HELP! I'm busting my butt and still gaining!

Showe53188 wrote: »

Out of all the atticles I've read a lot of them say that you don't have to change what your eating you just can't over indulge. Others saying that you shouldn't "diet" that you should change your lifestyle.

I agree with both of these. People fall into the yoyo dieting when they make changes they see as finite and think "once I reach goal I can go back to normal". Well the problem is "normal" got you where you are now, so going back to normal will just get you back to where you are now. I usually tell people not to make a change they do not see themself being able to live with forever. This advice could definitely be argued successfuly, but I think it is a good general rule of thumb.

I have definitely tried new things since I started this journey, and found that some food works better in my diet than others. There are other foods that may not be ideal for calorie counting but I just refuse to live without (hello chocolate). It sounds like you are being sensible and balanced about your food choices.

The game was eating healthily and logging everything even if I took a taste of something and making sure I came under on each category such as calories, fat, carbs and sodium etc. except I always strived to get a high amount of protein. That will happen by making healthy eating options. For me I stopped drowning my coffee in creamer, substituted white bread for thin grain bread, mayos for mustards, white potatoes for sweet potatoes, white rices for brown rices & wild rices & watched condiments and dressings closely as they are sodium time bombs. Mostly used red wine vinegar or balsamic vinegar with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil & limited or avoided pre-packaged or processed or canned foods. Instead eat lean, chicken, turkey, tuna or fish or lean meats & lots of healthy fruits and vegetables or frozen as an alternative. Broil, boil or bake or bbq and try to avoid fried or fast foods. That's what did it for me.

Showe53188 wrote: »

What I reay need help with is making sure i track everything. Thank you everyone for calling me on my *kitten*. I needed a dose of reality!

Getting back to advice. Do you drink coffee or tea first thing every morning? I have found that logging that first thing has helped create a habit for me. Its a constant, and its become part of my routine.

Also, are you using the pc or a smartphone app? I have both. The PC has its advantages, but the ap is awesome because you can use the barcode scanner, and I find it easier to find the correct entries for foods because you can compare across multiple entries at a quick glance. It will also 'yell' at you nicely to remind you to log if you haven't all day.

Showe53188 wrote: »

I just want to take a second to thank everyone who's replied. I read it all and realized that I don't track as accurately as I could and i eat back my calories way more than I should. I looked at an even deeper issue. My food diary is closed. I asked myself why and I realized because I'm embarrassed because I guests mate way too much. A lot of my diary I have either exercised a lot more than it shows so it looks like a over ate hundreds of calories or I didnt input my dinner or somedays didn't put my food or exercise at all. What I reay need help with is making sure i track everything. Thank you everyone for calling me on my *kitten*. I needed a dose of reality!

Good luck! You can do it!

BerryH wrote: »

Brilliant, that's the first step right there. I track everything, even when I've gone horrifically, embarrassingly over. Then when I wonder why I haven't lost after a couple of good days and I've forgotten the feasting, I can look back and see where I could do better.

This. I ate (and, to be more accurate, drank) something like 1000+ over my deficit the other night. Whoops. And then probably not much different on date night the next day. I don't regret them, but logging them both is an important way to make sure that I'm eating with awareness. Mindless eating has been a huge problem for me in the past.

OP, it sounds like you know how what's wrong, and have an idea of how to get it together. It just takes time.

Showe53188 wrote: »

I just want to take a second to thank everyone who's replied. I read it all and realized that I don't track as accurately as I could and i eat back my calories way more than I should. I looked at an even deeper issue. My food diary is closed. I asked myself why and I realized because I'm embarrassed because I guests mate way too much. A lot of my diary I have either exercised a lot more than it shows so it looks like a over ate hundreds of calories or I didnt input my dinner or somedays didn't put my food or exercise at all. What I reay need help with is making sure i track everything. Thank you everyone for calling me on my *kitten*. I needed a dose of reality!

Just another dose of reality. From what you have been saying it sounds like you are getting it.
From your original post:

I have been walking 1-2 miles everyday. Oatmeal for breakfast salad for lunch and a meat and fresh vegetable for dinner. What am I doing wrong? What can I change?

Getting a minimal amount of exercise and eating a normal diet is not busting your butt. It may be an improvement from where you were but nowhere near busting your butt.

OP, first of all, wonderful attitude! I'm not sure how much time you've spent in the MFP forums, but these threads usually go off the rails pretty badly by now. It seems like you're in a good frame of mind to hear advice, which is very refreshing

I took a peek through your diary, and it's not bad. I'm going to ask about the "homemade" and "generic" entries you're using. Did you enter those recipes yourself? If not, I'll guarantee they're not accurate for what you actually ate. In addition to getting a food scale, the #1 thing you can do to improve your logging is to learn how to navigate the database:

1. Entries without an asterisk were entered by MFP; entries with an asterisk are user-entered. There's no real quality control for user-entered items, except checking to see how many people have confirmed it, so use those entries with caution.
2. "Generic" and "homemade" entries are almost always wrong. Unless you can confirm the calorie and macro counts against something else, like a package label, don't use those entries!
3. The best way to be accurate for any kind of packaged food is to use the bar code scanner or to confirm the brand name of the entry.
4. Users will often enter (USDA) after a food -- these are typically entered using information from the USDA database and are more likely to be accurate.
5. When in doubt, ALWAYS enter the individual components of the food! This is huge. Don't look for an entry that says "scrambled eggs" -- enter the raw eggs, and then the butter/oil/whatever as separate entries. This can take a little time at the beginning, but most people eat the same foods in the same combinations often, so you can start saving those as meals in your own diary.

donjtomasco wrote: »

jelly wrote:

For weight loss you can absolutely eat candy, roll ups, cheeseburgers, and chips as long as you maintain a deficit. That is how energy works.


And there is the healthy weight loss advice of the day!!!!! Outstanding.

Haven't you quit this thread more than once?