What am i doing wrong?

Please take a look at my food diary. I eat healthy for the most part, even though I have been indulging just a bit more because of the holidays and I just had my birthday on top of it. But i have been keeping up with my exercise and trying to get back on track with eating healthy for the most part. Is there anything in my diet that you can see as really holding me back? I am trying to get a flat stomach but it seems impossible. I don't have a big stomach just a little extra fat and I wish my legs were just a little more tone. I am 18 and 5'5 and weigh 132lbs. I exercise 4x a week. 2x strength training, 2x hiit. I use fitnessblender videos, if you know what those are. As far as my diet you can look at my dairy. I have been trying to maintain my weight but I'm still trying to achieve a flat stomach like I said. I am trying to eat about 1800 - 1900 calories. Should I be eating more or less? What am I doing wrong?

Replies

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  • creativerick
    creativerick Posts: 270 Member
    You should track every meal, every cheat day, every sip of alcohol... I see missing days and meals all over the place?

    If you are going to have big cheat days, lower the amount of calories you eat on a daily basis. Use the weekly view to track your weekly calorie progress.
  • Crumpet_Girl
    Crumpet_Girl Posts: 276 Member
    Hi :smile: like the posted before me said it's really important you log all your food. Especially with the last few lbs as they can often be the hardest.

    Stomach fat is often stubborn and as they say "abs are made in the kitchen" so to get that flat tummy you will need to be vigilant with healthy eating, exercise and staying hydrated.

    Good luck!
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 49,023 Member
    Inconsistency with your food will lead to inconsistent results. Start there.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness industry for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
  • twixlepennie
    twixlepennie Posts: 1,074 Member
    I'm 5ft, 6 in and I had to get my weight down to around 120lbs (almost 20lbs lower than my original goal weight), before I had a flat stomach. Had nothing to do with exercise or what kinds of food I was eating-had to lose the excess weight/fat to get rid of my stomach pooch and I did that by continuing to eat at a calorie deficit.
  • Do you normally only eat one or two meals a day?? That was a problem for me! Now I drink shakes in the morning because I don't like cooking/eating in the mornings.
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  • MsRoseliciouz
    MsRoseliciouz Posts: 1 Member
  • Jmfletcher78
    Jmfletcher78 Posts: 1 Member
    so one of the best things that I have discovered that you can do is eat smaller multiple meals a day, and if you exercise try and eat back your calories, eating one or two meals a day causes your blood sugar levels to fluctuate drastically which will eventually inhibit you from loosing any weight. Eating 5 or 6 meals a day (which i see you have your diary set up to do) keeps your blood sugar levels stable and your metabolism running high (think of it as feeding a fire). on another note, I cant see how much sugar you are consuming daily but it might be a good idea to start tracking your sugar intake...good luck!
  • twixlepennie
    twixlepennie Posts: 1,074 Member
    so one of the best things that I have discovered that you can do is eat smaller multiple meals a day, and if you exercise try and eat back your calories, eating one or two meals a day causes your blood sugar levels to fluctuate drastically which will eventually inhibit you from loosing any weight. Eating 5 or 6 meals a day (which i see you have your diary set up to do) keeps your blood sugar levels stable and your metabolism running high (think of it as feeding a fire). on another note, I cant see how much sugar you are consuming daily but it might be a good idea to start tracking your sugar intake...good luck!

    No. Just, no.
  • Jgal8123
    Jgal8123 Posts: 1,378 Member
    Agree with an earlier post that your protein intake seems low
  • SimplyMicheleR
    SimplyMicheleR Posts: 89 Member
    If you are worried about the belly, the thing to cut is wheat/gluten. My husband is Celiac, and since he went GF (when we found out about this) his belly flattened out, even though he did not loose weight at the time. there is lots of info out there about how wheat causes bloating, and I am finding it is true for me as well. (this is, like everything else, not true for all, so YMMV)
  • so one of the best things that I have discovered that you can do is eat smaller multiple meals a day, and if you exercise try and eat back your calories, eating one or two meals a day causes your blood sugar levels to fluctuate drastically which will eventually inhibit you from loosing any weight. Eating 5 or 6 meals a day (which i see you have your diary set up to do) keeps your blood sugar levels stable and your metabolism running high (think of it as feeding a fire). on another note, I cant see how much sugar you are consuming daily but it might be a good idea to start tracking your sugar intake...good luck!

    No. Just, no.


    If you are going to disagree with him can you please explain why? Because that is kind of how I was always thought to lose weight, if there is other schools of thought I would like to know
  • pklme
    pklme Posts: 9
    I'm going against the flow here, but maybe it would be better to learn to love the way you are? We don't all need to be the same, and if you are fit and healthy it is ok to have a little curve on your tummy.
  • ILiftHeavyAcrylics
    ILiftHeavyAcrylics Posts: 27,732 Member
    Are you entering your own recipes? I see a lot of entries that are like "potatoes fried in oil" and I'm wondering whether you use the recipe builder or if you're just using someone else's database entries.

    I'd do it like this:

    Raw Russet Potato-- 225 grams
    Vegetable oil-- 2 tbsp

    That way you know exactly how much potatoes and how much oil.

    Do you add milk or butter/oil to your scrambled egg? The entry for scrambled egg says 70 calories, which would be just the egg without anything else added. See what I'm saying?
  • LishieFruit89
    LishieFruit89 Posts: 1,956 Member
    so one of the best things that I have discovered that you can do is eat smaller multiple meals a day, and if you exercise try and eat back your calories, eating one or two meals a day causes your blood sugar levels to fluctuate drastically which will eventually inhibit you from loosing any weight. Eating 5 or 6 meals a day (which i see you have your diary set up to do) keeps your blood sugar levels stable and your metabolism running high (think of it as feeding a fire). on another note, I cant see how much sugar you are consuming daily but it might be a good idea to start tracking your sugar intake...good luck!

    No. Just, no.


    If you are going to disagree with him can you please explain why? Because that is kind of how I was always thought to lose weight, if there is other schools of thought I would like to know

    Its a fallacy that one must eat smaller frequent meals throughout the day.

    If it works for you and keeps you successful, go for it.
    But for some, it causes them to always be thinling about food and create an unhealthy mindset.

    Plenty of people are successful eating one or two meals a day and for only a certain portion of the day. Its called intermittent fasting
  • ILiftHeavyAcrylics
    ILiftHeavyAcrylics Posts: 27,732 Member
    so one of the best things that I have discovered that you can do is eat smaller multiple meals a day, and if you exercise try and eat back your calories, eating one or two meals a day causes your blood sugar levels to fluctuate drastically which will eventually inhibit you from loosing any weight. Eating 5 or 6 meals a day (which i see you have your diary set up to do) keeps your blood sugar levels stable and your metabolism running high (think of it as feeding a fire). on another note, I cant see how much sugar you are consuming daily but it might be a good idea to start tracking your sugar intake...good luck!

    No. Just, no.


    If you are going to disagree with him can you please explain why? Because that is kind of how I was always thought to lose weight, if there is other schools of thought I would like to know

    Meal timing has little to no effect on weight loss. Some find that 6 meals is better for adherence and performance (I am one of those) but others find that they do better if they skip breakfast or only eat once per day. The best plan is the one to which you'll stick long term. Your metabolism does not need to be stoked.

    Sugar is fine in the context of an otherwise healthy diet with the right calorie intake. I've lost all of my weight going over sugar every day. Also, MFP's sugar limit is basically useless because it is set to the recommended amount of added sugar, but then it counts ALL sugar toward that amount. One piece of fruit and you're over. Instead I'd just track carbs. If your carbs are in line then your sugar is too, unless you've got a health issue that requires limiting sugar.
  • AllezAllez1
    AllezAllez1 Posts: 4 Member
    Get more exercise, and push yourself harder when you work out. You are only raising your HR twice per week
  • ILiftHeavyAcrylics
    ILiftHeavyAcrylics Posts: 27,732 Member
    Also you're in the healthy range for your height, so at this point it's just going to be a matter of patience and consistency.
  • LishieFruit89
    LishieFruit89 Posts: 1,956 Member
    Do you normally only eat one or two meals a day?? That was a problem for me! Now I drink shakes in the morning because I don't like cooking/eating in the mornings.

    If you don't want to consume food in the AM, dont.
    You dont have to eat nreakfast to be successful.
    I'd rather save my calories for lunch and dinner.
    So I have coffee and water. And at like 930am, ill have a hard boiled egg and have more calories at lunch and dinner.
  • twixlepennie
    twixlepennie Posts: 1,074 Member
    so one of the best things that I have discovered that you can do is eat smaller multiple meals a day, and if you exercise try and eat back your calories, eating one or two meals a day causes your blood sugar levels to fluctuate drastically which will eventually inhibit you from loosing any weight. Eating 5 or 6 meals a day (which i see you have your diary set up to do) keeps your blood sugar levels stable and your metabolism running high (think of it as feeding a fire). on another note, I cant see how much sugar you are consuming daily but it might be a good idea to start tracking your sugar intake...good luck!

    No. Just, no.


    If you are going to disagree with him can you please explain why? Because that is kind of how I was always thought to lose weight, if there is other schools of thought I would like to know

    Meal timing/number of meals is a preference thing and nothing more. Eating frequent meals as a way to 'boost' metabolism has been debunked. Just do a search here on MFP and you'll find lots of threads about this subject.

    Also, unless you have a medical condition there's nothing wrong with sugar, as long as you stay within your allotted calorie range.
  • mdiaz0188
    mdiaz0188 Posts: 20 Member
    so one of the best things that I have discovered that you can do is eat smaller multiple meals a day, and if you exercise try and eat back your calories, eating one or two meals a day causes your blood sugar levels to fluctuate drastically which will eventually inhibit you from loosing any weight. Eating 5 or 6 meals a day (which i see you have your diary set up to do) keeps your blood sugar levels stable and your metabolism running high (think of it as feeding a fire). on another note, I cant see how much sugar you are consuming daily but it might be a good idea to start tracking your sugar intake...good luck!

    No. Just, no.


    If you are going to disagree with him can you please explain why? Because that is kind of how I was always thought to lose weight, if there is other schools of thought I would like to know

    Its a fallacy that one must eat smaller frequent meals throughout the day.

    If it works for you and keeps you successful, go for it.
    But for some, it causes them to always be thinling about food and create an unhealthy mindset.

    Plenty of people are successful eating one or two meals a day and for only a certain portion of the day. Its called intermittent fasting



    Agreed! If it works for you - GREAT! If it doesn't then DON'T EVEN ATTEMPT! I can't do it, I prefer my 3 meals a day and IF and that's only IF I do happen to get hungry during the day I'll have a snack but 5 small meals a day is def not for me! I tried doing this for a while and I pretty much ended up over-eating....I would snack here and there thinking that since they were small meals, no damage done...I started noticing that I wasn't losing any weight at the time...and I started realizing that all these snacks were adding up... although they were healthy choices like fruits and bars, etc...they still have plenty sugar to help get you off track...in my case every little bit of sugar counts..I'm 4'11 and 93-95lbs and try to keep my cal intake at about 1200 a day...! When I eat a substantial meal, it pretty much keeps me going till the next meal time and rarely have that desire to snack in between. But as stated, everyone is different, if that works for you by all means go for it, but if it doesn't then def reconsider ! Good luck! :)
  • gramarye
    gramarye Posts: 586 Member
    Are you entering your own recipes? I see a lot of entries that are like "potatoes fried in oil" and I'm wondering whether you use the recipe builder or if you're just using someone else's database entries.

    I'd do it like this:

    Raw Russet Potato-- 225 grams
    Vegetable oil-- 2 tbsp

    That way you know exactly how much potatoes and how much oil.

    Do you add milk or butter/oil to your scrambled egg? The entry for scrambled egg says 70 calories, which would be just the egg without anything else added. See what I'm saying?

    Seconding this; I add every component for my meals separately, since I rarely follow recipes exactly and change how I cook most meals. (Except my eggs. I make my eggs the same every single time, because they are incredible. XD)
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
    so one of the best things that I have discovered that you can do is eat smaller multiple meals a day, and if you exercise try and eat back your calories, eating one or two meals a day causes your blood sugar levels to fluctuate drastically which will eventually inhibit you from loosing any weight. Eating 5 or 6 meals a day (which i see you have your diary set up to do) keeps your blood sugar levels stable and your metabolism running high (think of it as feeding a fire). on another note, I cant see how much sugar you are consuming daily but it might be a good idea to start tracking your sugar intake...good luck!

    first ever post contains bro-science...

    OP - go ahead and disregard this..
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
    like others said, you have incomplete days and inconsistent logging..

    I would recommend the following. For a month weigh/log/measure all your food and accurately input it into MFP, and eat 1800 calories a day. If you gain, the you are in surplus and need to reduce, if you lose then you are in deficit and are good; if you do not gain or lose then you are in maintenance and need to cut from this number.

    You cannot spot reduce fat, it will come off from where it wants. If you want the leaner look..then you will need to eat in a deficit, work out (I would go with compound movements and lift heavy), and hit your macros (would recommend 40p/30f/30c)....

    you really only need to train abs like once a week ...cardio is helpful but not necessary.
  • TEMMEAlexa
    TEMMEAlexa Posts: 79 Member
    I don't know exactly what is your daily routine, but I would recommend that to get a diet plan and stick to it. Take your workouts easily and slowly, but with passion. Salad, skimmed milk, etc. is good. Also, you can eat healthy fats to give you energy for those workout sessions.