What am I doing wrong since I'm not losing weight :(

StarburstCA
StarburstCA Posts: 6
in Health and Weight Loss
Hello everyone... I would like to get advice on how I can improve my routine because I am not losing weight... in fact I gained 3lbs in the last 3 weeks.

My Stats

Age:34
Hight: 5'7"
Weight : 148 23% body fat
Goal: 135 and/or 18% body fat

Routine: I have been doing jillian micheals 30 day shred every day for 3 weeks plus 3 or 4 days of additional cardio for about 45 minutes. I burn about 185 from jillian micheals home work out and 300 during cardio.

Diet: I eat low carb (80 grams on average) and clean and I count my calories... I have really branched out and eating lots of different vegi's and no breads and carbs are mainly from vegi's. I am still eating dairy however in very small amounts... typical day: two tablespoons of half and half in coffee no sugar and two tablespoons of feta on dinner salad and occasionally a slice of string cheese. I also started having one protien shake after my work outs for the last week. I do drink 2 glasses of wine 2 or 3 time a week and I do factor that in to calories. Water intake is a lot better yet still could up that a bit more.

suggested calories are 1269

calories in/ calories out:
week 1: 1288 daily average in and 196 average calories out
week 2: 1576 daily average in and 307 average calories out
week 3: 1333 daily average in and 275 average calories out

I have been cleaning up my diet since feb and lost 12 lbs from feb to may however it is super frustrating to be working out super hard all of June and counting calories and being mindful of carbs just to be gaining weight. I have measured myself and lost 2 inches in my waist and gained a half inch in my arms so perhaps I am getting more lean and I have used a fat caliper and might have lost about 1.5% body fat yet it's hard to say.... Am I one track? seems like with all my sweat and attention my results would be better....Can anyone see where I am going wrong here or make educated suggestions... thank you :)

Replies

  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
    12 lbs in 4 months shows that you are losing weight. It sounds like you may have hit a plateau. Have you tried increasing the intesity of your workouts? Or you might just need to give it a little more time.

    Since you don't have a lot to lose, you are probably going to lose more slowly the closer you get to goal.
  • StarburstCA
    StarburstCA Posts: 6
    I think I am going to get more serious about weight training. I like circuit training but I think it is more of a cardio workout than it is muscle gaining. I don't know... I keep thinking I should cut my calories more yet everything I read suggests otherwise.
  • kimdawnhayden
    kimdawnhayden Posts: 298 Member
    I know everyone's on the no carb bandwagon these days. But I have found I have to have some carbs in order to lose weight. I have a starchy carb at breakfast. I tried strict Paleo for about a year and put on 10 lbs. I think weight loss in not the same for everyone. I also think you have to shake things up. Have you tried carb cycling? In order to lose weight I also had to eat between 1600 - 1800 calories. When I was my smallest a size 4. I weighed 135# and I'm 5'4". I was also at around 19% BF by calipers. You are 3 inches taller than I am, so you may be close to your goal weight. I'd rather women look at their measurements or dress size. Some women tend to carry more muscle than others. Your weight is really not a fair comparison.
  • kimdawnhayden
    kimdawnhayden Posts: 298 Member
    Have you tried Hiit yet? Sprints helped lean me out a lot. Just remember that sprints should be considered a leg workout. I only did them twice a week, because that's really enough and only on leg days.
  • martinel2099
    martinel2099 Posts: 899 Member
    Give it a little more time, monitor trends over a 4-6 week period.

    If after 6 weeks the scale isn't budging you may need to re-evaluate how your recording.

    Couple things to consider at that point-
    1. Are you weighing and measuring properly?
    2. Are you recording more exercise calories burnt than you really are burning? Consider not eating back exercise calories, chose lightly active or active category in MFP.
  • healthygreek
    healthygreek Posts: 2,137 Member
    You said "2 tablespoons feta". You must WEIGH all your solids. Only measure liquids!
    You could be eating more than you think.
    Don't cut your calories anymore.
  • 3dogsrunning
    3dogsrunning Posts: 27,167 Member
    Will you open your food diary?
  • StarburstCA
    StarburstCA Posts: 6
    Lot's of great advice... I will research carb cycling and experiment more with Hiit training :)
  • StarburstCA
    StarburstCA Posts: 6
    My food diary is on the Lose it app. not sure how I can share that with ya
  • biscuit71
    biscuit71 Posts: 43 Member
    Keep in mind that muscle weighs more than fat so if you are going to increase your weight training, you may see your weight jump up some when you get on the scale. I wouldn't let that bother you though.
  • karmasays
    karmasays Posts: 82 Member
    Weigh all solid food on a digital food scale if you don't already and since you're about 10lbs shy of your goal weight, change your goal to lose .5lb a week as it's a more realistic goal then 2lbs.
  • kimdawnhayden
    kimdawnhayden Posts: 298 Member
    http://heidipowell.net/2713/carb-cycling-101/

    Just a quick overview of carb cycling.
  • AliceDark
    AliceDark Posts: 3,886 Member
    Keep in mind that muscle weighs more than fat so if you are going to increase your weight training, you may see your weight jump up some when you get on the scale. I wouldn't let that bother you though.
    If you're eating at a deficit when you start weight training, you're not going to gain an appreciable amount of muscle. If you're absolutely brand new to lifting you can see minor newbie gains, but it won't be a couple of pounds of muscle. Yes, you might see the scale go up if you begin a new program, but it's water retention due to the increased exercise, not pounds of muscle. You'd probably see the same thing if you drastically increased the amount of cardio you did.
  • StarburstCA
    StarburstCA Posts: 6
    Wow lots of great advice here thank you! Ok so I will get a scale for my solid foods... I will do Hiit training and carb cycling plus I all go a little easier on myself knowing I am close to my goal. I will start weight training in additional to my cardio... I am totally hooked on working out and I know with time and being mindful of calories I will see more positive changes. Thank you everyone!

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