First week no loss in weight

Welcome!!! You will be happy to know you're not alone. The main culprit is usually the same for everyone: not being accurate with your food intake and taking in more calories than you thought or wrote down. Make sure your settings are set appropriately. I had to switch mine from "lightly active" to "sedentary" - I was eating too many calories last time and thus, did not lose the weight I had hoped to lose.

Also, I recommend a digital food scale that does ounces and grams (they are CHEAP! $20 on amazon or even less!) Do not necessarily trust the nutrition data in the database here. If it has an asterisk by it, it was entered manually by someone and may or may not be complete or incorrect. If I am in doubt I go to the USDA Nutrition Database or to the product's website to get the nutrition data. Go by weight, rather than volume (i.e., 130 g vs. 1/2 cup.)

These three threads helped me out a great deal. Don't despair...with a little tweaking, you will be on your way!!!

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1399829/step-by-step-guide-to-losing-weight-with-myfitnesspal#latest

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1080242/a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants#latest

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1235566/so-youre-new-here#latest

I am someone who gets freaked out, and easily upset, by numbers on the scale. So the first 3 weeks in order to get accustomed to weight fluctuations and unexpected numbers (up or down) I essentially ate the same thing every day and weighed myself every morning after going to the bathroom. Everyday the scale fluctuated within a weight range, 5 days out I was "2 lbs lighter" the 6th day I was the same as starting, the 7th I was 1 lb heavier and then the 9th day I was three pounds lighter. At the end of the 3 weeks, my lowest and highest readings were lower then those in the first week, and I have been consistently trending downwards since. But it goes to show you that in the first week if I had only taken my weight on the first and seventh day I actually would have shown a 1 lb weight gain and probably gone into a tailspin downwards. Really you are only going to have true weight loss of a pound or two max and the rest is fluid fluctuations and a week is too short a time to start judging. If the change of number is all you want to see, you can do a "fluid flush" and loose 10 lbs in 2 days but it's not true weight loss. If you eat high carbohydrate, salty food or alcohol the night before you weight yourseIf, you will have water retention and it will show on the scale. I have actually had up to a 5 lb weight gain over night after high food consumption. If after a month the scale hasn't budged then you are consuming too many calories, but a week is too short to tell.

I can totally relate to this. In the past for me, I'd see no change and be like "UGH well that's it, this isn't working, I may as well just stop". But DON'T! My most recent example...I started the 21 Day Fix on Jan 5, and the first week I lost several pounds. The second week, I lost an ounce. AN OUNCE. I was like what the $&#*^*!?!!?!?! As much as it was frustrating, I keep telling myself that I didn't put this weight on overnight, and I can't expect it to come off overnight...or in one week, or two weeks. Personally, I try to keep myself on check for a pound a week for weight loss. SO many things can come into play when it comes to the numbers on the scale. Here are some tips that have helped me:

1) Only weigh yourself once a week, at the same time. This is the HARDEST thing ever for me, because like you, I get discouraged. But by only weighing myself once a week, it helps me focus on how I feel and what I'm eating vs the dreaded number.

2) Write everything you eat down. I obviously use myfitnesspal, but I've also used a notebook. I write it down before it even goes in my mouth, and it really makes me think about what I'm eating.

3) Don't let yourself get hungry, or you'll start to feel deprived, and for me, that's when it all goes downhill. I don't know why, but there's something for me about feeling that "so hungry" feeling, that takes me back to a place of "omg I'm just going to eat whatever". Always keep some healthy snacks handy.

Not sure if these help, but they've helped me tons Keep at it!!

williamwj2014 wrote: »

probably not being accurate with your food intake, that's what it usually is. Try to avoid eating processed foods (hot pockets, frozen pizzas, etc.) cook your meals and weigh everything..

This is not very helpful advice to someone who is just starting. Well, except for weighing everything. While no one should eat a diet full of prepackaged foods, there is nothing wrong with it in moderation if it fits your calories. OP, give it time. If you are logging accurately and are in a calorie deficit, it will start to move. Of course I am a male and 181 pounds, but my weight can fluctuate 5 pounds from one day to another. Over time, the trend will be down if you are eating at a deficit.