How do you stay patient when not seeing results??

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  • _rachel_k
    _rachel_k Posts: 243 Member
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    So then what does everyone think my calorie intake should be?

    BTW I'm going to the dr tomorrow morning to request a test for my thyroid.
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
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    http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/ will give you a good approximation of how much you should eat depending on your activity and exercise.
  • PatheticNoetic
    PatheticNoetic Posts: 905 Member
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  • deksgrl
    deksgrl Posts: 7,237 Member
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    I stay patient because I know quitting means I will never get anywhere.

    If you do not weigh/log everything that you eat, then you truly have no idea how much you are really eating. You can have the perfect amount of calories as a target but if you are winging it on the logging, then you won't have any consistent results.

    Set TDEE - 20%, or set MFP to lose 1 pound a week, eat that plus exercise calories.
  • Autk79
    Autk79 Posts: 283 Member
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    At one time I lost 15 pounds fast and then couldnt lose a pound for months. So I measured myself . I had went from a size 13 to a size 6. So maybe your just losing measurements. I would measure yourself and dont get on the scale a couple weeks
  • qstneverything
    qstneverything Posts: 125 Member
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    I stay patient knowing that if I don't, it's better than what I was doing before, which was eating my way to obesity.

    If I wasn't seeing results, I'd lower my calorie intake. Does MFP tell you to be eating as much as you are? Are you in an active job? As deksgrl said, maybe up how much weight you want to lose per week. I manage on 1200-1400 a day, but usually exercise my way to 1200 if I've eaten more.
  • deksgrl
    deksgrl Posts: 7,237 Member
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    I stay patient knowing that if I don't, it's better than what I was doing before, which was eating my way to obesity.

    If I wasn't seeing results, I'd lower my calorie intake. Does MFP tell you to be eating as much as you are? Are you in an active job? As deksgrl said, maybe up how much weight you want to lose per week. I manage on 1200-1400 a day, but usually exercise my way to 1200 if I've eaten more.

    That's not exactly what I said. I recommended she set it for 1 pound a week, thinking that if she was set for 2 pounds, she should lower it to one, which would result in more calories, not less.
  • martinytime
    martinytime Posts: 41 Member
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    I noticed you are consistently over in carbs and sugar...try cutting back those 2 things some and you might see a change. I don't think the T25 burns enough calories to be eating as many as you are. Good Luck on what the doctor says.
  • _rachel_k
    _rachel_k Posts: 243 Member
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    I know I missed a bunch of replies. I know I have to keep chugging along. I'm afraid if I stop working out and eat 1600 calories that my weight will keep going up! But I also don't want to spend the next 5-10 weeks (I also have T25 Gamma) working out to see NO results at all. I took measurements on Feb 2nd and used my scale to get a body fat % (I know it's not 100% accurate, but maybe it'll help)

    cjh77: That's cute
    deksgrl: my TDEE (3-5 days of exercise) - 20% is 2041 calories.I am winging it on the logging but on days I don't log, it doesn't mean I'm not still weighing and measuring. For 2 weeks I ate eggs for breakfast with a grapefruit and chicken and rice and veggies for lunch and yogurt and cheese for snacks. the yogurt and cheese are all the single serving portions. My after workout shake is ALWAYS the same
    Francl27: these are the results from your link BMR: 1633 TDEE: 2563 Daily calories based on goal in step 6: 2050 and that's only if I do my T25 and not my dodgeball weekly (plus the walks and stuff I do with my BF that I don't count)
    Autk79: I wish. My work jeans fit as tight now as they did 3 weeks ago when I pulled them out of the drawer. Of course that is more belly wise, I can't tell if the legs are any looser.
  • _rachel_k
    _rachel_k Posts: 243 Member
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    martinytime: I'm over on carbs because my macros aren't set properly. I'm over % wise but my grams are exactly where I'm told they should be. I always have a hard time setting my macros (sigh)
  • albayin
    albayin Posts: 2,524 Member
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    I have a group of "virtual friends" on a forum who share the same goal and frustrations with me. We just go there and whine. then life goes on. Surprisingly it does help me stay focused and motivated. LOL
  • Llamapants86
    Llamapants86 Posts: 1,221 Member
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    I have multiple metrics so that I can usually find a silver lining some where. If it is really the scale you need to see move then I would set my net to 1700 for 4 weeks and see what happens, jumping all over the place isn't going to give you consistent data to draw any usable or reliable conclusions from. That and make sure you are being accurate and honest, including weighing out (and recording) everything that you eat (I had issues for awhile found out that the "little bit of ketchup or bbq sauce here and there was erasing my deficit).
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,874 Member
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    ...I haven't lost weight eating 1600 or 1900 calories a day...

    Your diary shows 2 days of 2000 calories and then a whole lot of unlogged days.

    Bottom line: you're eating too much for your activity level.

    This... even though you say you eat the same thing daily, it's very easy to miscount if you aren't logging. Also, my TDEE calculations have you around 2200 calories, so it's possible you are near maintenance.

    ^^^this...I believe you were overestimating your activity level to arrive at your TDEE number. Remember, all of this is estimation and trial and error...nobody has a TDEE of exactly XXXX calories all of the time.

    I'd agree that your TDEE is probably closer to 2200 calories...so if you're actually consuming 1900 calories, you only have about 1/2 Lb per week deficit built in there. For one thing, that's going to be pretty hard to see just week to week as any fat loss with that small of a deficit can be masked by water and waste...and secondly, it gives very little room for error...which means that on days you are going over, you're pretty much at maintenance and who knows on the other days you aren't logging.

    Really, for calorie counting to work, you have to actually count the calories. You say that you're just eating the same thing, etc...but calorie creep is very easy and you have pretty much no wiggle room for error. Personally, I'd get that all straightened out and get my consistency on and then I'd go from there.
  • LVCeltGirl
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    I power through it. To give you stats so you know where my advice is coming from, I'm 44 female, current weight 237.4 lbs and eating at MFP recommended of 1270 calories, while still finding my perfect macros. I eat back at least half my exercise calories when I do exercise (single mom and son's homework takes precedence over the gym). I've lost 39 pounds since June 2013. I am a daily weigher because I cannot stay away from my scale either. It doesn't budge sometimes, and other than that, it goes up and down constantly. Some of what helps me is drinking plenty of water (not diet soda, not unsweetened tea, not undoctored coffee but water). For me that's 1/2 my body weight in ounces daily (okay actually it's just over that 1/2), so @ 237.4 lbs, I should be drinking at least 118.70 ounces of water daily. I just attempt to drink 1 gallon (or 128 ounces) of water daily. I do have my Coke Zero, and/or unsweetened tea but I do not count those as "water" daily. I try to get at least 7 hours of sleep nightly. Now realize that if I do not get the minimum sleep or I do not drink enough water, then I can guarantee a gain or stay the same on the scale.

    Weight loss isn't linear. Yes, it's important to rule out any medical conditions but barring those, you might just need to change up your macros including daily calories. You might be one of those people that need to really watch carbs because your body doesn't process them correctly. Or maybe it's a gluten (wheat) sensitivity. I know people that have to eat low carb, high protein and others that work better on the high carb, low fat. Everyone is different and the guidelines of one of the diets like Atkins, South Beach, Paleo Diet, or even the Zone diet might work for you. It could even be that you just need to use one of those diets to kick start it and then find your rhythm. Weight loss isn't an exact science either. A lot of trial and error to find out what works for your body.

    From what I remember of your stats, you are closer to "ideal" weight than you realize (20 to 30 lbs from the high end of the range) so you're going to lose a bit more slowly than say me who is still closer to 70 lbs from the high end of that range. And from what I understand, watch out when you enter that range because then it gets even slower (those last 10 are the worst from what I keep reading but even they can be achieved).

    You can do it!
  • psych101
    psych101 Posts: 1,842 Member
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    Really, for calorie counting to work, you have to actually count the calories. You say that you're just eating the same thing, etc...but calorie creep is very easy and you have pretty much no wiggle room for error. Personally, I'd get that all straightened out and get my consistency on and then I'd go from there.


    ^^ This. you really have to knuckle down and count your calories to ensure that your intake is what you think it is
  • _rachel_k
    _rachel_k Posts: 243 Member
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    Whether I log it or not, for 2 weeks I ate the same 2 eggs, approx the same grapefruit, the same 2 oz of chicken breast, the same 1/2 cup of rice, the same 170 g of baby carrots, the same 2 cheese strings, the same 2 yogurts, the same scoops of protein powder, glutamine and amino acid recovery because even though I didn't log it I measured it. Everyday.
  • meshashesha2012
    meshashesha2012 Posts: 8,326 Member
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    i have other fitness related goals besides weight loss. i always see results for those.

    and since i know that i can't defy physics i know that even if if i dont see a scale loss in a week if i'm eating at a deficit then the laws of the known physical universe tell me that there will be a loss in mass.
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,398 MFP Moderator
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    Whether I log it or not, for 2 weeks I ate the same 2 eggs, approx the same grapefruit, the same 2 oz of chicken breast, the same 1/2 cup of rice, the same 170 g of baby carrots, the same 2 cheese strings, the same 2 yogurts, the same scoops of protein powder, glutamine and amino acid recovery because even though I didn't log it I measured it. Everyday.

    How do you manage to only eat 2oz of chicken? That is like one chicken finger from most restaurants. Honestly, I would start you are 1700 calories 40% carbs, 30% protein and 30% fats. But you have to measure and weigh all your foods and log for one more to do a true analysis.

    Also, do you have any medical issues? Pcos, hypothyroidism, etc?
  • albayin
    albayin Posts: 2,524 Member
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    I haven't seen any result for over a year with all this calorie counting, weight training, cardio, and other stuff, but if I stop, I will look worse...I don't want to be worse than I already am...