what am I doing wrong

2

Replies

  • Twigglete
    Twigglete Posts: 4 Member
    Muscle does not weigh more than fat. 1 pound of muscle weighs the same as one pound of feathers, or one pound of anything. It just looks different.
  • missfree33
    missfree33 Posts: 19
    Muscle weighs more than fat. As you build muscle you can actually gain some weight. So, combine calorie deficit and workouts to reach your goal. I agree with everyone else, you have to measure all your food and record calories accurately. I also think that sometimes the calories MFP assigns to exercise/activities is too high. I usually record less exercise than I actually do, and have found a balance that lets me lose one pound a week.
    So if musle weighs more than fat then could that explain my gain?
  • missfree33
    missfree33 Posts: 19
    If muscle weighs more than fat then could that explain my gain. I definitely look smaller even my fiancee says my waist is smaller and my clothes fit better but the scale says I've put on lbs. I weight train a quite bit especially on my legs, back, glutts, and arm's the only thing giggly on me is my belly I'm pretty tight other wise, so could be the issue?
  • sally884
    sally884 Posts: 51
    I would definenitly go with the number MFP gives and eat back 50-75% of cals.
    Sometimes people eat way to little for so long their body's just get into a rut...rev up your metabolism by eating more. It took my body 6 weeks to adjust to eating less (opposite of you) but showed me it can take time.

    I've noticed people on here saying to lose only 1/2 per week...can those people let
    Me know if this is what I should do? I've lost 8 and have 20 more to go and I'm
    At 1 lb a week and so hungry!!! Let
    Me know please!!!
  • missfree33
    missfree33 Posts: 19
    Well I just read that the whole muscle weighs more than fat is a myth a lb if muscle just looks Bette than a lb of fat I was so going that might explain the gain but it doesn't do back to the plan:ohwell:
  • sally884
    sally884 Posts: 51
    Use the scale and make your plan the day before or that morning then weight it before you go out. If I pack a lunch I weigh it and its very fast.
  • csontos
    csontos Posts: 76 Member
    Track your measurements along with your weight. Sometimes the scale won't budge much, but you will be losing inches and look slimmer.

    Weigh all of your food and log it accurately. Yes, all of it.

    If you want a more accurate estimate of your calories burned during steady state exercise, invest in a heart rate monitor. A lot of members here recommend the FT4 or FT7 by Polar, but you can shop around.

    Figuring out how many of your exercise calories you should be eating back will be a bit of an experiment. Some people eat all of them back, some only a portion, and some none of them. Over time, you'll get more in tune with your body and figure it out. I'd say start by eating half of the back for a few weeks and adjust from there.
  • kimmik22
    kimmik22 Posts: 1
    I'm seeing a nutritionist & she told me to eat 1500 calories per day & exercise everyday. Definitely work off more than you eat & DON'T EAT your exercise calories & you should lose weight. It helps to get a Heart Rate Monitor & use it while exercising - that way you know what you are burning off.
  • chargraves
    chargraves Posts: 65 Member
    .... Definitely work off more than you eat & DON'T EAT your exercise calories & you should lose weight.

    For the love of God, please do not follow this particular advice. The other posters have given you some very solid info. Best of luck to you.
  • missfree33
    missfree33 Posts: 19
    Don't know what's causing the fluctuations in my weight yesterday I weighed twice and was 190lbs today I'm back at 184 weighed myself twice once this morning and once this evening could the gain have been 5 lbs of fluid??
  • SLLRunner
    SLLRunner Posts: 12,942 Member
    I'm seeing a nutritionist & she told me to eat 1500 calories per day & exercise everyday. Definitely work off more than you eat & DON'T EAT your exercise calories & you should lose weight. It helps to get a Heart Rate Monitor & use it while exercising - that way you know what you are burning off.
    I lost 42 pounds while eating back my exercise calories. They fuel you body .
  • SLLRunner
    SLLRunner Posts: 12,942 Member
    Don't know what's causing the fluctuations in my weight yesterday I weighed twice and was 190lbs today I'm back at 184 weighed myself twice once this morning and once this evening could the gain have been 5 lbs of fluid??
    What you're describing is natural weight fluctuations. Is there a reason you weight yourself twice and at different times of the day?
  • missfree33
    missfree33 Posts: 19
    I hadn't weighed myself in a month so I decided to and when I saw the gain I was concerned that maybefI'd taken it at the wrong time of day and checked it again that evening. I checked again today only because I've been trying to make heads or tail of how I'd picked up the weight and if it was an error turns out it may be inaccurate maybe I didn't gain
  • MITTENPOP
    MITTENPOP Posts: 6 Member
    They say weight loss is 80% nutrition and 20% exercise. It's GREAT that you're so active, but make sure you are fueling your body with healthy food and not too many calories. Joining this site is a good first start. Make sure to log everything you eat and you'll see results. Good luck!
  • missfree33
    missfree33 Posts: 19
    I've been struggling with this very thing since i started on MFP! i have actually gained 2-3lbs since my starting weight. I just can't seem to find that magic number i need to lose weight. I find that I get hungry too, but then you get told to "just drink some water". Well, I do that, and i'm still hungry. I started this journey at 168lbs, and wanted to lose 10lbs, but I now weigh 171 on a good day.(I'm 5'11) I run 3-4 days a week, 3-4 miles, and then I do some weights, lunges, squast, that kind of thing. Other days, I do a Jillian Michael's DVD. I don't work out EVERY day, but aim for 4 days a week. My legs feel tighter, and my butt, and I have lose a couple inches, which i'm proud of, but.....I've went back up a size! I have a desk job also.
    I eat lots of raw fruit and veggies, so I do try to eat healthy. Today is my first day back logging my calorie intake in a while. I got to be pretty inconsistent at logging, but still tried to eat healthy.
    So, i'm just as frustrated as you are! I drink my water all day, and even some green tea. I just turned 40 and I know that metabolism tends to slow, but yet I'm hungry! I'm hungry right now, as I type this. I had a fat free light greek yogurt with some fresh frozen mango chunks mixed into it at about 2:15, and I'm starting to feel hungry again already. By the time i get home, my stomach will be hurting.
    Omg I so understand, last night was extremely rough I was so hungry my stomach hurt and I tossed and turned all night I was even dreaming about food. This is why I have always avoided straight out dieting but if I want to lose weight I have to. I just don't know how I'm going to get through this I've got a four hr class tonight and sitting through it with my stomach growling and trying to concentrate is going to be horrible I just ate my first meal which is usually my largest of the day so I have some calories to burn when I.hit the gym this morning but I feel so tired from not sleeping how do you guys get through this on a daily?. I feel like hell
  • SLLRunner
    SLLRunner Posts: 12,942 Member
    Be careful that you don't cut too many calories as your body will slow down on weight loss. Your body will use your muscle as fuel - defeating the purpose of loosing fat/gaining muscle. I'm 5'6 and 139 pounds. I eat anywhere between 1700-2200 calories a day and still loose weight (I burn 300-800 calories during my workouts). It's important to fuel your body for those workouts so that you are burning fat and not muscle. If you want to add me as a friend, you can see my daily food log.
    This is wonderful advice, but.....you don't gain muscle on a calorie deficit.
  • bekahlou75
    bekahlou75 Posts: 304 Member
    I've been struggling with this very thing since i started on MFP! i have actually gained 2-3lbs since my starting weight. I just can't seem to find that magic number i need to lose weight. I find that I get hungry too, but then you get told to "just drink some water". Well, I do that, and i'm still hungry. I started this journey at 168lbs, and wanted to lose 10lbs, but I now weigh 171 on a good day.(I'm 5'11) I run 3-4 days a week, 3-4 miles, and then I do some weights, lunges, squast, that kind of thing. Other days, I do a Jillian Michael's DVD. I don't work out EVERY day, but aim for 4 days a week. My legs feel tighter, and my butt, and I have lose a couple inches, which i'm proud of, but.....I've went back up a size! I have a desk job also.
    I eat lots of raw fruit and veggies, so I do try to eat healthy. Today is my first day back logging my calorie intake in a while. I got to be pretty inconsistent at logging, but still tried to eat healthy.
    So, i'm just as frustrated as you are! I drink my water all day, and even some green tea. I just turned 40 and I know that metabolism tends to slow, but yet I'm hungry! I'm hungry right now, as I type this. I had a fat free light greek yogurt with some fresh frozen mango chunks mixed into it at about 2:15, and I'm starting to feel hungry again already. By the time i get home, my stomach will be hurting.
    Omg I so understand, last night was extremely rough I was so hungry my stomach hurt and I tossed and turned all night I was even dreaming about food. This is why I have always avoided straight out dieting but if I want to lose weight I have to. I just don't know how I'm going to get through this I've got a four hr class tonight and sitting through it with my stomach growling and trying to concentrate is going to be horrible I just ate my first meal which is usually my largest of the day so I have some calories to burn when I.hit the gym this morning but I feel so tired from not sleeping how do you guys get through this on a daily?. I feel like hell

    You don't have to starve yourself. Find food to munch on that's low in calories. Carrotts, celery, brocolii, etc. Get a carton of Egg Beaters. It's high protein, low calorie egg whites. Mix some powdered ranch dressing in with some plain greek yogurt to dip the veggies. If you starve yourself you will not be successful.
  • missfree33
    missfree33 Posts: 19
    All the things you mentioned add calories even fruits and veggies snacking adds up fast an Apple is over 100 calories I'm trying to stay under 1300. When I was just trying to eat healthier I got no results at all so cutting seems to be the only methods that's gonna yield results I'm 185lbs definitely not gonna starve but I do need to lose some pounds and not a lb a month
  • bekahlou75
    bekahlou75 Posts: 304 Member
    I thought you said earlier that think you've lost 5 pounds.....that's really good. That means you can eat more that 800 calories a day. I know it'll be hard to do, but stop weighing yourself. I stopped weighing myself for Lent (I'm not logging food either) and am able to focus more on how my clothes fit. I was on here for a few months stressing about the freaking number on the scale. I love this site, and will probably start back logging when Lent is over but I know that no matter what the scale says, I am able to wear a pair of pants today comfortably that were tight two weeks ago.

    There are so many foods that are lower in calorie that you can eat. You can do this. Stop focusing on the scale and pay attention to how you feel, how your clothes fit, etc. Have you taken measurments? Instead of weighing, measure yourself. If the scale doesn't go down but you lose an inch in your waist or hips, that's pretty good.


    P.S. Look at some other people's diaries to get ideas of low cal foods to eat.
  • missfree33
    missfree33 Posts: 19
    I didn't weigh myself for an entire month and thought I was doing great until I checked my weight and discovered what I thought was a 5lb weight gain in actuality it was just a fluctuation unfortunately that still means I haven't lost a single pound in a month if I'd been checking my weight I would have known and not wasted an entire month exercising and restricting myself in vain from now on I'm checking my progress weekly

Categories