What am I doing wrong?

MamaShalyn
MamaShalyn Posts: 9
in Health and Weight Loss
I'm eating the amount of calories MFP tells me to, and exercising (30 day shred) at least 4 times per week. Not losing anything most weeks, and last week I finally had a loss of 0.4 lbs. I started out doing 1200 calories/day and wasn't losing, so I went through the MFP recommendation and it said 1400 (if I put in lightly active) and 1200 for sedentary. I am a stay at home mom so I do sit some, but I'm on my feet a lot too.

Why am I not losing weight? I have never stuck to the exercise like I am this time and I've always lost before. I'm getting so frustrated I feel like giving up. I know that's not the right answer but I can't help but feel a little defeated :-(

Replies

  • markbarefoot
    markbarefoot Posts: 2
    Did you measure yourself at the start of your diet? And do you mix up your foods? I started using MFP in Jan this year (and I've been battling with weight for 30+ years). At the start I dropped quite a bit, which is the norm, and now am losing about .5kg a week. I have also started back on my crosstrainer to see the effects.

    Don't give up - I think if your loss plateaus you should look at making changes to your food/exercise regime?
  • Arranna1212
    Arranna1212 Posts: 143 Member
    Make sure you have a food scale and get a measuring tape. Quite a few people lost inches while doing that and not weight.
  • Of_Monsters_and_Meat
    Of_Monsters_and_Meat Posts: 1,022 Member
    Open your diary

    reset MFP goals to 0.5 lbs loss per week
    (Or figure out BMR and TDEE, use 10-20% under TDEE, but over bmr method)

    Make sure you are accurate in weighing and tracking everything you eat

    Eat back what you burn on 30 day shred.
  • MB2MN
    MB2MN Posts: 334 Member
    Can you open up your diary? Are you measuring/weighing your food? If you're eating 1200-1400 a day you will lose so I suspect you are eating more than you think.
  • Azchange
    Azchange Posts: 110 Member
    All about the deficit. You are either UNDER estimating your calorie intake or OVER estimating your calorie burn. Most likely both. I walk about 4 miles per day at work, and do HIIT 4-5 times a week for 45 minutes and set my activity to light.

    Better to be safe than sorry, especially if you are not losing.
  • editorgrrl
    editorgrrl Posts: 7,060 Member
    The most common reasons are underestimating your food &/or overestimating your burns. Weigh your food. Eat back half your exercise calories.

    Read this: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1080242-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants
  • SezxyStef
    SezxyStef Posts: 15,267 Member
    Your diary isn't open so it is hard to say...

    So perhaps open it up??????

    If not then these will be standard questions...

    Do you use a kitchen scale and weigh your food?
    Do you measure liquids?
    How do you measure the burns from working out?
    Do you eat your exercise calories back?
    How long have you been doing the 30DS?

    If you aren't losing weight it's because chances are you are not in a calorie deficet and that happens due to not weighing portions and/or over estimating burns...
  • MB2MN
    MB2MN Posts: 334 Member
    Make sure you have a food scale and get a measuring tape. Quite a few people lost inches while doing that and not weight.

    If she is eating at that much of a deficit, she will lose weight.
  • redog01
    redog01 Posts: 22
    If you are doing the 30 day shred (I am too) you are probably gaining muscle which weighs more than fat. Try only weighing yourself once every two weeks and make sure to do measurements too. Add me as a friend if you like and there is also a 30 day shred group! Good luck and don't give up YOU CAN DO THIS!!!!
  • Phrick
    Phrick Posts: 2,765 Member
    If you're chasing after kid(s) day in and day out, and doing 30DS 4 days a week you're NOT sedentary. Knock that word right out of your vocabulary.

    a LOT of people see mad inch-loss but minimal to no pounds lost with the 30DS program (and other similar ones), it is a frequent topic of frustration on these boards. I'd definitely invest in a measuring tape and take your measurements as soon as possible, and weekly. You'll see progress there even if you don't see pounds lost on the scale. And really, isn't changing what you LOOK LIKE, what you are really aiming for? After all, YOU (and your doctor maybe) are the only ones who see your scale number - but EVERYONE sees your body shape!
  • SARgirl
    SARgirl Posts: 572 Member
    If you ticker is accurate then you have lost weight (8 lbs) congrats! I think people start to feel defeated when they feel that they are not progressing as quickly as they think they should. How long do you go before you "give up"? It generally takes a minimum of 4-6 weeks to start seeing progress so if you aren't being consistent for at least that amount of time then that could play a part as well. Also are you weighing/measuring your foods? This was a huge thing for me! What I thought was a tablespoon of PB and what actually was were two very different amounts!
  • wilsoje74
    wilsoje74 Posts: 1,720 Member
    Can't gain muscle on a deficit. You are most likely eating too much
  • jvl1973
    jvl1973 Posts: 36 Member
    I would open your food diary so we can see what you are eating and the amount. Also, I would take measurements and before/after pics. I know in the beginning, especially when I just started exercising, I didn't lose, but actually gained. My muscles were holding a lot of water. Also, how much water are you drinking? That was a huge problem for me. I hate plain water and wasn't drinking enough and that prevented me from losing weight too. Now I am drinking plenty of water and it has made a huge difference. I also don't always eat all of my exercise calories every day. I only eat them if I am hungry.

    FYI - I know many people say you should increase calories because not eating enough will prevent you from losing. I always found that to be not true - in my opinion. I eat 1200 calories a day if I don't exercise and sometimes eat more when I exercise a lot. I am losing when I am stricter.
  • RGv2
    RGv2 Posts: 5,789 Member
    If you are doing the 30 day shred (I am too) you are probably gaining muscle which weighs more than fat. Try only weighing yourself once every two weeks and make sure to do measurements too. Add me as a friend if you like and there is also a 30 day shred group! Good luck and don't give up YOU CAN DO THIS!!!!

    No, OP isn't gaining muscle.

    Sure, it's possible to gain muscle on a deficit, but that constitutes eating verify close to maintenance and putting in hrs of lifting heavy things (not a mainly cardio workout like 30DS). From there the gain in muscle would be measured in ounces, not lbs.

    When you start a new workout regimine, or increase the intensity of a current one your body will retain water for muscle repair, so a person many get smaller inches wise while they gain a little weight, or stay the same.
  • MB2MN
    MB2MN Posts: 334 Member
    If you are doing the 30 day shred (I am too) you are probably gaining muscle which weighs more than fat. Try only weighing yourself once every two weeks and make sure to do measurements too. Add me as a friend if you like and there is also a 30 day shred group! Good luck and don't give up YOU CAN DO THIS!!!!

    I'm sorry but this kind of drives me crazy! It takes MONTHS for women to put on a substantial amount of muscle (like 6 months to a year of lifting for 5lbs of muscle) and it is NOT done on a deficit. Think about it...if you're not eating a surplus of calories how can your body grow muscle?

    It might be glycogen stores which relate to the repairing of muscles from exercise (each gram of glycogen contains 2.7 grams of water so the more you have, the "heavier" you'll be). This is often why people on low carb diets experience a drastic drop in weight for the first few weeks...it isn't fat, carbs just create more glycogen in the body so if you don't eat them you will weigh less.

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