I'm Dieting and Exercising and Not Losing Anything
rebmart10
Posts: 3
I've been going for brisk 30 minute walks 5 times a week, not eating more than 1300 calories (of course there are some days where I do eat more than I should) and NOTHING is coming off. I've been doing this for a month now. I'm 22, and losing weight before has never been a problem, but suddenly it seems impossible. A year and a half ago I weighed 30 pounds less, I got into a relationship and stopped exercising and eating healthily and now I'm trying to get back to where I was. I want to know if I'm doing something wrong or if I'm just being impatient. I'm starting to feel like it's never going to come off, and it's getting me down.
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Replies
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are you logging accurately?
mind opening up your diary so we can take a looksee?
ETA: check out this post on logging accurately if you havent already
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1234699-logging-accurately-step-by-step-guide?hl=logging+accurately0 -
If you open up your diary we can check to see how you are doing. 1300 is kind of low. So if you say you are eating under that regularly then that is not a good thing.0
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how do you determine that you eat no more than 1300 calories most days? do you weigh or measure every bite of food you eat? i have a friend who is sure she eats 1500 calories a day, but in reality she is just guessing, and when we hang out, she eats far more than that due to inaccurate measurements. what she guesses is "about" half a cup is often 2/3 or more - sometimes MUCH more.
and on the days where you go over, how far over do you go? it's not hard to eat back every calorie on cheat day that you saved the rest of the week.0 -
I opened up my diary. I pay attention to what I eat a good majority of the time. I don't think I under eat by any means. On my cheat days (which happens maybe twice a week) I try to eat no more than 2000 calories.0
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Welcome to the club.
Calorie counting doesn't work for some people.
I've been at a deficit AND exercising and weighing and measuring all my food for weeks, just to see no progress.
If you figure out a solution let me know.
Bump.0 -
start taking measurements instead of weighing, there are more important things than the number on the scale \m/0
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I opened up my diary. I pay attention to what I eat a good majority of the time. I don't think I under eat by any means. On my cheat days (which happens maybe twice a week) I try to eat no more than 2000 calories.
A few things I noticed - you use a lot of entries like Coles quinoa salad - 1 salad or 1/2 salad. pepperoni 4 slices.
Do you weigh your food?
I also don't see any condiments and hardly any drinks. It also seems like some days are incomplete.
How long have you been at this?0 -
After looking at your diary, I think there is a chance you are not being 100% honest with yourself. I could be wrong but some days only have a few entries or no entries at all. There is also a lot of McDonald's, processed and packaged foods,etc. I'm not sure what part you are referring to as eating "healthily." Granted its all about eating and a deficit and you are good with eating all these fast foods but if it is not currently working, it may be time to re-evaluate. Eating out all the time doesn't allow you to get an accurate read on your food measurements either. Try to bump your workouts too, do something other than just walking and add in some strength training.0
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I almost only drink water, sometimes I have coffee with a little creamer in the morning which I usually log. I don't weigh my food. I thought that approximation was gonna do the trick. Would being as specific as possible really be the solution? I'm new to this so I have no idea.0
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Just doing a quick look at your diary the last few days, unless you are not logging, you seem to be skipping meals. I saw on a couple days where you skipped lunch. Right there is not healthy. Skipping meals causes your metabolism to fluctuate too much. It drops down then you eat and it goes back up. That up and down and can slow things down. I also see you eating McDonalds often. That type of food is full of unnecessary calories and fat grams. You can eat the same type of food at home and tastes just as yummy. My favorite is I toast 1 slice of bread, fry up an egg and put a piece of american cheese on top, it's super yummy and only about 250 calories give or take. I see you eating candy as snacks, that is a lot of sugar and wasted calories. Why not replace it with some fruit or a string cheese or both. It's hard to make changes but once you get use to it you'll start seeing changes and fall into good habits.
You say you are walking everyday. Do you make sure you are eating ENOUGH calories? I fell into that habit not too long ago. I wasn't losing, I was walking an hour a day, eating 12-1300 calories a day and nothing was happening. I finally figured out I wasn't eating enough. I wasn't adding back those workout calories. Meaning I would burn sometimes 400 calories in my walks 1200 - 400 calories = 800 calories a day! That is not enough, no wonder I wasn't losing. Now that I upped my calorie intake to 1570 a day, I'm seeing results. Good luck!!!0 -
I see some days with no logging. Are those 'cheat days'? If you guess at the calories, it's really hard to tell anything. If you're logging 1200 and eating 1600 and burning 1900, you can wipe out 5 'non-cheat days' deficits with two 'cheat days' overeating pretty easily.
Also, are you sure you've lost nothing? Sometimes it feels like nothing but it's really a few pounds. It's hard to tell in a month with normal human daily weight variations.0 -
In the last 30 days you've missed 10 days of logging, and several days that are logged seem incomplete. You can't really do this only 2/3rds of the time and see results.0
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After looking at your diary, it seems all over the place. You could be eating way more than you think you are. And without weight changes, it means you're eating at maintenance cals (so yes, you are eating more than you think). I would highly suggest figuring out your TDEE, and tracking every single thing you put into your mouth. It might seem like too much work, but it will help. Also weigh everything you eat with a digital scale to the gram. You would be surprised how much 1 hot dog bun really weighs.0
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I almost only drink water, sometimes I have coffee with a little creamer in the morning which I usually log. I don't weigh my food. I thought that approximation was gonna do the trick. Would being as specific as possible really be the solution? I'm new to this so I have no idea.
Approximation can do the trick in some cases, particularly those with larger calorie deficits. However, if it is not working, it isn't working and you need to dial in accuracy.
I agree with the person above who said that eating take out makes it harder to get accurate estimates as well.0 -
are you logging accurately?
mind opening up your diary so we can take a looksee?
ETA: check out this post on logging accurately if you havent already
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1234699-logging-accurately-step-by-step-guide?hl=logging+accurately
I thought I was logging accurately; I had no idea about some of this. Thanks for the tip.0 -
I almost only drink water, sometimes I have coffee with a little creamer in the morning which I usually log. I don't weigh my food. I thought that approximation was gonna do the trick. Would being as specific as possible really be the solution? I'm new to this so I have no idea.
Approximation can do the trick in some cases, particularly those with larger calorie deficits. However, if it is not working, it isn't working and you need to dial in accuracy.
I agree with the person above who said that eating take out makes it harder to get accurate estimates as well.
Yes to all of this0 -
You may want to try and measure or weigh everything you eat...that's what I do and it works. Be completely honest with your diet and your logging....a brief look at your diary makes me think you are consuming more than you think.
Good luck!0 -
Hi!
Try eating less processed food - It is full of carbs, salt, and yucky stuff that your body does not know how to process. Read articles about eating clean. It takes a while to educate yourself. It also takes a while for your body to adjust. You can eat a lot more and feel more satisfied when eating real food. Stock your fridge with fresh fruits and veges, yogurt, lean protein. Snack on nuts, string cheese, or an apple. And finally, water, water, water!
I am not a coach....I struggle daily.....but I finally get it! I wish you well - you are young and have time to form good habits that will help you to enjoy life. Don't obsess about it - just live your life and focus on eating healthy!
Here is an article to get you started:
http://www.eatingwell.com/nutrition_health/nutrition_news_information/10_ways_to_eat_clean
I hope this helps you!0 -
The weighing and measuring will probably help a lot.
More intense exercise, in addition to the walking, might also help. If you are not able to do more intense exercise, can you walk more than 30 minutes each day?0 -
You need to see your DR. and get your Thyroid checked. :-)0
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I didn't look at your diary but judging from the comments, if you are going to count calories, you are going to have to do it honestly EVERY day.
Changing habits is hard and trying to change them all at once can be overwhelming. If you and I were sitting at coffee chit chatting about this, I would tell you to cut out the eating out first. Just stop. Depending on your lifestyle, that can take more than willpower, it takes planning. You may have to fix your food the night before and have it ready to take with you in the morning. You may have to take a couple of hours each week to plan your meals, grocery shop, and do as much prep as you can for the week.
Feel free to add me if you want a buddy. Good luck on your journey!0 -
You don't have to eat clean to lose weight - there's countless people on MFP who have lost plenty without it. Some that look like fitness models now. But that doesn't mean you have a free pass for McDonald's all the time. Too easy to go overboard or miscalculate what you're eating.
Also, your wallet will thank you when you quit doing that. Put your fast food money aside for new clothes when you've lost weight.0 -
To clarify-- I don't mean that you have to stop eating out. Just that eating out so often makes it very difficult to get an accurate picture of your intake. Maybe limit yourself to once per week until you get your deficit dialed in.0
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Skipping lunch or breakfast or dinner is not unhealthy. And it also does not cause the metabolism to fluctuate to much. Sorry.Just doing a quick look at your diary the last few days, unless you are not logging, you seem to be skipping meals. I saw on a couple days where you skipped lunch. Right there is not healthy. Skipping meals causes your metabolism to fluctuate too much. It drops down then you eat and it goes back up. That up and down and can slow things down. I also see you eating McDonalds often. That type of food is full of unnecessary calories and fat grams. You can eat the same type of food at home and tastes just as yummy. My favorite is I toast 1 slice of bread, fry up an egg and put a piece of american cheese on top, it's super yummy and only about 250 calories give or take. I see you eating candy as snacks, that is a lot of sugar and wasted calories. Why not replace it with some fruit or a string cheese or both. It's hard to make changes but once you get use to it you'll start seeing changes and fall into good habits.
You say you are walking everyday. Do you make sure you are eating ENOUGH calories? I fell into that habit not too long ago. I wasn't losing, I was walking an hour a day, eating 12-1300 calories a day and nothing was happening. I finally figured out I wasn't eating enough. I wasn't adding back those workout calories. Meaning I would burn sometimes 400 calories in my walks 1200 - 400 calories = 800 calories a day! That is not enough, no wonder I wasn't losing. Now that I upped my calorie intake to 1570 a day, I'm seeing results. Good luck!!!
The solution is not that she is not eating enough. From here postings it is apparent that the OP does not know how many calories she is eating because she is estimating which is just a fancy way of saying she is guessing. If there is no weight loss then there is no caloric deficit.
^ Yup.0 -
I don't think that you're eating enough food that is good for you! It's almost all junk, from what I can see in your sparse logging. You've received lots of good advice already, but I'd like to add that maybe you should reframe what you're trying to do for yourself and your body and take a more holistic approach? Rather than just counting calories, try to eat more whole foods – fruits and veggies, etc. that don't come in a package and/or have an ingredients list that you don't understand. Drink lots of water, and track it, too! As for walking, that's great, but are you challenging yourself when it gets too easy? Even a stroll is better than nothing, but if you're looking to lose weight you want to burn more calories. You should definitely add some strength training to your routine, too. This can be done easily at home – do an online search for that topic.
If you treat your body right, the weight loss will be sure to follow.
Good luck!0 -
I don't think that you're eating enough food that is good for you! It's almost all junk, from what I can see in your sparse logging. You've received lots of good advice already, but I'd like to add that maybe you should reframe what you're trying to do for yourself and your body and take a more holistic approach? Rather than just counting calories, try to eat more whole foods – fruits and veggies, etc. that don't come in a package and/or have an ingredients list that you don't understand.
To lose weight it is all about being at a deficit. I can eat fast food every day for every meal and as long as I was still in a deficit I would lose weight. Now not saying it's the best way because I would be hungry.
I eat veggies, fruit, pizza, mcdonalds, lean meats, ice cream etc. All about moderation. It all goes back to counting and being 100% honest with yourself and as accurate as possible with your logging.0 -
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I've been going for brisk 30 minute walks 5 times a week, not eating more than 1300 calories (of course there are some days where I do eat more than I should) and NOTHING is coming off. I've been doing this for a month now. I'm 22, and losing weight before has never been a problem, but suddenly it seems impossible. A year and a half ago I weighed 30 pounds less, I got into a relationship and stopped exercising and eating healthily and now I'm trying to get back to where I was. I want to know if I'm doing something wrong or if I'm just being impatient. I'm starting to feel like it's never going to come off, and it's getting me down.
Let's be totally honest. Read this as your answer lies within it: http://www.acaloriecounter.com/blog/why-am-i-not-losing-weight/
CICO (Calories In/Calories Out) - there is no way to "cheat" the system. ;-}0 -
Welcome to the club.
Calorie counting doesn't work for some people.
I've been at a deficit AND exercising and weighing and measuring all my food for weeks, just to see no progress.
If you figure out a solution let me know.
Bump.
The only way calorie counting doesn't work for some people is if they are inaccurate in their counting (or incorrect in their assumptions about TDEE).
And if you've been in a deficit and not seeing any weight loss (long term), then you haven't actually been in a deficit.0
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