18 days...no change.

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  • jeffpettis
    jeffpettis Posts: 865 Member
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    DIdn't have time to read through all of the comments, but in case no one as mentioned it...you did say you're working out. Is it possible that you are gaining muscle, and therefore not seeing any change in weight? Muscle is heaver than fat and it usually takes over two weeks for me to see any changes when I start (after falling off the wagon).

    I have recently finished one month of working out and eating better (running and doing PiYo). I workout 6 days a week and have been eating very well but only lost 1.8 lbs! That does not at all reflect the amount of work I've put in.

    That said, I can feel how much stronger my body is and I can see muscle definition. So while the scale doesn't reflect progress, there has definitely been progress.

    Give it some more time and ask yourself...do I feel stronger? Am I gaining muscle? If you can answer yes to any of those, forget the scale and keep doing what you're doing. Muscle burns fat and eventually you'll start to see your progress. The scale is a only a gauge, don't give it too much credit!

    Also make sure you're eating enough to balance your workouts. If you don't consume enough calories, your body will start to store fat so in starving yourself, you'll also be working against yourself.

    Good luck and keep at! 18 days is a great start, but it's just the beginning! :)

    Um NO...
  • crazymommy5
    crazymommy5 Posts: 65 Member
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    Not sure why you would expect a different result if you keep doing what you are doing now and are not seeing any changes?

    If you were eating at a deficit 18 days is more than enough time to start losing, it does not take six weeks to start to lose weight.

    ^
    This
  • hearthwood
    hearthwood Posts: 794 Member
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    Only the super obese are capable of losing several pounds a week. People who are accustomed to eating 4 to 7 thousand or more calories a day. When they are put on a less than 1500 calorie a day plan, the pounds melt off quickly "at first", but they slow down the more they lose.

    So if you aren't in that category-- weight will come off slowly. Remember 1 pound is 3500 calories, meaning that you would have to eat or burn thru exercise 500 calories a day to lose 1 pound a week. If you're accustomed to eating 1300 to 1700 calories a day that 500 to eat less or burn during the day is going to be hard to come by.

    Myself, I learned to be very happy with a 1/2 pound and then even a 1/4 pound loss per week, and it's taken me a long time to get where I am at. Now only 2 pounds from goal.
  • Chain_Ring
    Chain_Ring Posts: 753 Member
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    :-(
  • juliaky84
    juliaky84 Posts: 72 Member
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    I appreciate all of the positive, helpful responses, as opposed to the posters who put words in my mouth and were rude. To those folks, just don't comment. Sheesh.
  • juliaky84
    juliaky84 Posts: 72 Member
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    Thank you - I do 2 pilates sessions a week and one long fast walk outside or sometimes a jump rope session.
    Check out if it fits your macros. This type of eating allows for more "cheats" than the normal eating plan. I personally try to keep around 80% clean and 20% not clean. My body is changing, and I really am enjoying the changes.

    IF I want icecream, I can have it. Does this mean I eat broccoli and chicken rest of day, sometimes, BUT I am not binge eating and it is all done in moderation.

    Since you don't want to "give up" things, I really think this might be a good approach of weight loss for you. What kind of work out s are you doing for your 3 work outs? Most people following the flexdieting/macro/iifym ways are into lifting.
  • juliaky84
    juliaky84 Posts: 72 Member
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    Yes, I am okay with slow or even super slow loss, such as 1/4 or 1/2 pound a week. It is so hard to tell this early on if I have made any progress, even a smidge.
    Only the super obese are capable of losing several pounds a week. People who are accustomed to eating 4 to 7 thousand or more calories a day. When they are put on a less than 1500 calorie a day plan, the pounds melt off quickly "at first", but they slow down the more they lose.

    So if you aren't in that category-- weight will come off slowly. Remember 1 pound is 3500 calories, meaning that you would have to eat or burn thru exercise 500 calories a day to lose 1 pound a week. If you're accustomed to eating 1300 to 1700 calories a day that 500 to eat less or burn during the day is going to be hard to come by.

    Myself, I learned to be very happy with a 1/2 pound and then even a 1/4 pound loss per week, and it's taken me a long time to get where I am at. Now only 2 pounds from goal.
  • juliaky84
    juliaky84 Posts: 72 Member
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    Yes, the way I set up my profile is I chose lightly active (USUALLY I get in my 3 workouts a week) so I believe I am not overestimating. Since I included my workouts in the lightly active choice, I do not log and eat back workout calories since that would be doubling up.
    I totaled/averaged your #s for the past 18 days. Assuming you were aiming for a 500 deficit per day, your average with the highs & lows is 217 deficit a day. Or for 18 days, enough deficit to lose just over 1 pound assuming all your loggings are 100% accurate and that your daily activity level was also 100% accurate. <--you may have lost some weight but have a hard time seeing it on the scale due to water weight fluctuations.

    Its hard to be 100% accurate. You indicate you use a food scale, but do you use it for everything solid? For example I even weigh bread. Some may not think to do that - the serving size is a slice right? But they often weigh 10-20% more than a slice is supposed to weigh. Same with wraps and other packaged items that give nutrition info, they're not all going to weigh the same as '1 serving'. Packaging can be off according to the FDA by 10-20%. So errors like that happen if you put too much confidence into the package label.

    And when you set up your profile on MFP, the recommendation is based on the activity level you designate. Sedentary, lightly active, etc. If you pick one too high and then have some fairly lazy days, that could also hurt your #s.

    I'd suggest keep doing as you're doing - but work in an additional 20-30 minute walk or some other activity a few times a week. Burning more helps the deficit. Be a stickler on your food log, don't trust packaging, and also be careful of the entries in the database. Sometimes they're wrong because users can edit them.
  • juliaky84
    juliaky84 Posts: 72 Member
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    Thank you for the encouraging words. I also realize that out of the 18 days, it's taken some time in the beginning to get the hang of logging, and I was changing the calorie settings, so it's not been consistent. So I will NOT give up, I will keep going and maybe it WILL take several weeks to see if something changes.
    My best advice... Just keep going! Make a small change/ goal every week. As you go on fueling your body with more healthy foods and reducing the unhealthy ones (even very gradually) those will become the foods you crave. Then the naughty foods will make you feel yuck. Similarly, the more you are active, the more your body will crave activity! Make it fun- get outside, listen to your favorite music or book on tape, ect. I highly suggest a heart rate monitor that will tell you how many calories you've burned and make it a goal to either burn a certain amount every day or keep burning more by challenging yourself more everyday. JUST STICK TO IT! DON'T GIVE UP!
  • 999tigger
    999tigger Posts: 5,235 Member
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    Somehwere inbetween. I think you need to change your mindset from the previous times you have tried.
    The people asking questions are merely pointing out that somehwere along the line the calorie deficit isnt happening otherwise you would be losing weight. The main reason is because people dont measure properly and can underestimate what they eat.

    There was also a good point made about your cheat days. Those days could be destroying all the calories youve saved. Why not have two weeks measuring and recording as accurately as people have suggested and scrap the cheat days or do more exercise and cut calories by 100 a day less. See if it makes a difference.

    I dont think theres any magic solution you are either eating at a deficit or not.
    If you hit a problem then you either want the end result and so are willing to make the change or not.
  • juliaky84
    juliaky84 Posts: 72 Member
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    Actually, I had no problem with people asking questions.

    Anyway, I already explained the one binge cheat day earlier.

    Why would I be on here if I'm not willing to make SOME kind of change. I already HAVE. That's all.
    Somehwere inbetween. I think you need to change your mindset from the previous times you have tried.
    The people asking questions are merely pointing out that somehwere along the line the calorie deficit isnt happening otherwise you would be losing weight. The main reason is because people dont measure properly and can underestimate what they eat.

    There was also a good point made about your cheat days. Those days could be destroying all the calories youve saved. Why not have two weeks measuring and recording as accurately as people have suggested and scrap the cheat days or do more exercise and cut calories by 100 a day less. See if it makes a difference.

    I dont think theres any magic solution you are either eating at a deficit or not.
    If you hit a problem then you either want the end result and so are willing to make the change or not.
  • 999tigger
    999tigger Posts: 5,235 Member
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    If you arent getting any results, then your changes havent been enough. See what its like after 30 days just to make sure.
  • derekj222
    derekj222 Posts: 370 Member
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    you need to clean up your diet if you are really serious...eating chocolate and McDonalds chicken nuggets are apple pies are not going to help
  • SherryTeach
    SherryTeach Posts: 2,836 Member
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    Well, on most of those 18 days, you have gone over your calories. How do you expect to lose weight that way?

    As far as the cheat/binge days, it doesn't matter whether a lot of people do it or not. . . it's not working for you.
  • zericaaaaa
    zericaaaaa Posts: 313 Member
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    i know i'm basically beating a dead horse but It really is about correctly logging! I had no idea how off I really was with my logging until I started being honest with myself. just a few weeks ago I began measuring my coffee creamer, that was something I always just assumed I wasn't over indulging in but as it turns out I was consuming 4 times the serving size of it! a little extra creamer there, a 'brisk walk' that really wasn't so brisk, just '1 tbsp' of peanut butter that was actually 3 and a half, the next thing you know you're adding on hundreds of calories. I would also advise you to get a heart rate monitor if you can. I used to think I was burning soooo many calories but my polar ft4 gave me a rude awakening. but yeah like I said unless you have a medical condition causing weight loss to be difficult, if you say in a deficit you WILL lose weight
  • mizroxy13
    mizroxy13 Posts: 466 Member
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    When I began, I saw weight loss immediately within the first week and it has continued steadily. I even started at a higher daily calorie count and still lost weight and have since cut it back to 1500 and I'm still losing consistently. I lift weights -heavy weights-and I still show a consistent weight loss every week. Definitely measure every single tiny little thing and be 100% honest in it. I think portion sizes were the most surprising thing for me.

    If you aren't seeing changes, reevaluate your goals and journal and if you know that you are absolutely legit in what you're doing and still no loss, then talk to a physician. Best of luck to you!
  • ana3067
    ana3067 Posts: 5,623 Member
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    you need to clean up your diet if you are really serious...eating chocolate and McDonalds chicken nuggets are apple pies are not going to help

    Hypothetical:
    - your maintenance is 2500 cals
    - you are eating 2000 cals
    - For a month you eat nothing but chocolate and french fries, at 2000 calories.
    - The next month you eat nothing but broccoli and chicken breast, at 2000 calories.

    In both months you will lose roughly similar amounts of weight.

    Calories in/out. Macros for those who care about composition, but it's still about cals in/out, not quality of food, for weight loss.
  • juliaky84
    juliaky84 Posts: 72 Member
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    Yes, that is what I thought as well.
    you need to clean up your diet if you are really serious...eating chocolate and McDonalds chicken nuggets are apple pies are not going to help

    Hypothetical:
    - your maintenance is 2500 cals
    - you are eating 2000 cals
    - For a month you eat nothing but chocolate and french fries, at 2000 calories.
    - The next month you eat nothing but broccoli and chicken breast, at 2000 calories.

    In both months you will lose roughly similar amounts of weight.

    Calories in/out. Macros for those who care about composition, but it's still about cals in/out, not quality of food, for weight loss.
  • juliaky84
    juliaky84 Posts: 72 Member
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    No, I don't think you are right. I agree with anna3067. I fully intend to have delicious McDonalds apple pies and chicken nuggets and chocolate sometimes while continuing to work on my calorie deficit.
    you need to clean up your diet if you are really serious...eating chocolate and McDonalds chicken nuggets are apple pies are not going to help
  • northbanu
    northbanu Posts: 366 Member
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    you need to clean up your diet if you are really serious...eating chocolate and McDonalds chicken nuggets are apple pies are not going to help

    Absolute garbage advice. It's painful just to read it.

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