Wasted time/gained weight??

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joowelz
joowelz Posts: 170 Member
edited September 2016 in Health and Weight Loss
I have been using the app for three weeks and I've gained five pounds. I am eating about 2,000 calories per day on days I jog for 30 minutes and about 1,800 calories on days I am sedentary. I am 38, 5'6, large boned, and jog intensely four times a week. I've been doing this for two months (longer than I've had the app).

I am so discouraged. The app keeps telling me in five weeks I will weigh a lot less if I keep it up but my scale is showing weight gain and my pants are still tight.

If I cut calories, I would be starving.

Very depressed and discouraged.

On top of it, my heels are so sore from all the running but to no avail. :(

Any idea what's going on?

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Replies

  • Sheks41191
    Sheks41191 Posts: 90 Member
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    Are you male or female?

    What is your weight currently?

    Give me this info and we can see where you may be going wrong?
  • Sheks41191
    Sheks41191 Posts: 90 Member
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  • bagge72
    bagge72 Posts: 1,377 Member
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    Can you open up your diary?
  • bagge72
    bagge72 Posts: 1,377 Member
    edited September 2016
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    If the running isn't a new thing chances are you are eating more than you think you are
  • cerise_noir
    cerise_noir Posts: 5,468 Member
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    What sort of exercise are you doing? 200 per 30 minutes may be a bit much, especially if you're going by myfitnesspals calorie burns and eating back all of the calories.

    Yes, do open your diary.... And give it some more time. We didn't gain weight in little time, why expect to lose it that fast? Going by your calories mentioned though, you either are eating more than you think, or it is normal fluctuation or has something to do with hormones, increased exercise or increased sodium or carbs (water retention).
  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
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    Your heels--you may need new shoes.

    You are either eating more than you think you are or your weight has gone up due to hormonal fluctuations. Have you been gaining each week or were you down and then up?
  • RoxieDawn
    RoxieDawn Posts: 15,488 Member
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    You are running to the point your heels hurt.. not good. I call this extra stress load put on the entire body. Also may need to recheck the calories in and make sure if you are eating back any exercise calories from those hard runs, that you are not eating back too many..

    Water retention and water weight is all a part of this. Intense exercise, increase in volume etc. is more a factor than you realize too.
  • daniip_la
    daniip_la Posts: 678 Member
    edited September 2016
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    I'm a 6'0", 300lb female and I'm only given 1700kcal on the days I don't exercise (2lb/week loss). Are you sure you set up your goals right?
  • SLLRunner
    SLLRunner Posts: 12,942 Member
    edited September 2016
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    nkuyumcu wrote: »
    I have been using the app for three weeks and I've gained five pounds. I am eating about 2,000 calories per day on days I jog for 30 minutes and about 1,800 calories on days I am sedentary. I am 38, 5'6, large boned, and jog intensely four times a week. I've been doing this for two months (longer than I've had the app).

    I am so discouraged. The app keeps telling me in five weeks I will weigh a lot less if I keep it up but my scale is showing weight gain and my pants are still tight.

    If I cut calories, I would be starving.

    Very depressed and discouraged.

    On top of it, my heels are so sore from all the running but to no avail. :(

    Any idea what's going on?

    The evidence shows that you are eating too much. If you are gaining weight, then 2,000 calories is too much for you. Why do you think you would starve on less that 2,000 calories?

    What are your stats? How much are you trying to lose?

    Also, make sure you are accurate in logging your intake. You may be eating more than 2,000 calories without realizing it. :)

    Pay close attention to the colorful chart upstream too. It's essential stuff to know for weight management.
  • joowelz
    joowelz Posts: 170 Member
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    Hi everyone,

    Thank you for your support. I really like this app and had high hopes for it. It's so much better than WW and it's free - best part.

    My diary is now public. Am I really messing up my eating? I think my measurements are accurate. (Please don't look at yesterday's meals though. It was a special day out and I ate differently than I normally have been over the last three weeks since using the app.)

    I am female and according to the scale, weigh 180lbs. My goal is just to lose 0.5 lbs per week until I am 155 lbs.

    I have set my activity level to slightly active. I am jogging at a speed of 5.2 miles per hour for 30 minutes and logging approx 230 calories burned.

    Rest of the week I am completely sedentary.

    Ten years ago I was able to lose 30 lbs through diet and exercise and I don't think I was eating much less than I am now.

    A couple of hours after dinner, I tend to get light headed and faint and want to eat. I generally have Cheerios with almond milk or Oikos Vanilla yogurt with some bran buds and blueberries in it.

    If I didnt have this last snack, I could easily shave off 300 calories per day, but I have tried to go without it and just end up waking up at midnight due to dizziness and heading for the fridge to eat anything !

    Please give your input.

    Best wishes to all.

    Nancy
  • geneticsteacher
    geneticsteacher Posts: 623 Member
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    You are eating too much. I started about your weight and am the same height, but older. You don't have to give up your evening snack, but you will have to cut calories in your other meals. I found that a high protein snack + carbs at night was much more filling than my usual cereal. Pay attention to the chart posted above, weigh your food if possible - I found that cups and spoons are always over listed calories once I started weighing. Some simple cuts in your food look easily possible - 2 tbl. salad dressing rather than 4, low calorie bread/sandwich thins/wraps instead of 2 slices of regular bread, etc. Good luck!
  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
    edited September 2016
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    nkuyumcu wrote: »
    Hi everyone,

    Thank you for your support. I really like this app and had high hopes for it. It's so much better than WW and it's free - best part.

    My diary is now public. Am I really messing up my eating? I think my measurements are accurate. (Please don't look at yesterday's meals though. It was a special day out and I ate differently than I normally have been over the last three weeks since using the app.)

    I am female and according to the scale, weigh 180lbs. My goal is just to lose 0.5 lbs per week until I am 155 lbs.

    I have set my activity level to slightly active. I am jogging at a speed of 5.2 miles per hour for 30 minutes and logging approx 230 calories burned.

    Rest of the week I am completely sedentary.

    Ten years ago I was able to lose 30 lbs through diet and exercise and I don't think I was eating much less than I am now.

    A couple of hours after dinner, I tend to get light headed and faint and want to eat. I generally have Cheerios with almond milk or Oikos Vanilla yogurt with some bran buds and blueberries in it.

    If I didnt have this last snack, I could easily shave off 300 calories per day, but I have tried to go without it and just end up waking up at midnight due to dizziness and heading for the fridge to eat anything !

    Please give your input.

    Best wishes to all.

    Nancy

    I am your height and two years ago I was the age you are now and in the same weight range. At your weight I ate between 1700 and 1800 per day. I ran 3x/wk for 30 minutes and lifted 3x/wk for about 75 minutes. That took me from around 175 down to 150.
  • oolou
    oolou Posts: 765 Member
    edited September 2016
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    If you are looking where to cut back, perhaps you could have a slightly smaller breakfast? Currently you have double portions of quakers oats, and on some mornings triple portions. 40 grams or half a cup is the more usual portion size.

    Regarding the amount of calories which should be your daily goal, bear in mind that the numbers that MFP gives us are a starting point. They are estimates, based on averages but if those numbers aren't working for you, then adjusting your calorie goal based on your experience is the next step. If you aren't losing, if you are gaining ... then you need to create a bigger calorie deficit by either eating less or moving more, or a combination of both.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,996 Member
    edited September 2016
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    Try:

    1. Setting your activity level for sedentary and eating back half your exercise calories
    2. Eating a lot more protein in relationship to carbs. For many people, protein is more satisfying and so we get fuller more easily and can eat less.
    3. Using a food scale for all your solid foods. You may be eating more cereal, etc., than you think. Someone will be along shortly to post the videos showing how scales are more accurate than cups.
  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
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    I just looked at your diary. You need to weigh all solids and be sure to use good entries in the MFP system. An easy way to be sure you are getting good nutrition info for whole foods is to look them up in the USDA nutrient database, copy the food description, and then paste it into MFP to find the matching entry. Yours are a bit all over the place. You keep reusing the same 4.2 ounce banana entry, which makes me think you are not weighing your banana (especially since I see a 2.1 banana multiple times. That makes me think you entered .5 servings of the 4.2 ounce banana.) You have 40 cherry tomatoes logged for an astronomical number of calories on one day. There are a bunch of other red flags that make me think your logging is just not very accurate. Clean that up and you should be good.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,996 Member
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    jemhh wrote: »
    I just looked at your diary. You need to weigh all solids and be sure to use good entries in the MFP system. An easy way to be sure you are getting good nutrition info for whole foods is to look them up in the USDA nutrient database, copy the food description, and then paste it into MFP to find the matching entry. Yours are a bit all over the place. You keep reusing the same 4.2 ounce banana entry, which makes me think you are not weighing your banana (especially since I see a 2.1 banana multiple times. That makes me think you entered .5 servings of the 4.2 ounce banana.) You have 40 cherry tomatoes logged for an astronomical number of calories on one day. There are a bunch of other red flags that make me think your logging is just not very accurate. Clean that up and you should be good.

    Ya, I saw the 247 calorie tomatoes as well. Here's a link to the USDA database. https://ndb.nal.usda.gov/ndb/foods

    I also get the syntax there and then plug it into MFP to find the system entry (as opposed to user-create entry) for the food.
  • joowelz
    joowelz Posts: 170 Member
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    I've been off the weight loss/management wagon for a few years now, but am I seriously only supposed to be eating half a cup of oatmeal for breakfast? Are 40 cherry tomatoes a diet no-no? I am going to have to see where I can scrape off a few calories from each meal, but this is really worrisome as I am hardly overeating and the food choices are as healthy as I can possibly get (I already go to bathroom 3 x a day from all the fiber I eat.) Regarding the protein snacks, can you recommend a couple of options for after dinner? I find my body wants sweet carbs after a dinner consisting of veggies and fish or poultry. The last thing I want as a snack is an egg or legumes - yuk!

    This is more depressing than I realized. Who knew 10 years would make such a dramatic difference in metabolism.

    I bought $200 pair of running shoes from the Running Room today. Hopefully it will stop the heel pain.
  • daniip_la
    daniip_la Posts: 678 Member
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    nkuyumcu wrote: »
    I bought $200 pair of running shoes from the Running Room today. Hopefully it will stop the heel pain.

    I bought a $200 pair of Brooks running shoes a week or two ago, because of chronic heel pain from a serious case of plantar fasciitis. The shoes help a lot, but if you have other symptoms of PF, you might want to get that checked out. I waited too long, and am now facing surgery soon.

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