Help! I'm desperate!
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Eek! How bad were the cheat days?0
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eveandqsmom wrote: »Eek! How bad were the cheat days?
Not crazy, I don't drink alcohol and a cheat day is generally a day where I can have something I don't normally have, like fish and chips or a Chinese for tea.0 -
chazznittt wrote: »OK, thatcould be it, if you upped your calories from 1200 recently your body is just geting readjustd and you should settle down into losing again. Keep up your great work.
I know but it's been since January. Surely that's not right. It's like no matter how many calories I eat I still don't lose.
It isn't right. Something is off with your approach. There's no evidence to suggest that banging your head against a brick wall will achieve any other result than the one you are currently getting.
As referenced above if you haven't had a diet break then I would suggest you take one now. Maybe two weeks or so. Expect a little weight gain but don't go off the rails. Par exercise and activity down to doing it just for the enjoyments you get from it.
When you get back to it log ruthlessly for at least six weeks. No missed days. Keep diet quality as high as possible.
When you work out properly again work out with intensity and with a purpose.
See how you go.
I actually did that every couple of months last year and it actually worked. But I've been so determined to start losing weight again I just thought if I keep going and going it will eventually start again but even after 6 months, nothing. It's so so disheartening, especially when I want it so much.0 -
Try to log your cheat days and see how many calories they are. Even without drinking, i can easily use up my deficit with a cheat meal.0
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chazznittt wrote: »chazznittt wrote: »OK, thatcould be it, if you upped your calories from 1200 recently your body is just geting readjustd and you should settle down into losing again. Keep up your great work.
I know but it's been since January. Surely that's not right. It's like no matter how many calories I eat I still don't lose.
It isn't right. Something is off with your approach. There's no evidence to suggest that banging your head against a brick wall will achieve any other result than the one you are currently getting.
As referenced above if you haven't had a diet break then I would suggest you take one now. Maybe two weeks or so. Expect a little weight gain but don't go off the rails. Par exercise and activity down to doing it just for the enjoyments you get from it.
When you get back to it log ruthlessly for at least six weeks. No missed days. Keep diet quality as high as possible.
When you work out properly again work out with intensity and with a purpose.
See how you go.
I actually did that every couple of months last year and it actually worked.
If it ain't broke...
As @psulemon said it could well be your cheat day unwittingly derailing any deficit you have or reducing to to such a level that discernible weight loss isn't evident. It could also be secret eating / food seeking behaviours creeping in which is quite common when you place a lot of pressure on yourself.
I know it really, really sucks but you need to relax, take it easy and then get back at it with all guns blazing. You could try to ride it out by tightening your logging up and so on but sometimes you need to open the release valve on accumulated stress.
Be kind to yourself. It does work
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chazznittt wrote: »StealthHealth wrote: »Day off? day off work or day off logging?
Sorry, I mean like a cheat day.
They may be the cause of your problem losing. I'm not sure where this idea of cheat days when "dieting" comes from - possibly the body building community* but if you're struggling then this is the first thing I would ditch. Sorry.
* The "epic cheat meals" that I've seen body builders eating tend to be after a competition or during a bulk. Body builders do tend to have strategic re-feeds during cuts but rest assured that these tend to be well controlled, are calorie and macro "esti-counted", and specifically designed to give the competitor a break from the lower carb diet and fill out carb depleted muscles. None of these options are applicable to dieters aiming to get to normal BMI.
But, it's not all doom and gloom - you can enjoy your favourite foods in moderation on a regular basis, but you need to be smart and plan them in.
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Careful, fish and chips, or chinese can easily wipe out a complete week worth of eating in a deficit. The fries, if not done properly are soaked in fat, the fish batter is soaked in fat, and the remoulade (pickle? what is it called?) is not light either. Maybe additional mayonnaise with the fries. Think of it this way: a table spoon of oil can easily be 10-15 grams, 1 gram is 9kcal, thus a normal table spoon of oil could be 90-135kcal. How many of those might there be in the fries and fish? A tablespoon of good mayonnaise adds an almost similar amount as it contains a lot of oil.
What might have happened: you lost weight and the amount of calories your body needs went down. it always happens as a lighter body needs less energy to run. Now it might have reached a level where your cheat meals are too big for losing weight. Did you ever recalculate your calorie allowance, btw?3 -
StealthHealth wrote: »chazznittt wrote: »StealthHealth wrote: »Day off? day off work or day off logging?
Sorry, I mean like a cheat day.
They may be the cause of your problem losing. I'm not sure where this idea of cheat days when "dieting" comes from - possibly the body building community* but if you're struggling then this is the first thing I would ditch. Sorry.
I have no idea where it comes from either and it does seem counter productive in many instances.
Back in the day it used to be a cheat meal to offset cravings and so on in a week of strict dieting where total cals for that day would not exceed maintenance or if it did then by a relatively modest amount (say 250 cals over at most.)
There would also be planned refeeds as you said but even then that had specific parameters (raising carbs but keeping fat intake strictly controlled - it wasn't an opportunity to get as much ice cream down your gullet as possible.)
OP - if you are interested in flexible dieting strategies I suggest you read Lyle McDonald's " A Guide To Flexible Dieting" for solid info.
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StealthHealth wrote: »chazznittt wrote: »StealthHealth wrote: »Day off? day off work or day off logging?
Sorry, I mean like a cheat day.
They may be the cause of your problem losing. I'm not sure where this idea of cheat days when "dieting" comes from - possibly the body building community* but if you're struggling then this is the first thing I would ditch. Sorry.
* The "epic cheat meals" that I've seen body builders eating tend to be after a competition or during a bulk. Body builders do tend to have strategic re-feeds during cuts but rest assured that these tend to be well controlled, are calorie and macro "esti-counted", and specifically designed to give the competitor a break from the lower carb diet and fill out carb depleted muscles. None of these options are applicable to dieters aiming to get to normal BMI.
But, it's not all doom and gloom - you can enjoy your favourite foods in moderation on a regular basis, but you need to be smart and plan them in.
I tried a few weeks without a cheat day and it still didn't make a difference though.0 -
I don't think you can look at weight loss on a weekly basis - it's non-linear and the changes can come in lumps and bumps.1
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Careful, fish and chips, or chinese can easily wipe out a complete week worth of eating in a deficit. The fries, if not done properly are soaked in fat, the fish batter is soaked in fat, and the remoulade (pickle? what is it called?) is not light either. Maybe additional mayonnaise with the fries. Think of it this way: a table spoon of oil can easily be 10-15 grams, 1 gram is 9kcal, thus a normal table spoon of oil could be 90-135kcal. How many of those might there be in the fries and fish? A tablespoon of good mayonnaise adds an almost similar amount as it contains a lot of oil.
What might have happened: you lost weight and the amount of calories your body needs went down. it always happens as a lighter body needs less energy to run. Now it might have reached a level where your cheat meals are too big for losing weight. Did you ever recalculate your calorie allowance, btw?
Sorry I don't want to sound stupid but how do I work out what my weekly/daily calorie deficit is? So that I can find out if that is the problem. Yes I changed it and it actually went up to what it is now. Over 1,5000 -
STOP CHANGING THINGS for a while. Sorry to yell. And log your "cheat" meals, too. I understand they're from a restaurant, but do your best.1
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chazznittt wrote: »2011rocket3touring wrote: »
...but are you gaining inches in the right places? At quick glance your doing ALOT of exercising.chazznittt wrote: »...I have done my measurements and only lost an inch in months! ..
I'm not gaining inches, just not losing them haha
I meant muscle.0 -
Do you have any medical conditions?
Side note. In the past 3 weeks, i saw 4 unlogged days. It's possible you are using up your deficit on those days.
Also, in that year of dieting, have you taken any diet breaks?
Sorry I've only just seen this!
Yes I have hypothyroidism, endometriosis and vitamin d deficiency.
I did take a couple of diet breaks but they were early last year.0 -
chazznittt wrote: »Do you have any medical conditions?
Side note. In the past 3 weeks, i saw 4 unlogged days. It's possible you are using up your deficit on those days.
Also, in that year of dieting, have you taken any diet breaks?
Sorry I've only just seen this!
Yes I have hypothyroidism, endometriosis and vitamin d deficiency.
I did take a couple of diet breaks but they were early last year.
Are you on meds for the hypothyroidism?
What is your exercise routine?1 -
Like others have said, log your cheat days. I often 'save' calories from other days so I can go over on another day if I want without feeling guilty.
Log for a week or two and be completely honest, you might be surprised with the nutritional content of some of the things you're eating. I definitely was!0 -
chazznittt wrote: »Do you have any medical conditions?
Side note. In the past 3 weeks, i saw 4 unlogged days. It's possible you are using up your deficit on those days.
Also, in that year of dieting, have you taken any diet breaks?
Sorry I've only just seen this!
Yes I have hypothyroidism, endometriosis and vitamin d deficiency.
I did take a couple of diet breaks but they were early last year.
Are you on meds for the hypothyroidism?
What is your exercise routine?
Yes I am.
I try to walk quite a bit.
I do an hour Zumba class a week sometimes two.
I go to the gym too, 1-3 times a week and spend roughly an hour to 90 mins in there.
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chazznittt wrote: »chazznittt wrote: »Do you have any medical conditions?
Side note. In the past 3 weeks, i saw 4 unlogged days. It's possible you are using up your deficit on those days.
Also, in that year of dieting, have you taken any diet breaks?
Sorry I've only just seen this!
Yes I have hypothyroidism, endometriosis and vitamin d deficiency.
I did take a couple of diet breaks but they were early last year.
Are you on meds for the hypothyroidism?
What is your exercise routine?
Yes I am.
I try to walk quite a bit.
I do an hour Zumba class a week sometimes two.
I go to the gym too, 1-3 times a week and spend roughly an hour to 90 mins in there.
It may be beneficial to be more consistent with the gym to ensure higher calorie expenditure and logging your cheat meals. I have seen some people have more success with hypo by lowering carbs a bit more and increasing fats and getting the majority of carbs from veggies (this allows for greater volume). But more importantly, is not do cheat days, but log a day like any other.
As you get smaller, you will naturally burn less calories, which requires you to be more precise. But if that doesn't work, rechecking medicine might help.0 -
chazznittt wrote: »chazznittt wrote: »Do you have any medical conditions?
Side note. In the past 3 weeks, i saw 4 unlogged days. It's possible you are using up your deficit on those days.
Also, in that year of dieting, have you taken any diet breaks?
Sorry I've only just seen this!
Yes I have hypothyroidism, endometriosis and vitamin d deficiency.
I did take a couple of diet breaks but they were early last year.
Are you on meds for the hypothyroidism?
What is your exercise routine?
Yes I am.
I try to walk quite a bit.
I do an hour Zumba class a week sometimes two.
I go to the gym too, 1-3 times a week and spend roughly an hour to 90 mins in there.
It may be beneficial to be more consistent with the gym to ensure higher calorie expenditure and logging your cheat meals. I have seen some people have more success with hypo by lowering carbs a bit more and increasing fats and getting the majority of carbs from veggies (this allows for greater volume). But more importantly, is not do cheat days, but log a day like any other.
As you get smaller, you will naturally burn less calories, which requires you to be more precise. But if that doesn't work, rechecking medicine might help.
Does that mean I should be going to the gym more? When I'm there I tend to not leave until I've burnt at least 500 calories.
Do you think a diet break would be beneficial now?0 -
chazznittt wrote: »chazznittt wrote: »chazznittt wrote: »Do you have any medical conditions?
Side note. In the past 3 weeks, i saw 4 unlogged days. It's possible you are using up your deficit on those days.
Also, in that year of dieting, have you taken any diet breaks?
Sorry I've only just seen this!
Yes I have hypothyroidism, endometriosis and vitamin d deficiency.
I did take a couple of diet breaks but they were early last year.
Are you on meds for the hypothyroidism?
What is your exercise routine?
Yes I am.
I try to walk quite a bit.
I do an hour Zumba class a week sometimes two.
I go to the gym too, 1-3 times a week and spend roughly an hour to 90 mins in there.
It may be beneficial to be more consistent with the gym to ensure higher calorie expenditure and logging your cheat meals. I have seen some people have more success with hypo by lowering carbs a bit more and increasing fats and getting the majority of carbs from veggies (this allows for greater volume). But more importantly, is not do cheat days, but log a day like any other.
As you get smaller, you will naturally burn less calories, which requires you to be more precise. But if that doesn't work, rechecking medicine might help.
Does that mean I should be going to the gym more? When I'm there I tend to not leave until I've burnt at least 500 calories.
Do you think a diet break would be beneficial now?
A diet break probably won't do you any good unless you need a mental break.
Do you do any resistance training or just cardio machines?0
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