Not losing weight and need advice please!

Courtney9513 · January 2014

So I used to be in really good shape but I gained some weight over the last couple of months. So the past 2 months months I've been busting my *kitten* in the gym. I usually run and bike every other day anywhere from 30 to 60 minutes, 6 days a week. I am currently 148lbs and my goal weight is to be 120lbs-125lbs by June (is that possible/reasonable?). I am 5'4". I also do weight lifting about 4 times a week. And not baby weights, I try to push myself to lift heavy so I can get stronger. I took measurements before I started all of this and I just re-measured at the 2 month mark and only lost 1 inch around my waist, 1 inch on my stomach, and 1 on my chest. And I also weighed in with only a 5 pound loss

is it just me or in 2 months does that seem like lot very much? I really have been working hard both in the gym and the kitchen so I am at a loss. I have been trying to eat really healthy but I don't know if I'm eating enough or too much or what? My net calories are usually at 700 or 800, is that too low? Should I be eating back all of my exercise calories? I burn about 500 calories everyday.

I just need some help. Please please please advice?!?? Thank you lovely ppl!

_Zardoz_ · January 2014

Your food logging is very inconsistent and i'm guessing inaccurate. You have a couple of days saying you ate just under 400 calories! and other days saying you ate 1600 calories then other days with no logging at all. The first thing is to get your logging accurate. Enter everything weigh and measure it all. Then you will have an accurate measure of how much you are actually eating. My guess is you are eating far more than you actually think but with out proper information no one can really know.

JesterMFP · January 2014

Firstly, it's not that you're not losing weight, because you are. Yes, it is a little slow. Unfortunately that's how it goes sometimes. You are only barely overweight, and just not going to drop fat as quickly as someone who is obese. Hopefully, you are holding onto your lean mass, which is a good thing.

Are you measuring all your food on a food scale and are you logging accurately? In your diary, where you have "smoothie" - is that a recipe you've added, or are you using someone else's entry from the database? You have a mixture of grams, ounces, cups etc in your diary, which makes me wonder if you're guestimating a bit. Your diary also looks a bit patchy on some days. How are you estimating your exercise burn?

If those numbers are accurate, then yes, netting 700-800 calories is far to low. You'll still lose weight (as you have been) but you may risk losing lean mass along with the fat, and you also risk having hormonal issues. For example, stress (which the body counts low calorie dieting as) can cause elevated levels of cortisol, which can have an effect on weight loss.

fushigi1988 · January 2014

Eat more!
You are lifting weights, you need energy to build muscles.
You lost 3 inches overall, great job, don't pay too much attention to the scale.
Muscle is denser than fat, so you might weigh the same, but will still be slimmer.

Courtney9513 · January 2014

Okay thank you for the reply! I unfortunately don't have a food scale. I have been using the hand measuring method which I think seems to work pretty well. But yeah my logging is a little eradic so hopefully like you said if I get it down pat then I can see more results. Can not weighing food really hinder weight loss? Is it really best to measure everything out?

Courtney9513 · January 2014

Thanks for the reply. My smoothie is a recipe that I made in my MFP and the calories in that are accurate. I unfortunately do t have a food scale but I think my portions are accurate. I do guesstimate some because its just easier than measuring things out everytime. But can that really affect my weight loss that much? Or do you think it's 700 calorie net? I really don't know what to do. And yes my calories burned should be very close to accurate. I have a heart rate moniter that I use when I go to the gym and when I'm running and biking. So I'm really at a loss here

JesterMFP · January 2014

I would definitely try to get as accurate as you can with logging, and consider investing in a digital food scale. They are not very expensive. Some people do fine with not being too accurate, and hey some people do fine losing without calorie counting at all. However, you're here saying you're not losing as much as you'd expect, so getting as accurate as you can with the logging would be a logical first step.

wilsoje74 · January 2014

Everyone will tell you to eat more but I don't always agree with that. You ya be eating more than you think.

DamePiglet · January 2014

So I used to be in really good shape but I gained some weight over the last couple of months. So the past 2 months months I've been busting my *kitten* in the gym. I usually run and bike every other day anywhere from 30 to 60 minutes, 6 days a week. I am currently 148lbs and my goal weight is to be 120lbs-125lbs by June (is that possible/reasonable?). I am 5'4". I also do weight lifting about 4 times a week. And not baby weights, I try to push myself to lift heavy so I can get stronger. I took measurements before I started all of this and I just re-measured at the 2 month mark and only lost 1 inch around my waist, 1 inch on my stomach, and 1 on my chest. And I also weighed in with only a 5 pound loss is it just me or in 2 months does that seem like lot very much? I really have been working hard both in the gym and the kitchen so I am at a loss. I have been trying to eat really healthy but I don't know if I'm eating enough or too much or what? My net calories are usually at 700 or 800, is that too low? Should I be eating back all of my exercise calories? I burn about 500 calories everyday. I just need some help. Please please please advice?!?? Thank you lovely ppl!

Not sure why this is titled "not losing" since you are losing, but not to your satisfaction.

Like others have said, log more carefully. Even still, you ARE making progress. Weight loss doesn't happen overnight (okay, technically it does, but you know what I mean)
Be patient.

Courtney9513 · January 2014

Thank you. I'm definitely going to log more carefully now and just keep going hard everyday. Haha and your pun was good! Thanks again!

Courtney9513 · January 2014

Okay! Actually looking food scales now on Amazon! I think you're right and maybe that's all I need to get the ball rolling. Thank you so much again!

JesterMFP · January 2014

Good luck! If after a few weeks, things are still going slower than you would expect according to the maths, then maybe post a thread here: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/forums/show/10067-eat-train-progress- for advice.

Courtney9513 · January 2014

Okay! Hopefully the scale will fix the problem and I won't have to post there!! But thank you so much. Really hoping this works!

AvaWawa2008 · January 2014

Hey you're pretty close to my size (I'm 5'4") and I'm aiming for around 115-120 (I'm 143 now) too. Honestly, I think you might be getting the calories wrong. Maybe start tracking your weight every week to make sure that it matches with your calorie deficit? Or every two weeks? 5 pounds is good. You're a small person so the weight isn't going to come off in lumps of 2 pounds a week.

Good luck!!! I aiming for around June too!!

Courtney9513 · January 2014

Okay! Thanks for the advice! I know I have to be patient with this whole process but sometimes it's so hard! Haha I just want it all to be goneeee! I have my MPF set for 1lb weight loss per week. Is that what you have also? Also (if you don't mind me asking) what do you do for cardio? I'm thinking I also need to maybe ramp up my cardio some. Also any good snack ideas? Haha. I eat 6 small meals a day but I can't think of any good healthy snacks for meal #2 and #4. If you have any good ideas let me know!

also feel free to add me as a friend! Thanks for the help.

Not losing weight and need advice please!

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