I don't lose weight- scientific miracle?

That said, no you are not a scientific miracle aka special snowflake.

I am. Tell me why I can't gain weight?

You don't eat enough calories.

No... I tracked (3 years ago here) at 2500+ daily. I gained 1 pound per month and went from 97 to 103 pounds. Lost it in 2 weeks of eating only 1700 or so calories daily.

Well, then 1700 calories is at eating at a deficit for you.

No, it's not. I've been in bed for months due to a bad car accident. If Alan can't put some weight on me I doubt that you can.



Off for a moment, I have to play Emma.

http://youtu.be/_uU5DU7P83E

Well, if you lost weight on 1700 calories, that is a deficit for you. That's the only way to lose weight--eat less than you burn.

Nobody can put weight on you, and I never said I wanted to anyway

I don't know what you mean when you say, "If Alan can't put weight on me...."

1) I just saw a post wherein someone said 'if you create a calorie deficit you WILL lose'.....

2) i have been a vegetarian for 23 years, I gave up diet soda 10 years ago, i became a vegan about 4 yrs ago(i occasionally eat cheese but PARSE it out but NO other dairy), i eat a plant based diet that i supplement with two protein bars a day (they have whey but they are the only low carb, low sugar, tasty ones i liked),

3) i drink water all day,

4) eat little meals- try to eat every three hours or so. i don't snack, i don't binge, i don't eat out.

5) i work out but inconsistently (like everyday for a month, then not for two weeks, then again for 3 weeks, etc and this has been the case since i was 20- i am now 44).

6) i have logged my calories to be 1200 to 1400 cals a day. I am rarely hungry.

1) This is accurate. Staying in a calorie deficit makes weight loss possible.

2) Being a vegan, a vegetarian, giving up soda, eating low carb, low sugar, etc. does not mean you are in a calorie deficit.

3) Drinking water all day is okay - if you're that thirsty.

4) Meal timing, size, etc. are not needed - you just need to have a calorie deficit for the day. You can eat out, eat a large meal, and snack - as long as you stay in your calorie deficit for the day.

5) Working out is really good for staying healthy, but not necessary to lose weight. It helps some people keep their deficit.

6) Logging is a good start. Do you weigh with a scale & measure with measuring cups/spoons all the food you eat?


ETA: Making "massive lifestyle changes" will certainly improve your health - but doesn't mean you're in a calorie deficit.

i know - vegan fail. i eat the same things everyday. i eat veggie sausage (or links or bacon) for breakfast and dinner). I eat an english muffin for breakfast as well (shoot, i put jam on there, i need to amend my diary!). I eat a protein bar at 9am, i eat a sweet potato (or an artichoke) at noon and a cup and a half of asparagus at 1pm (or swap those things for each other), another protein bar at 2pm (i drink tea and coffee and crystal light, btw), i have the veggie meat for dinner, as i mentioned, sometimes a salad (which is butter lettuce, 1/4 garbanzo beans, some.times a 1/2 avocado and 2 tblspoons dressing). sometimes i have a tablespoon of that Better than Peanut Butter stuff, but not often. Same thing, everyday. that is how i know about the calories. i don't eat stuff and then forget i ate it. I don't keep food in the house that i might consume and then forget to log.

i am a vegan fail, clearly. i am trying to switch to all plants but am concerned about getting enough protein

i know - vegan fail. i eat the same things everyday. i eat veggie sausage (or links or bacon) for breakfast and dinner). I eat an english muffin for breakfast as well (shoot, i put jam on there, i need to amend my diary!). I eat a protein bar at 9am, i eat a sweet potato (or an artichoke) at noon and a cup and a half of asparagus at 1pm (or swap those things for each other), another protein bar at 2pm (i drink tea and coffee and crystal light, btw), i have the veggie meat for dinner, as i mentioned, sometimes a salad (which is butter lettuce, 1/4 garbanzo beans, some.times a 1/2 avocado and 2 tblspoons dressing). sometimes i have a tablespoon of that Better than Peanut Butter stuff, but not often. Same thing, everyday. that is how i know about the calories. i don't eat stuff and then forget i ate it. I don't keep food in the house that i might consume and then forget to log.

There are a lot of fears around eating too little food such as starvation mood, metabolic damage, etc. The majority of the effects from severe caloric deprivation are myths, misconceptions, and misnomers. Take for example starvation mode... It simply means that if you eat less your BMR goes down. This is true, but if you eat more your BMR goes up. Both of these effects in short term are also temporary meaning no "metabolic damage". The only scientifically validated metabolic impact is from formerly obese people who lose significant weight. In their case leptin levels decline to a point that encourages weight regain and this will not change until the weight is put back on.

This is one explanation why your weight loss has started to halt under a caloric intake that would normally produce weight loss. Even in this case though it still means you need to eat less to lose weight. If you have fat on your body you have calories available - don't let anyone else fool you otherwise. The important part to pay attention to is eating enough nutrients and you can eat more nutrients in 500 calories than 3,000.

If you want to know where your BMR is at go get it measured, but the calculations anyone uses to estimate these values are incredibly error prone. For example, when I'm fasting my BMR is measured around 1,550 calories and when I eat 4,500 calories my BMR measures around 3,000. No current BMR equation accounts for history of weight and/or caloric intake and both are known to influence BMR.

Have you read up on the Minnesota Starvation Experiment? Emaciation, loss of muscle and body fat? That's starvation mode. that said, starvation mode is not realistic in the lives of us mainstream dieters. In other words, it's doubtful that any of us here will ever encounter starvation mode in ourselves, loved ones, or anyone we know.

I'm quite familiar with it yes. In that experiment the reported BMR of participants dropped about 25% observed by body temperature and resting heart rate changes. I understand your point, but starvation mode is used a lot more loosely by most people.

I would agree that if a person is not losing weight they are eating more than they think. However, it's bull that you can get more nutrients in 500 calories than you can 3,000. 500 calories is dangerously low, and the MFP forums do not support very low calorie diets.

A very low calorie diet (usually defined as 800 calories or less) has been shown in studies to not only produce better weight loss short term but to produce better weight loss long term (5+ years). In a recent study to reverse Type II diabetes a 600 calorie diet was used for 8 weeks and participants mostly reversed their condition in 2 weeks. Fine you don't support a VLED but the whole of scientific evidence suggests it's a very beneficial diet.

I have a difficult time believing this, because if it were true then that would mean your TDEE also goes up based on how many calories you eat. Finally, if THAT were true, then al we'd have to do was stuff ourselves to raise our BMR and TDEE, and then we would lose weight.

It does not mean that stuffing ourselves will lead to weight loss for two reasons: 1) it doesn't mean BMR is going to increase as much as you new net caloric intake; 2) once you eat less it means it will drop back down. Many studies show that BMR does fluctuate according to diet which is why BMR is (in a good weight change study) measured before and after the diet. The Minnesota Starvation experiments is a great example of it dropping and the Vermont Prison Overfeeding Study is a great example on how it can go up.

because MFP isn't my main stop for weight loss. i logged my calories on a spreadsheet of my own. i eat the same things all the time. It is unnecessary to log daily for the most part. I just inserted that one day because everyone asked for an example of what i was eating.

because MFP isn't my main stop for weight loss. i logged my calories on a spreadsheet of my own. i eat the same things all the time. It is unnecessary to log daily for the most part. I just inserted that one day because everyone asked for an example of what i was eating.

I was merely trying to get anecdotal stories from people in my position. If the bottom line is i am not creating a deficit, then i will eat less.