So not fair

knitwitch11
knitwitch11 Posts: 10
in Motivation and Support
Ok. So, we had this program at work and I started tracking food and exercise on MFP about a month ago. I am exercising daily at least 30 minutes...sometimes 1 hour...since we were iced in this week, i've been doing 2 programs daily on the elliptical (50-60 minutes) I do upper body weights 3-4 days a week -- except this week because of the ice.

I track everything i eat, no matter how small. I use my kitchen scale to make sure i get the correct portion sizes. I am drinking loads of water.

So why am i not losing any weight? I had a dip after the first week, but it was back to my "regular" weight shortly thereafter. Since then, I have weighed with 1-2 pounds of where i started. If my clothes were fitting better, I would be less concerned about the actual weight, but that isn't the case either. I am so discouraged.

Replies

  • wilsoje74
    wilsoje74 Posts: 1,720 Member
    Well how much Are you eating?
  • Chain_Ring
    Chain_Ring Posts: 753 Member
    You're probably eating too much.
  • FitMelody4Life
    FitMelody4Life Posts: 106 Member
    Without a whole lot more info its tough for anyone to be of much help... make your diary public so we can look at it for starters.
  • KeepCalmNGetyaSweatOn
    KeepCalmNGetyaSweatOn Posts: 361 Member
    How do you expect a honest answer if your diary isn't open for people to view?
  • mccindy72
    mccindy72 Posts: 7,001 Member
    Ok. So, we had this program at work and I started tracking food and exercise on MFP about a month ago. I am exercising daily at least 30 minutes...sometimes 1 hour...since we were iced in this week, i've been doing 2 programs daily on the elliptical (50-60 minutes) I do upper body weights 3-4 days a week -- except this week because of the ice.

    I track everything i eat, no matter how small. I use my kitchen scale to make sure i get the correct portion sizes. I am drinking loads of water.

    So why am i not losing any weight? I had a dip after the first week, but it was back to my "regular" weight shortly thereafter. Since then, I have weighed with 1-2 pounds of where i started. If my clothes were fitting better, I would be less concerned about the actual weight, but that isn't the case either. I am so discouraged.

    Open your diary, and also I'd wager you are overestimating the calorie burn for your exercise.
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
    It's normal not to lose weight if you just start exercising... give it some time.
  • mccindy72
    mccindy72 Posts: 7,001 Member
    It's normal not to lose weight if you just start exercising... give it some time.

    um.... wut? for a month? at a calorie deficit? how much time do you want her to give it? She needs to open her diary and make adjustments.
  • Starfish1125
    Starfish1125 Posts: 169 Member
    We can't help if you don't open your diary.

    You're either over estimating your exercise burn or under estimating your calories. Or you're not eating enough......
  • mccindy72
    mccindy72 Posts: 7,001 Member
    We can't help if you don't open your diary.

    You're either over estimating your exercise burn or under estimating your calories. Or you're not eating enough......

    Why would you say she's not eating enough when she's not losing weight? The point is to be helpful. If she's not losing weight, she's not eating in a calorie deficit, period.
  • bumblebreezy91
    bumblebreezy91 Posts: 520 Member
    Okay, so you're exercising. But how much are you eating? Your diary is closed and you didn't say. You can't out-exercise a bad diet, you could be overestimating your calories burned, you could be retaining water from all that new exercise (and maybe sodium if you're over in that), etc.
  • pursuittofit
    pursuittofit Posts: 97 Member
    [/quote]
    'Why would you say she's not eating enough when she's not losing weight? The point is to be helpful. If she's not losing weight, she's not eating in a calorie deficit, period.'
    [/quote]

    Well, she still could be in too big deficit?
  • Lizzy622
    Lizzy622 Posts: 3,705 Member
    If you weren't a big exerciser and just started, it could be your muscles getting used to the extra work. There is some inflammation and it could take more than a month to get rid of it and the extra water. Results are usually slow.
  • mccindy72
    mccindy72 Posts: 7,001 Member
    'Why would you say she's not eating enough when she's not losing weight? The point is to be helpful. If she's not losing weight, she's not eating in a calorie deficit, period.'
    [/quote]

    Well, she still could be in too big deficit?
    [/quote]

    Um, WUT?!?
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    Possibilities...

    1) You're eating at maintenance...either your calorie goal is actually maintenance or you are underestimating your intake somehow and/or overestimating calorie burn from exercise.

    2) Hormonal imbalances can make weight loss difficult and excruciatingly slow

    3) Nutrient deficiencies often cause #2

    4) Another more serious medical condition

    5) A food allergy or something else that is otherwise jacking with your metabolism

    Remember that these calculators are just starting points. The calorie goals it spits out are based on statistical averages of individuals of similar stats...it is quite possible that you fall outside of those statistical averages for whatever reason...basically 2-5 above or you just have a slower metabolism due to less muscle mass than average or whatever. Point being that this is just a starting point...you have to make adjustments as per real world results.
  • fast_eddie_72
    fast_eddie_72 Posts: 719 Member
    Or you're not eating enough......


    Aahhhhhhhhh!
    Well, she still could be in too big deficit?

    Not losing weight means no deficit at all. Too big a deficit would cause healthy problems, but you'd lose weight. When people starve they get real, real, scary, unhealthy, skinny. Organs can fail, their brains get wacky, but they get skinny. Bad, bad way to lose weight. But not losing weight means no calorie deficit.
  • Cohen12345
    Cohen12345 Posts: 12 Member
    i think you eating all the workout calories
  • knitwitch11
    knitwitch11 Posts: 10
    Sorry, I am still new to this. Where can i make my diary public? I did go over a couple of days, but not by more than a couple hundred. Most days, I am under the count that MFP says I should be eating. As for how i am "estimating" workout calories, both of the cardio machines that I use have calories burned. On the elliptical, I read somewhere that it assumes an average size person of 150 lbs for the calorie count and since I weigh more than that, I assume that the real calorie count may be a bit higher but not enough to worry about. On the treadmill, I can enter my weight directly, so i record the amount it says.
  • GeekdGirl
    GeekdGirl Posts: 218 Member
    Sorry, I am still new to this. Where can i make my diary public?

    Click on "Settings" at the very top of the page. Then click on "Diary Settings". At the bottom of that page, under Diary Sharing, select "Public". Prepare for lots of opinions.
  • mccindy72
    mccindy72 Posts: 7,001 Member
    Sorry, I am still new to this. Where can i make my diary public? I did go over a couple of days, but not by more than a couple hundred. Most days, I am under the count that MFP says I should be eating. As for how i am "estimating" workout calories, both of the cardio machines that I use have calories burned. On the elliptical, I read somewhere that it assumes an average size person of 150 lbs for the calorie count and since I weigh more than that, I assume that the real calorie count may be a bit higher but not enough to worry about. On the treadmill, I can enter my weight directly, so i record the amount it says.

    Machine almost always overestimate the calories burned. So does MFP. Your best bet is to get a good quality heart rate monitor with a chest strap and use that to get a good estimate of calorie burn. Do you use a food scale to weigh all of your solid food? If you are only measuring it, it is very likely that you are underestimating your calories as well. Here's a good example
    On a carton of Quaker Oats, it say the serving size is 1/2 cup or 40 grams for 150 calories. But when you measure out 1/2 cup of the oats and then weigh them, you will find that a full 1/2 cup is actually about 55 grams, which comes out to 206.25 calories. That's 56 more calories than you thought you were eating with just one food. Fruits are just as inaccurate - if you are going by size, as in one medium apple - and then you weigh an apple, you can have three different apples that would all appear to be medium sized, and they can all have very different weights, for very different calorie counts. It's crucial to weigh all of your food to be as accurate as possible or you can be eating hundreds of calories more than you thought you were.
  • knitwitch11
    knitwitch11 Posts: 10
    Sorry, I am still new to this. Where can i make my diary public? I did go over a couple of days, but not by more than a couple hundred. Most days, I am under the count that MFP says I should be eating. As for how i am "estimating" workout calories, both of the cardio machines that I use have calories burned. On the elliptical, I read somewhere that it assumes an average size person of 150 lbs for the calorie count and since I weigh more than that, I assume that the real calorie count may be a bit higher but not enough to worry about. On the treadmill, I can enter my weight directly, so i record the amount it says.

    Machine almost always overestimate the calories burned. So does MFP. Your best bet is to get a good quality heart rate monitor with a chest strap and use that to get a good estimate of calorie burn. Do you use a food scale to weigh all of your solid food? If you are only measuring it, it is very likely that you are underestimating your calories as well. Here's a good example
    On a carton of Quaker Oats, it say the serving size is 1/2 cup or 40 grams for 150 calories. But when you measure out 1/2 cup of the oats and then weigh them, you will find that a full 1/2 cup is actually about 55 grams, which comes out to 206.25 calories. That's 56 more calories than you thought you were eating with just one food. Fruits are just as inaccurate - if you are going by size, as in one medium apple - and then you weigh an apple, you can have three different apples that would all appear to be medium sized, and they can all have very different weights, for very different calorie counts. It's crucial to weigh all of your food to be as accurate as possible or you can be eating hundreds of calories more than you thought you were.


    I actually do weigh out everything. i am getting pretty ocd about that. i haven't been eating out much and on the day we did, i picked similar items from mfp with the highest calorie counts since i wasn't sure what the actual is. i actually got something from a place last week and took it home and weighed it again to make sure it was the same size the web said it was.

    can anyone recommend a heart monitor? we wear pedometers for work (virgin pulse program) and i routinely have more than 12000 steps. i am trying to get as much activity as i can every day. my doctor wrote an order for a thyroid draw. he also gave me an article that says it may be less what you eat as opposed to when you eat. unfortunately my schedule doesn't really lend itself to strict schedules. :(
  • meritage4
    meritage4 Posts: 1,441 Member
    Your profile says you have lost 6 lbs. That's pretty good for a month.
  • eldamiano
    eldamiano Posts: 2,667 Member
    Ok. So, we had this program at work and I started tracking food and exercise on MFP about a month ago. I am exercising daily at least 30 minutes...sometimes 1 hour...since we were iced in this week, i've been doing 2 programs daily on the elliptical (50-60 minutes) I do upper body weights 3-4 days a week -- except this week because of the ice.

    I track everything i eat, no matter how small. I use my kitchen scale to make sure i get the correct portion sizes. I am drinking loads of water.

    So why am i not losing any weight? I had a dip after the first week, but it was back to my "regular" weight shortly thereafter. Since then, I have weighed with 1-2 pounds of where i started. If my clothes were fitting better, I would be less concerned about the actual weight, but that isn't the case either. I am so discouraged.

    Unfair? You are not entitled to lose weight because you think you are on some sort of plan.

    It sounds like you are not recording properly. Overestimating your exercise/underestimating your food intake.
  • knitwitch11
    knitwitch11 Posts: 10
    you know, that was uncalled for and very rude. if you don't have anything helpful to contribute, don't bother. personally i hope your karma comes back to you in spades.
  • levitateme
    levitateme Posts: 999 Member
    There's no way you're burning 700 calories a day. I do HIIT and burn about 400 per half hour. You are probably eating more than you should because you are overestimating your calorie burns.
  • eldamiano
    eldamiano Posts: 2,667 Member
    you know, that was uncalled for and very rude. if you don't have anything helpful to contribute, don't bother. personally i hope your karma comes back to you in spades.

    Are you referring to my comment? (as mine was the one preceding)
  • MinnieInMaine
    MinnieInMaine Posts: 6,400 Member
    1) Your ticker says you've lost 6 pounds...that's not nothing. For the amount of weight you have to lose, 1 pound per week is completely normal and reasonable and healthy. Any more than that is unrealistic.

    2) Cardio machines will overestimate by 30-50%. Even if you enter certain stats (age, weight), they can still be off by quite a bit because they're missing other vital data like gender, height, etc. Either get an HRM (the Polar FT4 is a decent model, pretty popular around here) or only plan on eating back 50-75% of the calories the machines give you.
  • neelia
    neelia Posts: 750 Member
    Machines and MFP almost always overestimate the amount of calories burned, which is why I don't eat back my exercise calories. There are some days I go over, but I always try to get a workout in to make the "sting" less of a sting. LOL

    I also agree with another poster that 6 lbs is not "nothing". I have been at a plateau here for several months (like, 5 months) and would KILL to be losing 6 lbs right now.

    AND, don't let the haters get you down. There is really no need to open your food diary if you are just looking for general advice and support. If you're not losing, it's possible you are overestimating your calories burned, you're eating too much (or too little, possibly), or many, many, many other factors. What you need to remember is that this is a slow process and you will succeed if you just stick with it.

    You've got this! :drinker:
  • knitwitch11
    knitwitch11 Posts: 10
    1) Your ticker says you've lost 6 pounds...that's not nothing. For the amount of weight you have to lose, 1 pound per week is completely normal and reasonable and healthy. Any more than that is unrealistic.

    2) Cardio machines will overestimate by 30-50%. Even if you enter certain stats (age, weight), they can still be off by quite a bit because they're missing other vital data like gender, height, etc. Either get an HRM (the Polar FT4 is a decent model, pretty popular around here) or only plan on eating back 50-75% of the calories the machines give you.

    I don't know if the ticker thing is accurate. I changed the batteries in my scale and my weight was higher. I know i should pick a day to weigh myself and stick to it, but i end up weighing myself several times a day anyway. I will look into the Polar FT4 though... I appreciate the recommendation! Thanks.
  • knitwitch11
    knitwitch11 Posts: 10
    Machines and MFP almost always overestimate the amount of calories burned, which is why I don't eat back my exercise calories. There are some days I go over, but I always try to get a workout in to make the "sting" less of a sting. LOL

    I also agree with another poster that 6 lbs is not "nothing". I have been at a plateau here for several months (like, 5 months) and would KILL to be losing 6 lbs right now.

    AND, don't let the haters get you down. There is really no need to open your food diary if you are just looking for general advice and support. If you're not losing, it's possible you are overestimating your calories burned, you're eating too much (or too little, possibly), or many, many, many other factors. What you need to remember is that this is a slow process and you will succeed if you just stick with it.

    You've got this! :drinker:

    Thanks!!! I am just not sure what my actual weight is/was. Changed out the batteries in the scale and it's reading differently now. Actually the pounds don't concern me as much, it's the fit of my clothes i was hoping to see some change in. I am going to look at getting something that's a bit more accurate on calories burned and I think i will quit trying to eat up to what MFP says I should. I guess I'll try that for a month and see what happens.

    I guess the reason that i feel i should be losing more is because this was a pretty extreme change in lifestyle. I used to exercise 3-4 times per week, but I wasn't keeping with a very strict diet...and there was some binging going on. So i feel like i have come a long way in my habits and really would just like to see it reflected a little bit in the mirror.

    I do appreciate the advice. Best of luck .. I don't know if would help, but I read an article about plateau-ing and they actually advised an increase in calories for a brief amount of time just to get everything working again... I've never tried it, but it might be something to research.

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