Frustrated Redundancy!

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PonderinGal
PonderinGal Posts: 31
in Motivation and Support
I have lost 55 pounds. I have been STUCK at my current weight of 165 for three months and I. Am. Sick. Of. It! I am so inexpressibly frustrated. I just know I'm asking for people to read this and comment all sorts of things that I've read a million times, but I desperately need some sort of useful advice. It should go without saying that I don't eat fried foods, sugar (white sugar, honey, sugar substitutes, etc), white flour or really bread of any kind....to make this simpler, here's what I do eat in order of consumption amount and frequency: water, vegetables, fruit, tuna/sardines/chicken, nuts, brown rice, green/matcha/oolong tea, occasionally unsweetened almond milk, olive oil, organic brown rice cakes with PB and flaxseeds, oats, and that about sums it up. I run 6 days a week, alternating between long-distance 6mph running and interval running (1 min 3.5mph, 1 min 8mph over a 45-min period), walking up stairs two steps at a time with a 15lb vest on my back for 45 minutes, HIIT training, strength training, boxing, etc. I exercise 6 days a week, between 45-1 hr and 15 minutes each. I do different exercises to keep myself from shooting myself in the head or my muscles (wherever they are) from becoming bored; I will work myself to exhaustion, but rarely do I become sore (unless a chronic stiff neck counts). On less active days, I eat less. I pay attention to my food combinations and try to keep my carb and fat intake low; I keep my calorie consumption below 1500 on active days. I drink nearly a gallon of water a day. My weight has not budged since February. My waist is 31 inches, my hips 38 inches. I am 5'11" inches tall. I am sick of being both tall and wide. It's taken my over a year to lose just the 55 pounds. I am really tired of this fruitless struggle. I don't feel stronger, I don't feel more fit; in fact, I feel fatter than I did 55 pounds ago. I am very sorry if this is a negative rant, but I honestly don't feel very perky or optimistic right now. I've worked hard and continue to work hard, but feel like it's all very pointless. I am NOT pleased with my current weight, so suggestions about staying where I am will be of little or no assistance.I really need some helpful help! Anyone?

Replies

  • jsalzat
    jsalzat Posts: 225 Member
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    Before I became active on MFP, I was so frustrated with my weight that wouldn't seem to budge for months. The more I obsessed the worse it got. The one thing that helped me start making progress was adding supportive friends and focusing on their success instead of mine. For some reason, this approached did the trick and soon I was losing again and feeling great. It's fun motivating others on a similar path, and it distracts me from obsessing over my own discouragement.

    Feel free to add me if you like :)

    I wish you the best!:flowerforyou:
  • Giddyduck
    Giddyduck Posts: 212 Member
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    I am sorry that this is happening to you.

    I have a few questions that may be useful. 1) are you taking pictures to monitor progress 2) has your clothes/closet changed 3) are you getting about 7 hours of sleep 4) High stress in your life

    I ask this because I am in a similar place actually eating relatively similar with similar workouts and have been fighting the 161-ish mark for about 6 weeks and before that stuck at 167 for four months. My pictures and measurements (every 4 weeks) are telling a story of change and my closet is telling a story of change.

    Stress and lack of sleep inhibit weight loss as your body increases cortisol which increases blood sugars. This is one reason why protein is really helpful.

    My one consideration is to up your fat and up your protein. I think the mantra for protein is .6-.8 for every pound you would like weigh (goal weight). I try to keep my protein around 120 grams and that is really hard. My diary is open if you are interested.
  • stacyg1979
    stacyg1979 Posts: 26 Member
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    Hi there .... just my two cents.... maybe you should try to vary your work out routine... add some yoga... or zumba.... maybe your body is getting used to the existing routine.... Changing these items may help with muscle confusion and also take your mind off the scale.... make a point of doing something you enjoy.... it could remove the mental block that is causing your body to "stall" so to speak.
  • Myhaloslipped
    Myhaloslipped Posts: 4,317 Member
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    Not sure if I missed this part, but do you weigh your food?
  • ErinMcMom
    ErinMcMom Posts: 228 Member
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    I keep my calorie consumption below 1500 on active days.
    You are 5'11" and 165 and you keep your cals below 1500 on active days? With the exercise you have described I think you need to up your intake. Maybe take yourself up to maintenance calories for your goal weight for a week or so (yes you'll gain some water weight in the short term) and then drop back down (but not back down as low as 1500).
  • PonderinGal
    PonderinGal Posts: 31
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    Thanks for the suggestion, but being an anorexia survivor, it's very difficult for me to take the whole "starvation mode/fat conservation" thing seriously. I starved myself for 7 years and was very successful (obviously, not in my own eyes). That being said, I'm trying desperately hard to lose weight the "healthy" way and am beginning to get pretty discouraged. It's becoming easier and easier to want to slip back into that old habit.
  • PonderinGal
    PonderinGal Posts: 31
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    Holy smoke, I have to weigh my food, too? I don't have a food scale :)
  • PonderinGal
    PonderinGal Posts: 31
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    I thought I was keeping my workouts fairly varied, but I'll give yoga a try. Thanks!
  • CitizenXVIII
    CitizenXVIII Posts: 117 Member
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    Starvation mode isn't really a thing, at least not what people make it out to be.

    You are probably eating more calories than you think, that's really all it comes down to. Yes, you must have a kitchen scale, your intake numbers won't be accurate without it. It could be tiny things you aren't counting, underestimates, or simple issues with what the serving information is. Often, the servings will say something like "100g or 1/2 cup", but if you actually weigh a half a cup, it's well over 100g. That's why a scale is important. You don't have to weigh everything forever, but sometimes our concept of a serving is just off and a scale is the best way to fix that.
  • PonderinGal
    PonderinGal Posts: 31
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    Although I haven't been actively weighing my food, I have been keeping strict track of what I'm eating and my daily caloric intake has not exceeded 1,500 (I add 150 calories just in case my calculations are wrong, anyway) for over two weeks.
  • PonderinGal
    PonderinGal Posts: 31
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    Thank you for the very kind reply!
  • PonderinGal
    PonderinGal Posts: 31
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    I just want to thank everyone for the time they've taken to respond to my query/tirade. You're all very thoughtful and I will seriously take each suggestion into consideration. Thanks heaps!

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