discouraged.

mckshowie
mckshowie Posts: 210 Member
edited September 26 in Motivation and Support
let me preface this with... i know i'm about to sound whiney.

so, this entire week i've been doing well, counting calories, getting in some exercise... thinking that 2lbs a week would be attainable...
i've lost nothing at my first weigh in. i realize it's early, but that is discouraging when you think about how your goals are set for 6-8 weeks and one week is down with nothing to show for it.

it's deflating and defeating when i felt so good about everything before stepping on the scale.

Replies

  • hpsnickers1
    hpsnickers1 Posts: 2,783 Member
    It takes about a month for your body to adjust to any kind of change. You have to give it time.

    And your weight loss goal might not be realistic. It looks like you probably aren't that overweight going by your ticker. If you are set to lose 2lbs per week it's not going to happen. At healthier weights our body wants to protect our fat stores (it's there in case of famine) and would rather slow down our metabolism, our thyroid activity and dig into our lean muscle mass if we eat too few calories.

    I had 10lbs to lose and I had to set it up for .5lb per week. Some weeks I didn't lose and some weeks I lost more but in the end it was about right.
    And weight training is also very important at lower weights. Lifting will help the body retain that lean muscle mass (use cardio as a supplement). That muscle mass is what makes our metabolism.
  • millesun
    millesun Posts: 209 Member
    Are you watching your sodium??? I know if I have too much sodium my scale won't move at all! Try drinking a lot of water and watching your sodium today...then step on that scale tomorrow morning...I bet you will see a little movement. :wink:
  • roxanne90
    roxanne90 Posts: 95
    Aw not whiney at all. I know how you feel. I have been at it now for a while and so far NOTHING. I am counting calories and going to the gym (just doing the treadmill right now) and nothing so far. Hang in there as I am trying to do. I think it will happen soon. :) Don't give up please.....
  • Ral263
    Ral263 Posts: 318 Member
    Don't get discouraged-- these things take time!!

    That being said, maybe reevaluate both your calorie intake and exercise plan (weight loss is, after all, calories in vs calories out). Perhaps posting your diary might be helpful Sometimes it's nice to have another pair of eyes take a look and offer up some insight.
  • laur89
    laur89 Posts: 30 Member
    I know how you feel I had been logging and I made sure to workout 3 times this week when I didn't really have the time to because it was the week of my final exams and everyday this week I stepped on the scale and it didn't move at all. Although over the last 2 weeks I had lost 7 pounds. I have mine set for 2lbs a week too. So I'm feeling really discouraged too and it set back my goals. I bet though if we both keep trying we will see the scale move.
  • roxanne90
    roxanne90 Posts: 95
    Are you watching your sodium??? I know if I have too much sodium my scale won't move at all! Try drinking a lot of water and watching your sodium today...then step on that scale tomorrow morning...I bet you will see a little movement. :wink:

    thanks for this info. I am going to watch my sodium today and tomorrow and see if that is my problem also.
  • srtiemann
    srtiemann Posts: 76
    Weight loss if very difficult. Don't be discouraged that you have not lost any weight as of yet. Your body is still adjusting to the new routine.
    First thing I would do is to evaluate what I ate and what exercises I worked on. See where you can improve. Once you find areas to improve you will get on track to loosing the weight you want.

    Shelley
  • mckshowie
    mckshowie Posts: 210 Member
    i made my diary public... i'm not sure if that helps. i'm kinda new here and don't know a lot of the settings...
  • I'm sure I'm a lot bigger than you are (Male, 6'1", 240 pounds) but my weight varies 4 or 5 pounds per day depending on a multitude of things. Your weight variance will undoubetdly be less than mine, but you may just be on the high end of that cycle. Just keep doing what you're doing. I bet you'll see a bigger difference next weigh-in.
  • AEisele
    AEisele Posts: 98 Member
    Two things that help me, I learned from a man who has gone from over 500lb to less than 280 in a year. He said "Remember you didn't get this way overnight, it's not going to change over night." also and I love this one, "ask yourself, am I doing better than I was? what can I do to make it even better than that." It's the little changes that have the biggest impact. Don't focus on the weight focus on eating healthy,
  • natekorpusik
    natekorpusik Posts: 176 Member
    You might see inches disappearing before you actually see weight loss. I work out 7 days a week and watch my calories every day. My scale hasn't moved much either the last week or so. But I know it will. Measurements are important too.. Mine have turned to the better even though my scale isn't moving much. Hang in there. It WILL work. Good luck.
  • I hope I don't get flamed for this, but don't get too focused on the numbers you see on the scale. Your weight can fluctuate every single day. I weigh myself maybe twice a month. I go by the fit of my clothes and what I actually see in the mirror instead. I'm down about 25-30 lbs. since January.

    Slow and steady.
  • Ral263
    Ral263 Posts: 318 Member
    In response to the diary---

    Your breakfasts are looking great-- a good mix of lean protein, carbs, and fruit are always a good way to start the day.

    However, I think that you'll find a lot better results if you up your protein and fiber at lunch and dinner--- instead of all the lentil soup and deli meats you've been eating (lots of sodium!), swap them out for lean protein like fish or chicken breasts.

    And--- this is so important--- make sure you are eating more vegetables, especially at lunch and dinner!!

    Try to eliminate processed flours/carbs and eat only whole wheat or unprocessed grains when you can-- white flours and sugars are essentially empty calories stripped of nutritional value.

    Hope this helps., don't get discouraged, like I said, weight loss doesn't happen overnight :)
  • Qarol
    Qarol Posts: 6,171 Member
    One hard thing I've learned is some weeks, you will lose nothing. And you will fluctuate, too. You could be doing everything right and yet your body doesn't understand basic math. It's very discouraging, but you have to find a way to stick with it anyway. Sorry, I wish it were easier.
  • PantalaNagaPampa
    PantalaNagaPampa Posts: 1,031 Member
    Most people don't see a change in the first 2-4 weeks. This is the time your body is trying to adjust itself and figure out if it is suppossed to be loosing wieght or storing fat. These kind of changes in the body are complex and can take to manifest in what you want to see on the scale. Now, some people out there can skip a single meal and drop 2lbs, these people are the exception, not the rule.

    Give yourself a couple of weeks of good clean diet and proper exercise. If you still don't see a change in the scal, check to see if you van see any changes in the way your clothes fit or in what you see in the mirror. If you honestly don't see any weight loss or inches gone, then you need to look at what you have been doing and make sure its not your diet.

    So many things in your diet can keep you form droppiung that 2lbs a week; too much sodium is one people rarely watch, too many carbs/fats etc. Also, the manageable goal is 1-2 pounds a week. If you are overweight, think about how long it took you to get to the point you are now. You didn't gain it all in a week or a month etc..
  • bwyne03
    bwyne03 Posts: 137 Member
    You might see inches disappearing before you actually see weight loss. I work out 7 days a week and watch my calories every day. My scale hasn't moved much either the last week or so. But I know it will. Measurements are important too.. Mine have turned to the better even though my scale isn't moving much. Hang in there. It WILL work. Good luck.

    I agree! I think we all focus so much on the number on the scale, but I think if you measure and track your inches (plus the way your clothes feel) you will see your body is changing and improving! The scale hasn't moved much for me yet, but I do feel much better knowing I am watching my calories and also exercising. We will get there, just takes hard work and patience :) Best of luck and don't give up! Each day is a new day!!
  • lumos39
    lumos39 Posts: 3 Member
    I weigh myself every day when I wake up in the morning. I DON"T recommend this for most people because it is possible it can be very discouraging. My purpose is to try and understand how I lose weight and plot the day-to-day changes.

    Here is what I have observed so far: My weight can fluctuate by up to 5 pounds within 24 hours. On some days that I have a huge calorie deficit and think I should lose, the scale might show a 1-3 lb gain. On days when I have a healthy dinner and feel full thinking I will gain, I might show a loss of 1-3 lb. I have actually eaten some birthday cake thinking "there goes the weigh in", but saw a 2 lb loss the next day. Excessive hard-core excercise doesn't necessarily impact the weigh in the next day.

    I have noticed that some days when I have a large bowel movement, I can see a 2-4 lb drop the next day. I guess there are times that I'm full of ****.

    Over time, however, the trend is weight loss as predicted by MyFitenssPal.
  • kristidem
    kristidem Posts: 160 Member
    Stick with it!!! The scale will start to move eventually. Take a look at the kinds of food you're eating. The kind of calories matter - eating chips, snack, and fatty food will meet your calorie goal but can leave you feeling hungry and/or not give your the results you really want to see. Make sure you're eating fruits, veggies, whole grains, and lean meats - with of course the occassional treat.
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