If calories in-calories out is immutable...
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Basically everything has valid be it CICO, hormonal impact, etc, etc.
For my simple mind all of these factors net results get computed when I get on my scales and weigh by body each morning. Daily weight-ins will vary so I just look at my weight as of the 1st of each month as it compares to the same date on prior months and that gives me a heads up of my true real life CICO.
Weight loss/gain is my secondary concern. My #1 concern is to eat in a way that improves my health markers. When I do that my secondary concerned so far has been addressed by default.
For a year now I have hit my max weight of 207 two times and my min weight if 197 three times. As my health markers improve I work to make sure my next Max is more like 202 and Min weight is more like 192. If it takes me to age 70 (5 more years) to get to a 180-170 range that is just find as long as my overall health markers are improving or staying in normal ranges.
For some reason in my case as my health improves over a period of time my weight will drop or some call it ones 'set point' is declining. From age 15 to 25 my set point was about 175 pounds. My max weight over the past 5 years has been 250 but for some reason without watching my CICO I never crossed that weight. Having been just under 200 for a while now I am calling that my new 'set point'.
Now that I stay stuffed feeling eating about every 12 hours managing my CI is much easier. The winter months my CO is harder to manage. During the summer with work around the place my CO will be so that my CI will manage itself for the most part since I no longer have food cravings.
Yes CICO is real but when we regain good physical and mental health (regarding food usage) the brain can take over managing our weight like it has for mankind since recorded history.0 -
CICO is what is comes down to, but there are so many variables that play into this. There is the difficulty of being sure, even with the most careful measuring there are going to be variations in foods, margins of error of the scale, and the like. Then there is calories out, changes in daily activity (NEAT) happen daily and that means different amounts of calories burned. Various hormones can cause changes that in the long run all even out, but in the short run can cause variation in CO. Then there is the difficulty in measuring results. What most people measure is weight, but weight is a measure of progress that is horribly variable for things that have nothing to do with losing fat. Water weight is the most obvious, but then there is food weight is your digestion is running slow, and the rest. If there was an accurate, inexpensive way to measure fat loss, it would be the measure you would want to use, but there isn't. That means the scale, measuring tape, and photographs are what we have to work with. All those variables, and more, mean that while CICO is working, it effects may be masked or skewed. It does not mean CICO isn't working.0
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Really just sounds like your giving up to quick.
You mentioned losing 6-8lb then nothing and losing 2lb a week.
Does that mean you stick to your plan for 4-8 weeks then quit?
I'm not female so I haven't experienced it first hand but my understanding is that they have monthly water fluctuations.
So could you see big numbers when you lose water weight and get motivated
Then 2-4 weeks later see small or no movement because your gaining water weight and then get demotivated?
All while you were losing fat but not seeing it on the scales because of water weight.
Stick with it longer would be my suggestion.0 -
My current weight is 192. Goal: 172 (to begin with, I'd love to lose this by March, for a trip I'm going on)
I'm eating 500 cal on "fast" days and freely on off days.
1) You're not going to lose 20 pounds in 6 weeks. Given your start weight, it's enormously unlikely you'll lose 20 pounds in 10 weeks. Unrealistic expectations can make it harder to stick to your plan, because you perceive failure rather than realistic success.
2) If you aren't logging every day, how will you know whether you have an overall deficit? What's your plan if you don't have an overall deficit? IF isn't a plan that works for me, but I know from hard experience that I have absolutely no problem eating 3,800 calories in a day. Five hundred on fast days + 3,800 on off days = maintenance for me.
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Thanks so much for all the info. Lots of people here think like I do!
My current weight is 192. Goal: 172 (to begin with, I'd love to lose this by March, for a trip I'm going on)
I'm eating 500 cal on "fast" days and freely on off days.[/b] So far, fasting is working well for me. I recently started a new job and found myself eating alot less by default due to a change in my daily schedule. It has actually been easy to incorporate the fasting. I feel like fasting functions as a behavior modification for me...just in 3 weeks I've noticed that I'm not as reactive to the feeling of hunger--which enables me to make a dispassionate food choice.
For me, eating 6x a day means 6x I have to make the right decision about what to eat. Meal planning is not my strong point. If I can not have to rely on it, I'm better off.
I'll stick with this for 3 more weeks and if I don't see a change over time, I'll make a drs appt and push to see if there is some other challenge.
Thank you all!!
Are you logging at all? Are you counting calories at all?
20 lbs in 2.5 months is really aggressive.
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Thanks so much for all the info. Lots of people here think like I do!
My current weight is 192. Goal: 172 (to begin with, I'd love to lose this by March, for a trip I'm going on)
I'm eating 500 cal on "fast" days and freely on off days. So far, fasting is working well for me. I recently started a new job and found myself eating alot less by default due to a change in my daily schedule. It has actually been easy to incorporate the fasting. I feel like fasting functions as a behavior modification for me...just in 3 weeks I've noticed that I'm not as reactive to the feeling of hunger--which enables me to make a dispassionate food choice.
For me, eating 6x a day means 6x I have to make the right decision about what to eat. Meal planning is not my strong point. If I can not have to rely on it, I'm better off.
I'll stick with this for 3 more weeks and if I don't see a change over time, I'll make a drs appt and push to see if there is some other challenge.
Thank you all!!
Everyone's addressed the weight loss isn't linear issue. But does eating "freely" on your "off" days mean you're not logging? If you've had issues with losing in the past, you're not one of the (what I'd consider) lucky ones who can lose weight without logging. You need to log.
Also, 20 pounds in two months is not only unlikely to happen, but also not really a good idea. Since you have given up several times, it's probably time you try to find a way that works and is sustainable.0 -
Thanks so much for all the info. Lots of people here think like I do!
My current weight is 192. Goal: 172 (to begin with, I'd love to lose this by March, for a trip I'm going on)
I'm eating 500 cal on "fast" days and freely on off days. So far, fasting is working well for me. I recently started a new job and found myself eating alot less by default due to a change in my daily schedule. It has actually been easy to incorporate the fasting. I feel like fasting functions as a behavior modification for me...just in 3 weeks I've noticed that I'm not as reactive to the feeling of hunger--which enables me to make a dispassionate food choice.
For me, eating 6x a day means 6x I have to make the right decision about what to eat. Meal planning is not my strong point. If I can not have to rely on it, I'm better off.
I'll stick with this for 3 more weeks and if I don't see a change over time, I'll make a drs appt and push to see if there is some other challenge.
Thank you all!!
You're 'eating freely' on your non-fast days? This could completely eliminate your weekly deficit. Also, is this really how you want to continue eating for the rest of your life? Learn to eat in a way that you will be able to maintain at your goal weight.
And use a food scale! and log everything, fast days or not. If you're not doing this, then really, what's the point?0 -
What helped for me was to once and for all very clearly, very cleanly, very dispassionately partition PROCESS (my work) from PRODUCT (my body's work). If my program is based on sound principles & I am consistently doing my work, I have to accept that my body will do its work on its own arcane terms. So far this has carried me through several bumps & skids.0
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You should be eating to maintenance on your off days, not freely ...so as they say you still have to weigh your food and log0
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To several posters who asked--yes, I'm logging, I'm not using a food scale.
Freely isn't the best choice of words there...I'm logging on the non-fast days too. Just not with a calorie goal. I've been ending up around 1500-1600 on "free" days.
I know I need to stick with it longer. If you re-read my op, you'll see that I have stuck with programs longer, but I feel like I hit a hurdle around the 3 week mark every time. I'm afraid I'm just in that place I've been in before.
I also feel like I need a plan that I can adhere to on autopilot so that I can do it longer.
I don't think I'm really a yo-yo dieter--i haven't dieted enough for that! Last year I worked with a personal trainer for about three months. During that time (not the entire time, I worked up to this), I was restricting calories to 1100, lifting weights 2x per week, and doing 30min of cardio 3x per week. I consistently lost 1lb per week, sometimes more. But I can't keep that up! Ir at least I can't keep it up without a lot of disruption to accommodate my family's needs. (I work full time and I have 5 kids, ranging from 4-17).
Anyway--there is more backstory.
Thank you all for your input!!0 -
What helped for me was to once and for all very clearly, very cleanly, very dispassionately partition PROCESS (my work) from PRODUCT (my body's work). If my program is based on sound principles & I am consistently doing my work, I have to accept that my body will do its work on its own arcane terms. So far this has carried me through several bumps & skids.
This is precisely the mindset I need to get into. Thanks for sharing it so succinctly. I may print this off and hang it in my office to re-read!0 -
Thanks so much for all the info. Lots of people here think like I do!
My current weight is 192. Goal: 172 (to begin with, I'd love to lose this by March, for a trip I'm going on)
I'm eating 500 cal on "fast" days and freely on off days. So far, fasting is working well for me. I recently started a new job and found myself eating alot less by default due to a change in my daily schedule. It has actually been easy to incorporate the fasting. I feel like fasting functions as a behavior modification for me...just in 3 weeks I've noticed that I'm not as reactive to the feeling of hunger--which enables me to make a dispassionate food choice.
For me, eating 6x a day means 6x I have to make the right decision about what to eat. Meal planning is not my strong point. If I can not have to rely on it, I'm better off.
I'll stick with this for 3 more weeks and if I don't see a change over time, I'll make a drs appt and push to see if there is some other challenge.
Thank you all!!
You do not need a dr's appointment, you need to be patient, and consistent. In every new diet you will lose a few lbs the first couple of weeks. And then gain it back and a bit more if you quit.
In your current diet, what does eating freely mean? If it is eating at maintenance, great. If it means eating 5000 calories, you will end up gaining in the end.0 -
sweetie if you're not using a food scale you might be drastically underestimating your calorie intake and wiping out your defecit
something to think about if you continue to maintain0 -
You shouldn't be following a diet, you should start a lifestyle change. When your health, and healthier life is your goal, weight comes off as a really great consequence.
Also, as a lot of posters mentioned weight loss is not linear, you can lose a lot in the beginning, then nothing, then couple months later a bit more...you should be focused on big picture and don't get discouraged if you don't see a change on the scale.0 -
YouThanks so much for all the info. Lots of people here think like I do!
My current weight is 192. Goal: 172 (to begin with, I'd love to lose this by March, for a trip I'm going on)
I'm eating 500 cal on "fast" days and freely on off days. So far, fasting is working well for me. I recently started a new job and found myself eating alot less by default due to a change in my daily schedule. It has actually been easy to incorporate the fasting. I feel like fasting functions as a behavior modification for me...just in 3 weeks I've noticed that I'm not as reactive to the feeling of hunger--which enables me to make a dispassionate food choice.
For me, eating 6x a day means 6x I have to make the right decision about what to eat. Meal planning is not my strong point. If I can not have to rely on it, I'm better off.
I'll stick with this for 3 more weeks and if I don't see a change over time, I'll make a drs appt and push to see if there is some other challenge.
Thank you all!!
You say your eating freely on non fast days ? Are you still weighing and logging those days?
If not, you could be wiping out your own deficit causing you not to lose weight.
I've met lots of people who do diets like 5:2 that think just because they ate 500 cals the day before that they can eat whatever the next. That's not true at all.
If you are not losing weight its because your not consistently at a calorie deficit. You could be wiping out your deficit by eating " freely "0 -
20 pounds in that short of a time for your stats is pretty aggressive and likely not possible. Don't get discouraged and quit if you don't make it.0
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And hello, with five relatively young children?!? I think you probably are being overly aggressive in 3-week spurts and calling it 'quitting.' Go easier! Aim lower! Take half a pound of loss over a longer time... Find something that works within the current conditions of your actual life, not some ideal that collapses in a matter of weeks. xoL0
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You need a food scale, and to follow the MFP plan and let it work. Consistency is the #1 factor people fail at losing weight in my opinion (other than the obvious, overeating).
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If you're not using a food scale, your logging is inaccurate. We are known to wildly underestimate portions.0
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That's a really great perspective, thank you for sharing that insight.What helped for me was to once and for all very clearly, very cleanly, very dispassionately partition PROCESS (my work) from PRODUCT (my body's work). If my program is based on sound principles & I am consistently doing my work, I have to accept that my body will do its work on its own arcane terms. So far this has carried me through several bumps & skids.
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I needed accurate measurements to really believe that CICO was working. When I weigh all my solid food on a digital kitchen scale in grams and choose accurate entries from the data base, I insure the measurement of CI is as accurate as possible. When I used a Fitbit for measuring activity, I insure the measurement of my CO is as accurate as possible. When I know I am working with accurate data I can trust that the weight will come off. This allows me to have complete faith in the process even when the bathroom scale may not reflect that exactly on any given day. My strongest advise is weigh your food! Measure your activity accurately and trust the process0
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+1. People expect results from doing the same exact things every week. Unfortunately the body doesn't do the exact same things every week. Fluctuations in stress, hormones, water, nutrients, etc. are why weight loss isn't linear.Because weight loss isn't linear
Calories in vs calories out is immutable but you forgot the over time part
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You don't NEED a food scale or NEED to log daily. There is not only one way to diet. It sounds like you're roughly on Krista Varady's ADF plan. On that you can eat freely on your non-fast days (though logging them is fine, too). A pound a week is probably a reasonable expectation. Good luck!0
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WalkingAlong wrote: »You don't NEED a food scale or NEED to log daily. There is not only one way to diet. It sounds like you're roughly on Krista Varady's ADF plan. On that you can eat freely on your non-fast days (though logging them is fine, too). A pound a week is probably a reasonable expectation. Good luck!
This is exactly what I'm following.0 -
WalkingAlong wrote: »You don't NEED a food scale or NEED to log daily. There is not only one way to diet. It sounds like you're roughly on Krista Varady's ADF plan. On that you can eat freely on your non-fast days (though logging them is fine, too). A pound a week is probably a reasonable expectation. Good luck!
Agreed. You actually don't need to log ever. Most people have the ability to know when they are eating too much, they just ignore it. A human scale can work for weight loss just fine if used properly.
Looking at labels or logging food helps people understand the calorie dense stuff, the nutritional content, etc, but in the end being able to apply it is more important. A person could log everything and struggle if they don't figure out what keeps them full, gives them more energy, and gets them through the day.0
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