Really getting disheartened!!!!!!!!!!!

Widdy1961 · January 2009

OK

When I first started on MFP I did great, losing over 6lbs in the first week or two, I continued to lose weight steadily (although being on Insulin made it a little more difficult) and was down to 212lbs from 225 by the time I went away on Hols to Florida.

I then 'drifted' from my calorie plan and rose back to 218lbs, at which point I got back on here, trouble is I now cannot seem to lose weight, I am yo yo'ing between 220lbs and 217lbs, I cannot seem to fall below 217lbs and do not rise above 220lbs.

I do not do 'strength' training and prefer to walk 2 or 3 miles per day (weather permitting over here in the UK), I always try to take up my full calorie intake (1,400 per day) but to no avail.

It's getting so disheartening now.

Help!.......have any of you experienced this or know why it is?...........even better if someone knows how to overcome this.

3 Months of losing nothing aint' amusing.

*EDIT* I am also off to Florida again in 6 weeks
Widdy

Widdy1961 · January 2009

OK

When I first started on MFP I did great, losing over 6lbs in the first week or two, I continued to lose weight steadily (although being on Insulin made it a little more difficult) and was down to 212lbs from 225 by the time I went away on Hols to Florida.

I then 'drifted' from my calorie plan and rose back to 218lbs, at which point I got back on here, trouble is I now cannot seem to lose weight, I am yo yo'ing between 220lbs and 217lbs, I cannot seem to fall below 217lbs and do not rise above 220lbs.

I do not do 'strength' training and prefer to walk 2 or 3 miles per day (weather permitting over here in the UK), I always try to take up my full calorie intake (1,400 per day) but to no avail.

It's getting so disheartening now.

Help!.......have any of you experienced this or know why it is?...........even better if someone knows how to overcome this.

3 Months of losing nothing aint' amusing.

*EDIT* I am also off to Florida again in 6 weeks
Widdy

Jackie_W · January 2009

Have you tried taking in less calories just one day ?
If I were you, I'd eat 1,300 calories, and see if that gets me anywhere - worth a try ?
Good luck :flowerforyou:

Anna_Banana · January 2009

I would try to throw in some toning a couple of times a week. It really does help reshape your body.

Phoenix_Rising · January 2009

Are you eating enough?? 1400 calories seems low. Is that what MFP suggested? Are you logging your exercises and eating those calories? TamTastic might be a good resource for you.... she is a great example of how eating all your calories will result in weight loss.

Colly · January 2009

Hi Widdy,
One day at a time.
Try adding some strength training. You can use items you have at home from soup cans to water bottles.
Make sue you are eatting your calories and try some different foods.:flowerforyou:

applebridget · January 2009

Try changing your workout routine. If you want to keep walking then maybe add some stairs to your routine with some periodic sprints for 1/2 a block and incease your time (even if it's only by 5 min.) You need not just a physical boost it sounds but also an energy boost! Keep concentrating on how far you've come. Keep up the good work! Good luck!

Widdy1961 · January 2009

Hi Lauryn1981.......yep 1400 cals is the recommended from MFP and I also always eat my full cals.

Hi Colly.........I am loathe to do strength training, as when I was younger I used to do weight training and to be honest would rather cycle (which I do too) than do any form of strength training.......after 4 years of weights I don't want to look at another one :ohwell:

Hi Jackie W.........I have tried to take less calories, although I cannot do this as I have to watch my Blood Sugar with being Diabetic......at the moment I am managing to keep the BS OK.....If I drop food then it falls too much.

Widdy

titans6us · January 2009

Hey Widdy...I also struggle with the "yo-yo" thing as well. I am not sure if you use a treadmill or not, but a couple things you can do. You could either increase the intensity by incorporating hills or increase the speed which will also increase the heart rate. Or, you could increase the time or distance. I always use the eliptical machine and I use either the fat burning program or the cardio program. My current problem is trying to get my consistency back from being out of whack from the holidays. Hang in there and don't give up.....I'm not!

Jackie_W · January 2009

Hi Lauryn1981.......yep 1400 cals is the recommended from MFP and I also always eat my full cals.

Hi Colly.........I am loathe to do strength training, as when I was younger I used to do weight training and to be honest would rather cycle (which I do too) than do any form of strength training.......after 4 years of weights I don't want to look at another one :ohwell:

Hi Jackie W.........I have tried to take less calories, although I cannot do this as I have to watch my Blood Sugar with being Diabetic......at the moment I am managing to keep the BS OK.....If I drop food then it falls too much.

Widdy

Oh of course, sorry, I'm diabetic too, but mine is controlled by meds and diet, so different kettle of fish, sorry i couldn't help :blushing:

beagle595 · January 2009

Try Yoga or Tae Chi to lower your stress level. Don't forget your vitamins. Stress and not enough sleep also affects your insulin levels. Diabetes runs in my family, My Mom, GrandMother and Maternal Uncle. (And none of them were overweight not even 10 lbs.)
Get back on track. Go see a Diebetic Nutritionist and get your diet formulated. You need your Carbs, Fat and Protein grams laid out for you. Healthy Carbs not sugar, good fat light Olive Oil etc...
Diabetes affects all of your other organs. So take care of yourself, make the best of each day. Get serious don't skip your meal, and don't even skip your snacks.Milk or Soymilk is a great healthy filler.
I had Gestational Diabetes for the last 5 months of my pregancy, taking insulin twice a day. They had to take the baby early/ I couldn't keep my sugar/insulin levels under control and I followed the Diet Menu to the last calorie. So I had a little taste of how hard and scary it is for you. I'm a Papillary Thyroid cancer stage 2 survivor. It's opposite of Hyper. So I gain weight by looking at food... Also Sterioids in my meds.
I have 33 more lbs to lose out of 65. This is my year to take control and beat all odds by eating healthy and exercising. Just 10,000 steps a day. Take charge of your diebetes and "kick it's *kitten*". You control it! I wish you the best! Take care of your yourself and God Bless!

allaboutme · January 2009

most of the research I have looked at says a man should not go below 1500 calories per day ever and women 1200. Have you calculated your BMR in the tools section to see how many calories you need per day just to exist without exercise, it seem you are very low. Just a thought, but I think your body is in hoarding mode, and you aren't feeding it enough, so it won't let you lose....

schmousen · January 2009

Hey Widdy,

I'm not an expert, but this is the internet, right?? :-)
My question would be how fast are you trying to lose the weight? The 1400 cals a day seems a low amount for a guy your size. I'm 245lbs and my cals based on MFP are nearly 1900. You don't want to be trying to lose more than maybe a pound a week.
The reason I bring this up, is that you want an increased metabolism to be burning off fat, but if you are taking in too few cals, you can not sustain that metabolism. With too few cals, your body does not have the fuel it needs to burn off that fat. Does this make sense?
I had a similar plateau a while ago, and I found I needed to mix up my routine a little, expecially in terms of my exercise. I did a little strength training with a couple of dumb bells at home for 20 or so minutes 2 or 3 times a week. Nothing crazy, just stuff like one arm rows, bench press, and curls, mixed in with some push ups and sit ups and squats. I'm not Mr Universe, and this routine reflected that. I was not using huge weights to get big, but just enough to work out the muscles and stimulate my metabolism. My cardio was walking, as you do. I found I was walking the same route and it had become such a habit, it was a pleasant routine. But I also realised that in the process I had eased up a little, not exerting myself as hard as I had previously. So, I mixed up my routes and timed myself each day, just to keep myself honest and "on pace".

After a few weeks, I found I was back to losing weight slowly again. I hope some of this helps you.
Good luck.

cheers

Widdy1961 · January 2009

Hey schmousen.........I set MFP for a loss of 2lbs per week and 1400 cal is what it came up with..........I too walk a set route (country park and nature reserve) but I always time myself to walk around 3 MPH and also vary the route to take in hills and a decent flight of steps.....trouble here is the rain and darkness, when it rains (which it does quite regularly) the walk becomes unwalkable because of thick sludge, also it's dark now around 4.30pm (which happens to be the time I get in from work), so I use my static cycle which is not as much fun.

I do have a set of dumbells and maybe your suggestion could be the way forward for me (also reducing my loss to 1lb per week)

Hi allaboutme..........yes I checked the BMR and it gave this.......Your estimated BMR is: 1,832 calories/day*

Widdy

Phoenix_Rising · January 2009

Hey Widdy,

I'm not an expert, but this is the internet, right?? :-)

Not that you said this AT ALL, but it reminded me of this cartoon, so I had to laugh and post.
original.aspx

khsundstrom · January 2009

Hey,

I know what you mean about staying in your weight "zone". I'm having the same problem so I started going to a trainer and she says to lose weight, you have to do weight training. The simplest workout I can give you is the 5, 10, 15 (5 sit-ups, 10 push-ups, 15 squats) and do as many rounds as you can in 10 minutes. You have to "shock" your body into losing weight again by doing different. Good luck on your journey.

Widdy1961 · January 2009

Would like to thank you all for the info and encouragement.

Shows why MFP is such a great place.

Thanks All

Widdy

shar140 · January 2009

You don't necessarily need to use weights - push-ups, sit-ups, squats, lunges, bench dips, etc all can be done without any weights except your own body weight!! :flowerforyou:

allaboutme · January 2009

Hey schmousen.........I set MFP for a loss of 2lbs per week and 1400 cal is what it came up with..........I
Hi allaboutme..........yes I checked the BMR and it gave this.......Your estimated BMR is: 1,832 calories/day*

Widdy

You should be eating at least that every day without exercise, more if you exercise. MFP isn't a perfect program. Someday maybe they will fix it so it uses your BMR to calculate how many calories you need per day to function and be healthy but still lose weight. The BMR number is the amount of calories your body needs just to exist without getting out of bed in the morning. Check out some research about it on the message boards on or the internet, even though MFP recommended 1400 it isn't right, it should be based on your BMR, I am not an expert or even close, but I think if you do some research you will see you are not eating enough and your body is in starvation mode. Mens metabolisms are much higher than womens and they need a lot more calories. MFP recommended 1200 calories for me to lose weight and 1400 for you, you weigh almost 100 more pounds than me, it isn't logical that we should eat almost the same amount of calories

The program is great but it isn't perfect :happy: not yet anyway

Chellekk · January 2009

I agree with another post above about adding in "sprints" to your walk. Even if you were to semi-jog a little instead of walk...anything to BOOST the workout and burn more calories.

finzup · January 2009

are you eating your exercise calories? I agree with what others have posted in that you might not be eating enough calories. Try at least eating your exercise calories every other day and see how it goes.

best of luck

Hannah_Banana · January 2009

I'm not sure if someone already said this (didn't read all the replies)

But I thought men had to eat much more than women did. I thought i remembered seeing men shouldn't drop down below 1800 cals a day. If I'm wrong, someone please shut me up.

:flowerforyou:

Coach2010 · January 2009

Hang in there Bro. We're almost in the same spot...I've been stuck in 212 - 225 lbs. forever and a day.

I've always found it difficult to maintain weight loss during the Winter months. The question I wanted to ask is, are you walking indoors or outdoors. (Note: there's an observation that even though swimmers burn more calories than walkers [240/30min vs. 210/30min], they appear to hold onto body fat longer).

I mentioned being in the same spot...I just finished some initial homework on calorie burning workouts. I only have the raw numbers, but here's something for your consideration:

Activity Calorie Burn Estimate
Jog 13 cals / min
Swimming 240 cals / 30 min
Walking 210 cals / 30 min
Bikram Yoga 680 cals / 60 mins
Weights 430 cals / 60 mins
Bootcamp Aero. 650 cals / 45 mins
Dancing ~ Aero. 600 cals / 45 mins
Gardening 300 cals / 60 mins
House cleaning 250 cals / 60 mins
Spinning 300 cals / 30 mins
TaeBo 11 cals / min
Aerobics 6 cals / min

Based on these numbers, I may want to add TaeBo & Bikram Yoga (hot yoga), to my regimen. :happy:

age1389 · January 2009

I would up your calories. I bet that's the problem. Also don't forget your water.

-Adrienne

Widdy1961 · January 2009

Hang in there Bro. We're almost in the same spot...I've been stuck in 212 - 225 lbs. forever and a day.

I've always found it difficult to maintain weight loss during the Winter months. The question I wanted to ask is, are you walking indoors or outdoors. (Note: there's an observation that even though swimmers burn more calories than walkers [240/30min vs. 210/30min], they appear to hold onto body fat longer).

I mentioned being in the same spot...I just finished some initial homework on calorie burning workouts. I only have the raw numbers, but here's something for your consideration:

Activity Calorie Burn Estimate
Jog 13 cals / min
Swimming 240 cals / 30 min
Walking 210 cals / 30 min
Bikram Yoga 680 cals / 60 mins
Weights 430 cals / 60 mins
Bootcamp Aero. 650 cals / 45 mins
Dancing ~ Aero. 600 cals / 45 mins
Gardening 300 cals / 60 mins
House cleaning 250 cals / 60 mins
Spinning 300 cals / 30 mins
TaeBo 11 cals / min
Aerobics 6 cals / min

Based on these numbers, I may want to add TaeBo & Bikram Yoga (hot yoga), to my regimen. :happy:

Hi CoachLou

I walk outdoors (when possible), usually weekends at this time of year due to the weather and darkness.........when it is not possible to get out, I have a static cycle which I use (indoors obviously).

Hey allaboutme.........done some checking too (as you have done) and see that you are completely correct regards calorie intake.................according to some other sites, I should be eating 1760 cals for a normal fat loss and 1740 for an extreme fat loss (makes you think) and it looks like this is the reason for my problems..........................noted by quite a few members on here.

I have upped my intake to 1750 cals and have also started doing a little strength training, along with the 5, 10, 15 as suggested by khsundstrom too.
Widdy

LeanLioness · January 2009

OK

When I first started on MFP I did great, losing over 6lbs in the first week or two, I continued to lose weight steadily (although being on Insulin made it a little more difficult) and was down to 212lbs from 225 by the time I went away on Hols to Florida.

I then 'drifted' from my calorie plan and rose back to 218lbs, at which point I got back on here, trouble is I now cannot seem to lose weight, I am yo yo'ing between 220lbs and 217lbs, I cannot seem to fall below 217lbs and do not rise above 220lbs.

I do not do 'strength' training and prefer to walk 2 or 3 miles per day (weather permitting over here in the UK), I always try to take up my full calorie intake (1,400 per day) but to no avail.

It's getting so disheartening now.

Help!.......have any of you experienced this or know why it is?...........even better if someone knows how to overcome this.

3 Months of losing nothing aint' amusing.

*EDIT* I am also off to Florida again in 6 weeks
Widdy

Hi! I noticed that you are on Insulin for diabetes? Has your Diabetic Endocrinologist talked to you about limiting your carbs and upping your fat intake?

I have lost 23 pounds in 2 weeks starting Atkins at Phase 1. I am doing a complete lifestyle change and by the time I get to maintenance I will be eating only healthy, healthy carbs......................................

I am going grocery shopping between tonight and Sunday to get my goodies to start Phase 2 of Atkins. I will be adding in more veggies that are a little higher on the carb ladder as well as start adding in nuts, seeds, and berries.......................

If you are interested, please feel free to message me and I will assist you in any way possible!!!

By the way, I don't count calories, fat grams, etc...............I only count carbs and right now I do that very loosely too. I am eating mostly green leafy vegetables and salads along with high quality protein, so the carbs in those veggies are pretty small anyway!!!

lessertess · January 2009

I agree with LeanLioness, you should talk to your doctors about the proper nutrition and caloric levels to support your weight loss without impacting your insulin levels. I've talked to a number of people with diabetes and they do tend to struggle more with weight loss becasue of their special dietary needs. I doubt any of us are really qualified to offer advice.

Widdy1961 · January 2009

I agree with LeanLioness, you should talk to your doctors about the proper nutrition and caloric levels to support your weight loss without impacting your insulin levels. I've talked to a number of people with diabetes and they do tend to struggle more with weight loss becasue of their special dietary needs. I doubt any of us are really qualified to offer advice.

Hi

I have regular Diabetic 'Check Ups' (once every 3 Months) and the Nutrition info I am given matches what I eat, in fact, since starting on MFP I have more than halved my Insulin Meds, so am heading in the right direction.

My Blood Sugars have been very stable too (I check them twice a day, every day)

My original query was, why I had all of a sudden started gaining weight (or not losing), although I had not really changed anything I was doing or eating.

I do realise the importance of keeping my Diet 'Diabetically' Healthy, although I understand that in the UK things are a little different than they are in the US regards Diabetic treatment. and sometimes contradict each other.

My Diabetic Nurse could only say 'more exercise' when I asked her why I was gaining weight.......:ohwell:

Widdy

LeanLioness · January 2009

I agree with LeanLioness, you should talk to your doctors about the proper nutrition and caloric levels to support your weight loss without impacting your insulin levels. I've talked to a number of people with diabetes and they do tend to struggle more with weight loss becasue of their special dietary needs. I doubt any of us are really qualified to offer advice.

Hi

I have regular Diabetic 'Check Ups' (once every 3 Months) and the Nutrition info I am given matches what I eat, in fact, since starting on MFP I have more than halved my Insulin Meds, so am heading in the right direction.

My Blood Sugars have been very stable too (I check them twice a day, every day)

My original query was, why I had all of a sudden started gaining weight (or not losing), although I had not really changed anything I was doing or eating.

I do realise the importance of keeping my Diet 'Diabetically' Healthy, although I understand that in the UK things are a little different than they are in the US regards Diabetic treatment. and sometimes contradict each other.

My Diabetic Nurse could only say 'more exercise' when I asked her why I was gaining weight.......:ohwell:

Widdy

My Dr preaches watching carbs, carbs, carbs.............

I have gotten off shots after 2 weeks. I am only taking 2000mg of Metformin now to control my diabetes.......

I get my carbs from veggies right now, NO grains or fruit. I will be adding in strawberries this weekend though, which are the lowest on the glycenic index.

My triglycerides were over 200 and that is from fruit and grains..........which for a diabetic in moderate quantities are HIGH carb limits and a recipe for disaster...........

allaboutme · January 2009

I agree with LeanLioness, you should talk to your doctors about the proper nutrition and caloric levels to support your weight loss without impacting your insulin levels. I've talked to a number of people with diabetes and they do tend to struggle more with weight loss becasue of their special dietary needs. I doubt any of us are really qualified to offer advice.

Hi

I have regular Diabetic 'Check Ups' (once every 3 Months) and the Nutrition info I am given matches what I eat, in fact, since starting on MFP I have more than halved my Insulin Meds, so am heading in the right direction.

My Blood Sugars have been very stable too (I check them twice a day, every day)

My original query was, why I had all of a sudden started gaining weight (or not losing), although I had not really changed anything I was doing or eating.

I do realise the importance of keeping my Diet 'Diabetically' Healthy, although I understand that in the UK things are a little different than they are in the US regards Diabetic treatment. and sometimes contradict each other.

My Diabetic Nurse could only say 'more exercise' when I asked her why I was gaining weight.......:ohwell:

Widdy

So your question was answered, your body pleateaued and refused to budge cause you weren't feeding it enough.

the body definitely has a mind of its own :laugh:

allaboutme · January 2009

one more thing I read, that if you realize your calories have been too low, add them gradually 100 every couple of days so your body can adjust. You want your metabolism to adjust to using the extra calories, so by increasing gradually, your metabolism doesn't get shock therapy, and doesn't just want to store all the extra (leading to an initial weight gain). Hope it all helps, I find it much easier to stick with eating a reasonable amount of food and not starving myself. My dh wouldn't beleive me that he needed to increase his calories, when I finally convinced him to eat more, and eat regularly, he took off 10 pounds in about 1.5 months without changing anything other than increasing his calories. It it hard to change the mindset that has been drilled into our head all our lives of the 1200 calorie myth, but it is doable and it works.

Really getting disheartened!!!!!!!!!!!

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