What am I doing wrong?

alycia1234 · April 2011

Can someone be so kind to tell me what I am doing wrong?

I have been working out 3-4x a week mostly circuit trainning. Always burning more than my goal calories - 1500 to 1900 every week. This is actually quite intense for me, I would get stiff mucles and a sore body at times.
I eat an average of 1500 calories per day (the numbers fluctuates a lot tho)
It has been a little over a month and weight loss so far is 1lbs - the number is really pathetic..

I could really use some help. don't worry about hurting my feelings whatsoever, I would welcome any advice.

Thanks.

Update:
I have made my dairy public!
I even gain 2 pounds when I started working out.
This is not a plateau, i don't think as I have not lost any weight since I started.

allisonmarie93 · April 2011

Considering all your working out, have you considered your muscle weight?
I mean, muscle weighs more than fat, so working out so much could just be your body trading fat for muscle.
Do you think you look any slimmer? If so, I'd call that as the culprit.

CallejaFairey · April 2011

fellow Edmontonian here

are you eating back the cals you burn? it's hard to give too much advice without being able to see your food diary.

you could always try and give your body a tweak by changing the amount of pounds you want to lose per week to less, just to get your body working at losing again, and then when it starts losing consistently, switch back to the goal you have currently.

you could also try working out differently, on different days, for different time periods. just to make sure your body wasn't set in it's routine.

JennLifts · April 2011

I wouldn't count that as all muscle. That would be a lot of muscle, it's hard to build muscle on a calorie deficit, and circuit training doesn't make me thing weight lifting.
How's your water, sodium, fiber, sleep? Why does it fluctuate so much? Do you each your exercise cals? There's a ton of factors you need to consider.
Are your foods nutrient dense?

fitterpam · April 2011

So you have a goal of 1500, work out an extra 1500 and then eat 1500, right? That would make your net calories 0, which would be a problem.......especially for sustained weight loss.

Agree that without being able to see your diary, I can't pinpoint further, but if I'm right about the above, then that would be a good place to start looking

princesslmc2 · April 2011

What about inches lost? Sometimes when there's a really low pound-loss, it's because the fatty fat is being replaced by lean muscle. One pound of fat weighs the same as one pound of muscle - it's just that muscle is so much leaner... So the inches may burn off a lot more quickly than the pounds as reflected simply by the scale.

Other than that, yes.. take a look at water intake, sodium levels, sugar levels... Everyone has a "trigger" that effects their own bodies. Trick is to find yours. :-)

tampabobby · April 2011

Can someone be so kind to tell me what I am doing wrong?

I have been working out 3-4x a week mostly circuit trainning. Always burning more than my goal calories - 1500 to 1900 every week. This is actually quite intense for me, I would get stiff mucles and a sore body at times.
I eat an average of 1500 calories per day (the numbers fluctuates a lot tho)
It has been a little over a month and weight loss so far is 1lbs - the number is really pathetic..

I could really use some help. don't worry about hurting my feelings whatsoever, I would welcome any advice. Thanks.

hey Alycia - there could be a couple things going on here. If you are starting an intense workout program you may be hungrier than usual and overeating to compensate. From my experience this is somewhat normal and if this is happening your appetite should subside after awhile.

The other thing like someone else said is to make sure you are properly tracking your calories. I know I struggle with this. I have lost about 95 lbs and I am stuck.. but the reality is I track my calories consistently for a few days and then when I am not paying attention I eat extra and forget to enter it into the food diary. Also avoid salty, fatty, or sugary foods since these all can be very addictive.

Lastly... keep in mind that while sometimes the going is slow you know exactly what will happen if you give up and go back to laziness and poor eating habits. That is a sure thing. So, just give it some time, and try to make positive choices every day. It wouldn't hurt either to write down your goals and your plan for achieving them on a regular basis. Good luck and don't give up!

- Bobby

dawn454 · April 2011

I know when I stop losing it is generally due to sodium! I try and keep my sodium around 1500 a day and it really seems to make a difference. You can add sodium to your diary so you can keep an eye on it!

alycia1234 · April 2011

@ allisonmarie93 Thanks for the comment! I am not sure about the muscle part being heavier than fat for the reason for no weight loss. but I am noticing a firmer upper body.

alycia1234 · April 2011

Yay! It''s always nice to have more local friends on MFP. I am considering doing different doing different stuff like tennis and yoga. Would tweaking workout time make a difference too?

alycia1234 · April 2011

Can someone be so kind to tell me what I am doing wrong?

I have been working out 3-4x a week mostly circuit trainning. Always burning more than my goal calories - 1500 to 1900 every week. This is actually quite intense for me, I would get stiff mucles and a sore body at times.
I eat an average of 1500 calories per day (the numbers fluctuates a lot tho)
It has been a little over a month and weight loss so far is 1lbs - the number is really pathetic..

I could really use some help. don't worry about hurting my feelings whatsoever, I would welcome any advice. Thanks.

hey Alycia - there could be a couple things going on here. If you are starting an intense workout program you may be hungrier than usual and overeating to compensate. From my experience this is somewhat normal and if this is happening your appetite should subside after awhile.

The other thing like someone else said is to make sure you are properly tracking your calories. I know I struggle with this. I have lost about 95 lbs and I am stuck.. but the reality is I track my calories consistently for a few days and then when I am not paying attention I eat extra and forget to enter it into the food diary. Also avoid salty, fatty, or sugary foods since these all can be very addictive.

Lastly... keep in mind that while sometimes the going is slow you know exactly what will happen if you give up and go back to laziness and poor eating habits. That is a sure thing. So, just give it some time, and try to make positive choices every day. It wouldn't hurt either to write down your goals and your plan for achieving them on a regular basis. Good luck and don't give up!

- Bobby

I think you are right. i have to admit that I'm not properly tracking my calories. for example, I dont log thing like a table spoon of tzatziki on a spinach..in fact, sometimes if I put a hand full of spinach in my soup and fail to log that in. I should also start logging water intake. Thanks!!

CallejaFairey · April 2011

so, being able to take a look at your diary...i am going to guess sodium :P

you would be amazed at how much is snuck into food, i know i sure was!! eating out is the worst for sodium, specially (and i say this because you like wok box....as i do) soya sauce! quite a lot gets used, and yet things don't taste as salty as if it were just salt, so that is a really really big one. no more wok box for me

lol

cals seem fine when averaged out. yes some days you are over, and some you are under, but some people actually swear by doing yo-yo cals like that.

alycia1234 · April 2011

I was surprise to see how many people here actually mention sodium. i never knew it would play such a big role. and Yes! i like wokbox, it's where i go to if I did not bring lunch!

I really appreciate your comments and advice! So just summarising everything, I concluded that:

I need to log water and make sure that I am more diligent in logging my food dairy
mix up my workout routine
cut down on sodium

Mads1997 · April 2011

Sodium and where are the fruit and veges? I went back about a week or more and could barely find a vegetable.

tsandillo · April 2011

You may not be eating enough and what you are eating may be the wrong stuff. I found that when I amped up my protein, started eating 4-5 times a day and cut out processed foods my metabolism shot through the roof. Plus you have to take into account how your clothes are fitting. I know that since I started being serious about getting fit I have lost approximately 22 pounds but I've cut off 8-9% body fat and dropped two clothing sizes. Everyone is different -- pay attention to the food that makes you feel sluggish and cut it out of your diet. Your body is always trying to tell you what it needs you to eat.

fteale · April 2011

That is very similar to my loss, as well as my exercise and diet. Have you lost size? I know I am a lot thinner and healthier, even though I have only lost a bit over 4 lbs in 3 months. I can run 10 miles happily now, I couldn't run 4 3 months ago, and I am nearly 2 clothes sizes smaller.

alycia1234 · April 2011

That is very similar to my loss, as well as my exercise and diet. Have you lost size? I know I am a lot thinner and healthier, even though I have only lost a bit over 4 lbs in 3 months. I can run 10 miles happily now, I couldn't run 4 3 months ago, and I am nearly 2 clothes sizes smaller.

I have not lost size no, but I do notice a firmer upper body for sure. I can see that my chest, arms and abs are noticebly more defined. Other than that, just sore body. But really want to be smaller. I notice you hardly eat any meat, are you a vegetarian? did you train to run 10 miles in 4 months? It is relief to know that someone out there who lost on 4lbs in 3 months, but 2 clothing size! That make me feel like the numbers are not that important.

What am I doing wrong?

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