Can going over sodium thwart diet success?

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mxmkenney
mxmkenney Posts: 486 Member
in Introduce Yourself
I have been doing MFP for a while and I have hit a point where I have stopped losing weight. It's been about 4 weeks at the same weight. I feel like I have been dong everything right - I have been netting at or below my caloric goal of 1500 which (for me) means I should have been losing roughly a pound a week. I have been exercising 3-4 days a week for 60 minutes. I still have 20 pounds to lose to be at my goal, so it's not like I am super-close to where it gets more difficult to lose weight yet...

I recently changed my food diary settings to track my sodium intake which I am finding is usually 500 to 1000 above where MFP say it should be. Could that be why I'm not losing???

It seems like there is sodium in everything, minus fruit and veggies. If sodium could be the culprit, does anyone have suggestions on how to stay under the recommended 2000 mg of sodium per day?

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  • diannethegeek
    diannethegeek Posts: 14,776 Member
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    High sodium intake can lead to water retention, which can cause spikes and stalls on the scale, but shouldn't affect fat loss.

    Would you be comfortable opening your diary so that we can take a look and see if someone can spot what's going wrong? (settings > diary settings > public)

    Have you double checked that you're tracking accurately? Are you using a food scale, measuring cups, or eyeballing portion sizes? Are you using a heart rate monitor to estimate your calorie burn during exercise or MFP/gym machine estimates?
  • hazenson
    hazenson Posts: 22 Member
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    Ive gotten down to my last 20 pounds before and thats right where it stalled for me too. Ya may have gotten used to your workout or may have to leave a few more calories on the table. Also all that Dianne said-- = )
  • acogg
    acogg Posts: 1,870 Member
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    You will need to give more information, such as your height, current weight and goal weight and calorie intake for anyone to suggest a reason for your stall. If you are already pretty small, sodium will only effect you with a pound or three fluctuation. Unless you are under a doctor's order to reduce sodium, taking in 2500 mg. is not only not bad, it is good. After I put myself on a low sodium diet for several months, my blood work reported that I was slightly low on sodium. My doctor explained to me that sodium is an important electrolyte and too low is also bad.
  • mxmkenney
    mxmkenney Posts: 486 Member
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    Ok, I changed my food diary setting to public.

    I'm 5'10" and currently 173 lbs. I do weigh/measure most of what I eat, if I can. If I eat out, I tend to over-estimate rather than under-estimate on portion size and calories. I do not wear a heart rate monitor. I go off of what MFP says for exercise (usually "stationary bike, moderate" , "running 11 mph", or "walking 3.5 mph"). I do eat back some of my work out calories, but usually not more than half. Just getting frustrated that I am working hard but not seeing results...
  • mxmkenney
    mxmkenney Posts: 486 Member
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    Thanks for the suggestions, I will look into using a HR monitor. Is the fit bit any good?

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