discouraged :(

Throughout the day, your weight fluctuates 4-5 pounds (Which is 1.5-2 kgs). Don't worry about the minor number changes on your scale so much.

I would question the accuracy of how you're counting calories both burnt and eaten. Are you measuring everything you eat accurately and on a scale? Are you depending on the calorie counter on the machines at the gym? If so, you might want to consider buying a heart rate monitor which is more accurate. It's really easy to assume you're burnt more or eaten less than you have when you're not extremely careful with the measurements.

If you are certain your measurements are accurate, there are other factors that may be involved, including your own hormones and/or quality of foods your eating, or any medications you might be taking. Have you talked to a medical doctor, or a naturopathic doctor, about the best weight loss system for you?

This is a really great place to figure out what your daily calorie requirements should be: http://iifym.com/tdee-calculator/ Figure out your TDEE (Total Daily Energy Expenditure), then subtract 15-20% off that and try not to eat over whatever that is. For me, that number is 1400 calories a day - however, I still have my calorie counter set to 1200 a day and am doing fine on it.

We are all different and what works for you may be very different from what works for someone else. What's going to help you reach your goals is learning what your body needs to work with and work on in order to do that...

Wishing you the best of luck!

Hey everyone. I am determined to lose weight this time and see it through. I started going to the gym on 26 July and so far I've lost 2 kg. I was 91.4 when I started and now I am around 89kg. My goal weight is 120 lbs/54 kg. That's about 2 kg and around 4 lbs I think. I feel like I'm not losing weight fast enough

What should I do? I exercise 5-7 days a week and aim to burn 350-400 calories in the gym excluding strength training. I also walk to school and back home on Mondays to Fridays. about 4 km away. I try to eat more veggies and less carbs (I don't completely cut it out because I love it too much) and I try to hit about 1200 calories intake everyday. I am pretty short (5'3) so I do not feel hungry on this target. some people say it's too low but I feel like it's just right for me.

Any advice on what I should do? I know I'm not eating enough fruits. I am trying to rectify that and eat at least one serving everyday.

also everyday I weigh myself the scale says something different. yesterday: 89.2 today: 88.8... im so confused.

you have lost 5lbs in less than a month...that's really good actually.

1lb a week is a great rate for what you have to lose...

1200 is actually not a lot for your activity...what you should be doing is not restricting so much and eating food for your activity.

Hunger is not the best indicator of what your body needs.

Think about it this way...your car has a full tank of gas...you drive it and it uses 3/4tank...now you need to get back to where you were so you put in another 1/2tank so you know you have just enough gas...but when you get back you are now on empty...you need more gas in that car to drive it again...

It's the same way with food and your body...when you exercise you are using up the fuel and it needs replensihed but if you put in just enough you will be stuck there until you put more fuel in...by that I mean tired, lethargic or you will just get so hungry you have to eat and you may make choices that are not condusive to weight loss...ie eating too much.

oh and yes weight fluctuates esp for women.

You, my friend, are talking to the KING of disappointment. I cannot tell you how many times I started and stopped. Failure was NORMAL. Over the years though I have kept at it - and slowly - so slowly my mind is getting better around food and exercise. Today - I do not eat sugar at all. Combine that with exercise 5-6 times a week - and staying within a healthy range of calories - and today I feel better than I have in years. We try to complicate the hell out of this, but it is very simple. The problem is not in the food or the exercise - it is actually in our minds. Many of us (and you may be different) think VERY NEGATIVELY about food, exercise, and ourselves. We have to heal our negative minds - and when we do this many other things fall naturally into place.

Now - here has been the secret to my success. And this may NOT be right for you - so I am NOT trying to tell you how to do it - I am just sharing what has worked for me. But in combination with plenty of exercise and a good food plan, I go to Overeaters Anonymous 2-3 times per week and have been doing that for years. In that time OA has helped me get my mind off the the number that is on the scale - and has helped me focus on healthy food and a health lifestyle. For me - OA is a loving, caring group of people who are all trying to get well around food. It is a group of friends who care about me as much as I care about them. I wouldn't trade OA for the world. It has brought sanity to food, exercise, and my attitude towards myself when previously I had known only increasing amount of discouragement and anxiety. OA - for me - rocks!

I welcome you to visit OA to see if it fits for you. At OA.org there is a list of face-to-face or phone meetings that you can go to almost any day of the week.

Best of luck to you! John

You, my friend, are talking to the KING of disappointment. I cannot tell you how many times I started and stopped. Failure was NORMAL. Over the years though I have kept at it - and slowly - so slowly my mind is getting better around food and exercise. Today - I do not eat sugar at all. Combine that with exercise 5-6 times a week - and staying within a healthy range of calories - and today I feel better than I have in years. We try to complicate the hell out of this, but it is very simple. The problem is not in the food or the exercise - it is actually in our minds. Many of us (and you may be different) think VERY NEGATIVELY about food, exercise, and ourselves. We have to heal our negative minds - and when we do this many other things fall naturally into place.

Now - here has been the secret to my success. And this may NOT be right for you - so I am NOT trying to tell you how to do it - I am just sharing what has worked for me. But in combination with plenty of exercise and a good food plan, I go to Overeaters Anonymous 2-3 times per week and have been doing that for years. In that time OA has helped me get my mind off the the number that is on the scale - and has helped me focus on healthy food and a health lifestyle. For me - OA is a loving, caring group of people who are all trying to get well around food. It is a group of friends who care about me as much as I care about them. I wouldn't trade OA for the world. It has brought sanity to food, exercise, and my attitude towards myself when previously I had known only increasing amount of discouragement and anxiety. OA - for me - rocks!

I welcome you to visit OA to see if it fits for you. At OA.org there is a list of face-to-face or phone meetings that you can go to almost any day of the week.

Best of luck to you! John

wow you're an inspiration to me. just reading this makes me more motivated. my problem is not rooted in overeating as my mother is a health nut and she always controlled our portion sizes and I grew up eating healthy food. I just find it hard to get up and exercise. I always make excuses for not exercising. my physical and occupational therapist (I am at the point of seeing a therapist for weight loss. That's how lost I am and how many times I've failed at weight loss) said I have to train myself to make time for exercise and to think of exercise in more positive ways instead of a chore. Thanks for sharing your story! I will definitely keep this in mind.

You don't *need* to exercise to lose weight. If you're finding it hard to get going to the gym, just try something as simple as going for a half hour walk every day and just moving around a bit more during the day (go get water regularly, stand up for a few minutes if yu've been sitting a lot, take the stairs, etc). You can also try different types of exercise until you find something you enjoy doing. I used to love doing an hour of cardio 6x a week, and now I only do about an hour and a bit of cardio a week.

Also just because you're eating healthy food doesn't mean you're necessarily eating a healthy amount for your activity levels. You could have been eating too little and negatively impacted your metabolism. Or eating calorie-dense foods (especially those high in fat or high in sugar).

Someone above recommended the IIFYM calculator, but I would personally advise against it. It estimates a few hundred calories low. I prefer these two (exrx.net's is probably more accurate though):
http://www.exrx.net/Calculators/CalRequire.html
http://scoobysworkshop.com/accurate-calorie-calculator/
For scooby's, use the default model or use Katch-Mcardle if you know an estimate of your body fat. I'd look for calculators that allow you to enter in hours worked out simply because you may work out 5x a week, but maybe only half an hour each day; whereas I'll work out 4x a week for about 90 minutes altogether (excluding time not spent exercising) so even though you'd be at the gym more often, I'm there longer overall.

It's really easy to over-eat calories without even realizing it if you eat a lot of calorie-dense foods or if you just eat frequently during the day.

ETA: You're most likely under-eating, both based on your current weight and on your activity levels. So I would definitely calculate your estimated maintenance needs and then subtract 20% from that, and then slowly increase your calories to that amount. So if you do alll your calculations and your maintenance is 2100, then I'd add in 100 every week (or 50 every few days) until you reach about 1700. If body composition is of importance, then calculate an estimated protein requirement (1g per total weight in lbs or 0.8g per total weight in lbs - use the latter for now since you're still at a heavier weight and likely do not need to eat your weight in protein) and change your goals to that.