stuck at 182lbs for 3 months... feel like giving up

natasa612
natasa612 Posts: 6 Member
edited November 11 in Health and Weight Loss
Hello everyone! I started my weight loss journey 6 months ago and in that time I only lost 10lbs. I am currently stuck at 182 lbs. My goal is 150-160lbs

I eat around 1400 calories a day. I eat lean meats/fish, heaps of veggies, max of 2 fruits a day, I drink green tea and water. I also measured my food.

I don't exercise, so I guess my question is did anyone see a change in the weight loss after introducing exercise? I am losing all hope :(

Thanks


Replies

  • cheekymoi83
    cheekymoi83 Posts: 5 Member
    Hi! Apparently you will lose weight quickly at the beginning by decreasung your calorie intake. However, once you lose weight your metabolic rate will decrease so you will naturally burn less calories (bigger people have a higher metabolic rate). Therefore you need to raise this rate & you do this with exercise. If you get a heart rate monitor you can measure how your resting heart rate improves after doing exercise for a few weeks which means you'll not only lose weight from exercising but your heart will be healthier too :-)

    I'm no expert, but since exercising my body is a lot leaner. I'm not weighing myself but measuring success by how less flobby I feel & by being able to fit a bit more nicely into clothes that were previously too tight!

    I'm having the same probably as you though so I've upped my brisk walking & have started some 10 minute Jessica Smith exercise videos on YouTube. She does a great standing abs video & 10 minute cardio one if you're short for time. If you want to up the intensity ,tone & strengthen I recommend Gillan Michaels 30 day shred video which is 20 minutes of exercise to get you sweating but you really see a difference in your ability to keep up with her after only a week = improved fitness!!

    Hope this has helped!
  • cheekymoi83
    cheekymoi83 Posts: 5 Member
    I'm the opposite to you- can do exercise but not very good with the food. Apparently I keep eating lots of saturated fat!? Can u help? Thanks!
  • ktdid626
    ktdid626 Posts: 185 Member
    Oh boy...yes. You need to exercise if you're suck, in my opinion. When I get stuck, I increase the intensity of my workouts for about a week, and then I'm unstuck. Feel free to add me as a friend, and look into my food diary.

    And yes you can @cheekymoi83‌ . You can be better with your food. You can do it! We've all been there!
  • natasa612
    natasa612 Posts: 6 Member
    Hello cheekymoi83, thank you for your advice. Food is not a problem for me, I am not gonna say it was easy at the start, but after 2-3 weeks you will notice cravings stop and it gets easier and easier. I went cold turkey on soft drinks, junk food, take away etc.
  • malibu927
    malibu927 Posts: 17,562 Member
    When you say measure, are you going by measuring cups or a food scale? Are you recording every single thing you eat and drink with calories? If you aren't losing, you're eating more than you think.

    Calorie deficit=weight loss. Exercise=fitness. Though it can help your deficit, you still need to make sure you're within your calories.
  • wolfruhn
    wolfruhn Posts: 3,025 Member
    My weight loss always increases with exercise. My very simple rule is not to let my body get in a routine. So I shake it up, get it confused, so it burns up some of that fat it's got stored away. I do this with increasing exercise. I sometimes also do it by introducing a fasting day after a cheat day, and vice versa. Basically just keep mixing it up. The good thing about exercise is that the calorie burn continues after the workout. Everything said above is good advice. Good luck :)
  • Victoriamrs
    Victoriamrs Posts: 99 Member
    Hey there

    Don't give up remember the reason you started this journey.

    I lost weight at the start by just making changes to my diet and decreasing my calorie intake. After a couple of months like you there was not further weight loss and thankfully no gain. So I started to introduce exercise, first gentle walking, brisk walking followed by the odd hike. I have now introduced a weekly 5k park run and a work out at the gym which includes treadmill running (started with walking), some strength training, swimming and I am hoping to introduce a kettlebell class from next week. I have noticed inch loss as well as another 4lbs.

    So continue to monitor, log, weigh your food and start to introduce exercise hopefully you will start to see a move down the scales again. I would recommend taking your measurements because sometimes you won't see it on the scales but you will feel it in your clothes. This can help keep you motivated when you don't get the results you were hoping for on the scales.

    Good luck and if you need some support and motivation please feel free to add me :)
  • Delilahhhhhh
    Delilahhhhhh Posts: 477 Member
    malibu927 wrote: »
    When you say measure, are you going by measuring cups or a food scale? Are you recording every single thing you eat and drink with calories? If you aren't losing, you're eating more than you think.

    Calorie deficit=weight loss. Exercise=fitness. Though it can help your deficit, you still need to make sure you're within your calories.

    ^^^^

    Here is a link that is very very useful, http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/872212-you-re-probably-eating-more-than-you-think.
    Good luck on your journey, you can do this!!
  • OP, I'm in same position/predicament as you. I started all this back in October. I originally weighed 203 pounds. I very quickly and easily went down to 193pounds. After that I carried on losing but at a slower pace.

    About a month before Christmas I got stuck at 185-187 and for 2 weeks at Christmas, I gave up. I put on a couple of pounds, nothing drastic and then easily lost them again.

    I'm now stuck again, fluctuating between 182 - 185. Always eating less than 1600 calories per day but very little exercise.

    Next week I'm starting a new job which will mean I have to walk too and from work. So maybe, hopefully, that will help but yeah, I'm also stuck and I know exactly how you feel.

    I can't offer any help but just to let you know, you're not alone
  • Liftng4Lis
    Liftng4Lis Posts: 15,151 Member
    Can you open your diary?
  • tbilly20
    tbilly20 Posts: 154 Member
    It is a natural survival mechanism of the body to not want to lose weight. The equation of eat less than you expend should be very simple, but the no one told my body, or yours, about those rules!

    I agree with the other postings; it's time to fan the flame! Begin an exercise routine, and shock your body's defenses by doing something it's not prepared for.

    Definitely get a heart rate monitor and understand your zones. Drink lot's of water!

    Be ready for fluctuations. Water can do some funny things to you when you exercise regularly. Weight will drop, but you may find it easier to go by how you feel than a number of the scale.

    Dieting can be madness. You may trade one stalemate for another, but the benefits of working out are more than worth it!
  • palwithme
    palwithme Posts: 860 Member
    Thanks for the great advice everyone. I am stuck, too. Hopefully some of your words will help me.
  • lemonsurprise
    lemonsurprise Posts: 255 Member
    I was also stuck at 175lbs for the month over Xmas. I was eating 1400 and not exercising but to be honest I probably was under estimating portions and not logging little tiny bits of food. I went back down to 1,200. I'm a lot more strict, have got back in to weighing things and the weight is coming off again without any excercise! I weighed myself this morning and I was 166!
    I also don't agree that your body "doesn't want you to lose weight". Over weight people burn calories quicker and underweight people slower. Your body wants to be at an ideal weight, it makes sense if you think of it in survival terms.
    Exercising will definitely help you lose weight or eat more, but it's not necessary. I've lost 60lbs without it!
  • Phaewryn
    Phaewryn Posts: 142 Member
    I'm also going with the above poster who does 1200 calories per day, that is my calorie goal as well. Also, I went into custom and changed the ratios so that the fat percentage is down to 20%, bring the protein up to 40%, and then make the carbs equal to the proteins (for some reason the website makes you do it in that order). This resulted in a reduced fat diet goal, while still being within a close range to the RDA, which says most people need 30% of the calories from fat. If you do decide to do this, make sure you have the fats set so that you get MOSTLY Polyunsaturaed fat, that's the healthy fat like is in olive oil, avocados, nuts, etc. Monounsaturated fat is what has the healthy omega acid fats, so you need some of that too.
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  • meritage4
    meritage4 Posts: 1,441 Member
    add exercise and see what happens.
  • Christine_72
    Christine_72 Posts: 16,049 Member
    Exercise is great in so many ways. But I lost 24lbs in 3mths with zero exercise
  • BWBTrish
    BWBTrish Posts: 2,817 Member
    edited February 2015
    Weigh every solid and measure every liquid.
    I think you eat more calories than you think.

    Now that the first initial weight has come off ( water weight) it slows down. It comes far more precise how much you eat after that first period of time.

    Look at this video it is an eye opener.

    Calorie deficit is weight loss
    Exercise is to get fit.....

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JVjWPclrWVY
  • TheRealNoodlette
    TheRealNoodlette Posts: 132 Member
    Don't give up! I was in the same boat. I was stalled for about three months, probably due to slacking over the holidays. I switched my exercise routine, started being VERY careful about weighing food, stopping the little snacks here and there, and I'm on another downward trend. Make sure you're drinking a lot of water, too.
  • Liftng4Lis
    Liftng4Lis Posts: 15,151 Member
    Again, can you open your diary?
  • Mr_Knight
    Mr_Knight Posts: 9,532 Member
    Open your diary.
  • BethanyDeines
    BethanyDeines Posts: 1 Member
    Exercise will definitely help! At the very least introduce some weight training because your body will burn fat even while you are not doing anything. You will also notice your body changing shape, even when you are not losing much weight which is incredibly motivating! If you are not an exerciser, it takes a little bit of time to get addicted to it. I'd recommend a trainer to help you stay accountable 1-2 times per week or join a class. I've seen a major transformation in my body since trying crossfit about 18 months ago. I don't really weigh less (in fact, I actually way more) but my body looks completely different. I'm working hard to lose weight so you can see the muscle and definition I've worked so hard to build. Hang in there...the exercise can be the fun part of this journey if you let it. Good luck!
  • Virkati
    Virkati Posts: 679 Member
    edited February 2015
    If you're stuck, try something different. Try something new. When I got stuck I increased my calories for a couple of weeks. It's counter-intuitive, but it worked for me. In the weeks since then, I've added some walking and a hill occasionally. I'm losing steadily again. And the next time I get stuck, I'll change something. Give it a try and DO NOT QUIT!!
  • Aemely
    Aemely Posts: 694 Member
    edited February 2015
    I started MFP 220 days ago by introducing more exercise into my regimen (mostly walking and some at-home exercises) and at the same time sticking with the MFP recommendation of 1,250 cals./day but eating back pretty much *all* of my earned exercise calories.

    Are you sure you aren't missing any hidden calories consumed (mayo, sugar, ketchup, coffee creamer)?? If you're sure and given your lack of loss right now, I'd consider reducing your calorie goal by 100 cals./day, try the new level for 2 weeks, and see how it goes. Realistically, you should be losing at 1,400 cals. a day, but perhaps you are different from the average bear??? To change your goals, click Goals > Change Goals > Guided (goals link), Continue, enter in your accurate information and realistic goal weight, and click Update Profile. GOOD LUCK! :grin:

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  • kimtober
    kimtober Posts: 52 Member
    Over the years I've tried to lose weight by just eating better and not exercising or exercising and not eating better, and I end up about where you are--losing just a little weight and then it stops. The only time that I've consistently lost weight is when I've done both of them together. I don't even do either of them particularly well or intensely, but I've lost 35lbs in the last year fairly easily. Definitely start exercising, even if it's only a little bit at a time!
  • Personally I'm now happy where I am.
    I still want to lose weight, about another 16pounds in total but I've come to realise there is more to this than just simply eating less calories = you lose weight. It's far more complicated than that and despite all the experts and the advice, no one really knows the magic answer that will immediately solve everything.

    it might do for some people some of the time but not all the people all the time.

    So, I'm now much more relaxed with all this. I am still losing weight but very slowly and gradually. MFP has taught me a lot about what I eat, how much I eat and I'm very grateful for that and I know in time I will get there but not going to stress about it. Most importantly, I'm now aware, far more aware of food and calories and diet and fat, sugar, salt etc. That alone makes all this worthwhile.

    I'm not super lean, not super fit but I'm in a much happier better place than I was back in October :)

    MFP has been an eye opener, a guide to help me but I won't allow myself to stress or worry that I ate a biscuit or 5 calories too many. :)
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