Please help me....In desperate need of expert advice
Replies
-
I am 41, 5'2" and started at 161.2 lbs. I lost 5 lbs. in my first 2 weeks. I have 1200 calories/day - however Sunday is my day that I go over that (splurge day). I cut out all pop, alcohol and sweets. I drink a lot of water. Please make sure you weigh everything! Don't go by the package, I scan the barcode when entering, but if it says the 'grams' per serving, I'll weigh it to be sure it's what they say. I stay away from pre-packaged frozen foods to - a lot of sodium. We are ALL in this together - feel free to add me Sunshine12870, I'll help any way I can0
-
Obligatory:
Measure your food more accurately for a start.
If you get into weight training / weight lifting it will probably help a great deal, especially when it comes to osteoporosis.10 -
Someone on here mentioned about checking what my BMR is...
So out of curiosity I have just entered all my stats into a BMR Calculator to see what it says for a woman my size.
It says my BMR is - 1783
So 1783 is what my body uses just to function and tick over normally.
I burn approx between 500-700 calories per day through exercise.
I eat 1200
Does this seem right ?
I've also the more days and weeks go by been getting more and more tired and weak.
I have taken everything on board that you have all said about my diary needing to be more tight and accurate and I will double check everything here on in.0 -
sunshine12870 wrote: »I burn approx between 500-700 calories per day through exercise.
Sorry, I doubt that. What do you think you do to burn all of these calories?
I would do well to burn 500 to 700 calories per day with exercise.
I exercise around 3 hours a day when I coach boxing and jiu-jitsu.
Four days a week I also have an hour of heavy compound weight training - deadlifts, squats, bench, press, etc.
Don't eat back your "exercise" calories and you may be on the right track.
As a rule of thumb, if you are not working hard enough that you need to let your heart rate slow every few minutes and/or control your breathing then you are not exercising anywhere near as hard as you think.
It is math: you are eating more than you think & need.
You are also not exercising as hard as you believe so...
It is simple Calories In, Calories Out (CICO) at this point.
Get on a real weight training program for at least 3 months to help prevent osteoporosis, offset sarcopenia and raise your BMR.
"Thinner Leaner Stronger" or "StrongLifts5x5" are good choices.
SL5x5 is free, TLS has a lot of information on proper nutrition in it.
If you don't do the hard work then you cannot expect the results you want.
All of the numbers (calories, macros, BMR, calories burned, etc.) are just estimates anyway.
You must track everything and adjust accordingly.
You are responsible for your own tracking, measuring and results.
Good luck. You can do it if you want it bad enough.5 -
Hey, I'm pretty new to this community but I saw your post and can't help wondering if you've had your thyroid or insulin levels checked lately? If you've tried everything, it couldn't hurt to ask. (Insulin levels, Not just blood glucose. Thyroid's something different though).3
-
I hear you load and clear. I have stuck with my allowance religiously, but I was stuck solid for over 9 months, it's just started to move but oh so slowly and I need to stick it out, I'm a lot older and that has a part to play for me. Have you got a digital food scale, that's my latest purchase and I did not believe how far out I was with my estimated measuremnts, cup fulls just don't stack up. I wish you verygood luck.2
-
sunshine12870 wrote: »I burn approx between 500-700 calories per day through exercise.
I have to run hills for several miles to get that kind of calorie burn. Make sure you aren't overestimating...3 -
Sorry I haven't read all previous replies/tips, so apologize if I'm repeating someone. The B12 deficiency caught my eye. There's a 'reason' for that most likely, and the underlying cause for it may also be the underlying cause for your weight issues (and possibly any other problems). Thyroid conditions, such as Hashimoto's (autoimmune thyroiditis) is associated with B12 deficiency, as can also be low levels of vit D. Joint pain, and all other that you mentioned, included. Don't know if you are leaving other health problems out, and are just operating on an assumption that this is all "food/calorie" related, but your weight struggle may not be only food related. It could possibly be another piece of a bigger health puzzle. I would recommend investigating that further, perhaps with a reputable endocrinologist who doesn't tend to go only 'by the numbers', as thyroid numbers alone don't always complete one's health picture. Are there known autoimmune disorders among any of your blood relatives? Women with autoimmune disorders often also have thyroid problems (not necessary to have all the usual identifying symptoms), autonomic nervous system dysfunction (including digestion). Both of these together can cause significant physical/joint discomfort besides weight issues. My daughter has Hashimoto's and dysautonomia (dinet.org), both which you can google to learn more about if interested in comparing whatever else you might also be dealing with. Take care, and wishing the best for you.2
-
I read the entire post, but didn't see that you said how long it has been since you lost weight. How long have you been in this weight loss stall?0
-
Yes- as others said, you should double check the calorie burn numbers..500-700 calories for me amounts to a 6-8 mile run (ie at least 1 hour of continuous non-stop cardio). And check thyroid as well (a thyroid problem can cause a significant decrease in BMR).0
-
Definitely check your exercise! I do 45 minutes of treadmill and 30 minutes of progressive lifting 4 days a week and I only log 153 calories burned for those two things. That is and hour and 15 minutes of exercise a day. So I would definitely double check your numbers with your output.2
-
sunshine12870 wrote: »Someone on here mentioned about checking what my BMR is...
So out of curiosity I have just entered all my stats into a BMR Calculator to see what it says for a woman my size.
It says my BMR is - 1783
So 1783 is what my body uses just to function and tick over normally.
I burn approx between 500-700 calories per day through exercise.
I eat 1200
Does this seem right ?
I've also the more days and weeks go by been getting more and more tired and weak.
I have taken everything on board that you have all said about my diary needing to be more tight and accurate and I will double check everything here on in.
All of the numbers you're talking about -- BMR, exercise burns, diary, MFP's calorie targets, etc. -- are just estimates. They're useful estimates, but that's all they are. Your results are telling you that you're not in a deficit. No online calculator can override the real-world data that says that what you're doing is not creating a deficit.5 -
She is 240lbs or so, her calorie burns for just walking will be a lot higher than those of us either at a healthy weight or close to one. So they may not be that wacky. Just wanted to point that out, you can't use yourself as a comparison if you're significantly smaller and fitter.10
-
sunshine12870 wrote: »Someone on here mentioned about checking what my BMR is...
So out of curiosity I have just entered all my stats into a BMR Calculator to see what it says for a woman my size.
It says my BMR is - 1783
So 1783 is what my body uses just to function and tick over normally.
I burn approx between 500-700 calories per day through exercise.
I eat 1200
Does this seem right ?
I've also the more days and weeks go by been getting more and more tired and weak.
I have taken everything on board that you have all said about my diary needing to be more tight and accurate and I will double check everything here on in.
as others asked, how do you think you are burning up to 700 calories /day thru exercise??0 -
VintageFeline wrote: »She is 240lbs or so, her calorie burns for just walking will be a lot higher than those of us either at a healthy weight or close to one. So they may not be that wacky. Just wanted to point that out, you can't use yourself as a comparison if you're significantly smaller and fitter.
How much walking does a 240 lb person need to do to burn 600 calories?
How long are we talking about? What intensity? Duration?
Please show me some sort of math or formula that demonstrates how this is an order of magnitude higher than someone 50 lbs lighter or even 100 lbs lighter on the same surface at the same duration.
More work? Yes, a bit more intense because of conditioning.
600 calories more work? No, not at the same duration.
More like maybe 60 calories more than me - and that is probably being generous.
I understand the desire to help and be encouraging, but please don't be misleading.
Same thing with the various "thyroid" answers here...
OP, go to the doctor and make sure you do not have a medical issue.
If you do, then get it dealt with.
Regardless, you have to make some lifestyle changes if you want to lose excess fat.
A "thyroid problem" does not magically negate the need for proper exercise and healthy eating habits.
To the contrary, it means you must work a bit harder than some other people and you have less room for cheat meals.1 -
Regardless of exercise calories, her diary (the days that are completed) don't show her eating more calories than I average, and I'm sedentary, work an office job, and have less weight to lose. My money's on inaccurate diary entries (amounts) and whatever is in those missing days, possibly complicated by underlying health issues. But only the OP can determine what the problem really is and take steps toward fixing it.3
-
sunshine12870 wrote: »Someone on here mentioned about checking what my BMR is...
So out of curiosity I have just entered all my stats into a BMR Calculator to see what it says for a woman my size.
It says my BMR is - 1783
So 1783 is what my body uses just to function and tick over normally.
I burn approx between 500-700 calories per day through exercise.
I eat 1200
Does this seem right ?
I've also the more days and weeks go by been getting more and more tired and weak.
I have taken everything on board that you have all said about my diary needing to be more tight and accurate and I will double check everything here on in.
Dear folks who are focusing on that "500 - 700 calories of exercise" bit:
Please note that OP says she weighs around 240 pounds at 5'4" and age 46. She says her BMR (BMR, not NEAT) is 1783. I checked that on a site I use, with her demographics. It looks about right.
She can easily be burning 500-700 calories on top of her BMR, i.e. NEAT of 2300, with routine daily life plus the paper routes as her activity level.
Ignore the "exercise" word.
I think you (those looking at the "exercise" calorie number) are barking up the wrong tree. OP almost certainly has a TDEE well above 2000, and she tells us she's eating 1200.
There could be a food logging problem (as some have suggested), there could be a medical problem (as others have suggested), but I don't think the classic "over-estimating exercise" problem is at the root here.
JMO, though.
OP: If you're weak/fatigued, please eat more. Try to feel better. See a doctor when you can. Tightening up your logging (while eating more) sounds like something you could do in the short run.
I hope you're able to feel better soon, and find a way to get some exercise without such awful pain!
15 -
OP, I'm so sorry you are struggling. My suggestions, for whatever they are worth:
- You should weigh packaged food as well, a package might say the serving size is let's say 1 roll (28 grams). So you would assume if you weighed a roll it would be 28g, but usually it's not.
- Check the entries you are using, many entries in the database are wrong.
- Don't eat back all of your exercise calories, even burns from HRM trackers can be inflated.
- I don't mean this as an insult, but just make sure you are being honest with yourself and really are logging everything, including beverages, condiments, unplanned bites, etc. I'm not saying you aren't being honest, just do a quick gut check and make sure, because we've all been there.
- Honestly, regardless of all of this, you should be losing weight. I would suggest getting some blood work done and seeing if anything comes up.
Best of luck, hang in there!3 -
OP, any chance you are one of those rare people that sleep walks? You may eat at night, and you dont even know it.4
-
OP, how are you weighing yourself? And how often? Do you use an app or spreadsheet to track your weight trend or rolling average?
I've been watching my weight for decades, and it STILL bums me out when I've been on a cut for 3 weeks with great compliance and I step on the scale and it's higher than when I started. Isolated data points can play with your head. Don't let it. Focus on data in context, trends, etc.4
Categories
- All Categories
- 1.4M Health, Wellness and Goals
- 393K Introduce Yourself
- 43.7K Getting Started
- 260.1K Health and Weight Loss
- 175.8K Food and Nutrition
- 47.4K Recipes
- 232.5K Fitness and Exercise
- 416 Sleep, Mindfulness and Overall Wellness
- 6.5K Goal: Maintaining Weight
- 8.5K Goal: Gaining Weight and Body Building
- 152.9K Motivation and Support
- 8K Challenges
- 1.3K Debate Club
- 96.3K Chit-Chat
- 2.5K Fun and Games
- 3.6K MyFitnessPal Information
- 23 News and Announcements
- 1.1K Feature Suggestions and Ideas
- 2.5K MyFitnessPal Tech Support Questions