Help!!! Frustrated and disappointed!!

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dawnemjh
dawnemjh Posts: 1,465 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I have been doing MFP for a little under a month and since I have started I have actually gained a couple pounds. When I first started I didn't have a scale,so I was going by what the DR's scale said, but a little over a week ago I bought a scale and technically tomorrow is my weigh in day, but as of today I am up 1 pound from last week and almost 3 pounds from starting here.
I recently bought the bodymedia system and according to that I am burning an average of 2600 calories per day, so even if I am underestimating my calorie intake a little, I still am a least 500 calories under goal each day. That is not reflected on my diary here because my max calorie intake according to MFP even with exercise is about 2000. I ws consuming about 1400-1800 calories per day but when I started gaining, I thought that since I was burning 2600-2900 calories per day that maybe I wasnt eating enough so I increased my intake to 1800 or so. I workout 6-7 days per week, running at least 5-6 days and doing strength training 3-4 days. My lowest weight was 157, and I maintained that for several months over the fall and up until I did the walt disney world marathon in January. After that I started the new weight watchers point plus program and within a week or 2, I had gained about 5-6 pounds, which I cant seem to get off.
I am so frustrated and depressed!!!
I would love and feedback or advice. I did go out 2x the past couple weeks due to special occasions, which I hadnt done since the summer. Even when I ate out a couple days ago I was still a couple hundred calories under my burn according to the bodymedia.
So could it be the alcohol? I had 4 drinks friday. Should I eat more so that I am only 500 under according to my bodymedia??
Thanks for any advice/insight!!!

Replies

  • tammyquinnlmt
    tammyquinnlmt Posts: 680 Member
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    I had the same problem the first couple of weeks, then it finally started going down. Also, the Dr's scale may be just slightly more accurate than yours. Weigh at the same time of day, when you do weigh. It will start to go down...just hang in there.
  • JenWorthen3
    JenWorthen3 Posts: 64 Member
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    Pull out the measuring tape. Since you're working out that much, your body is putting on muscle and, sadly, muscle weighs more than fat. So pull out the measuring tape and see if you're losing inches. I've been on my diet for about 3 weeks now and have only lost a few pounds, but I've lost 28.5 inches so far (from 9 different places, so it averages out to be a little over 3 inches per spot). I actually started Herbalife about 2 weeks ago and have been expecting to see bigger numbers coming off, but I got nothing. All the weight I lost was the first week from water weight. Also, be sure you're chugging water like crazy. You should have half your body weight in ounces of water every day. The water grabs on to the fat and helps to suck it out.

    Good luck and keep with it!
  • sunshine79
    sunshine79 Posts: 758 Member
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    What does MFP say you should eat to lose 1lb per week?
  • solscott
    solscott Posts: 1 Member
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    Don't sweat (no pun intended) a 1-3 pound swing, that can be water which will be affected by too many factors to list. And since your new scale won't likely be the same as your Dr., don't sweat that detail either! A scale is only one measure for progress. More importantly, how do you feel? Do you see changes in your body that you like? Are you clothes fitting better/differently? If you just started this strength training routine, you may also be seeing some muscle mass gain, which is good in the long run. Stick with it, don't sweat the scale. Pay attention to how you feel and look.
  • KikiinVA
    KikiinVA Posts: 10 Member
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    No real clue here....muscle mass being added? Have you measured by inches to see if you are decreasing or how your clothes fit? Alcohol really packs the pounds on and makes it hard for me to loose. You are such an extreme athlete with marathons and lots of running that I would consult a professional dietician or nutritionist. I would think if you are underfeeding your body it would want to hold onto more food stores rather than shed them which could be an issue. Not much help I know, sorry.
  • givprayz
    givprayz Posts: 328
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    Try 1400 calories plus a reasonable amount for your exercise. Since you aren't very heavy, and you are very active, your body may be much more efficient than your Body Media is giving it credit for. Since raising calories didn't work, lower them, but don't go below net of 1200-1300 (after exercise calories are subtracted.) Also, drinks are high in calories and go straight to fat, so avoid alcohol and juices as much as possible.
    The problem with any of the calorie estimators is that they use formulas to come up with values, but our bodies use reality, and every one is different. It's kind of depressing to think that as I get thinner and more physically fit, my body will become more efficient and burn fewer calories, but that is the way it is. Keep the faith! You'll see losses soon.
  • dawnemjh
    dawnemjh Posts: 1,465 Member
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    MFP tells me that if I dont exercise then my daily calorie intake should be 1450 (roughly). In the past 2 weeks since I got the bodymedia system, I have worked out every day but one, and on that day where I did no exercise I still burned 2100 calories.
    My clothes are feeling snug so I know its not muscle. Plus I didnt just start the weights and exercise. I have been running for about 9 years, and doing weights for over a year. Over the past 16 years I have lost over 120 pounds and kept it off, and then about 8 months ago lost another 5 pounds so that my weight was at 157-158 and I was pretty comfortable there. I wanted to try to get down to about 150, but since January have been gaining!
  • ProfLonghair
    ProfLonghair Posts: 1
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    Keep in mind a few things. First, always weigh at the same time of day. If you weighed one day first thing in the morning, and the second day right after dinner, you are likely to have looked like you gained weight, as the morning you are about your lightest, and after eating, of course, the heaviest.

    The other thing to keep in mind is WHAT you eat, not just that calories. If you eat something physically heavy, even with few calories, you'll still look like you gained weight on a scale, at least in the short term. When you eat, first your body pulls calories from the food, and when there isn't enough in that, it then pulls from storage (fat). Until the food passes through, however, you won't receive the full weight benefits, but you will still be losing fat, hence the other persons comment about the measuring tape. I always know Wednesdays will be one of my worst, as we go out to dinner Tuesdays nights and thus I have more physical intake, regardless of calories.

    Lastly, it's like your 401K. You can't get too focused on day to day changes. In weight and health, it's a bit important to track, but if you gain a pound or two, it's not time to panic. You have been at this for a month, but also, you sound like you've been working out like a fiend. Muscle weighs more than fat, another reason to pull out the tape vs the scale.

    Last year, I dropped about 25 pounds, but more like 30 or 40 of fat, as I went down about 3 belt notches. This kind of thing goes in spurts. If you are doing this for long term, you have to look at it long term. Some days, my clothes felt looser, despite the scale saying no change, or even a small gain.
  • cat3nv
    cat3nv Posts: 389 Member
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    Keep your chin up! If you are using 2 different scales that is the problem. Weigh yourself once a week at the same time of day every week with the same scale.

    Remember women randomly retain water, so this could be part of the cause. If you are swollen from exercising that could be your problem.

    weight is weight. I know some people think muscle weighs more than fat, that is not true..... a pound of bricks weighs the same as a pound of feathers. It just takes more feathers than bricks.
  • dawnemjh
    dawnemjh Posts: 1,465 Member
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    Try 1400 calories plus a reasonable amount for your exercise. Since you aren't very heavy, and you are very active, your body may be much more efficient than your Body Media is giving it credit for. Since raising calories didn't work, lower them, but don't go below net of 1200-1300 (after exercise calories are subtracted.) Also, drinks are high in calories and go straight to fat, so avoid alcohol and juices as much as possible.
    The problem with any of the calorie estimators is that they use formulas to come up with values, but our bodies use reality, and every one is different. It's kind of depressing to think that as I get thinner and more physically fit, my body will become more efficient and burn fewer calories, but that is the way it is. Keep the faith! You'll see losses soon.

    I tried lowering the first 2 weeks here, and I seemed to gain, and then when I got the bodymedia I realized that I was having a 900 or so calorie defecit, so thats why I increased my intake. I just looked back at my calorie defecit for the past 2 weeks and I have had a defecit of anwhere from 398-1300 calories per day, with an average of about 800 calorie defecit per day, which is what is sooo frustrating. Maybe I should increase my intake more??? so I am only at 500 calories defecit????
    I have been seeing a nutritionist and they had me on this diet where I was supposed to consume 1300 calories per day regardless of exercise. this seems crazy to me when I can burn 600 calories with a workout. Also they had me doing metagenics protein shakes for breakfast and limiting grains to once per day, so recently I have started limiting my grains again, even though I wasnt eating alot of grains the past month.
  • staciekins
    staciekins Posts: 453 Member
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    Maybe you should set you loss at 2 lbs per week. Track your sodium. This is HUGE!!! Try not to go over 2500 and if possible keep it closer to 2000. Try to stay away from a lot of dairy and slightly cut carbs. Pay not attention to "at rest" calorie burning. Intake at least 1200 cals per day and then more as you work out, but try not to intake as much as you are "allowed". You need to keep a good deficit. You might have to "shock" your body to get it to burn more. Try switching up your workouts slightly. Adding a couple weights to your walks or even doing a sprint-walk variation. Take some B vitamins (2 B50's per day can help your metabolosm)
  • staciekins
    staciekins Posts: 453 Member
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    And avoid alcohol. It actually reduces your metabolism and can cause minor temporary deterioration in your muscles, causing you to burn less that what you think, not to mention alcohol is pretty high in calories. It's OK every once in a while.
  • dawnemjh
    dawnemjh Posts: 1,465 Member
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    Thank you all for the input!!!

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