Can not seem to lose weight

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CynthiaCS68
CynthiaCS68 Posts: 7 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hello I am Cynthia I am 47 years old? I am on my 21st day on Myfitness pal. I have not cheated, I have excercised and have eaten up to 1200 a day but for one day because I saved my burned calories for Friday.
I weighed this morning remember 21st day - I lost 0! I am so discouraged and I began to cry. myfitnesspal said I would be 10 lbs lighter if five weeks if I kept eating this way. 3 weeks into and zero loss!
Someone please tell me what I may be doing wrong. discouraged, Cynthia
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Replies

  • JustMissTracy
    JustMissTracy Posts: 6,338 Member
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    Just keep at it Cynthia! Don't be discouraged, regardless of what some app predicted...the secret to weight loss success isn't a secret.....CONSISTANCY.....DETERMINATION.....keep at it, don't stop, and you WILL start to see progress...have you measured yourself yet? Many times if you're working out, you will gain muscle...so your shape will become slimmer, but you wont actually lose numbers...this is not a bad thing!! Good luck, stick with it, and if you fall off the horse, get back on the next day! YOU GOT THIS!
  • lynn_glenmont
    lynn_glenmont Posts: 10,009 Member
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    Are you weighing your food?
  • SherryTeach
    SherryTeach Posts: 2,836 Member
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    The experience users could help you more if you opened your diary and let us take a look. Are you accurately weighing all your food and using correct (USDA) entries? Are you logging every bite that goes in your mouth? Three weeks isn't very much time, but if you aren't losing, you are probably eating at maintenance.
  • booksandchocolate12
    booksandchocolate12 Posts: 1,741 Member
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    What do you mean by "I've eaten up to 1200 calories a day"? Do you mean that typically you eat less than that?

    1200 is the minimum amount of calories recommended for a woman. You're not doing yourself any favors by eating below that. Not because of "starvation mode" or any other such myth. It's just not a good idea: it's not healthy and you're more likely to crash and burn if you're too restrictive.

    As for why you can't seem to lose weight, I'll echoes other posters: are you weighing your food and logging everything?
  • ncboiler89
    ncboiler89 Posts: 2,408 Member
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    CynthiaCS68 wrote: »
    Hello I am Cynthia I am 47 years old? I am on my 21st day on Myfitness pal. I have not cheated, I have excercised and have eaten up to 1200 a day but for one day because I saved my burned calories for Friday.
    I weighed this morning remember 21st day - I lost 0! I am so discouraged and I began to cry. myfitnesspal said I would be 10 lbs lighter if five weeks if I kept eating this way. 3 weeks into and zero loss!
    Someone please tell me what I may be doing wrong. discouraged, Cynthia

    Not really enough info. Are you saying you weigh as much today as when you started and really haven't lost anything in between besides for normal weight loss fluctuation? How often do you weigh?

    A lot of people don't think they are losing weight because they don't understand fluctuations and sample sizes. If you are one of those that understands, then you are not losing weight because you are not burning more calories than you are eating. It's that simple. Regardless, three weeks really isn't a long enough time frame to make a judgement.

    So just assuming you in fact are not losing; You are either eating more than you think, not burning as much as you think, or both. You just need to figure out which and the easiest place to start, and typically the biggest reason of failure, is that you are eating more than you think.
  • SergeantSausage
    SergeantSausage Posts: 1,673 Member
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    booksandchocolate12 wrote: »
    What do you mean by "I've eaten up to 1200 calories a day"? Do you mean that typically you eat less than that?

    She means " I have no real idea at all ... certainly more than 1200 ... but I like that number so we'll just call it 1200 anyway 'cause that sounds right "... right?




  • healthygreek
    healthygreek Posts: 2,137 Member
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    You are not losing because you are eating at maintenance instead of at a deficit!
    Buy a digital food scale and weight every solid food you intend to eat and measure liquids with measuring cup and spoons.

    Log everything into MFP everyday and you will lose!
  • atypicalsmith
    atypicalsmith Posts: 2,742 Member
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    It initially took me nearly six weeks to start losing, and then it WHOOSHED! Don't give up.
  • zoeysasha37
    zoeysasha37 Posts: 7,088 Member
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    If your not losing weight, your not eating at a deficit.
    Are you weighing all the foods you consume and logging them accurately?
    Also, be patient. Like others have said , these things take time.
  • hdtalbot
    hdtalbot Posts: 2 Member
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    SherryTeach wrote: »
    The experience users could help you more if you opened your diary and let us take a look. Are you accurately weighing all your food and using correct (USDA) entries? Are you logging every bite that goes in your mouth? Three weeks isn't very much time, but if you aren't losing, you are probably eating at maintenance.
    Although it is daunting to think about doing this it may help tp answer quickly and effectively what is going on ~ open it selectively (not so everyone can see) and see what the more experienced members can help you with. I was adding coffee but forgot to add the milk I put in it (small but added up over 5 cups/day or so).
    Above all don't give up! One month is a huge accomplishment! As someone who stopped and started and repeated the cycle when I got discouraged let me encourage you to keep on it! I have taken a week off before (even a few months) then come back. Trust me when I say you can always get back on the wagon....but it is much more effective to stay on it ~ even when it seems so discouraging. Wishing you luck!!!
  • snowflakesav
    snowflakesav Posts: 647 Member
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    Over a months time it is pretty fair to say you are not eating at a deficit. The way this works is logging your food calories. Noticing this is your first post. Give it a try, start logging and tracking. In a few weeks if you still haven't lost pound then you can open your diary and ask for help.
  • sheldonklein
    sheldonklein Posts: 854 Member
    edited September 2015
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    JustMissTracy wrote: »
    Just keep at it Cynthia! Don't be discouraged, regardless of what some app predicted...the secret to weight loss success isn't a secret.....CONSISTANCY.....DETERMINATION.....keep at it, don't stop, and you WILL start to see progress...have you measured yourself yet? Many times if you're working out, you will gain muscle...so your shape will become slimmer, but you wont actually lose numbers...this is not a bad thing!! Good luck, stick with it, and if you fall off the horse, get back on the next day! YOU GOT THIS!

    No. The secret to weight loss success is a deficit, not CONSISTENCY............DETERMINATION. She is eating at maintenance and needs to change. Better to be a "mean people" than a cheerleader for failure.
  • yarwell
    yarwell Posts: 10,477 Member
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    CynthiaCS68 wrote: »
    Hello I am Cynthia I am 47 years old? I am on my 21st day on Myfitness pal. I have not cheated, I have excercised and have eaten up to 1200 a day but for one day because I saved my burned calories for Friday.

    Height, weight, menopausal status, thyroid or other medical issues ?
  • bethn24
    bethn24 Posts: 19 Member
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    A few weeks ago I was on the same boat as you it does take a while to start with I'm in week 8 now and am just starting to see results. But remember to be honest with yourself. Make sure you're logging everything including oils you use for cooking, condiments you have with meals such as sauces etc as the all add up. Weighing your food, and make sure you weigh yourself first thing in the morning as you'll get a better reading. If you are following these steps and after 6-8 weeks you don't see results Id recommend seeing a doctor check that you don't have any health problems that are setting you back.
  • riffraff2112
    riffraff2112 Posts: 1,757 Member
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    I have been working real hard, eating well, and I gained 3 lbs since my last weigh in a few weeks back! It happens. I have been through this enough to know that in the next few days, or weeks I will all of a sudden drop that weight and probably a little more. The scale can totally derail people, don't let it beat you but rather use the information it gives you to look more closely at your diet.

    In that regard, there just isn't enough information given to help you out.

    You might need more time, you might need to log more accurately, you might be overestimating you calories burned through exercise.
  • callsitlikeiseeit
    callsitlikeiseeit Posts: 8,627 Member
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    i would be willing to bet you are eating much more than you think you are.....
  • CSARdiver
    CSARdiver Posts: 6,252 Member
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    Welcome! Be patient and check these out:

    Link to the most helpful posts to get you started:
    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10177907/most-helpful-posts-getting-started-must-reads#latest

    Link to quite possibly the greatest post on the forums:
    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1080242/a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants/p1

    If you are not losing, then you are not at a caloric deficit - it's as simple as that.
  • SueInAz
    SueInAz Posts: 6,592 Member
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    If you aren't losing weight, you are not eating fewer calories than you burn. It's almost always that simple. As others have posted, you need to be sure you are really logging absolutely everything you are eating. I read an article recently about a study that was done on people who are logging and they were missing approximately 40% of the calories they actually ate from their logs! 40% is a lot and these people were really trying like you are.

    Keep going but be very mindful of entering absolutely everything into your log. Oil you add when you cook, the piece of chocolate from a co-worker's desk, gum, vitamins, everything. If you don't own a food scale, buy one and start to use it as much as you possibly can. Most of us are terrible at eyeballing food portions. A food scale helps us to learn what 4 ounces of chicken really looks like (it's about the size of your smart phone) and that a tablespoon of peanut butter is really not very much at all.
  • mccindy72
    mccindy72 Posts: 7,001 Member
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    Definitely everything you're being told here. Don't cry, you can still do it. If you haven't lost any weight, at least you haven't gained any, so you know you've been eating at maintenance. Now it's time to start weighing your food for accuracy and lose weight. Buy a food scale, weigh everything solid and measure everything liquid. Log everything.
    Also read the first post in this thread for more information: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1235566-so-you-re-new-here
  • CynthiaCS68
    CynthiaCS68 Posts: 7 Member
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    WOW! Thanks for all replies. I have been tracking everything but for the oils I cooked with. I will buy a scale tomorrow! You are right eyeballing it must not be working and I was not eating all the 1200 calories because I was leaving 100-200 calories In case I was off in my calculations. i will try to open up my dairy for when I ask for help! You guys are the BEST! I thank you for your encouragement. You guys made me want to walk three miles! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!

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