Weight loss plateau already? slowed right down

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  • lisaw19855
    lisaw19855 Posts: 165 Member
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    kikichewie wrote: »
    What is the sugar free juice you mentioned? Some kind of zero calorie powder like Crystal Light? Just checking on whether it is calorie free or something you're missing in your diary?

    It is just some black current cordial from Tesco, 2 calories per 250ml, I'd drink water alone but struggle to get 2 down litres down.
  • lisaw19855
    lisaw19855 Posts: 165 Member
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    Just checked and fitbit says that 0% of my steps for the days where I input exercise are from my exercise so I assume that it disregards steps taking during the specified exercise times that I input in MFP.

    Also my steps yesterday are within 200 of what my waist band pedometer shows.

    Also MFP shows higher calorie burn for my activity level, currently set at sedentary.
  • exwilson
    exwilson Posts: 154 Member
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    OP - can you either open your diary for review or PM me the key?
  • Tweakfish
    Tweakfish Posts: 93 Member
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    lisaw19855 wrote: »
    Machka9 wrote: »
    lisaw19855 wrote: »
    On rest days I adjust my settings to sedantry which is around 1500 calories a day on MFP.

    Put your settings on sedentary all the time.

    So is 7,000 steps a day sedentary? my fitbit adds calorie adjustments if I got over about 6000 on the lightly active setting, adds more if I'm on sedentary. My calorie burn is around 2000 on a day where I don't do anything, between 2,500-3,000 on days where I am active which is at least 5 days a week.

    I was also losing weight quickly in the first month on lightly active as I do try to keep under MFP calorie allowance regardless of how active I am in that day.

    A hard day at work I do have to allow more as I will start feeling faint.

    I just got a fitbit and I earned about 300 steps from just sitting and eating breakfast this morning. I'm not sure how accurate those step counts are unfortunately. Food for thought. :) Good luck OP!
  • annied1961
    annied1961 Posts: 48
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    Hi there: I don't think you are eating enough!
    Your body has adjusted to the exercise-but it's in
    starvation mode-hanging on to the fat.
    Research-Glycemic Profile.
    It's all about fat burning and insulin.
    And how the body works.
    Very Informative?,
    Good Luck!!
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
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    lisaw19855 wrote: »
    Did you read that I DON'T EAT MY EXERCISE CALORIES BACK on MFP because of the overestimates they give. I stick to 1680 regardless of if I have burned 1000 calories according to MFP or fitbit.

    I'm confused, because the numbers you gave above were more than 1680 in.

    Those numbers seem pretty consistent with averaging about 1 lb/week or less lost, especially if you disregard the highest burn numbers, which look too high to me based on my own numbers with similar steps (from running or the like as a major part of it). It shouldn't matter whether you are on sedentary or lightly active if you are using the Fitbit (I think sedentary is easier), but you might want to try just cutting it by about 100 each day (if you can't on the most active day you can't, no big deal). Or just be okay with losing 1 lb/week--there's absolutely nothing wrong with that rate.
  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 25,198 Member
    edited March 2015
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    Granted I am a little bit lighter than the OP, but I'm down at 1200 calories per day. 1600+ just seems like a lot of calories.

    Here's something to think about too ... as you lose weight, you need to recalculate so that your required calories go down.
  • Docbanana2002
    Docbanana2002 Posts: 357 Member
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    I think you just need to be more patient. The first weeks are always fun, as you lose water weight and are still motivated. The "honeymoon" phase, so to speak. You've just moved to the hard part--the long slow slog of daily living with a new lifestyle....with gradual losses, some weeks you don't lose, setbacks, etc. This is where people get bored or discouraged and give up. So don't give up. You are losing a pound a week on average which is a good rate. I'm at a half pound per week and your loss sounds great. I am happy with my loss rate too though because it is what I can sustain without going nuts after a year and a half of this and over a hundred pounds lost! A loss that slow doesn't show up on the scale quickly the way a 3 pound loss will, it is obscured by water weight and normal daily fluctuations and must be seen over time. Just hang in there. Enjoy life. Let it become your new normal and trust that you are doing the right thing (while continuing to learn and tweak as needed). Even if you never lost another pound (which you will!) you are still doing healthy things for your body that shouldn't be quit.

    As for the water weight, I have experienced a gain or plateau for sometimes several weeks at a time while starting an increased exercise regimen. It happened when I got fitbit because I was eating a little more (after seeing my higher than expected burns) and also motivated to walk a LOT by it. Had a gain after starting weightlifting too. It just took a while for my body to adjust to the new routine, then after a few weeks I got a dramatic "whoosh" where I lost a few pounds of water and caught up with where I should be based on my data.
  • rushfive
    rushfive Posts: 603 Member
    edited March 2015
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    This ^.
    I think you are doing fine. Remember to adjust settings as you lose more weight.
    I eat what mfp puts for sedentary. Then when I do exercise I do/don't eat them back depending on how I feel.
    Fitbits are great for motivating you to keep moving, and when I do exercise hard I have an estimate of calorie burn... ( daily steps to me don't count as exercise).
    As poster said above. Your weight loss isn't constant.... 3 pd one week, 0 the next. Overall you are Losing !!!! Keep it up!!!
  • sgthaggard
    sgthaggard Posts: 581 Member
    edited March 2015
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    lisaw19855 wrote: »
    gia07 wrote: »
    Ok.. MFP overestimates are huge and you are doing yourself a disservice and unrealistic numbers..

    Hate to say it (an you have your mind made up) but not going to see anything using Fitbit. This is all wrong.. I will end it there..

    So I spent £60 on *kitten* all? I mainly use it to count steps, the calorie burn estimate is usually slighly lower on fitbit than MFP.
    No idea what she's talking about. Fitbit is a great tool for measuring your activity level. You walk, you burn calories. You walk hills or walk faster, you burn more calories. Fitbit recognises this.

    Where a fitbit isn't enough (unless you have one with a HRM and then, for me, the jury's still out) is when you are exercising - although, it's pretty good for running. Then you typically have to use a different metric whether that is calories burned according to a cardio machine, a HRM, or even MFP/fitbit databases. When you enter exercise (and I do this through fitbit's site, not MFP's) the number of calories you input overrides the calories that the fitbit has calculated for that period of time.

    What you have to decide, and it sounds like you have, is how many of those exercise calories you are going to eat back. And that's going to depend on the accuracy of you burn numbers.
  • lisaw19855
    lisaw19855 Posts: 165 Member
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    Docbanana2002 wrote: »
    I think you just need to be more patient. The first weeks are always fun, as you lose water weight and are still motivated. The "honeymoon" phase, so to speak. You've just moved to the hard part--the long slow slog of daily living with a new lifestyle....with gradual losses, some weeks you don't lose, setbacks, etc. This is where people get bored or discouraged and give up. So don't give up. You are losing a pound a week on average which is a good rate. I'm at a half pound per week and your loss sounds great. I am happy with my loss rate too though because it is what I can sustain without going nuts after a year and a half of this and over a hundred pounds lost! A loss that slow doesn't show up on the scale quickly the way a 3 pound loss will, it is obscured by water weight and normal daily fluctuations and must be seen over time. Just hang in there. Enjoy life. Let it become your new normal and trust that you are doing the right thing (while continuing to learn and tweak as needed). Even if you never lost another pound (which you will!) you are still doing healthy things for your body that shouldn't be quit.

    As for the water weight, I have experienced a gain or plateau for sometimes several weeks at a time while starting an increased exercise regimen. It happened when I got fitbit because I was eating a little more (after seeing my higher than expected burns) and also motivated to walk a LOT by it. Had a gain after starting weightlifting too. It just took a while for my body to adjust to the new routine, then after a few weeks I got a dramatic "whoosh" where I lost a few pounds of water and caught up with where I should be based on my data.

    I have defiantly been encouraged to be more active and walk more, Eg walking the long way to places or walking at a brisker pace.

    I need to stick to a set exercise routine I think and monitor it over the next few weeks. Need to decide how many classes to do and stick to it. Body pump uses weights.

    Another change I gave made in the last 7 days is drinking more, I used to get by on 500ml a day but enjoy seeing my line on fitbit go green lol which is motivation and I'm now getting used to drinking.
  • lisaw19855
    lisaw19855 Posts: 165 Member
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    sgthaggard wrote: »
    lisaw19855 wrote: »
    gia07 wrote: »
    Ok.. MFP overestimates are huge and you are doing yourself a disservice and unrealistic numbers..

    Hate to say it (an you have your mind made up) but not going to see anything using Fitbit. This is all wrong.. I will end it there..

    So I spent £60 on *kitten* all? I mainly use it to count steps, the calorie burn estimate is usually slighly lower on fitbit than MFP.
    No idea what she's talking about. Fitbit is a great tool for measuring your activity level. You walk, you burn calories. You walk hills or walk faster, you burn more calories. Fitbit recognises this.

    Where a fitbit isn't enough (unless you have one with a HRM and then, for me, the jury's still out) is when you are exercising - although, it's pretty good for running. Then you typically have to use a different metric whether that is calories burned according to a cardio machine, a HRM, or even MFP/fitbit databases. When you enter exercise (and I do this through fitbit's site, not MFP's) the number of calories you input overrides the calories that the fitbit has calculated for that period of time.

    What you have to decide, and it sounds like you have, is how many of those exercise calories you are going to eat back. And that's going to depend on the accuracy of you burn numbers.

    I don't tend to eat many of my exercise calories back. Only up to my MFP limit of 1,680 but usually get 1,500 - 1,600

    If I feel like it I may have an extra snack.

    Tuesdays burn shows as high, 25000 steps including vigorous hand movements because I look after 12 horses for 10 hours so that's 12 stables mucked out, walking to and from fields etc I usually allow up to 1750 calories on those days.
  • ar9179
    ar9179 Posts: 374 Member
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    I think you have an inaccurate perception of your progress. You are losing inches, so you are losing fat. You're doing great!

    Yes, new exercise or a more vigorous workout can cause the muscles to retain fluid while repairing. No biggie as it will be released eventually. The scale tends to not move, go up, or move down very little when this happens. I like to measure my progress by pictures and fitting into clothes that I haven't worn since I was less chunky. The scale tends to stagnate for me pretty regularly, then I get a rapid loss for a week. This used to derail me, but using other methods of measuring progress has convinced me that my efforts ARE producing the results I want.

    For example, today I weigh the same as I did on the 19th. If I went by the scale I would be disappointed about not losing for over a week (in fact the scale went up 2 lbs on the 24th). The fun thing is that I'm wearing a pair of shorts that did NOT fit me last week. Couldn't get the suckers snapped. Now, they snap easily and I can wear them in comfort. INCHES gone and the scale will show that loss in good time.

    Be kind to yourself and stop hanging your expectations on scale weight. Pay attention to the people who see a difference and to that tape measure.

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