High deficit but not losing. Help needed

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  • wkwebby
    wkwebby Posts: 807 Member
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    Definitely a typo, sorry. It was 5 weeks but 35lbs rather than 45. It sounds impossible but isn't. I went from no movement at all and basicly eating only junk food to a lot of hard work and a strict clean diet.

    Building muscle isn't my priority. I can work on them once the last bit of stubborn fat is gone. But like I said, strength training IS a part of my workouts.
    I might be doing too much. I definitely don't think I'm eating less than I should have - I often eat when not hungry e.g. dinner with family.
    I only drink water and sometimes milk or orange juice (which I always log). I allow myself one coffee per week (medium latte).
    There is no change in inches or body shape. Still waiting for that bloody six pack to start appearing!

    Details that I failed to provide earlier:
    Female
    24yrs old
    172cm/5ft 7in
    67kg/ 10st 7lbs

    Ill make my diary public, see if you guys think I should change something.

    You are definitely should be near your goal weight if you aren't already there. At your height and weight, there shouldn't be much more to lose. Try staying only slightly lower than maintenance calories (i.e. start losing at a slower pace) because your body may be thinking you are starving yourself. 35lbs in 5 weeks is still a heck of a fast weight loss and your body may be trying to hold on to anything you put into it (good, clean or otherwise).

    P.S. MFP can certainly be wrong. Caloric and nutritional info can be entered by anyone (mistakes and all).
  • TheVirgoddess
    TheVirgoddess Posts: 4,535 Member
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    My weight hasn't changed one bit. I should have dropped at least 2 lbs in the last 2 weeks. I'm baffled.

    It's only been two weeks. There are many reasons your body won't let of the weight - shark week, sodium, water weight, etc. I just came through six weeks of no changes. It happens.

    35 pounds in 5 weeks is still ridiculous and incredibly unhealthy. Sorry.

    IMO you should stop pushing your body so hard. We're talking about 15 pounds here. I think you're being way too aggressive, especially for someone with arthritis. Eat foods that you enjoy, in your calorie goal. Lift weights, do some yoga or go for walks. Be patient and realize that this isn't a race.
  • mom2my4boys
    mom2my4boys Posts: 148 Member
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    I just wanted to chime in and say that i suffer from a rare form of arthritis also. When i switched my diet from junk foods to mostly unprocessed foods (80/20) not only did my arthritis improve but i lost about 35lbs of water weight within about 6 weeks. I'm not a doctor but i know first hand that people with arthritis can and do drop dramatic amounts of water weight. I'm not sure if the medicines cause it or what. Good luck with the 15lbs, stay the course it will come off if your eating at a deficit.


    Edited to add: I'm still eating plenty (although probably less than i was) carbs.
  • SLLRunner
    SLLRunner Posts: 12,943 Member
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    45 lbs in 5 week? Please tell us this is a typo.

    With only 15 lbs to lose, you should be set to lose .5 lb/week on myfitnesspal goals. Also, there is no reason to cut any food whatsoever, as long as you're eating within a range that gives you a calorie deficit. As you lose more weight, your body becomes more efficient and you won't get as high a calorie burn off of the same cardio.

    Do you weigh your food? You might be eating more than you realize/eating back too many exercise calories.
    This.

    OP, I think you did make a typo on losing that much weight (even if it is 35 instead of 45) in 5 weeks. If not, you need to get some help because it sounds to me like you could be heading toward an eating disorder.

    Also, you say you have arthritis and all that exercise is not doing you any good. Well.....why are you doing all that exercise?

    From the tone of your posting, it seems to me that you are obsessing about exercise and food. Have you thought of talking to a therapist about this? I think you also need to pay a visit to your doctor.

    With so little weight to lose, you indeed need to set your goals to lose .5 pounds a week..

    ETA: No, MFP entries are not always correct.
  • diannethegeek
    diannethegeek Posts: 14,776 Member
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    You mention that it can't be your body adjusting to the workouts because you've been active for a while. Have you been doing the same workouts at the same intensity all this time? Any time you change the type of workout you're doing or increase the intensity (which it sounds like you've done these past two weeks) your body may hold onto some extra water for a couple of weeks to help cushion and repair the sore muscles.
  • diannethegeek
    diannethegeek Posts: 14,776 Member
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    P.S. MFP can certainly be wrong. Caloric and nutritional info can be entered by anyone (mistakes and all).

    Definitely this^ OP, are the homemade/generic entries in your diary recipes entered by you? If not, it can be really hard to tell whether or not they're accurate for what you're making. I use generic entries when I need to because I'm traveling or whatever, but try and take the time to enter the actual foods you're eating whenever possible. It can really make a difference.
  • simplydelish2
    simplydelish2 Posts: 726 Member
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    Also, my calorie counting is correct, unless MFP is wrong which I doubt.

    You'd be surprised! MFP exercise calories are way too generous and since members enter food calorie counts - more are incorrect than correct.
  • SassyCalyGirl
    SassyCalyGirl Posts: 1,932 Member
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    I was a group fitness instructor for 10 years and started gaining weight. Long story short, I was exercising too much because it started raising my cortisol. Once that happens, the more you exercise, the more your cortisol raises, the more weight you gain, I no longer teach and only exercise for myself. Guess what? The weight is coming off. I believe you are in the same cycle and over training.

    great post-this also happened to me.
    Read this

    http://www.runnersworld.com/weight-loss/why-am-i-not-losing-weight?cid=socHE_20140918_31807446
  • rosebette
    rosebette Posts: 1,659 Member
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    Since you are already at a normal weight for your height, around 147 (American lbs. and a 23 BMI), and I'm assuming you're aiming for around 132, which is a BMI of around 20, you are not going to lose at the rapid rate you did when you were heavier. 35 lbs. in 5 weeks is pretty agressive -- how can someone lose 7 lbs. a week?

    It's very common to plateau close to your body's setpoint point which is at or near your normal weight, and I was at a 4 month plateau myself. In fact, some would say 2 weeks at the same weight is hardly a plateau. At my plateau, I decided my focus would be on fitness and muscle tone, rather than loss. I did end up losing inches first and a couple extra lbs did come off, but not until much later.

    That being said, you aren't eating enough for the level of exercise you are supporting. If you're eating around 1500 and then burning 1000 calories a day, that means your net calorie intake is around 500, not a healthy level. If you want that body fat to turn to muscle, you need to eat to support the activity level otherwise, you will lose muscle mass. You might even be overtraining.
  • blessybuva
    blessybuva Posts: 44 Member
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    I just wanted to chime in and say that i suffer from a rare form of arthritis also. When i switched my diet from junk foods to mostly unprocessed foods (80/20) not only did my arthritis improve but i lost about 35lbs of water weight within about 6 weeks. I'm not a doctor but i know first hand that people with arthritis can and do drop dramatic amounts of water weight. I'm not sure if the medicines cause it or what. Good luck with the 15lbs, stay the course it will come off if your eating at a deficit.


    Edited to add: I'm still eating plenty (although probably less than i was) carbs.

    This. Thank you very much.
    I didn't start this thread to be told Im developing an eating disorder, to go see my doctor or see a therapist. I started it to see if anyone shares my opinion of going low carb again since Im not the only one who lost loads with it
    Fact is excersizing a lot will always cause me pain, its unavoidable. But I'm not going to let my condition turn me into a coach potato (again).
    Thank you to everyone who wasn't judgemental and helped with their advices.
  • blessybuva
    blessybuva Posts: 44 Member
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    I will up my calories a bit and try and add more protein to my diet. I will also reduce my excersize even though I dont want to but most of you think it's what I should do so might as well give it a go.
  • RGv2
    RGv2 Posts: 5,789 Member
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    Definitely a typo, sorry. It was 5 weeks but 35lbs rather than 45. It sounds impossible but isn't. I went from no movement at all and basicly eating only junk food to a lot of hard work and a strict clean diet.

    Building muscle isn't my priority. I can work on them once the last bit of stubborn fat is gone. But like I said, strength training IS a part of my workouts.
    I might be doing too much. I definitely don't think I'm eating less than I should have - I often eat when not hungry e.g. dinner with family.
    I only drink water and sometimes milk or orange juice (which I always log). I allow myself one coffee per week (medium latte).
    There is no change in inches or body shape. Still waiting for that bloody six pack to start appearing!

    Details that I failed to provide earlier:
    Female
    24yrs old
    172cm/5ft 7in
    67kg/ 10st 7lbs

    Ill make my diary public, see if you guys think I should change something.

    Just throwing it out there, this is an extremely inefficient way to look at strength training and losing body fat. When you're in a deficit you lose water, fat, and muscle. In that deficit when a progressive overload training program is implemented you work to maintain that LBM while losing mostly water and fat. By doing so, you maintain the muscle you have while stripping the fat away and thus helping to create muscle definition. The scale may not move as slow, and it's not because you're building muscle, but maintaining.

    Building muscle takes hours of on point progressive overload, an on point diet (of surplus or at least maintenance), and is extremely hard.....for men. It's exponentially harder for females.

    Wouldn't you want to maintain the muscle you have now rather than having to work that much harder to later? If you lost 35 lbs in 5 weeks, LBM was probably a good portion of that loss. Also, I don't see a lot of strength training in your regimen. 30DS is a solid program, but it's as much cardio as it is strength....if not more.
  • nilbogger
    nilbogger Posts: 870 Member
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    I thought you were looking for advice on why you weren't losing weight, not people's opinions on low-carb diets. My bad.
  • McCluskey1128
    McCluskey1128 Posts: 88 Member
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    45 lbs in 5 week? Please tell us this is a typo.

    With only 15 lbs to lose, you should be set to lose .5 lb/week on myfitnesspal goals. Also, there is no reason to cut any food whatsoever, as long as you're eating within a range that gives you a calorie deficit. As you lose more weight, your body becomes more efficient and you won't get as high a calorie burn off of the same cardio.

    Do you weigh your food? You might be eating more than you realize/eating back too many exercise calories.

    Everything she said
  • cconniee
    cconniee Posts: 18
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    I don't know what your eating habits are but have you tried eating small meals more often?
    I find I loose the most when I cut every meal I have in half and have half at a time, one hour apart from each other...
    I never let myself go more then 2-3 hours without eating something so my body doesn't think it has to hold on to the next big meal I eat cause I'm starving.
    Your body will get use to eating very often and start to burn more and hold on to less cause it knows you have a steady flow of food and your not going to starve...

    This is how I lost 80 lbs in 9 months about 10 years ago, and this is what I'm doing again now and it is working (minus the cheat times at Bday parties or something) ;-)

    Good Luck !
  • D_squareG
    D_squareG Posts: 361 Member
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    Also, my calorie counting is correct, unless MFP is wrong which I doubt.

    Not all calories counts on MFP are correct. Some are entered by users.
  • eric_sg61
    eric_sg61 Posts: 2,925 Member
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    I don't know what your eating habits are but have you tried eating small meals more often?
    I find I loose the most when I cut every meal I have in half and have half at a time, one hour apart from each other...
    I never let myself go more then 2-3 hours without eating something so my body doesn't think it has to hold on to the next big meal I eat cause I'm starving.
    Your body will get use to eating very often and start to burn more and hold on to less cause it knows you have a steady flow of food and your not going to starve...

    This is how I lost 80 lbs in 9 months about 10 years ago, and this is what I'm doing again now and it is working (minus the cheat times at Bday parties or something) ;-)

    Good Luck !
    No, just no
  • gothchiq
    gothchiq Posts: 4,598 Member
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    You might want to see a doctor and get some basic bloodwork done. Your behaviors won't work as expected if something's wrong healthwise.
  • dont_tap_my_aces
    dont_tap_my_aces Posts: 125 Member
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    ...Your body will get use to eating very often and start to burn more and hold on to less cause it knows you have a steady flow of food and your not going to starve...

    OMG no stop. just stop. if you are going to give advice, at least have it be in the realm of reality.

    OP and anyone else reading this, please don't buy into this heavily debunked myth regarding meal timing. there is zero science behind this.
  • tarcotti
    tarcotti Posts: 205 Member
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    In fact, some would say 2 weeks at the same weight is hardly a plateau. At my plateau, I decided my focus would be on fitness and muscle tone, rather than loss. I did end up losing inches first and a couple extra lbs did come off, but not until much later.

    That being said, you aren't eating enough for the level of exercise you are supporting. If you're eating around 1500 and then burning 1000 calories a day, that means your net calorie intake is around 500, not a healthy level. If you want that body fat to turn to muscle, you need to eat to support the activity level otherwise, you will lose muscle mass. You might even be overtraining.

    I'm surprised this has only been mentioned once. You are eating 1500 a day, and burning off 1000 a day which means you are eating 500 a day, and that isn't going to help you lose weight. Its also very dangerous, I wouldn't do that anymore. Everything you said makes sense, you dropped a lot of water weight immediately, now the loss is going to slow dramatically. .5 lbs a week is probably what will happen now, and 2 weeks is nothing to worry about.

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