Not losing - tips/suggestions/help, please
Tia_N_Mac
Posts: 181 Member
Bio: I lost 30 pounds maybe 2 years ago and I've put about 17 back on. I've been trying to lose again (I want to lose 40 total) and it's harder than it was before. I looked at my diet and saw how carb-heavy it was and decided to try low-carb. I chose 50 grams/day based on some things I read since I'm not doing it for health reasons and I don't want to exclude everything. (I was probably eating about 150/day)
Monday will make 4 weeks and I've only lost about 3-4 pounds. I work out at least 4 days a week (kickboxing or step), I drink 96 oz of water a day and I eat when I'm hungry (which we know is a lot less on this plan). I log on Spark People (just where I started) but I like the forums here better so I listed the total calories and carbs for the last 5 days.
I expected to lose more weight from everything I read. Anything you have to offer is much appreciated. Not sure if I should stick with this or go back to calorie counting.
Sat: 1090/ 44
Sun: 1204 / 44
Mon: 728 / 25
Tue: 935 / 39
Wed: 972 / 48
Monday will make 4 weeks and I've only lost about 3-4 pounds. I work out at least 4 days a week (kickboxing or step), I drink 96 oz of water a day and I eat when I'm hungry (which we know is a lot less on this plan). I log on Spark People (just where I started) but I like the forums here better so I listed the total calories and carbs for the last 5 days.
I expected to lose more weight from everything I read. Anything you have to offer is much appreciated. Not sure if I should stick with this or go back to calorie counting.
Sat: 1090/ 44
Sun: 1204 / 44
Mon: 728 / 25
Tue: 935 / 39
Wed: 972 / 48
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Replies
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I'm no expert, but when I Googled "stalling lchf," I found what looks like an on-target podcast by low-carb diet expert Dr. Stephen Phinney, Long-Term Stalls and Weight Gain Even On A Well-Formulated Low-Carb Diet, which others in your situation seem to have found helpful.
Good luck!0 -
3-4 lbs in 4 weeks is approximately 1 lb per week, which is appropriate for the amount you would like to lose.
some of the weight loss may also be getting masked by fluid retention from your exercise regime, especially if this is a new program you started.
are those your calories per day? is that before or after exercise? your carb count looks great but your calories are far too low especially for the amount of exercise you are doing. under-fueling your body can affect your hormones and in put extra stress on your body increasing cortisol levels and interfere with your weight loss.
that being said the rate at which you are losing is wonderful so I don't see an issue with that at all. have you taken before pictures for comparison and measurements? the scale only shows one way to measure size and is probably the least accurate of all due to fluid fluctuations and body composition. you will want to track your inches and I strongly recommend taking some pictures to compare to in the future.0 -
auntstephie321 wrote: »
under-fueling your body can affect your hormones and in put extra stress on your body increasing cortisol levels and interfere with your weight loss.
Thanks for that piece of information!
Q - Is it sensible to monitor cortisol levels under some circumstances ?0 -
Here's another resource from a site that's often mentioned here.
http://www.phlaunt.com/diabetes/43067657.php0 -
I am by no means an expert on any of the science stuff, I know the basics. I don't think its necessary to monitor cortisol levels unless you have specific disorders that are affected by it.
this site gives an easy to understand breakdown on it
http://breakingmuscle.com/health-medicine/the-ups-and-downs-of-cortisol-what-you-need-to-know0 -
auntstephie321 wrote: »this site gives an easy to understand breakdown on it
http://breakingmuscle.com/health-medicine/the-ups-and-downs-of-cortisol-what-you-need-to-know
Great, thanks!0 -
i would say increase your calories (specifically fat & protein) on days you work-out. i know for me, on days i work-out, i am far hungrier than the days i don't. if you alter your calorie intake, it might help. i used to have an article about that, but can't find it. also, look into cyclic keto diet. since you are heavy into exercising, that might help you. good luck.
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Also take body measurements. If you're exercising enough you should see inches lost instead of pounds.0
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auntstephie321 wrote: »3-4 lbs in 4 weeks is approximately 1 lb per week, which is appropriate for the amount you would like to lose.
some of the weight loss may also be getting masked by fluid retention from your exercise regime, especially if this is a new program you started.
are those your calories per day? is that before or after exercise? your carb count looks great but your calories are far too low especially for the amount of exercise you are doing. under-fueling your body can affect your hormones and in put extra stress on your body increasing cortisol levels and interfere with your weight loss.
that being said the rate at which you are losing is wonderful so I don't see an issue with that at all. have you taken before pictures for comparison and measurements? the scale only shows one way to measure size and is probably the least accurate of all due to fluid fluctuations and body composition. you will want to track your inches and I strongly recommend taking some pictures to compare to in the future.
Those are my calories per day, not including what I burn from working out. I honestly didn't think working out 4 days a week for 40-45 min was much. I worked out more when I was counting calories because I find I just don't lose without the exercise (experiencing the slow down after 40). I'm using a pair of too-small jeans to gauge where I am. I actually like low-carb. I ate what I wanted yesterday because I was mad and then today I woke up and went right back so I think I'm going to stick with it. I'll work on upping my calories and try to stay away from that darned scale! Thanks for taking the time to reply.0 -
MyPrimalLife wrote: »i would say increase your calories (specifically fat & protein) on days you work-out. i know for me, on days i work-out, i am far hungrier than the days i don't. if you alter your calorie intake, it might help. i used to have an article about that, but can't find it. also, look into cyclic keto diet. since you are heavy into exercising, that might help you. good luck.
I checked out that site,but my workouts are quite tame compared to what they do!0 -
MyPrimalLife wrote: »i would say increase your calories (specifically fat & protein) on days you work-out. i know for me, on days i work-out, i am far hungrier than the days i don't. if you alter your calorie intake, it might help. i used to have an article about that, but can't find it. also, look into cyclic keto diet. since you are heavy into exercising, that might help you. good luck.
I checked out that site,but my workouts are quite tame compared to what they do!
mine are, too,
but my plan is to try to cyclic keto diet in a couple of months, after i get used to the low carb WOE.
i think the main thing i like about it, is that each day is different, so that overall calorie count, fat/carb/protein ratios, etc. each fluctuate depending on how much activity one does in a day.0 -
Here's another resource from a site that's often mentioned here.
http://www.phlaunt.com/diabetes/43067657.php
Thank you for both of those resources. What's funny is this one says to cut back on dairy and eliminate pork and those are the things I added when I went low-carb! I've fallen back in love with bacon and I'm not giving it up right now! Lol
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Here's another resource from a site that's often mentioned here.
http://www.phlaunt.com/diabetes/43067657.php
Thank you for both of those resources. What's funny is this one says to cut back on dairy and eliminate pork and those are the things I added when I went low-carb! I've fallen back in love with bacon and I'm not giving it up right now! Lol
I think you're on pretty firm ground putting bacon in the low-carb column....
Good luck!0 -
Also take body measurements. If you're exercising enough you should see inches lost instead of pounds.
I agree. The bottom line in my case is just to keep total carbs <50 grams daily and make sure 80% of my calories comes from fats. I am off most all sources of food contain much sugar and all forms of grains for pain management. To lose I have to hold protein down to 70-90 grams daily. I eat 2000-3000 calories most days to more or less maintain.0 -
MyPrimalLife wrote: »i would say increase your calories (specifically fat & protein) on days you work-out. i know for me, on days i work-out, i am far hungrier than the days i don't. if you alter your calorie intake, it might help. i used to have an article about that, but can't find it. also, look into cyclic keto diet. since you are heavy into exercising, that might help you. good luck.
Thank you for this information! I've always weightlifted but gotten heavier into it the last couple months. I wonder if I'll see quicker results now if I add carbs before a workout. Looks like I've got some more research to do!!!0 -
The links are also helpful for me. Seems like there's a lot of discouragement going around today. I'm feeling extremely discouraged today I think I'm at seven weeks now. (wrapping up 7) This week I had a half a pound gain! I cut out all nuts two weeks ago, I may have had two slices of cheese in the last two weeks. I've had heavy whipping cream a couple of times in the last couple of weeks. So I've almost cut out all dairy as well. I'm not losing inches either. I have my lucky jeans on right now. Yes I can button them but they are definitely not any looser then the first time when I could get into them about 4 to 5 weeks ago. When I decided to throw out the scale and just use the jeans. Since then I've decided to use happy scale and weigh myself every day but only count Fridays. So yeah up half a pound since last Friday. I started intermittent fasting this week. I've been starting off my day with bulletproof coffee with only about a teaspoon each of the kerigold butter and coconut oil. I use my ninja, it's delicious. Anyhow then I don't eat lunch until about 1 o'clock when I have a couple of eggs some tuna fish etc.... That has been since Monday. I meticulously write anything that goes in my mouth. I haven't gone over 20 carbs a day for two solid weeks and even before that it was 30 or under. Except for one day I did 40 carbs but that was like 2 1/2 weeks ago. I haven't had any cheats, mess ups, anything like that. I eat no processed foods, no products that are designed to be sweet but low-carb, nothing like that. I even exercise HIIT cardio and weight training four times a week. So yes I'm very frustrated and I don't know what the problem is! I truly have looked at all the usual suspects and I cannot understand why I'm not losing!!!! Even inches!! I literally want to scream right now. I'm not trying to hijack your post but I feel your pain
I just don't know what to do. I feel good so that's a bonus, but I'm starting to wonder does Keto not work for some people? 0 -
@dietbepsi what about calories, where are they sitting?0
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I keep them at 1300 a day and I don't eat any of my "exercise calories"Christine_72 wrote: »@dietbepsi what about calories, where are they sitting?0 -
And my macros are about 70% fat, 10% carb the rest protein. Maybe that's not good0
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I keep them at 1300 a day and I don't eat any of my "exercise calories"Christine_72 wrote: »@dietbepsi what about calories, where are they sitting?
Yikes,That along with everything else you mentioned, should result in weight loss. I hate saying this... But do you use a food scale to weigh everything you eat? No measuring spoons/cups.0 -
No I do not use a scale but I do measure out my food0
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No I do not use a scale but I do measure out my food
That would be the first place to start then. Measuring cups are not accurate.
A food scale is not a prerequisite to lose weight, but if you're not losing or gaining, then this is the very first place I would start.
There's a video that gets posted often on the main forums showing the difference between weighing and measuring. I'll try and find it and post it here.0 -
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This is the video I was looking for, much better better than the other one I posted
https://youtu.be/JVjWPclrWVY
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Thank you I'll check that out. But in other news I'm quite happy because I just shaved two minutes off my best mile time tonight!0
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You might hate me for saying this, but the problem might be that you're trying too hard, and/or expecting results too soon. Stress is sometimes the hidden enemy.
It sounds like you're following a stellar program. Have you been on this exercise routine for a while, or did you recently start or up the intensity?
How much weight are you wanting to lose, and by when? How tall are you?
Please forgive me if you've answered some of this already. I can't see your original post without deleting mine.
I just know I see a recurrence of people who are shooting for fairly low calories per day, which can make following any WOE difficult and can lead to frustration and discouragement and ultimately abandoning the program. Sometimes adding 50-200 calories per day can make all the difference in the world in sustainability, and the weight ends up coming off after all. Hope this helps.0 -
Bio: I lost 30 pounds maybe 2 years ago and I've put about 17 back on. I've been trying to lose again (I want to lose 40 total) and it's harder than it was before. I looked at my diet and saw how carb-heavy it was and decided to try low-carb. I chose 50 grams/day based on some things I read since I'm not doing it for health reasons and I don't want to exclude everything. (I was probably eating about 150/day)
Monday will make 4 weeks and I've only lost about 3-4 pounds. I work out at least 4 days a week (kickboxing or step), I drink 96 oz of water a day and I eat when I'm hungry (which we know is a lot less on this plan). I log on Spark People (just where I started) but I like the forums here better so I listed the total calories and carbs for the last 5 days.
I expected to lose more weight from everything I read. Anything you have to offer is much appreciated. Not sure if I should stick with this or go back to calorie counting.
Sat: 1090/ 44
Sun: 1204 / 44
Mon: 728 / 25
Tue: 935 / 39
Wed: 972 / 48
What exactly did you read? If you're talking about a keto diet, then yes you tend to lose weight very fast in the beginning but you're restricted to 20 NET carbs a day to enter ketosis.
If you're eating 50g it's still low carb but you won't lose as quickly. That being said 4lbs a month, one per week is pretty normal, especially when you are at a lower weight. Those accounts of people losing 10lb+ are usually over 350lbs and have a lot to lose. The smaller you become the harder it becomes to lose weight.
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I've slowed way down in my loss,too, and tried fasting for one day with lots of water. I've started losing again. Maybe try intermittent fasting?
Also, if you're exercising, perhaps you are losing fat but gaining some muscle. Are you measuring?0 -
Attached is my weight loss chart for close to 180 days. Each different colour is two months (Sept/Oct); (Nov/Dec); (Jan/Feb and first 5 days of March). The projections are based on overall trend, the colour trended from a 2 month period to match colour of that period and a red trend for that predicted loss from 5 days ago.
My point in sharing the chart is that although each 2 months I lose weight and there are some steps down in there, there are also some frustrating ups too. I feel similar to @dietbpepsi at times, and I do measure my food either on a large digital scale or a tiny cute one for accuracy in small measurements. I suspect stress is holding onto my weight. In wierd scale moment of the week, I lost 1 kilo from yesterday to today. Clearly unrealistic but I gained that much mid last week over a few days with no sensible logic to that either. Thank god for non scale victories!0
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