Help!!

Well, here's what we can gather from your post before even looking at your food diary & exercise logs.

You are eating food. You are exercising. HOWEVER, you are not losing weight.
From this we can gather that you are NOT eating/exercising LESS calories than you are burning.
If you were you'd be losing weight. If you were eating MORE calories than you are burning you'd be gaining.

We can deduct, therefore, that you are currently hitting the calorie goal of "Maintenance".

It is highly unlikely that you (as a grown women) maintain on 1,200 calories a day. We can therefore deduct, you are eating FAR more calories than you think you are in your food diary. I'd say around 2,000 calories or whatever your maintenance calories are.

To fix this problem i'd suggest that you do the following:
1.) Log your food more accurately. If you were logging as accurately as you think you are you'd see that you are actually eating many more calories than you think.
2.) invest in a food scale to help you log more accurately. For example, I will log a "large apple" in the database and it says it's 100 calories. My large apple may weigh 80 grams and yours weighs 100 grams. They are not both 100 calories.
3.) Don't use measuring spoons/cups because they are very innacurate.
4.) Don't eat back exercise calories ESPECIALLY not ones from what a treadmill or MFP tells you that you are burning. I have a Heart Rate Monitor which i use while running. The machine will tell me i burned 400 calories when in reality i only burned 220. It can REALLY be that far off.

I also suggest you watch this video which i always send to people who think that a scale is unnecessary.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TGcdyfDM3oQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vjKPIcI51lU

WARNING - LONG POST!

Good morning, NAS702! First, let me say kudos to you for taking the steps necessary for becoming healthier - most would just wish it and not do anything about it! With that said, and you reaching out for help, I thought I'd put my two cents in.

I, too, took a look at your food diary. The first thing I would eliminate is anything "fast food", even the "healthy" yogurt parfait at McD's. Just cut it all out of your life. There are too many hidden ingredients that add zero value to your nutrition goals.

Secondly, girl....that SODIUM! You seriously need to cut waaaaayyyy back with that. I'm not talking about sprinkling it on your food but the food itself. For instance: (store bought) lasagna = 630; ONE hot dog/bun = 700; Dinner one night - ribs, potato salad and mac & cheese = 1590; and the omg factor? Schlotzky sandwich & cinnabun = 2,490. Whoa. Now listen, I'm not saying you are a bad person or anything like that but your choices of what you may think are "good" foods are, well, not.

Here are my suggestions:

Log your foods every day. As in EVERY day. Yes, I'm not good at doing it, I know, but in your case where you are needing a wake-up call, it's important that you do. You will quickly realize that what you are putting into your body is not helping you achieve the outcome that you are wanting.

No fast foods at all. Yes, they are convenient but they are sabotaging your goals. Make your grocery list, shop on (for instance) Saturdays, meal prep for the week on Sundays. It will save you time throughout the week, keep you on track, and save money.

Drink water. Not fruit juices, pop/soda, etc., but plain ol' water. You need it to help your innards (lol) function properly without over-taxing them. The simplest way to calculate how much is to take your weight, divide it in half, and drink that much in ounces. For example: 160 pounds divided by 2 = 80. 80 ounces/10 cups of water. Carry a tumbler of water around with you. I have one that holds 25 ounces so as long as I drink three of those a day, I am ensuring that I have reached my water intake goal. Keep in mind that you shouldn't count the water you drink when you exercise as that is being quickly eliminated via sweat. Also, as a sidenote: pour a glass of water at night, setting it on the nightstand. Drink it first thing in the morning (room temp as to not shock your system first thing). This will help stimulate your system for the day and rehydrate your body after many of hours not having anything to eat.

When and what you eat is very important as well, eating 6 small meals a day (breakfast/mid-morning snack/lunch/mid-afternoon snack/dinner/nighttime snack). You will want to make sure you have your last complex carbs & fruits with your mid-day snack. It takes time to digest them and you want to make sure they aren't in your belly later on as, during your more sedentary time (evening/bed), if they are being used, they will turn into unused energy, equaling fat. Have a protein with each meal as well - that will help you feel satisfied until your next meal.

Veggies - you NEED them! Make sure you are getting at least 3 in each day. Do some research as some of them are higher in carbs (see previous info about carbs).

Don't stress about this. This is a learning experience each and every day. You'll find out what you can, can't and should and shouldn't eat throughout your journey.

This was a lot of info to take in. But, again, if you want to see & feel results, it's time to knuckle down and make some serious changes.

Take care and be sure to keep us updated on your progress. If you have any questions/comments/concerns, please feel free to message me!

~ Beth

BethAnnRichmond wrote: »

WARNING - LONG POST!

Good morning, NAS702! First, let me say kudos to you for taking the steps necessary for becoming healthier - most would just wish it and not do anything about it! With that said, and you reaching out for help, I thought I'd put my two cents in.

I, too, took a look at your food diary. The first thing I would eliminate is anything "fast food", even the "healthy" yogurt parfait at McD's. Just cut it all out of your life. There are too many hidden ingredients that add zero value to your nutrition goals.

Secondly, girl....that SODIUM! You seriously need to cut waaaaayyyy back with that. I'm not talking about sprinkling it on your food but the food itself. For instance: (store bought) lasagna = 630; ONE hot dog/bun = 700; Dinner one night - ribs, potato salad and mac & cheese = 1590; and the omg factor? Schlotzky sandwich & cinnabun = 2,490. Whoa. Now listen, I'm not saying you are a bad person or anything like that but your choices of what you may think are "good" foods are, well, not.

Here are my suggestions:

Log your foods every day. As in EVERY day. Yes, I'm not good at doing it, I know, but in your case where you are needing a wake-up call, it's important that you do. You will quickly realize that what you are putting into your body is not helping you achieve the outcome that you are wanting.

No fast foods at all. Yes, they are convenient but they are sabotaging your goals. Make your grocery list, shop on (for instance) Saturdays, meal prep for the week on Sundays. It will save you time throughout the week, keep you on track, and save money.

Drink water. Not fruit juices, pop/soda, etc., but plain ol' water. You need it to help your innards (lol) function properly without over-taxing them. The simplest way to calculate how much is to take your weight, divide it in half, and drink that much in ounces. For example: 160 pounds divided by 2 = 80. 80 ounces/10 cups of water. Carry a tumbler of water around with you. I have one that holds 25 ounces so as long as I drink three of those a day, I am ensuring that I have reached my water intake goal. Keep in mind that you shouldn't count the water you drink when you exercise as that is being quickly eliminated via sweat. Also, as a sidenote: pour a glass of water at night, setting it on the nightstand. Drink it first thing in the morning (room temp as to not shock your system first thing). This will help stimulate your system for the day and rehydrate your body after many of hours not having anything to eat.

When and what you eat is very important as well, eating 6 small meals a day (breakfast/mid-morning snack/lunch/mid-afternoon snack/dinner/nighttime snack). You will want to make sure you have your last complex carbs & fruits with your mid-day snack. It takes time to digest them and you want to make sure they aren't in your belly later on as, during your more sedentary time (evening/bed), if they are being used, they will turn into unused energy, equaling fat. Have a protein with each meal as well - that will help you feel satisfied until your next meal.

Veggies - you NEED them! Make sure you are getting at least 3 in each day. Do some research as some of them are higher in carbs (see previous info about carbs).

Don't stress about this. This is a learning experience each and every day. You'll find out what you can, can't and should and shouldn't eat throughout your journey.

This was a lot of info to take in. But, again, if you want to see & feel results, it's time to knuckle down and make some serious changes.

Take care and be sure to keep us updated on your progress. If you have any questions/comments/concerns, please feel free to message me!

~ Beth

There's a lot of nope in this. Food timing matters not a jot. What you eat doesn't really matter either if you're within your calories (health goals are a different matter) so you don't need to cut out fast food. And if you don't have blood pressure issues sodium isn't too big a deal either.

You just need to get accurate in your logging if you want to see the scales move. If you think you're portions are fine then I think you need to be using a food scale because if you're not losing, your idea of what a portion is, is too big.

Weight loss isn't complicated, eat less than you burn. If you're not losing weight, you're eating too much.

NAS702 wrote: »

I know. I really need to kick up my workouts, it has never been this hard to lose. With my current schedule it is hard to add extra workout time. I prefer running/walking on the trail but it's 105* in Vegas right now so I had to take it inside to the gym.

Weight loss mostly happens in the kitchen. I'm not exercising at all and I'm losing weight because I'm eating at a calorie deficit.

It's great that you work out. However, as the saying goes, you can't outrun a bad diet. It's much easier to restrict how many calories you eat rather than trying to exercise them off. People in general tend to underestimate how many calories they are eating and overestimate how many calories they are burning.

Have you considered something like 21-Day Fix? That might be more manageable if food logging isn't working out for you.

HippySkoppy wrote: »

Kalikel wrote: »

Either start weighing all your food or drop your calories by 100 every two weeks until you begin losing.

Nobody has to weigh food to lose weight. It will help you get a better estimate, but it's not necessary. You do have to change something, though, because what you're doing now isn't working. So, if you don't wish to get into weighing, you need to drop those calories.

I guess you could exercise more, if you have the time.

Good luck.

You know this just doesn't make sense to me.

Without accurate calorie counts how is OP to even to now how far off track she really is.

Your suggestion to drop calories is also far too premature - OP would be better served investing in digital scales and using USDA approved calorie counts in grams....and I have to ask this. How do you accurately assess dropping 100 calories every 2 weeks??? Without weighing, this is such a small amount that eyeballing or other forms of guesstimates are likely to be very inaccurate.

I think @Kalikel point was if she does not want to use a food scale, she can lower her calories by one hundred because she is more than likely overestimating by 100 calories. She thinks she is eating 1200 a day but in actuality she is really eating 1300. Some people for whatever reason don't like to use a food scale

queenliz99 wrote: »

HippySkoppy wrote: »

Kalikel wrote: »

Either start weighing all your food or drop your calories by 100 every two weeks until you begin losing.

Nobody has to weigh food to lose weight. It will help you get a better estimate, but it's not necessary. You do have to change something, though, because what you're doing now isn't working. So, if you don't wish to get into weighing, you need to drop those calories.

I guess you could exercise more, if you have the time.

Good luck.

You know this just doesn't make sense to me.

Without accurate calorie counts how is OP to even to now how far off track she really is.

Your suggestion to drop calories is also far too premature - OP would be better served investing in digital scales and using USDA approved calorie counts in grams....and I have to ask this. How do you accurately assess dropping 100 calories every 2 weeks??? Without weighing, this is such a small amount that eyeballing or other forms of guesstimates are likely to be very inaccurate.

I think @Kalikel point was if she does not want to use a food scale, she can lower her calories by one hundred because she is more than likely overestimating by 100 calories. She thinks she is eating 1200 a day but in actuality she is really eating 1300. Some people for whatever reason don't like to use a food scale

Thank you. I understand what @Kalikel is getting at but how do you lower your calories by 100 if you have no accurate idea of what 100 equates to.....

I guess you can go off bar codes if that works for you....but for foods such as meats, veg it's a lot more problematic.

I also hear the frustration about not losing so really OP like others have said the easiest 1st step for you to figure out your issues would be to get really accurate with your logging. Look at it this way you don't have to commit to it forever, if you don't want, but it will give you guidance.

@queenliz99...... Yes I am struggling to follow. For me and a lot of other posters have made it clear that accurate logging so you know your CI-CO is the cornerstone of this site.....and not only that it works.

I also believe the recommendation to lower calories is not a good one. If the OP REALLY is eating 1200 and we will never know (and neither will she) till she comes back with numbers from a set of scales taken over a decent amount of time.

I don't think lowering calories below 1200 should be encouraged, ever. Unless you know the particulars of the OP and she fits very specific parameters ie. older, short and sedentary. Also the OP has only 30 lbs to lose and is doing a decent weekly cardio regime, going so low is likely to cause her to burn out.

OP if I was you and going through this frustration of 'spinning my wheels' the 1st place I would look to tighten up would be the logging. Accurate logging is integral to this site and those who have had wicked success on here, in the main are all dedicated and accurate loggers.

Without this knowledge you are in the dark. If you give it a go then the problem could then emerge as one of overestimating your exercise burns and eating back too much. MFP is usually very generous with it's calories for exercise. If it isn't that then it is time to look elsewhere.....

Could you be heading into menopause as I noticed you are 45.
Are you well? Have you been experiencing any health issues that could impact your ability to lose weight?
Etc etc

Hope this helps.

@NAS702 - I'm going to agree with the others, that you need to work on how your logging your food and that you are probably consuming more calories than you think.

Examples (from your diary):

"Homemade - Waffle"
What was used to make that waffle? How do you know you used the same recipe as the user who put it into the database to begin with?

"Potato - Small (1/2 Large - Baked Potato, 150 g"
Lets think about this. Is it a small potato or 1/2 a large baked potato?

"Generic - Birthday Cake"
What kind of cake? White, chocolate, etc What kind of icing was used? How do you know the cake you ate matched this nutritional information?

Hopefully, that helps you understand where people are coming from. I also noticed a lot of incomplete days. I bet if you tighten up your logging, you will start to see the results your looking for.