Getting nowhere fast!!!!

Options
13»

Replies

  • AllOutof_Bubblegum
    AllOutof_Bubblegum Posts: 3,646 Member
    Options
    I eat around 1400 calories per day. I just don't get it. They say it take 1 hr a day just to maintain, I am doing at least 2 hrs a day and still gaining.
    Cut so much cardio and lift weights instead.

    +1,000,000
  • clairejoknee
    clairejoknee Posts: 15 Member
    Options
    My suggestion would be to eat more if you eat at 1400 before exercise, perhaps eat some exercise calories? Good luck.
  • lindsayk324
    lindsayk324 Posts: 54 Member
    Options
    Keeping a text diary (like My Fitness Pal) is one way to track what you eat, but maybe you could also try a visual diary! Take a picture of your food before you eat it -- everything that goes in your mouth gets a picture beforehand.

    When I was starting out, this was a great way for me to stop and think before I ate. It prevented me from grazing, especially at work (ooh, so-and-so brought in M&Ms, I could grab a handful and.. oh, wait, no, don't feel like taking a picture of that). It also helped me make good choices for meals, because cooking myself something wholesome and yummy made such a better picture than a gross microwaved HealthyChoice frozen dinner.

    Now I take a great amount of pride in cooking for myself and dressing up my plate prettily. I'm definitely a visual learner, so having a visual log was great! You could make a tumblr account just for your food diary, and use the app to snap a quick picture whenever you sit down to eat!
  • SLLRunner
    SLLRunner Posts: 12,942 Member
    Options
    Keeping a text diary (like My Fitness Pal) is one way to track what you eat, but maybe you could also try a visual diary! Take a picture of your food before you eat it -- everything that goes in your mouth gets a picture beforehand.

    When I was starting out, this was a great way for me to stop and think before I ate. It prevented me from grazing, especially at work (ooh, so-and-so brought in M&Ms, I could grab a handful and.. oh, wait, no, don't feel like taking a picture of that). It also helped me make good choices for meals, because cooking myself something wholesome and yummy made such a better picture than a gross microwaved HealthyChoice frozen dinner.

    Now I take a great amount of pride in cooking for myself and dressing up my plate prettily. I'm definitely a visual learner, so having a visual log was great! You could make a tumblr account just for your food diary, and use the app to snap a quick picture whenever you sit down to eat!
    I actually have heard of that and think it's a great idea. It's important to change our relationship with food.
  • PennyVonDread
    PennyVonDread Posts: 432 Member
    Options
    Calorie counts on processed food packaging (even diet food) can and usually are off by 10-20% total calories. It's an even higher margin of error if you trust restaurant calorie guides because not all cooks at every restaurant are carefully measuring food during a rush the same way they did in the lab setting that gave the nutritional info for the websites.

    Your body is not breaking laws of thermodynamics. Even if you are measuring, your calorie counts could very likely still be wrong. There is no way we can help you without an open diary, so maybe you should be asking your doctor.
  • DivineChoices
    DivineChoices Posts: 193 Member
    Options
    If you're netting 1400 calories, I wonder if you're over-estimating calories burned in exercise.

    As much as it is frustrating, the calories-in-calories-out does work. Sometimes it takes a larger deficit to achieve your results. Some times your body will respond better to different foods (like people who do low-carb or paleo, etc).

    My opinion is to try a different deficit. Figure out HOW much your TDEE is, cut it by 10-15% (there are better calculators than me to estimate how much you can consume to lose x amount of weight a week), log obsessively for 6 weeks, including weight/measurements (arms, chest, hips, thighs, etc). Re-evaluate your plan at the end of the 6 weeks.

    There are some great threads that can help you pinpoint your TDEE through personal trial and error. I think the equation is something like total calories consumed / (weight lost/time period) or something like that. I'm not sure.

    Once you get an accurate picture of your TDEE, it'll be easier to fiddle with your deficit until you find one that gets results.

Categories