25+ days logging and no weigh loss

ljparsons08
ljparsons08 Posts: 28 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Does this happen often? I thought that when you first start making big changes in diet and fitness the weight would melt off. Later on should be the plateau. But I've been logging over 25 days (a few off days but generally staying in my calories of 1260 per day) and I've been doing c25k every other day. Am just getting to the point where I jog 20 mins straight. I feel like I should see a difference on the scale! I just keep fluctuating between the same 3 lbs. it's disappointing but I'm still going! I guess what I want to know is whether this has happened to anyone else and if they figured out the reason behind it or if it was just a slow start and got better. Thanks!

Replies

  • ariana_eatsandlifts
    ariana_eatsandlifts Posts: 197 Member
    Are you measuring your food with a food scale? It might help if you open your diary.
  • DeguelloTex
    DeguelloTex Posts: 6,652 Member
    At this point, it's either random fluctuations or you're eating at maintenance.

    You might want to open your diary so people can make suggestions.
  • azulvioleta6
    azulvioleta6 Posts: 4,195 Member
    If you want concrete feedback, share you diary.
  • fi_b
    fi_b Posts: 121 Member
    MFP does tend to over estimate calories burned. It's generally suggested to eat back 50-75% of exercise calories, but like the posters above have said it will be easier if you open your diary. It might feel a bit scary, but we're not here to judge, just to help :)
  • ljparsons08
    ljparsons08 Posts: 28 Member
    Does it matter what I eat if im staying in my calories? How do you share your diary?
  • ljparsons08
    ljparsons08 Posts: 28 Member
    Ive tried clicking on a lot of people's profiles and nobody that I've seen shares their diary. I don't even know how. But I just thought if I'm staying in calories and moving more than I used to I should lose weight.
  • ariana_eatsandlifts
    ariana_eatsandlifts Posts: 197 Member
    Settings --> diary settings --> diary sharing

    You are not eating in a deficit if you are not losing weight. We can possibly find out why you are not in a deficit if we can see your diary.
  • nutmegoreo
    nutmegoreo Posts: 15,532 Member
    ljparsons08 wrote: »
    Does it matter what I eat if im staying in my calories? How do you share your diary?

    What you eat doesn't matter as much, unless you find that certain foods fuel your workouts better, or keep you feeling full longer. Everyone is different in that respect.

    The bigger question is how are you measuring your foods? The weights on packages can be wrong, measuring cups can be inaccurate, eyeballing is typically very inaccurate. If you have a food scale, weighing all of your solid foods is the most accurate. If you don't have a food scale, I suggest picking one up. You can find them for as little as $15.

    To share your diary, go to settings, diary settings, and then diary sharing (change to public). That works from the website, I am not certain about the app.
  • healthygreek
    healthygreek Posts: 2,137 Member
    If you are eating 1260 calories a day and exercising you should be losing!
    Either you're not weighing your solids on a digital food scale and measuring your caloric liquids in measuring spoons/cups OR if you are then you may have some hormonal issue.
    Most of the time, if you don't lose, it means you are eating more than you think!
    Weigh and measure all your foods and liquids!!!!
  • cafeaulait7
    cafeaulait7 Posts: 2,459 Member
    If you are progressing in your fitness, you could still have water/glycogen weight from that. I'd double-check my logging, sure, but I'd also give it more time. Your menstrual cycle will probably affect what weight you see on the scale, too, so I'd give everything at least 6 weeks at the beginning.

    But do log accurately, of course :) And keep a tally of what you are eating for exercise calories if you eat them back. Those burns are hard to figure. Keep precise numbers that you can analyze later if you do find you need to change something.
  • Liftng4Lis
    Liftng4Lis Posts: 15,151 Member
    While it's normal when beginning a new exercise program, to retain water, that doesn't last. If you're not losing, you're not in a deficit.
  • SLLRunner
    SLLRunner Posts: 12,942 Member
    ljparsons08 wrote: »
    Does this happen often? I thought that when you first start making big changes in diet and fitness the weight would melt off. Later on should be the plateau. But I've been logging over 25 days (a few off days but generally staying in my calories of 1260 per day) and I've been doing c25k every other day. Am just getting to the point where I jog 20 mins straight. I feel like I should see a difference on the scale! I just keep fluctuating between the same 3 lbs. it's disappointing but I'm still going! I guess what I want to know is whether this has happened to anyone else and if they figured out the reason behind it or if it was just a slow start and got better. Thanks!

    Do you weigh food? Log all you intake?

    Do you log exercise and, if so, where do you get the burn numbers from? Do you eat exercise calories back?
  • ljparsons08
    ljparsons08 Posts: 28 Member
    I weigh and measure sometimes. But guess I'll be stricter with that just to be certain. I was eating calories half back but just recently decided to eat none back.
  • nutmegoreo
    nutmegoreo Posts: 15,532 Member
    ljparsons08 wrote: »
    I weigh and measure sometimes. But guess I'll be stricter with that just to be certain. I was eating calories half back but just recently decided to eat none back.

    You can probably get away with eating half back, if you start logging consistently and accurately.

    I like this thread for logging advice:

    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1234699/logging-accurately-step-by-step-guide/p1

  • brownels
    brownels Posts: 29 Member
    The same thing is happening with me. However, i know from past experience that there can be a discrepancy between what the scale shows and what i can feel happening in my body. The trick is: don't get discouraged and keep on doing what you are doing. I bet you will step on the scale in a week or so and discover a significant loss. Sometimes that happens, since losing weight (for me anyway) is not a weekly loss of 1.5 lbs; that might be average over a 5-6 week period. As the other poster said, give it 6 weeks.
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
    After 4 weeks (although I personally prefer 6-8 weeks data) I think you most probably have to revisit your logging because you currently at maintenance

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  • MarcyKirkton
    MarcyKirkton Posts: 507 Member
    I don't eat my exercise calories back, and that really does give me enough wiggle room. I'm not interested in weighing food,personally.

    So that worked out fine for me. I do log everything, but if I"m off by a couple of hundred calories, it's not such a big deal.

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