not losing weight

sarahcarley
sarahcarley Posts: 11 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I have been tracking my calories for about 8 weeks, and for the first few weeks was losing steadily, but over the past four weeks I have stopped losing. I am exercising regularly, and netting less than 1300 calories. (so more than 1300 calories, but accounting for exercise).

I started at 150lbs and am down to 142. My goal is 135.

Any suggestions would be very helpful!
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Replies

  • TimothyFish
    TimothyFish Posts: 4,925 Member
    Perhaps you are eating more than you think or your exercise isn't burning as many calories as you think.
  • sarahcarley
    sarahcarley Posts: 11 Member
    I am scanning bar codes on food or looking up food on either MFP or company nutrition websites. I am getting exercise calories from MFP.
  • AliceDark
    AliceDark Posts: 3,886 Member
    Are you weighing your food? Using measuring cups/spoons? Do you eat back all/part/some of your exercise calories?
  • xfeyonax
    xfeyonax Posts: 36 Member
    This often happens when our body gets into the 'saving' mode. It could be that your metabolism is not working properly, but I'm not sure. It doesn't seem like a crash diet to me. The same happened to me when I started dieting 4 years ago. I lost approximately 6kg the first 2 months and suddenly it stopped. It turned out that my metabolism didn't work properly anymore because I simply wasn't getting enough energy and so my body went into 'save' mode... :neutral_face:
  • crisb2
    crisb2 Posts: 329 Member
    edited October 2014
    Weight loss slows down the closer you get to your goal. The "last ten pounds" or in your case 13lbs, are notoriously difficult.

    The usual suspects people will tell you are:
    - Under-estimating calorie intake (logging inaccurate)
    - Not calculating TDEE and deficit accurately
    - Over-estimating calorie burn
    - Take measurements as well as weighing
  • victoriaalice40
    victoriaalice40 Posts: 68
    It seems like you are losing at a safe rate to me.
  • pander101
    pander101 Posts: 677 Member
    Your metabolism is fine. Are you weighing your food?
  • sarahcarley
    sarahcarley Posts: 11 Member
    I am weighing and measuring all my food. I bought a scale and use measuring cups and spoons.

    I am eating back part of my exercise calories, but my net stays between 1000-1300. For example, yesterday I ate 1425, and exercised 375, which netted 1051 calories for the day.
  • sarahcarley
    sarahcarley Posts: 11 Member
    What is TDEE?
  • s_pekz
    s_pekz Posts: 340 Member
    xfeyonax wrote: »
    This often happens when our body gets into the 'saving' mode. It could be that your metabolism is not working properly, but I'm not sure. It doesn't seem like a crash diet to me. The same happened to me when I started dieting 4 years ago. I lost approximately 6kg the first 2 months and suddenly it stopped. It turned out that my metabolism didn't work properly anymore because I simply wasn't getting enough energy and so my body went into 'save' mode... :neutral_face:

    #no
  • MeganZeman
    MeganZeman Posts: 53 Member
    Maybe you could consider a heart rate monitor to track how many calories you burn during workouts. I have found that I burn far fewer calories than suggested on MFP. As you get fitter you have to up your intensity if you want to continue burning the same amount of calories. I am having the same problem and this is the advice I have been given.
  • pander101
    pander101 Posts: 677 Member
    Also, you're suppose to adjust calories for every 10lbs you lose if you are using MFP method. For TDEE method I use iifym.com site personally. But it stands for total daily energy expenditure. You do that minus 20%. Don't eat back exercise calories.
  • AskTracyAnnK28
    AskTracyAnnK28 Posts: 2,817 Member
    Can you open your diary? and you lost 8 pounds in 8 weeks...that totals a pound a week. Not too shabby at all
  • pander101
    pander101 Posts: 677 Member
    edited October 2014
    s_pekz wrote: »
    xfeyonax wrote: »
    This often happens when our body gets into the 'saving' mode. It could be that your metabolism is not working properly, but I'm not sure. It doesn't seem like a crash diet to me. The same happened to me when I started dieting 4 years ago. I lost approximately 6kg the first 2 months and suddenly it stopped. It turned out that my metabolism didn't work properly anymore because I simply wasn't getting enough energy and so my body went into 'save' mode... :neutral_face:

    #no

    Yeah....agreed. No.

  • sarahcarley
    sarahcarley Posts: 11 Member
    pander101 wrote: »
    Also, you're suppose to adjust calories for every 10lbs you lose if you are using MFP method. For TDEE method I use iifym.com site personally. But it stands for total daily energy expenditure. You do that minus 20%. Don't eat back exercise calories.


    so you suggest I stay under 1300 a day and do not account for exercise? So to make sure I understand:
    if I exercise 400 calories, MFP tells me I have 1700 calories available for the day. I should stay under the 1300 to improve the weight loss?
  • Liftng4Lis
    Liftng4Lis Posts: 15,151 Member
    Can you open your diary?
  • AskTracyAnnK28
    AskTracyAnnK28 Posts: 2,817 Member
    xfeyonax wrote: »
    This often happens when our body gets into the 'saving' mode. It could be that your metabolism is not working properly, but I'm not sure. It doesn't seem like a crash diet to me. The same happened to me when I started dieting 4 years ago. I lost approximately 6kg the first 2 months and suddenly it stopped. It turned out that my metabolism didn't work properly anymore because I simply wasn't getting enough energy and so my body went into 'save' mode... :neutral_face:

    ahhh...nope

  • sarahcarley
    sarahcarley Posts: 11 Member
    Liftng4Lis wrote: »
    Can you open your diary?

    I should be open now.
  • Liftng4Lis
    Liftng4Lis Posts: 15,151 Member
    Wendys - French Fry Small, 22.75 g 78 ??? (You ate 2 french fries)?? You have a lot of quick add calories in there, how come? Also are you weighing? How are you coming up with the calories for homemade items?
  • AskTracyAnnK28
    AskTracyAnnK28 Posts: 2,817 Member
    Watch your sodium...it's been pretty high this week. Remember on high sodium days to try and drinks loads of water.
  • Liftng4Lis
    Liftng4Lis Posts: 15,151 Member
    Those are just some things to watch. Really, you lost a lot of weight in the first 4 weeks- pretty aggressive actually, for someone who doesn't have much to lose. Logging becomes critical with this small of a deficit.
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  • WinoGelato
    WinoGelato Posts: 13,454 Member
    sarahcarley wrote: »
    pander101 wrote: »
    Also, you're suppose to adjust calories for every 10lbs you lose if you are using MFP method. For TDEE method I use iifym.com site personally. But it stands for total daily energy expenditure. You do that minus 20%. Don't eat back exercise calories.


    so you suggest I stay under 1300 a day and do not account for exercise? So to make sure I understand:
    if I exercise 400 calories, MFP tells me I have 1700 calories available for the day. I should stay under the 1300 to improve the weight loss?

    If you do TDEE method, you calculate your calories burned through exercise, as well as other day to day activities into your calorie alotment for the day. TDEE is essentially your maintenance amount of calories, and then to lose a pound/week you would deduct about 20% from that to set your calorie goal. Once you do that, then you don't eat back exercise calories and in fact, most people just enter their excercise with a calorie burn of 1 to record that they did something.

    Let's say that you figure out your TDEE to be 2200 cals. 20% deduction of that would mean your calorie goal for weight loss is 1,760. You would eat 1,760 and wouldn't eat back exercise calories because they would already be factored into your goal, if you calculated accurately and are fairly consistent with your exercise.


  • shaun603
    shaun603 Posts: 75
    edited October 2014
    There's some pretty inexpensive heart rate monitors you can get that greatly help with accurate calorie burn during your work outs as its constantly monitoring your heart rate. MFP's calorie estimation for working out is way off I found in most cases. A buddy of mine recently tried logging in 4 hours of lawn mowing and MFP said he burned 2750 calories. We lol'd and he purchased a heart rate monitor.
  • sarahcarley
    sarahcarley Posts: 11 Member
    Liftng4Lis wrote: »
    Wendys - French Fry Small, 22.75 g 78 ??? (You ate 2 french fries)?? You have a lot of quick add calories in there, how come? Also are you weighing? How are you coming up with the calories for homemade items?

    yep. It was 4 French fries. I try to put everything I can in there. I do the quick add calories when I make a recipe at home, and yes, I still weigh everything.
  • sarahcarley
    sarahcarley Posts: 11 Member
    Kruggeri wrote: »
    sarahcarley wrote: »
    pander101 wrote: »
    Also, you're suppose to adjust calories for every 10lbs you lose if you are using MFP method. For TDEE method I use iifym.com site personally. But it stands for total daily energy expenditure. You do that minus 20%. Don't eat back exercise calories.


    so you suggest I stay under 1300 a day and do not account for exercise? So to make sure I understand:
    if I exercise 400 calories, MFP tells me I have 1700 calories available for the day. I should stay under the 1300 to improve the weight loss?

    If you do TDEE method, you calculate your calories burned through exercise, as well as other day to day activities into your calorie alotment for the day. TDEE is essentially your maintenance amount of calories, and then to lose a pound/week you would deduct about 20% from that to set your calorie goal. Once you do that, then you don't eat back exercise calories and in fact, most people just enter their excercise with a calorie burn of 1 to record that they did something.

    Let's say that you figure out your TDEE to be 2200 cals. 20% deduction of that would mean your calorie goal for weight loss is 1,760. You would eat 1,760 and wouldn't eat back exercise calories because they would already be factored into your goal, if you calculated accurately and are fairly consistent with your exercise.


    That makes sense! How do I figure out my initial TDEE?
  • sarahcarley
    sarahcarley Posts: 11 Member
    Liftng4Lis wrote: »
    Those are just some things to watch. Really, you lost a lot of weight in the first 4 weeks- pretty aggressive actually, for someone who doesn't have much to lose. Logging becomes critical with this small of a deficit.

    Thanks. I set the MFP to lose 2 lbs a week, so that is what I expected, and that is what happened for the first few weeks. Then nothing; maybe I should be expecting closer to 1lbs a week when I figure out what is wrong?
  • Tilran
    Tilran Posts: 627 Member
    sarahcarley wrote: »
    Liftng4Lis wrote: »
    Those are just some things to watch. Really, you lost a lot of weight in the first 4 weeks- pretty aggressive actually, for someone who doesn't have much to lose. Logging becomes critical with this small of a deficit.

    Thanks. I set the MFP to lose 2 lbs a week, so that is what I expected, and that is what happened for the first few weeks. Then nothing; maybe I should be expecting closer to 1lbs a week when I figure out what is wrong?

    MFP does not do a good job of explaining what expectations should be. Most people who are not at the high range of Obese or Morbidly Obese should be expecting to lose a pound or LESS a week.

    How tall are you? You say 135 is your goal but we have no way to know if that is close to ideal body weight or not. People said that the final 10 pounds is hard to lose and that is true...assuming 145-135 is your final 10 pounds.

    When you truly get to 10 pounds away from goal (sub 20% BF for women), then you should be seeking .5-1 pound loss per week at best.
  • sarahcarley
    sarahcarley Posts: 11 Member
    I'm 5'4 1/2'' I have no idea what the medical ideal body weight is for me, but that is a weight that I was happy with

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