Not losing!

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loiscoles
loiscoles Posts: 39 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
MFP suggests to lose 1lb a week I eat 1270cals a day. My activity level is set to sedentary and I add in any exercise I do since it varies day to day rather than saying I'm lightly active or whatever.
I eat around 1300 and I'm not loosing! I normally have a cheat day a week where I eat around 2000 so obviously I'm going to be loosing less than 1lb a week. But when I have this cheat day I fluxuate a pound or 2 and I seem to spend the rest of the week working this off again. I don't understand as this has happened for the past few weeks now.
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  • ncboiler89
    ncboiler89 Posts: 2,408 Member
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    loiscoles wrote: »
    MFP suggests to lose 1lb a week I eat 1270cals a day. My activity level is set to sedentary and I add in any exercise I do since it varies day to day rather than saying I'm lightly active or whatever.
    I eat around 1300 and I'm not loosing! I normally have a cheat day a week where I eat around 2000 so obviously I'm going to be loosing less than 1lb a week. But when I have this cheat day I fluxuate a pound or 2 and I seem to spend the rest of the week working this off again. I don't understand as this has happened for the past few weeks now.

    A few weeks isn't long enough to determine your weight loss direction. How are you tracking your calorie intake?
  • strong_curves
    strong_curves Posts: 2,229 Member
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    If you aren't weighing/measuring your intake with a scale, I'd start there first.
  • Azexas
    Azexas Posts: 4,334 Member
    edited May 2015
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    Are you using a scale to measure your portions? Are you using measuring cups for liquids?

    Are you eating back all of your exercise calories that you burn? Sometimes the estimated burn is very inflated

    If your cheat meal is high in sodium you may hold on to a few pounds of water weight, which may explain weight gain after.
  • malibu927
    malibu927 Posts: 17,565 Member
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    Can you open up your diary?
  • zoeysasha37
    zoeysasha37 Posts: 7,089 Member
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    Are you weighing everything you consume? Weighing your foods is very important.
    How are you determining exactly how much you consume on these cheat days? Are you still weighing everything even on these days?
  • reeves45
    reeves45 Posts: 55 Member
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    I used a different calorie calculator than MFP. MFP told me to eat 1700 calories, every other calculation from different sources recommended 1500. That being said, make sure you are imputing everything you put in your mouth, are simply just tracking calories, or are you getting your calories from nutrient dense sources. If you are following a meal plan, maybe it isn't the one for you. Take a look at other diet guides, find one that might work for your metabolism and lifestyle.
  • Harlequin1983
    Harlequin1983 Posts: 30 Member
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    Your body can fluxuate 4 lbs in a day. It sounds like you have plateaud, and need to change something in your exercise routine, or your diet. Try eating a little more on a regular day. Try hitting 1400 cals. Sounds like you need to up your calorie limit to burn calories. Odd, I know but its the truth. Change something, and let me know how it goes! Feel free to add me!
  • malibu927
    malibu927 Posts: 17,565 Member
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    JennaAraza wrote: »
    Your body can fluxuate 4 lbs in a day. It sounds like you have plateaud, and need to change something in your exercise routine, or your diet. Try eating a little more on a regular day. Try hitting 1400 cals. Sounds like you need to up your calorie limit to burn calories. Odd, I know but its the truth. Change something, and let me know how it goes! Feel free to add me!

    A plateau is 4-6 weeks of no movement, and generally means they're already eating too much. And what does "up your calorie limit to burn calories" mean?
  • jennifer_417
    jennifer_417 Posts: 12,344 Member
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    A lb is roughly 3400 calories, so if you're eating a 2000 calorie cheat meal every week, you're erasing most of your deficit right there. Also, if you're going by MFP for your calorie burns, it's pretty much universally agreed that the site overestimates significantly. Those 2 things could readily explain why you're not losing.
  • ncboiler89
    ncboiler89 Posts: 2,408 Member
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    JennaAraza wrote: »
    Your body can fluxuate 4 lbs in a day. It sounds like you have plateaud, and need to change something in your exercise routine, or your diet. Try eating a little more on a regular day. Try hitting 1400 cals. Sounds like you need to up your calorie limit to burn calories. Odd, I know but its the truth. Change something, and let me know how it goes! Feel free to add me!

    No. Just so much no with this post.
  • loiscoles
    loiscoles Posts: 39 Member
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    I don't weigh my food no, but I know the weight of the packets of most stuff and guesstimate based on how much of the packet I've used. Buying a food scale is just too far and obsessive. Also I only drink mostly water so 0 calories anyway. If I have a drink with calories I'm normally out so just add a bottle of something to my diary.
    By not using a scale I imagine I'm about 100 calls out a day at most. So say I'm eating 1400 a day, my BMR is around 1550 so I would surely have lost in a few weeks
  • Azexas
    Azexas Posts: 4,334 Member
    edited May 2015
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    loiscoles wrote: »
    I don't weigh my food no, but I know the weight of the packets of most stuff and guesstimate based on how much of the packet I've used. Buying a food scale is just too far and obsessive. Also I only drink mostly water so 0 calories anyway. If I have a drink with calories I'm normally out so just add a bottle of something to my diary.
    By not using a scale I imagine I'm about 100 calls out a day at most. So say I'm eating 1400 a day, my BMR is around 1550 so I would surely have lost in a few weeks

    Bingo- Sounds like your estimates may be off. I highly suggest using a food scale. They're cheap and they really help.

    Edit: This is the one I use. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00FE8QXT0/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o09_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
  • SezxyStef
    SezxyStef Posts: 15,268 Member
    edited May 2015
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    loiscoles wrote: »
    I don't weigh my food no, but I know the weight of the packets of most stuff and guesstimate based on how much of the packet I've used. Buying a food scale is just too far and obsessive. Also I only drink mostly water so 0 calories anyway. If I have a drink with calories I'm normally out so just add a bottle of something to my diary.
    By not using a scale I imagine I'm about 100 calls out a day at most. So say I'm eating 1400 a day, my BMR is around 1550 so I would surely have lost in a few weeks

    Interesting...my brother used a food scale from the time he was 6 years old...diabetes...

    and you don't mind obsessing over not losing for a few weeks...

    you are underestimating your intake/over estimating your burns.....you have no idea how much you are out because if you truly were eating on average 1400 a day you would be losing.

  • kr1stadee
    kr1stadee Posts: 1,774 Member
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    Not losing = eating too much
  • zoeysasha37
    zoeysasha37 Posts: 7,089 Member
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    loiscoles wrote: »
    I don't weigh my food no, but I know the weight of the packets of most stuff and guesstimate based on how much of the packet I've used. Buying a food scale is just too far and obsessive. Also I only drink mostly water so 0 calories anyway. If I have a drink with calories I'm normally out so just add a bottle of something to my diary.
    By not using a scale I imagine I'm about 100 calls out a day at most. So say I'm eating 1400 a day, my BMR is around 1550 so I would surely have lost in a few weeks

    Without using a scale, your calories are likely a lot higher then you think.
  • NoIdea101NoIdea
    NoIdea101NoIdea Posts: 659 Member
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    It is incredible how even packeted guidelines can be wrong sometimes; i remember what a shock it was when i first started weighing food. Unfortunately if you aren't losing, you are eating more than you are burning (medical conditions aside). So, you are either underestimating the amount you are actually eating, over estimating the amount you are burning, or both.
  • galgenstrick
    galgenstrick Posts: 2,086 Member
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    loiscoles wrote: »
    I don't weigh my food no, but I know the weight of the packets of most stuff and guesstimate based on how much of the packet I've used. Buying a food scale is just too far and obsessive. Also I only drink mostly water so 0 calories anyway. If I have a drink with calories I'm normally out so just add a bottle of something to my diary.
    By not using a scale I imagine I'm about 100 calls out a day at most. So say I'm eating 1400 a day, my BMR is around 1550 so I would surely have lost in a few weeks

    My wife told me that I was too obsessed because I used the food scale for everything. Since then I've lost 30 pounds. Now once in a while she comes to me for weight loss and fitness advice and isn't annoyed by me using the scale anymore. You can lose weight just fine without counting calories or weighing food, but that usually comes at the cost of restricting your diet to extremes like paleo or the like. Whatever works for you, but if you want the fastest and most predictable experience, then weigh all your food.
  • jessica22222
    jessica22222 Posts: 375 Member
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    I agree with weighing your food. I weighed out my hummus and it was significantly less than the tbsp I was scooping out. I had double the amount without weighing.
  • malibu927
    malibu927 Posts: 17,565 Member
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    loiscoles wrote: »
    I don't weigh my food no, but I know the weight of the packets of most stuff and guesstimate based on how much of the packet I've used. Buying a food scale is just too far and obsessive. Also I only drink mostly water so 0 calories anyway. If I have a drink with calories I'm normally out so just add a bottle of something to my diary.
    By not using a scale I imagine I'm about 100 calls out a day at most. So say I'm eating 1400 a day, my BMR is around 1550 so I would surely have lost in a few weeks

    Actually you're going to be off well over 100 calories...I think the average is about 350. And individual servings of items can oftentimes weigh more than what they say.
  • zoeysasha37
    zoeysasha37 Posts: 7,089 Member
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    If you where truly eating 1200/1400 calories ,you'd be losing weight. (Unless your extremely small or older)

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