not providing the proper nutrition and/or energy for their body, they will not lose weight unless, as you said, the body starts cannibalizing itself for energy (which is clearly not what anyone wants).
So, say someone has entered a goal of losing a pound a week. They would have a daily 500 caloric deficit BUILT IN (this point is often misunderstood) to their target that MFP provides. If that person NETS whatever their MFP target is (let's say it's 1500) every day, they will lose a pound a week. If that same person NETS 1000 calories a day, their body probably wouldn't be getting the proper fuel for them to function so their body will likely hold on to everything it can. Therefore, the dreaded plateau and posts such as this one where the OP is frustrated and discouraged.
It will lose in a deficit no matter what, but the body by was of slowing down and fueling on muscle your BMR and maintenance cals will be lower than you think they should be and your weight loss would be slower due to this. Essentially BMR drops by 200 cals/day, now your deficit is 200 cals less than you think it should be, you still lose weight but slower than you would expect at that caloric intake. If is impossible not to lose weight if you are in a deficit (unless it is counteracted by increase water retention for some reason)
Not to mention it takes weeks or months of eating at an extreme deficit to have this large of an effect on your metabolism.0 -
The last two posters have some valid points and Bear is dead on. Try upping your calorie intake a little.
I don't think that is something we can recommend until we get more information. If someone is not losing weight, it is rarely because they are not eating enough.
Untrue. It actually happens quite often on this site. Just search it and you will see.
Because EVERYONE who says they are not losing/are gaining on a 1200 calorie diet is TOTALLY tracking their calories accurately. :huh:0 -
The last two posters have some valid points and Bear is dead on. Try upping your calorie intake a little.
I don't think that is something we can recommend until we get more information. If someone is not losing weight, it is rarely because they are not eating enough.
Untrue. It actually happens quite often on this site. Just search it and you will see.
Because EVERYONE who says they are not losing/are gaining on a 1200 calorie diet is TOTALLY tracking their calories accurately. :huh:
I don't believe I said that, nor did I mention a 1200 calorie diet anywhere.0 -
Agreed. Chances are the calories are being underestimated or burns overestimated, or both. Eating more to weigh less is more about having a smaller more sustainable deficit. It is not meant to be taken literally. Give this a read, OP. it is an excellent thread regarding logging accuracy. http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/872212-you-re-probably-eating-more-than-you-thinkThe last two posters have some valid points and Bear is dead on. Try upping your calorie intake a little.
I don't think that is something we can recommend until we get more information. If someone is not losing weight, it is rarely because they are not eating enough.
Untrue. It actually happens quite often on this site. Just search it and you will see.
Because EVERYONE who says they are not losing/are gaining on a 1200 calorie diet is TOTALLY tracking their calories accurately. :huh:0 -
The last two posters have some valid points and Bear is dead on. Try upping your calorie intake a little.
I don't think that is something we can recommend until we get more information. If someone is not losing weight, it is rarely because they are not eating enough.
Untrue. It actually happens quite often on this site. Just search it and you will see.
Because EVERYONE who says they are not losing/are gaining on a 1200 calorie diet is TOTALLY tracking their calories accurately. :huh:
I don't believe I said that, nor did I mention a 1200 calorie diet anywhere.
It was an example of the type of thread you are talking about. The point is, just because people on here say they gaining/maintaining on a caloric deficit, don't take their word for it.0 -
First, you aren't burning 2000-2500 calories a day working out. Second, eat more. If your calorie target is 1250 and you burn 500 calories from working out, you have 750 NET calories for the day. You should aim to end the day with 1250 NET calories (again, assuming that's your target). If you net less than that, you aren't fueling your body properly (think a car with half a tank of gas). So, your body is hanging on to all it can get and that is why you aren't losing weight.
FIrst off yes I am burning 2500 a day but thats from 9am-10pm all day including excersise I have a Polar Heartrate monitor that counts calories..
But Yes I have been noticing my clothes are fitting looser and my trainer said I'm probably gaining more muscle, I do cardio every day but the day's I have my trainer and depending on the week I have one or two days off/rest. I lost a lb today when I weighed and started eating every 3 hours I think that was my problem not eating every 3 hours..0 -
FIrst off yes I am burning 2500 a day but thats from 9am-10pm all day including excersise I have a Polar Heartrate monitor that counts calories..
But Yes I have been noticing my clothes are fitting looser and my trainer said I'm probably gaining more muscle, I do cardio every day but the day's I have my trainer and depending on the week I have one or two days off/rest. I lost a lb today when I weighed and started eating every 3 hours I think that was my problem not eating every 3 hours..
1) If you are doing all cardio and no weight training, you are not gaining (any) muscle.
2) Stop weighing yourself every day.
3) Eat more!
4) Your trainer sucks. No carbs after 4pm is a myth.0 -
Possibly because you want to LOSE weight, not LOOSE
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Yes, you need a new trainer! Meanwhile read over some of the advice posted above, some excellent points0
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