Why is my body so slow to let go of weight

Jenna__XoXo
Jenna__XoXo Posts: 117 Member
edited November 19 in Health and Weight Loss
Ive been under my calorie goal and working out 5x a week for the past two weeks but have only lost one pound.

Replies

  • bribucks
    bribucks Posts: 431 Member
    How many weeks have you been on this journey? How many calories would you need to maintain your weight? (TDEE - you can do a search online to calculate this). How many calories are you currently eating? Are you "eating back" all the calories you lost from working out? Do you log carefully and accurately/use a food scale? Are you counting on the accuracy of the gym machines (they typically over estimate your calorie burn)?

    Typical weight loss is 0.5-1 lbs per week, so you are in line with that. Remember, 3500 calories = 1 lb, which is a calorie deficit of 500 per day.
  • Aderlay
    Aderlay Posts: 59 Member
    I have the slowest moving scale in history. (In my opinion.) However, I've lost inches upon inches. So I only look at that scale once a week, and pay more attention to my activity levels, inches lost, and overall health. Some of us just lose it totally slow.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,988 Member
    jennamburchette2014 wrote: »
    Ive been under my calorie goal and working out 5x a week for the past two weeks but have only lost one pound.
    How much do you have to lose? What are your current stats?

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
    9285851.png
  • emilyvesta4
    emilyvesta4 Posts: 934 Member
    The inches thing (like around) is huge. I know I see more of my progress off the scale than on. In how my clothes are fitting and that kind of thing.
  • sexynyena
    sexynyena Posts: 1 Member
    Every day it says i should be 175 lbs in 5 weeks, I'vebeen 184 that has been over a year now and still have 40 lbs to lose. stopped losing lbs in April last year and the inches stopped coming off in June some of our bodies are just super attached to our fat.
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,427 MFP Moderator
    ninerbuff wrote: »
    jennamburchette2014 wrote: »
    Ive been under my calorie goal and working out 5x a week for the past two weeks but have only lost one pound.
    How much do you have to lose? What are your current stats?

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
    9285851.png


    This is what I am thinking. The OP's pic looks pretty lean which means there is almost no room for error in logging/tracking of calories.
  • Need2Exerc1se
    Need2Exerc1se Posts: 13,575 Member
    Not losing much in the first 2 weeks is not uncommon. Especially if you have just started a new exercise program. Be patient.
  • Poisonedpawn78
    Poisonedpawn78 Posts: 1,145 Member
    sounds like you are only 250 calories under your TDEE. Without knowing more specific information I would guess that either you are eating more than you expect (need to weight the food to verify) or you are over estimating the calories from the work outs.
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,427 MFP Moderator
    It should also be noted, if you just started working out, you are going to see some additional water weight which will mask fat loss. I generally carry 2-3 lbs.. and women can carry more.
  • annabel92
    annabel92 Posts: 77 Member
    It's frustrating, isn't it!!!

    I have been using MFP for about 80 days and was steadily losing a small amount each week (about 0.3kg a week, just under 5kg in total). I didn't mind it was slow though as I appreciate losing a little at a time makes it easier to keep it off.

    I'm eating as close to 1200 NET calories as possible (very rarely over, usually between 1000-1200), doing cardio 2-3 times a week, and light strength training.

    Over the last 1.5-2 weeks I've lost NOTHING. No weight, no inches. What's going on!!
  • Jenna__XoXo
    Jenna__XoXo Posts: 117 Member
    brianneangell08 wrote: »
    How many weeks have you been on this journey? How many calories would you need to maintain your weight? (TDEE - you can do a search online to calculate this). How many calories are you currently eating? Are you "eating back" all the calories you lost from working out? Do you log carefully and accurately/use a food scale? Are you counting on the accuracy of the gym machines (they typically over estimate your calorie burn)?

    Typical weight loss is 0.5-1 lbs per week, so you are in line with that. Remember, 3500 calories = 1 lb, which is a calorie deficit of 500 per day.

    I restarted my journey2 weeks ago. To maintain I would need 2,200-2,500 calories and I eat 1,600-1,800 daily. I usually don't eat back any workout caloriesunless in really hungry that day. I do not yet have a good scale but will be getting one this week. I use map my run for my cardio and don't log weight training.
  • suhashmi
    suhashmi Posts: 22 Member
    Try to eat things low in sodium because salt can cause water retention so you could be having excess water weight
  • Silentpadna
    Silentpadna Posts: 1,306 Member
    jennamburchette2014 wrote: »
    brianneangell08 wrote: »
    How many weeks have you been on this journey? How many calories would you need to maintain your weight? (TDEE - you can do a search online to calculate this). How many calories are you currently eating? Are you "eating back" all the calories you lost from working out? Do you log carefully and accurately/use a food scale? Are you counting on the accuracy of the gym machines (they typically over estimate your calorie burn)?

    Typical weight loss is 0.5-1 lbs per week, so you are in line with that. Remember, 3500 calories = 1 lb, which is a calorie deficit of 500 per day.

    I restarted my journey2 weeks ago. To maintain I would need 2,200-2,500 calories and I eat 1,600-1,800 daily. I usually don't eat back any workout caloriesunless in really hungry that day. I do not yet have a good scale but will be getting one this week. I use map my run for my cardio and don't log weight training.

    Without a scale, you don't really know if you're under your calories goal for sure. You might be...but you don't know.

    You also can't know what your fat loss is in only two weeks. Fluctuations can mask (or exaggerate) fat loss. You need more time to know.

    Get the food scale and tighten up your measurements (the scale will automatically help you with that). Then observe for some more time. There really is no better way. Don't make any decisions based on any less than 4 weeks or so of data - maybe more. Remember, your fluctuations (water weight especially) are much bigger than your short-term fat loss goal, which means the scale you weigh yourself on could not be telling you the whole story.

    If you've lost 4 pounds of fat over the next month, but are holding 3-4 pounds of water weight for whatever reason (many of them good reasons), you would not know that you are doing great => meaning you need more time. Conversely, if you've gained 1 pound of fat from improper logging, but have dropped 3 pounds of water weight for whatever reason, you may think you're doing great, but actually be gaining. That's why you need to give the process some time and be meticulous about your logging.

    You can control your logging. You can (somewhat) control your burn. You have much less control over fluid retention, gi tract movement, etc. Control what you can for long enough to see past the noise. And have patience. If you are in a deficit you will lose weight. There's no magic, but you can be fooled, especially if you make decisions based on short-term results.
  • AliceDark
    AliceDark Posts: 3,886 Member
    jennamburchette2014 wrote: »
    brianneangell08 wrote: »
    How many weeks have you been on this journey? How many calories would you need to maintain your weight? (TDEE - you can do a search online to calculate this). How many calories are you currently eating? Are you "eating back" all the calories you lost from working out? Do you log carefully and accurately/use a food scale? Are you counting on the accuracy of the gym machines (they typically over estimate your calorie burn)?

    Typical weight loss is 0.5-1 lbs per week, so you are in line with that. Remember, 3500 calories = 1 lb, which is a calorie deficit of 500 per day.

    I restarted my journey2 weeks ago. To maintain I would need 2,200-2,500 calories and I eat 1,600-1,800 daily. I usually don't eat back any workout caloriesunless in really hungry that day. I do not yet have a good scale but will be getting one this week. I use map my run for my cardio and don't log weight training.

    Did you mention your stats upthread? A maintenance range of 2200-2500 is on the high side for a woman, but that depends on your height, weight, age and activity level.
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