is anybody nice enough

I'm no expert, but I really like cereal and would advocate having a bowl with skimmed or semi-skimmed milk when you get up in the morning. Breaking the fast gets your metabolism going and it only costs around 250 kcals. Did I say I really like cereal? Best of luck. Andy.

You said you lost a pound, right? So the scale is moving. Maybe not as fast as you'd like, but it's moving.

If you just started exercising it's likely you're retaining water for muscle repair. You need to give it more time. You're going to need patience and persistence if you're going to make a go of this whole weight loss thing.

Calorie deficit is what causes weight loss. You can get it from limiting what you eat or by exercising, or both. Most people find that it's MUCH easier to eat 500 calories less than it is to burn 500 calories at the gym. Personally I do a combination of the two.

Don't give up! The scale is moving!! I know you said you only eat twice day, but maybe you should eat a little more often, but smaller portions so that (1) your metabolism stays engaged and (2) your body doesn't go on starvation mode. I know for me, I make sure I eat something in the morning so that I can kick start my metabolism (since my body didn't get any fuel for like 8 hours). Eggs are a great source of protein that your muscles love and helps out with recovery from a hard work-out. I mainly do protein shakes with my vitamin supplement (in powder form) thrown in.

And don't pay attention to other people's results. Every person is different and will lose/gain weight a little bit differently.

TL/DR; take the long term view, find what works for you.

It's not easy for anyone, especially at the start. We all have ups and downs but it shouldn't be that stressful; if you stress yourself out you won't stick to it. What specifically is causing you stress?

Bear in mind your weight can fluctuate 2-3lbs day to day in water weight alone, so the scales are not that accurate on a day by day, or even week by week basis; if you weighed yourself last week and your water was low and weighed yourself this week and it was high you might appear to have not lost much weight even though your body fat has reduced quite a bit. It's much better to take an average over several weeks to see if something is working or not. Take the long term view.

With that in mind remember that fitness and health are a long term project by nature. An average weight loss of 1-2lbs a week is the recommended rate. At that rate 50lbs could take 6-12 months to lose, and that’s only if you stay on track 100% of the time... If we account for hiccups along the way (which everyone has) then it will take even longer. The upshot of this is that if you don't lose much weight over 2-3 weeks it's nothing to worry about in the grand scheme of things. As long as, on average, your weight is trending towards where you want to be then you are doing just fine.

As for exercise vs diet... There are 2 factors involved with weight loss; the amount calories you take in (diet) vs the amount you burn off (being alive + exercise). If you want to lose weight you need to take in fewer calories than you burn off (be in a caloric deficit). You can either eat less to take in fewer calories, or exercise more to burn off more calories. Either one will create/increase the deficit and cause you to lose weight, but you get double the benefit if you do both. Simple as that.

If you are not losing weight after several weeks then it means you are eating the same amount of calories you are burning off. Regardless of what any trackers or calculators tell you, that is what is happening; the scales don’t lie. Either eat a little less or exercise a little more and see where you are a few weeks later. If there’s still no difference increase the deficit a little more and repeat until the scales start to go down.

In my opinion it is better to add more exercise than take away calories, because exercise will improve your fitness, energy levels, mood, motivation etc. and you need a minimum amount of calories in order to get all your essential nutrients; more calories means you are more likely to get everything you need. But that’s just my view; I love exercise so might be biased. Find out what works for you and do that.

You do not HAVE to track your diet if it stresses you out, but it makes things a LOT easier to manage if you do. It can be as simple as setting a routine and watching the scale over a number of weeks, and either eating less or exercising more each week until it starts to go down. Like everything else; find what works for you and do that.

Good luck.

AJayy77 wrote: »

I'm no expert, but I really like cereal and would advocate having a bowl with skimmed or semi-skimmed milk when you get up in the morning. Breaking the fast gets your metabolism going and it only costs around 250 kcals. Did I say I really like cereal? Best of luck. Andy.

Your metabolism never stops, and eating breakfast isn't necessary for weight loss for some people.

OP, you still lost weight, so you're doing something right! My first two weeks I gained two pounds. It's possible you could have had some water weight jump on due to sodium intake or TOM that would mask your loss. Keep doing what you're doing, log everything accurately and honestly, and you should see something bigger in two weeks.

You will also see the needle move if you limit your carb intake, even for a week or two. Keep your carbs to 80g/day, while staying within your calorie budget. You will see pounds drop and maybe that will motivate you to keep at it.

aniqa109 wrote: »

Thanks
I Think i will keep going and try a few other things such as adding exercise. I love cardio. I used to dance a lot when i was younger.
ive increased water intake and if i see a loss on the scale in 2 weeks time then il be happy!

Ooh, dancing is great cardio! So many people focus on running and lifting weights but the best exercise is something you enjoy and will do on a regular basis, and that gets your heart rate up. Go dancing, take a zumba class, take ballroom lessons, take a ballet or jazz class, put on your favorite dance mix and dance around the house for 30 minutes. All of that will help! Personally, I am not a dancer but I love the water so my workouts are water aerobics classes and lap swimming, and I dare anyone to tell me I am not getting a "proper" workout from it.

If you are getting stressed by the numbers, start by simply eating better and moving more, then work on perfecting it. BTW: if you feel good eating 2 meals a day then eat 2 meals a day. If you get hungry, you could try dividing those meals up into more frequent, smaller ones. Whatever works for you. I eat 5-6 times a day which keeps me fueled and satisfied.

Hi, I am 5'1 and not new to counting calories. I am doing a maintainable log right now and it has taken me 60 days to lose 4 lb- that is 1/2 lb a week.
My calories are set at 1200 and I log 200 cal (average) exercise 5 days a week. 1 hr aqua fit or Zumba.
Because my maintainance is so low I have to exercise to burn the calories needed to lose.
I think if you got your own scale to keep track of your weight you may be able to track it more accurately . I keep mine in the same place and weigh myself as soon as I get up and have been for a pee so there are few variables to influence the result.
I also think getting a food scale may help in tracking your food accuracy.
Because you are short like me you would probably get better results if you could get an hour of exercise in a few times a week. It will also help you retain your lean muscle mass as you lose fat.
If you like to dance try Zumba toning- hand weights are used to help keep your muscles.
Good luck, and stick with it, results can be slower for us shorties.
Cheers, h

I'm not going to repeat everything everyone else is saying because I think you know this already. I am going to say this. Your outlook is off. This is not something you should be doing on the short term. This has to be a lifelong commitment. I think if you stopped focusing on the scale and just focused on eating right the weight problem will take care of itself. Just my two cents.

You need to show some patience.
Id advocate the inclusion of exercise because it has several benefits and makes keeping a deficit easier, although exercise cna be hard work. You have 39 friends on your friends list, arent some of them giving you advice, checking your diary and suggesting what you might be doing? It requires you to have.

1. A healthy mindset.
2. Know how to use MFP properly, the foundations being accurate , complete and consistent logging. It also includes weighing your food and setting the correct deficit.
3. A diet that you can live with that has the correct deficit, but also supplies you with enough nutrition.
4. Exercise that makes managing your deficit easier and that you can sustain.

If you sort this out then follow the plan for ten weeks consistently and you will lose weight.