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Weight loss: what can I do differently?
TheOneEyedPug
Posts: 3 Member
Hi everyone,
Sorry this is redundant, as I know it's a question that gets asked a lot here, but I figure everyone's situation is a little bit different. If anyone could take the time to give me their thoughts I would greatly appreciate it. Basically this is the second time I've tried MFP but about the gazillionth time I've tried diet/exercise/calorie counting in some form or another. I want to lose about 20 lbs but would be pretty happy with 10 and never seem to lose more than 5-6 no matter what I do. I even trained for a half marathon for over 9 months once WHILE counting calories and lost about 6 lbs then stopped losing. Took measurements too, no changes. Now as I've just started up MFP again, it calculated that I should eat 1200 calories a day, which after a couple weeks has started causing me to *gain* weight (lost a couple lbs in water weight at the beginning, then gained it back). If I cut back calories further MFP yells at me (not eating enough, etc), plus I really do feel lightheaded during the day. Exercising makes the lightheadedness feel worse, unless I eat back the exercise calories, in which case I gain weight. For anyone who actually made it through this whole rant, any ideas? Advice? Similar circumstances so we can bond? Thanks all!
Sorry this is redundant, as I know it's a question that gets asked a lot here, but I figure everyone's situation is a little bit different. If anyone could take the time to give me their thoughts I would greatly appreciate it. Basically this is the second time I've tried MFP but about the gazillionth time I've tried diet/exercise/calorie counting in some form or another. I want to lose about 20 lbs but would be pretty happy with 10 and never seem to lose more than 5-6 no matter what I do. I even trained for a half marathon for over 9 months once WHILE counting calories and lost about 6 lbs then stopped losing. Took measurements too, no changes. Now as I've just started up MFP again, it calculated that I should eat 1200 calories a day, which after a couple weeks has started causing me to *gain* weight (lost a couple lbs in water weight at the beginning, then gained it back). If I cut back calories further MFP yells at me (not eating enough, etc), plus I really do feel lightheaded during the day. Exercising makes the lightheadedness feel worse, unless I eat back the exercise calories, in which case I gain weight. For anyone who actually made it through this whole rant, any ideas? Advice? Similar circumstances so we can bond? Thanks all!
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Replies
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It takes time and diligence to lose 20 pounds. Your logging as to be really tight, too!!
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/113609/relatively-light-people-trying-to-get-leaner/p10 -
It is unlikely you are gaining weight while eating 1200 calories. Most probably you are underestimating your calories if the shift is not because of water weight0
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It is unlikely you are gaining weight while eating 1200 calories. Most probably you are underestimating your calories if the shift is not because of water weight
I agree with this :]
If you are eating at a deficit, you should be losing weight. That's the bottom line. Of course there are factors that can cause issues with losing such as medical situations but I'm going to assume that this isn't the case. Are you tracking all of your food? Are you weighing portions? Do you eat your exercise calories? If so, is it possible you are over-estimating how much you have burned (Cardio machines can be quite 'off') and eating more than you 'technically should'. Are you weighing at the same time/day per week? There are quite a few questions to ask yourself - so start with those and answer honestly. Tweak where necessary and hang in there. You'll get this.0 -
Thanks all for your responses. I get the general idea that if I'm eating at a deficit I should be losing weight, but isn't it possible that what MFP thinks is a deficit, is not a deficit for me? If you look back at my diet patterns about a year ago (recently I just started up again so it's hard to see a trend), I was tracking really well and staying under 1200 every day. PinkPixiexox I do agree that the issue might have been overestimating calorie burning at the gym, that's a good point. But also isn't it possible that my BMR is just really really low? There's got to be individual variability there that MFP would have no way of knowing about. And if that were the case, 1200 would not make me lose, as has been my experience.0
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It could be your at a healthy weight already and your body is fighting to hold onto every ounce of weight. Looking at your picture seems normal.weight although it's not a full body picture, what is your height and weight? If this isn't the case I would make a medical appointment to rule out health issues being the reason.
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If you are not losing then you are not in a deficit. CICO rules.
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TheOneEyedPug wrote: »Thanks all for your responses. I get the general idea that if I'm eating at a deficit I should be losing weight, but isn't it possible that what MFP thinks is a deficit, is not a deficit for me? If you look back at my diet patterns about a year ago (recently I just started up again so it's hard to see a trend), I was tracking really well and staying under 1200 every day. PinkPixiexox I do agree that the issue might have been overestimating calorie burning at the gym, that's a good point. But also isn't it possible that my BMR is just really really low? There's got to be individual variability there that MFP would have no way of knowing about. And if that were the case, 1200 would not make me lose, as has been my experience.
Look up your TDEE - maintenance for someone your height, weight, age, activity level......unless you are a petite, senior citizen - you should be losing weight on 1200 - not gaining
http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/
I agree with others, barring a medical issue or water weight.....you are eating more than you think
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1234699/logging-accurately-step-by-step-guide/p10 -
TheOneEyedPug wrote: »But also isn't it possible that my BMR is just really really low? There's got to be individual variability there that MFP would have no way of knowing about. And if that were the case, 1200 would not make me lose, as has been my experience.
There is some variation in BMR, but not that much. Unless you are really tiny and completely sedentary, you should lose on 1200. The exception would be a medical issue, so if you are really confident in your logging I'd maybe get that checked out.
What is more common are logging errors -- there are lots of bad entries in the database and when you first start people don't always know how to tell the good from the bad.
Other common issues are overstating exercise calories if you eat them back, and keeping calories overly low and then having a day or so where you go nuts and don't log, thereby wiping out the deficit. It's often easier to have a less aggressive but more consistent deficit.
I'm not saying any of these are you, but they are all things I see a lot with people who aren't losing.0 -
TheOneEyedPug wrote: »Thanks all for your responses. I get the general idea that if I'm eating at a deficit I should be losing weight, but isn't it possible that what MFP thinks is a deficit, is not a deficit for me? If you look back at my diet patterns about a year ago (recently I just started up again so it's hard to see a trend), I was tracking really well and staying under 1200 every day. PinkPixiexox I do agree that the issue might have been overestimating calorie burning at the gym, that's a good point. But also isn't it possible that my BMR is just really really low? There's got to be individual variability there that MFP would have no way of knowing about. And if that were the case, 1200 would not make me lose, as has been my experience.
You haven't told us your height, current weight and goal weight. It's certainly possible that your BMR is lower than average but it's not going to be below 1200 unless you are tiny and sedentary.0 -
lemurcat12 wrote: »TheOneEyedPug wrote: »But also isn't it possible that my BMR is just really really low? There's got to be individual variability there that MFP would have no way of knowing about. And if that were the case, 1200 would not make me lose, as has been my experience.
There is some variation in BMR, but not that much. Unless you are really tiny and completely sedentary, you should lose on 1200. The exception would be a medical issue, so if you are really confident in your logging I'd maybe get that checked out.
What is more common are logging errors -- there are lots of bad entries in the database and when you first start people don't always know how to tell the good from the bad.
Other common issues are overstating exercise calories if you eat them back, and keeping calories overly low and then having a day or so where you go nuts and don't log, thereby wiping out the deficit. It's often easier to have a less aggressive but more consistent deficit.
I'm not saying any of these are you, but they are all things I see a lot with people who aren't losing.
Another common problem is not identifying foods properly. For example "salsa" or "Chilli" or any other kind of food where recipes vary. MFP may have an entry for "salsa" that says you are eating 50 calories but the version you are actually eating may have 100. That Chilli meal you had (hypothetically) could be completely different to the version someone entered into MFP.
If it is a branded product, find the exact match in the MFP database and weigh the portion you are about to eat so that the calories are exactly right. Never select a product from the database from a different brand unless you are 100% sure that product is exactly equivalent. Also, never trust the serving size estimate on the back of the pack, weigh your food item and enter it in by weight (not "serves" or "cups"). If the meal is a recipe someone made then never assume an existing MFP database is the same thing. Enter the recipe, ingredient by ingredient, into the recipe section of MFP wherever you can. If you have to estimate, find the highest calorie database entry for the thing you just ate and use that (again, by weight) so that you are hopefully overestimating. It's generally better to overestimate than underestimate.
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TheOneEyedPug wrote: »Thanks all for your responses. I get the general idea that if I'm eating at a deficit I should be losing weight, but isn't it possible that what MFP thinks is a deficit, is not a deficit for me?
Its possible. Its highly unlikely, but it is possible. Its possible (but not likely) that you are a person who is at the very low end of the bell curve of metabolic rates that drive the usual algorithms by which BMR and TDEE get calculated. This is more likely to be the case if you have been eating at a very low level of intake for a long time, which only you can know about. However, before you decide that this must be true, you owe it to yourself to do a couple of things:
1. check with a doctor to make sure that you don't have any underlying metabolic problems that might be causing an issue
2. Take a hard look at your own logging and be very honest with yourself. Have you weighed all of your solid food and weighed or measured all liquids to make sure the amounts logged are accurate? Have you logged everything that went into your mouth, including nibbles, licks and tastes? Have you accurately accounted for all the ingredients in the recipes that you cook? If you can't honestly answer yes to each of those questions, then it would be best to do these things religiously for a month or so and then re-evaluate the situation.
Good luck!0 -
TheOneEyedPug wrote: »Thanks all for your responses. I get the general idea that if I'm eating at a deficit I should be losing weight, but isn't it possible that what MFP thinks is a deficit, is not a deficit for me? If you look back at my diet patterns about a year ago (recently I just started up again so it's hard to see a trend), I was tracking really well and staying under 1200 every day. PinkPixiexox I do agree that the issue might have been overestimating calorie burning at the gym, that's a good point. But also isn't it possible that my BMR is just really really low? There's got to be individual variability there that MFP would have no way of knowing about. And if that were the case, 1200 would not make me lose, as has been my experience.
It is possible that you have a lower than average BMR. But that would seem more likely if you weren't getting lightheaded which seems more a sign of undereating.
If this were me, I'd schedule an appointment with my doctor to check for medical issues that could cause me not to lose at what should be a deficit for someone my size.
If medical issues are ruled out, I'd take a look at the quality of my diet. Am I eating too many fast digesting foods? Am I getting enough fat, fiber and protein? Am I eating something that is causing me to retain a lot of water? Am I eating enough to fuel my workouts.
Am I expecting results too quickly?0 -
I really appreciate everyone's responses. I do think it's possible that I've been either underestimating calories or overestimating workouts, although I do weigh out my food and am as careful as I can be. However sometimes if I eat at a restaurant for example it's very hard to know how many calories are in the food. Not sure how to get around that if I'm dieting for the long term.
For those asking, my height is 5'1", I weigh around 130 lbs normally, and want to weigh more like 110. I have never been able even to get to 120, despite vigorous exercise and dieting for months. If CICO is the law of the land, how is it possible that my weight can be steady, then I start exercising more and eating less, and it remains steady? The only thing I can figure is that my BMR decreases to compensate. I have also been to a doctor to check for other issues, such as thyroid problems, etc, and I am all clear.
Re: whether I am at a good weight for myself already, you're totally right, I think I am. I am healthy at this weight (according to BMI I am right at the cusp of overweight, but I've poured through the primary literature on this and have no regard for BMI). So maybe my body just "knows" that somehow and is telling me to suck it up. But it's a vanity thing - I just don't like the way I look.
For those suggesting I am expecting results too quickly, how quickly should I be expecting results? If I do the same diet religiously for two weeks and don't lose even a tenth of a pound, don't you think that means the diet isn't working?
Thanks again, Folks. Keep up the good work:)0 -
TheOneEyedPug wrote: »I really appreciate everyone's responses. I do think it's possible that I've been either underestimating calories or overestimating workouts, although I do weigh out my food and am as careful as I can be. However sometimes if I eat at a restaurant for example it's very hard to know how many calories are in the food. Not sure how to get around that if I'm dieting for the long term.
For those asking, my height is 5'1", I weigh around 130 lbs normally, and want to weigh more like 110. I have never been able even to get to 120, despite vigorous exercise and dieting for months. If CICO is the law of the land, how is it possible that my weight can be steady, then I start exercising more and eating less, and it remains steady? The only thing I can figure is that my BMR decreases to compensate. I have also been to a doctor to check for other issues, such as thyroid problems, etc, and I am all clear.
Re: whether I am at a good weight for myself already, you're totally right, I think I am. I am healthy at this weight (according to BMI I am right at the cusp of overweight, but I've poured through the primary literature on this and have no regard for BMI). So maybe my body just "knows" that somehow and is telling me to suck it up. But it's a vanity thing - I just don't like the way I look.
For those suggesting I am expecting results too quickly, how quickly should I be expecting results? If I do the same diet religiously for two weeks and don't lose even a tenth of a pound, don't you think that means the diet isn't working?
Thanks again, Folks. Keep up the good work:)
1/10 of a pound is 1.6 ounces.......weight can fluctuate easily anywhere from 1-5 pounds. If your muscles are sore, you might be holding water. If you ate a high sodium meal the day before, you might be holding water. Time of month.......5 pounds for many women.
For less than 15 pounds to lose, you are looking for trends in weight loss. A 1/2 pound loss per week (8 oz) is good progress. But then water weight can screw with the scale.
Do you take measurements? On weeks when the scale says you didn't lose, a tape measure may say otherwise.
You BMR (basal metabolic rate) does change a little bit. If you are 20% smaller than before, then obviously your BMR is less. But for 5 pounds here and there....it's nothing significant.
I personally have been on plateaus that lasted several weeks.0 -
I suggest getting a FitBit, weighing food on a scale, tracking all intake, weighing yourself and taking measurements once a week.
Doing all these things for 4-6 weeks will give you good data about where you're at and what's happening. Without good data, it's hard to tell you exactly what's going on with YOU.
I can tell you some examples of things.
Just stabs in the dark:TheOneEyedPug wrote: »how is it possible that my weight can be steady, then I start exercising more and eating less, and it remains steady?
(1) you're not actually eating less calories than you were
As in, "I stopped eating breakfast, but now only have protein shakes!" But those protein shakes actually ended up having more calories than the original breakfast.
(2) your additional exercises aren't making you burn more overall than you were before
For me personally, my structured "workouts" aren't a huge part of my overall calorie burn throughout the day. There's my base BMR, plus my daily activities, plus exercise. Without my FitBit, I don't have much of a conscious notion of what my daily activities are on a specific day. Unknowingly, if I exercise after work, I end up being less "active" in the evenings. I sit more, I move around less. And my total calorie burn for the day is actually LESS on the days I exercised because I didn't clean the house, go to the store, walk the dog, garden, etc. which all burns calories, too. I don't know if that makes sense, but without my FitBit, I'd have little notion how my "big workouts" that I'm so proud of actually affects my hunger and incidental movements for the next day or so.
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OP, I don't know if you like podcasts, but an episode of one I found interesting -- it's consistent with CICO, but talks about some of the hormonal stuff that can be issues, especially for people not that overweight and exercising hard -- is here: http://sigmanutrition.com/episode65/ (interview with Lyle McDonald)
The episodes vary depending on the guest, but it's also one of the podcasts I enjoy overall (I listen to a lot of podcasts when running).
For what it's worth (I'm not sure if this is applicable to you), I do find that including lengthy endurance workouts make losing harder for me after a point (although this was not the case when I still had a lot to lose it's been the case since I was closer to goal). I think it's a few things: (1) I know I don't log as well and I tend to be more indulgent in situations where I know I can't log perfectly anyway (like restaurants) than I was before, (2) I'm more likely to write off a day as a maintenance day and I need the calories, (3) if I'm more tired I have less self control and tend to use food for energy, (4) the longer the workout the more likely the calories are overstated since most counts don't deduct what you'd be burning anyway, and (5) I am less active in my daily life after a really draining workout.0 -
I'm 67 years and 5ft and losing fine on 1200 cals and a paltry [compared to most] amount of exercise. This would suggest that the OP is eating more than they think and are in fact not in a deficit.0
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