Feeling defeated...

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TiffanyLoveG
TiffanyLoveG Posts: 76 Member
in Motivation and Support
I have been obsessively reading several success stories because I can't believe people are achieving a weight loss of 30-50 pounds since January. Good job to everyone meeting their goals and looking amazing but it's leaving me wondering why I haven't accomplished much. In a month I've only lost 4 pounds, not eating over 1,300 calories/day and working out every day but Sundays. I have about 30 pounds to lose (I'm 5'2 and started at 160) and I feel like I'll never get there!! What could I be doing wrong?!?!

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  • cathipa
    cathipa Posts: 2,991 Member
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    4 pounds a month is 1 pound a week which is considered healthy weight loss (anywhere from 0.5-2 pounds a week). The less you have to lose to get to your target the slower the loss will be. Are you weighing everything you eat? Are you logging everything and using correct entries (no homemade or generic)?
  • TiffanyLoveG
    TiffanyLoveG Posts: 76 Member
    edited February 2017
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    cathipa wrote: »
    4 pounds a month is 1 pound a week which is considered healthy weight loss (anywhere from 0.5-2 pounds a week). The less you have to lose to get to your target the slower the loss will be. Are you weighing everything you eat? Are you logging everything and using correct entries (no homemade or generic)?

    I'm not weighing my food, but you're one of several to ask, so I'm thinking about investing in a scale!
  • cathipa
    cathipa Posts: 2,991 Member
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    Its the best purchase you can make for weight loss. You will be surprised with how much a serving really is. Just make sure it is a digital scale that has a tare/zero function and measures in grams and oz. The max limit should be at least 11 pounds or more.
  • goldenday
    goldenday Posts: 204 Member
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    I have a slightly similar amount to lose. It's more daunting for me to see it as what it is, and it seems more difficult. I find it easier to focus on 5 pounds at a time. You will get there- just keep going.
  • TiffanyLoveG
    TiffanyLoveG Posts: 76 Member
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    goldenday wrote: »
    I have a slightly similar amount to lose. It's more daunting for me to see it as what it is, and it seems more difficult. I find it easier to focus on 5 pounds at a time. You will get there- just keep going.

    Thank you and good luck on your journey!❤️
  • californiagirl2012
    californiagirl2012 Posts: 2,625 Member
    edited February 2017
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    TiffanyLoveG wrote: »
    I have been obsessively reading several success stories because I can't believe people are achieving a weight loss of 30-50 pounds since January. Good job to everyone meeting their goals and looking amazing but it's leaving me wondering why I haven't accomplished much. In a month I've only lost 4 pounds, not eating over 1,300 calories/day and working out every day but Sundays. I have about 30 pounds to lose (I'm 5'2 and started at 160) and I feel like I'll never get there!! What could I be doing wrong?!?!

    We all have to tune out others stories and not compare. The rate of change is different for all of us. I'm 5ft nothing and it took me 3 years to lose 85 pounds, that is a huge amount of time with nothing, and other times with sudden random "whooshes". Some of that is due to the body being mostly water so the scale is not a very good tool.

    Ignore the rates of others change because it does not apply to you. For one thing the more body fat a person has the faster the rate of change, also the taller they are the faster. The closer on gets to their goal the slower it goes because there is less body fat to draw upon for energy.

    One pound is relative according to size. One pound on a short (smaller) person like you or I is HARDER EARNED and will take longer, because one pound is a larger percentage of our LBM Lean Body Mass. The 85 pounds of fat I lost is a larger percentage of a 5 foot female who only has an average LBM of 98 pounds as apposed to any taller person with a much bigger LBM.

    Trust the food scale not the body weight scale. Focus on YOU and tune out all the noise. That is a mindset you have to learn for life. If we focus too much on others it is far too much of a distraction and wasted energy on things that get you no where.

  • KassiesJourney
    KassiesJourney Posts: 306 Member
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    Like others have said weigh your food, because you dont have a lot to lose its going to take a lot longer. But the rate you are losing is great!
  • KeepRunningFatboy
    KeepRunningFatboy Posts: 3,055 Member
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    Tell yourself over and over that you are unstoppable. You will overcome.
  • TiffanyLoveG
    TiffanyLoveG Posts: 76 Member
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    Rocknut53 wrote: »
    TiffanyLoveG wrote: »
    I have been obsessively reading several success stories because I can't believe people are achieving a weight loss of 30-50 pounds since January. Good job to everyone meeting their goals and looking amazing but it's leaving me wondering why I haven't accomplished much. In a month I've only lost 4 pounds, not eating over 1,300 calories/day and working out every day but Sundays. I have about 30 pounds to lose (I'm 5'2 and started at 160) and I feel like I'll never get there!! What could I be doing wrong?!?!

    Don't let those numbers discourage you. A healthy weight loss is under 2 pounds per week. You are going about this the right way. One pound a week may not seem like enough, but it would be 52 pounds for the year. Patience is the key component for you. Don't worry about what others are doing, this is for you. Keep your mind in the game and find success stories from people who have lost the weight over time and then kept it off. Most of us have experience with losing it quickly, then gaining it all back and then some. Losing weight slowly and methodically allows you time to access your goals and adjust accordingly. And yes, a scale can help. I started out without one and was losing just fine, but curiosity got the best of me so I bought one. Using a scale has been an eye opener and it's been kind of fun.

    Thanks you so much for this ❤️
  • TiffanyLoveG
    TiffanyLoveG Posts: 76 Member
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    californiagirl2012 wrote: »
    TiffanyLoveG wrote: »
    I have been obsessively reading several success stories because I can't believe people are achieving a weight loss of 30-50 pounds since January. Good job to everyone meeting their goals and looking amazing but it's leaving me wondering why I haven't accomplished much. In a month I've only lost 4 pounds, not eating over 1,300 calories/day and working out every day but Sundays. I have about 30 pounds to lose (I'm 5'2 and started at 160) and I feel like I'll never get there!! What could I be doing wrong?!?!

    We all have to tune out others stories and not compare. The rate of change is different for all of us. I'm 5ft nothing and it took me 3 years to lose 85 pounds, that is a huge amount of time with nothing, and other times with sudden random "whooshes". Some of that is due to the body being mostly water so the scale is not a very good tool.

    Ignore the rates of others change because it does not apply to you. For one thing the more body fat a person has the faster the rate of change, also the taller they are the faster. The closer on gets to their goal the slower it goes because there is less body fat to draw upon for energy.

    One pound is relative according to size. One pound on a short (smaller) person like you or I is HARDER EARNED and will take longer, because one pound is a larger percentage of our LBM Lean Body Mass. The 85 pounds of fat I lost is a larger percentage of a 5 foot female who only has an average LBM of 98 pounds as apposed to any taller person with a much bigger LBM.

    Trust the food scale not the body weight scale. Focus on YOU and tune out all the noise. That is a mindset you have to learn for life. If we focus too much on others it is far too much of a distraction and wasted energy on things that get you no where.

    This is great advice. I'll definitely start looking at my weight loss in a different way and focusing on myself and my own journey. And buy a food scale!!
  • fiddletime
    fiddletime Posts: 1,862 Member
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    1 pound a week is great. I'm doing that now. I once, before I discovered MFP, lost 25# in 2 months. I'm 5'2". I was so unhealthy that winter. I never get sick, but got every cold around. And, I was hungry the whole 2 months, and promptly gained it all back in 6 months. Losing is hard, but maintaining is a true art. Even while you're on this weight loss journey, read the maintenance boards to get ready.
  • StrongGirlFitGirl
    StrongGirlFitGirl Posts: 183 Member
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    I get discouraged, too, seeing the amounts of weight that some people have lost in short amounts of time. I understand how you feel. But, like other people have said, too, we have to keep in mind that our bodies are all unique. Each of us is going to respond differently to exercise, nutrition plans, even water retention will vary. Comparing ourselves to other people isn't going to make the weight come off any faster.

    Getting a food scale and measuring portions is an awesome idea. It doesn't have to be expensive, just make sure it's digital. I thought measuring would be a pain, but I really don't mind it! It eventually became automatic, just a step added right before putting food on my plate!

  • Christi6604
    Christi6604 Posts: 245 Member
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    Losing too fast can be hard on your organs. I start weight watchers long ago with a coworker and she hit goal weight in 6 months...then she had to have her gallbladder out and I felt better for taking longer.

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