I was pretty overweight when I started and was very strict with hitting my calories/macros for a deficit so I started seeing weightloss immediately. As far as muscle definition (I'm the same weight/height as you now) I really started to see a change about three months ago when I bumped my calories up a bit.

So I started in March and other then gains in strength have not seen many changes. My weight and measurements are still pretty much the same. I previously lost 40# by doing tracking at staying at 1600 calories, workout videos at home, zumba and walking. I still walk but CrossFit has replaced my other workouts. Do to knee problems I can not run, if a WOD includes running I power walk or row.

So what am I doing wrong? My eating habits are good, I splurge on pizza or an ice cream shake once or twice a month but other wise eat good, lots of good protien, fruits, veggies and some grains. I tried lower carbs but found I was much more hungry and felt weaker when lifting. I have started to track again staying in the 1600 calorie mark taht worked before. I have made huge gains in upper body strength but I also have another 30# I want to loose (I track more measurements then weight, want to loose more inches but still equates to the scale).

Am wondering if I need more cardio then CrossFit gives me? Anyone experience similar?

Cardio itself doesn't make you lose weight, a calorie deficit does. Yes cardio is one way to achieve that, but so is strength training and your diet is obviously the easiest way to cut cals.

You say your weight and measurements are the same, but do you look better/leaner? Have people noticed a difference? You could be recomping after that amount of time doing the amount of strength work that CrossFit requires, but obviously depending on your eating habits etc.
I would go on how clothes fit and how you look in the mirror before I relied upon weight personally, as it doesn't distinguish between muscles, fat etc.

If you want to drop more 'weight', track your calories and macros and make sure you have a decent deficit. Boring but the only way to be sure!

ctdebbie wrote: »

Can someone explain calorie deficit a bit more. I am trying, and am mostly successful in staying at 1200 calories per day. Does that mean I need to burn more than 1200 a day to lose?

The way it kind of works (and i'm no expert) is say you want to lose 1 LB a week. To lose 1 LB a week you need to consume 3500 calories less in the week than it takes to maintain your current weight (3500/7= 500 less calories consumed per day ) or burn 3500 additional calories through exercise or a combination of both.

If you are set at sedentary and MFP set your calories at 1200 to lose 1 LB a week its assuming that the calories it takes to maintain your weight or TDEE (the amount calories your body burns in a 24 hour period, sleeping, working, etc.) is 1700 calories (1700-500 calories to create that deficit = 1200 calories). Provided your TDEE is actually 1700 you could lose that same pound a week eating 1200 with no additional exercise, eating 1700 and burning an additional 500 calories a day through exercise or eating 1500 calories and burning 200 calories a day through additional exercise, whatever type of combination works for you. Sorry if that was confusing.




http://iifym.com/tdee-calculator/

ctdebbie wrote: »

KellyAnn1286 wrote: »

ctdebbie wrote: »

Can someone explain calorie deficit a bit more. I am trying, and am mostly successful in staying at 1200 calories per day. Does that mean I need to burn more than 1200 a day to lose?

The way it kind of works (and i'm no expert) is say you want to lose 1 LB a week. To lose 1 LB a week you need to consume 3500 calories less in the week than it takes to maintain your current weight (3500/7= 500 less calories consumed per day ) or burn 3500 additional calories through exercise or a combination of both.

If you are set at sedentary and MFP set your calories at 1200 to lose 1 LB a week its assuming that the calories it takes to maintain your weight or TDEE (the amount calories your body burns in a 24 hour period, sleeping, working, etc.) is 1700 calories (1700-500 calories to create that deficit = 1200 calories). Provided your TDEE is actually 1700 you could lose that same pound a week eating 1200 with no additional exercise, eating 1700 and burning an additional 500 calories a day through exercise or eating 1500 calories and burning 200 calories a day through additional exercise, whatever type of combination works for you. Sorry if that was confusing.




http://iifym.com/tdee-calculator/

So then, if I am eating 1200 and burn between 300 to 400 a day through exercise, I should be able to lose more. If I go a bit over the 1200 calories, it will still be okay.

Is there a difference between a calorie burned doing CF or doing cardio?

In theory yes, you would lose more but you really shouldn't be only eating 1200 if you are burning 300-400 a day with exercise, that leaves you with 800 net calories which is far too few. You want to make sure you retain as much lean body mass as possible and that you have the proper energy for your workouts while you lose so netting too few calories can be counterproductive. You should be at least netting 1200 calories. If you are using the MFP method, MFP sets your calories so you eat back your exercise calories (though calorie burns are usually exaggerated so many people only eat 50-75% back).

A calorie burned is a calorie burned so in that regard there is no difference between a calorie burned doing CF or doing cardio, however, as to whether CF or pure Cardio burns more calories, the amount of calories burned will depend on what the WOD is (since it's something different every day). Doing 30 Clean and Jerks in a workout like "Grace" will burn less calories than pure cardio like running 30 minutes of speed intervals. Doing a WOD like "Kelly" (Five rounds of Run 400 meters 30 box jump, 30 Wall ball shots) might burn more.

KellyAnn1286 wrote: »

JayMri wrote: »

So I started in March and other then gains in strength have not seen many changes. My weight and measurements are still pretty much the same. I previously lost 40# by doing tracking at staying at 1600 calories, workout videos at home, zumba and walking. I still walk but CrossFit has replaced my other workouts. Do to knee problems I can not run, if a WOD includes running I power walk or row.

So what am I doing wrong? My eating habits are good, I splurge on pizza or an ice cream shake once or twice a month but other wise eat good, lots of good protien, fruits, veggies and some grains. I tried lower carbs but found I was much more hungry and felt weaker when lifting. I have started to track again staying in the 1600 calorie mark taht worked before. I have made huge gains in upper body strength but I also have another 30# I want to loose (I track more measurements then weight, want to loose more inches but still equates to the scale).

Am wondering if I need more cardio then CrossFit gives me? Anyone experience similar?

I've found that Crossfit is a great strength builder but in general not a huge calorie burner so without creating a deficit mostly through diet you aren't going to lose weight doing it even if your food choices are mostly "healthy" choices.

When I tracked my calories/macros and did crossfit I easily lost the weight (65#), when I didnt track my calories and only tried to make healthy choices I didn't. When it comes down to dropping the weight you're going to need a calorie deficit. You can calculate your TDEE and subtract from it to create the deficit or you can eat the same amount as you are now (assuming you are maintaining) and do additional cardio to create the deficit, it all comes down to personal preference (I personally prefer not to do the additional cardio).
Good luck!!

Totally agree. I'm much, much stronger now than when I started, but overall I'm only down about 20 lbs because I haven't been as tight on my diet as I should be.

I'd calculate TDEE and then play around with eating at a 10% deficit or so to see if that works and adjust as needed until you start getting the results you want.

Also keep in mind that you're going to be adding a lot of muscle. Your clothing will fit differently but the scale might not move.