Cannot lose weight

Hello, I am also 38 years old. I have only been using MFP for 60 days. In that time I have lost 25 pounds. I have tried all fad diets in the past and nothing worked for me. I am eating normal healthy food, I do not exclude anything except refined sugar. I do however weigh everything I eat and calculate my calories everyday. I have not even begun exercising yet. I eat around 1600 calories a day. I am however bigger than you and my target weight is 175 pounds. I believe you are eating to many calories, If your workouts are insane, you might not be getting enough calories. It is probably more likely that you are eating more than you think. I fell off the wagon last week and gained 2 pounds, only to lose it again this week. I have been losing 2-4 pounds a week the whole time I have been on this program. I also do not know what TDEE is, but I will find out. I believe the 1700 calories you are eating is enough to maintain 175 pounds of body weight. I eat pasta and carbs all the time, I just measure and weigh the amounts. I also entered every single home cooked recipe into the recipe section, and made proper portions of my home cooked meals. I weigh 205 pounds and would be ripped at 175 pounds, so my body is different than yours. I just believe you have not hit the sweet spot yet. Let me know if you want some tips to make this program work for you. I have really figured out the eating part of this game. Next is the exercise issue!

FYI OP deactivated

the "YOU MUST DO PALEO" girl deactivated too. Maybe they ran off together for hijinks!

I don't blame either one of them given the responses. OP got the answers but not the ones he wanted so if he really wants to lose that weight, he will do so when he comes to terms with the fact a calorie deficit is needed. Paleo girl was being attacked for her beliefs. She shared what worked for her yet others felt the need to debunk. Quite frankly, it always becomes the 'I lost weight eating anything I wanted' against anyone who puts 'healthy eating' first. I think it is a shame that some of these 'eat anything' folks aren't looking at the big picture and that they love running folks that don't believe that way off the forums. How is it any different with them preaching 'eat anything'? Guess what...you can't eat anything you want and lose weight or be healthy. That's a fact, not fiction. I also think it is a shame that someone on their fitness journey comes to the forums looking for help then end up deactivating their account because of the negativity of others. It is not an all or nothing thing. A bit more support and less of a condescending attitude would be a lot more helpful...

The problem is that the Paleo girl and others like her think this is the only way to lose weight. It's not and she was not being attacked, she was being debunked. You gotta learn the difference.

I for one tend to avoid grains because it helps me hit my macros better. Not for some myth designed to sell you a lifestyle that has no scientific backing.

Guess what...you can't eat anything you want and lose weight or be healthy. That's a fact, not fiction.
Wrong. Complete and utter fiction. You can eat anything you want and lose weight as long as you're in a calorific deficit. You could eat nothing but MacDonalds and still lose weight if you wanted. You probably wouldn't be getting the nutrition you need but you would lose weight.
I will concede there are people with medical issues that can't but that's not the majority of people.

Some people don't want to learn or aren't ready to get healthy/fitter. They don't get the yes answers they were expecting so they leave. Doesn't mean we should start telling them what they want to hear. That how they got here in the first place.

OP. If you're not losing weight, you're not at a caloric deficit.
If you aren't weighing absolutely everything that you consume, and logging it accurately.. then you don't know exactly how much you're eating.
If you do this, religiously.. make it your existence for 6 weeks. At least. Weigh yourself at the beginning of the six weeks, count EVERYTHING you eat for 6 weeks. Weigh yourself at the end.

If you haven't lost weight, you're not at a deficit. If you didn't gain, then you're likely at maintenance and can simply cut the amount of what you eat in order to lose. If you DID gain, well, you're likely eating at a surplus.

You can lose weight, you just have to make the conscious decision to listen to the answers you've been given when you ask questions.

That girl that lost 15 lbs on paleo? That's awesome! I lost 10 times that amount eating whatever I want to.

Long story short, it doesn't matter. You don't HAVE to cut anything out. If you aren't losing, focus on the AMOUNT that you're eating. Look at the calories. Adjust accordingly.

So the 1200 that MFP is giving me, that is already all calculated in there?
Call me stupid, but I just dont get it!
If I have to burn more than I ate per day, which would be 1200?

Sorry for hijacking your thread, but I guess we are trying to understand the same thing.

I told you in the other thread to change it.
I gave you a direct link on HOW to change it.

I did change it , thank you :-)
Just didn't know how its calculated.

I think note down everything you eat & like my problem is eating food whilst cooking to 'taste' & you don't realize all those extra calories you add on.

Food diary should help keep track of exactly what your eating

Who on here said measuring cups are innaccurate? I use them all the time so is like to hear more about that myself. Not accurate because different objects fill them differently? Or based on something else ?

scales are MORE accurate.
weight is more accurate than cup measurement.

Also FYI...

everyone...


the OP is no longer even a member of this site. They deactivated.

Who on here said measuring cups are innaccurate? I use them all the time so is like to hear more about that myself. Not accurate because different objects fill them differently? Or based on something else ?

i'll jump in, they can be but they often aren't - same for spoons
- the entries in the mfp database may be from different countries than you (US/AU/CA) and it can be hard to tell - different countries use a different volume definitions for their measuring cups: not all cups are equal
- density and pack - if you use cups to measure flour, porridge, anything granular then how tight you pack it into the cup and how small the granules are make a difference to how much weight the cup will contain
- do you level off your cup? or leave it slightly domed? this also makes a difference

actually - when the nutritional label say cup / spoon, they've actually worked it out for a given weight or volume (often listed next to the cup/spoon serving size in brackets) - this is actually what the nutritional data is for not the cup or spoon

best bet (for accuracy) is weigh solids and use a measuring jug (calibrated) for liquids or weight them (depending on density: for water 1kg=1l)

how big of a difference can it make? not necessarily hige, but it may be bigger than you expect, and, if you're looking for slow steady progress on a small deficit ...

why don't you try it out?

there's a lovely youtube video with some examples - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JVjWPclrWVY

I weigh solids. Fruit ,veggies, chips, meat. I usually use measuring cups for milk, condiments, and some side dishes like mashed potatoes and like rice. I always use a straight edge to level off. How far off would this put me? Would it be worth zeroing out the container on the scale to weigh these foods or is the difference not that big?

I weigh solids. Fruit ,veggies, chips, meat. I usually use measuring cups for milk, condiments, and some side dishes like mashed potatoes and like rice. I always use a straight edge to level off. How far off would this put me? Would it be worth zeroing out the container on the scale to weigh these foods or is the difference not that big?

it depends.

if you're losing, it isn't a big deal.
When folks show up complaining about "I'm not losing, but I'm logging accurately"...then that's when the difference could be big enough that a deficit isn't a deficit.
If it isn't a big enough difference that you aren't losing, then don't sweat it.

I weigh everything I can. Peanut butter included...

just because it's habit for me... and I like data to be as accurate as it can be.

I weigh solids. Fruit ,veggies, chips, meat. I usually use measuring cups for milk, condiments, and some side dishes like mashed potatoes and like rice. I always use a straight edge to level off. How far off would this put me? Would it be worth zeroing out the container on the scale to weigh these foods or is the difference not that big?

it depends.

if you're losing, it isn't a big deal.
When folks show up complaining about "I'm not losing, but I'm logging accurately"...then that's when the difference could be big enough that a deficit isn't a deficit.
If it isn't a big enough difference that you aren't losing, then don't sweat it.

I weigh everything I can. Peanut butter included...

just because it's habit for me... and I like data to be as accurate as it can be.

I am happy with my loss when I follow my deficit so I guess I should be ok. It's all the family events that slow my loss lol. I might weight the peanut butter now though. That's so high in calories that if I think I'm getting one tbsp and I'm actually getting double the amount that would be bad. I might weight everything for a week or two to see how accurate the cups are compared to the scale with the foods I eat. I am hoping the rice and mashed potatoes are close to accurate because I usually just use the measuring cup as our serving spoon lol.

I'm glad I came across this so I can check out my foods and see where I stand!

I weigh solids. Fruit ,veggies, chips, meat. I usually use measuring cups for milk, condiments, and some side dishes like mashed potatoes and like rice. I always use a straight edge to level off. How far off would this put me? Would it be worth zeroing out the container on the scale to weigh these foods or is the difference not that big?

it depends.

if you're losing, it isn't a big deal.
When folks show up complaining about "I'm not losing, but I'm logging accurately"...then that's when the difference could be big enough that a deficit isn't a deficit.
If it isn't a big enough difference that you aren't losing, then don't sweat it.

I weigh everything I can. Peanut butter included...

just because it's habit for me... and I like data to be as accurate as it can be.

I am happy with my loss when I follow my deficit so I guess I should be ok. It's all the family events that slow my loss lol. I might weight the peanut butter now though. That's so high in calories that if I think I'm getting one tbsp and I'm actually getting double the amount that would be bad. I might weight everything for a week or two to see how accurate the cups are compared to the scale with the foods I eat. I am hoping the rice and mashed potatoes are close to accurate because I usually just use the measuring cup as our serving spoon lol.

I'm glad I came across this so I can check out my foods and see where I stand!

I put my jar of peanut butter on my scale, turn the scale on, and then take out 32 grams so the scale reads -32 g. Then I get to lick the spoon too.

I have been battling the same issue. I have cut to 1400 to 1600 hundred calories. Measuring!

I am older and thyroid tests are on the edge.

When I tell the doctors what I do for exercise they look at me like I make it up.

I have started recording everything I eat and do on here and will use it for evidence. Hopefully someone will believe me that some people just do not lose weight very easily.

And....If I happen to lose weight because I am keeping such close track I will CELEBRATE!

I weigh solids. Fruit ,veggies, chips, meat. I usually use measuring cups for milk, condiments, and some side dishes like mashed potatoes and like rice. I always use a straight edge to level off. How far off would this put me? Would it be worth zeroing out the container on the scale to weigh these foods or is the difference not that big?

it depends.

if you're losing, it isn't a big deal.
When folks show up complaining about "I'm not losing, but I'm logging accurately"...then that's when the difference could be big enough that a deficit isn't a deficit.
If it isn't a big enough difference that you aren't losing, then don't sweat it.

I weigh everything I can. Peanut butter included...

just because it's habit for me... and I like data to be as accurate as it can be.

I am happy with my loss when I follow my deficit so I guess I should be ok. It's all the family events that slow my loss lol. I might weight the peanut butter now though. That's so high in calories that if I think I'm getting one tbsp and I'm actually getting double the amount that would be bad. I might weight everything for a week or two to see how accurate the cups are compared to the scale with the foods I eat. I am hoping the rice and mashed potatoes are close to accurate because I usually just use the measuring cup as our serving spoon lol.

I'm glad I came across this so I can check out my foods and see where I stand!

I put my jar of peanut butter on my scale, turn the scale on, and then take out 32 grams so the scale reads -32 g. Then I get to lick the spoon too.

That's a great idea. I'd be trying to put a dab of peanut butter on wax paper on the scale till it read the right amount lol and making a sticky mess!

I was a veteran food-weigher when I came across this tip last year. It was life-changing for me.

Peanut butter, butter, mayonnaise, salad dressing, guacamole, mashed potatoes, anything gloppy and calorie-dense is the perfect candidate for the negative-weighing-from-container trick.

1. http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/819055-setting-your-calorie-and-macro-targets

2. You have no true idea how any calories you are eating. If you aren't losing weight, you are eating more than you are burning. Weigh all solids. Measuring cups/spoons are not accurate:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JVjWPclrWVY

3. http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1080242-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants

4. http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1235566-so-you-re-new-here

5. http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/872212-you-re-probably-eating-more-than-you-think

6. http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1234699-logging-accurately-step-by-step-guide

^^ THIS

I was in the same boat, thinking I'm eating right, but gaining weight. Now I am accurate and losing.