Much needed advice

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Mommanda77
Mommanda77 Posts: 5 Member
edited June 2017 in Introduce Yourself
I have struggled with my weight for the past 7 years, I will be 40 in a few months and I was hoping to have reached my lifestyle goal by then. I mostly eat a clean diet, we eat out once a week , however I usually only eat half of my food. I recently started lifting weights with my boyfriend, it's been about 3 weeks, I'm feeling overwhelmed and frustrated because I haven't lost any weight. In the past year I've lost 28 pounds but I feel as though maybe I've hit a plateau and the weight doesn't want to budge... I'm looking for tips, any advice I can get!

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  • kimny72
    kimny72 Posts: 16,013 Member
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    How many calories are you eating? For weight loss that's the key. You can overeat "clean" food.

    Start logging your food, as accurately and consistently as possible. I'll bet you will see what the problem is after a couple of weeks.

    Also keep in mind weight loss isn't linear, and water weight fluctuations can hide fat loss on the scale. The weight training you just started can cause you to retain water for a little while as well.

    Good luck!
  • BDN8v
    BDN8v Posts: 10 Member
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    Have you seen any changes in your physique? Sometimes weight isnt always the best thing to go by, you've probly heard that muscle weighs more then fat. So if you have noticed any physical changes then you could be gaining muscle weight which is a good thing. Also eating less can make you retain your weight, your body goes into a starvation mode and stores.. So im not sure if your saying when you eat half of your food that your only eating half of the food you have made ready for the day (your calorie intake) or just in general.
  • CoffeenSquats
    CoffeenSquats Posts: 982 Member
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    Keep in mind that fat takes up something like four times the space that muscle does so it's possible to thin out without losing weight!
  • CharlieBeansmomTracey
    CharlieBeansmomTracey Posts: 7,682 Member
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    BDN8v wrote: »
    Have you seen any changes in your physique? Sometimes weight isnt always the best thing to go by, you've probly heard that muscle weighs more then fat. So if you have noticed any physical changes then you could be gaining muscle weight which is a good thing. Also eating less can make you retain your weight, your body goes into a starvation mode and stores.. So im not sure if your saying when you eat half of your food that your only eating half of the food you have made ready for the day (your calorie intake) or just in general.

    no your body does NOT go into starvation mode when eating less, thats an old myth. if starvation mode existed then how do you explain concentration camps,anorexics,etc? they would all retain fat and stop losing weight from eating too little.
  • BDN8v
    BDN8v Posts: 10 Member
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    Idk how to reply directly or attach the last message but concentration camps and anorexia are very different from this subject. Concentration camps get little to no food at all and most survived from the fat and muscle they already had. Same with anorexia that takes a long time for someone to get very skinny. --What people refer to as “starvation mode” is the body’s natural response to long-term calorie restriction. It involves a reduction in the amount of calories your body burns, which can slow down weight loss."--
  • CharlieBeansmomTracey
    CharlieBeansmomTracey Posts: 7,682 Member
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    BDN8v wrote: »
    Idk how to reply directly or attach the last message but concentration camps and anorexia are very different from this subject. Concentration camps get little to no food at all and most survived from the fat and muscle they already had. Same with anorexia that takes a long time for someone to get very skinny. --What people refer to as “starvation mode” is the body’s natural response to long-term calorie restriction. It involves a reduction in the amount of calories your body burns, which can slow down weight loss."--

    actually starvation is what happens to those people I stated above, their body uses what it can to fuel it. as for long term calorie restriction your body adapts and its called adaptive thermogenesis,it would require eating low calories for a long period of time.your body will still lose fat and weight in a deficit,eventually if you continue to eat less and less then you will starve(like anorexics,concentration camps,etc). your body does not hold onto fat or weight in a deficit thats not how it works. science says otherwise.They didnt survive from the fat and muscle they had because your body will break those things down to use as energy,hence why many of these people die.

    as for anorexia it doesnt take a long time to get skinny. I have a sister who has several eating disorders and she went from over 250 lbs to less than 120 in less than 6 months time.I know because she lived with me at the time. she did it all. then she will gain it all back again and start restricting again.starvation mode is not a thing,starvation is and so is adaptive thermogenesis.
  • terekrun
    terekrun Posts: 4 Member
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    from my knowledge,

    when eating on workout days you want to consume more proteins and nutrient rich foods because if you don't your body will think it's starving and start to store all the food it gets so it can protect itself.

    when you change your routine, for instance you started lifting for only 3 weeks, results will not show in this short amount of time. generally results show in 3 months and you should't confirm weight loss until it's been 4 days (because of water weight fluctuations)

    keep in mind when you do body weight exercise you are strengthening your body and when you're lifting weights you are gaining more strength meaning more weight which is OKAY because it's muscles! this can be used for everyday life errands ie;grocery shopping. so you might be losing body fat but gaining muscles, this will take 3 months to notice.

    overall have fun working out on a regular basis because when you forget about how you look and someone says "hey, did you lose weight?" it will feel more rewarding and less stressful.
  • CharlieBeansmomTracey
    CharlieBeansmomTracey Posts: 7,682 Member
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    terekrun wrote: »
    from my knowledge,

    when eating on workout days you want to consume more proteins and nutrient rich foods because if you don't your body will think it's starving and start to store all the food it gets so it can protect itself.

    when you change your routine, for instance you started lifting for only 3 weeks, results will not show in this short amount of time. generally results show in 3 months and you should't confirm weight loss until it's been 4 days (because of water weight fluctuations)

    keep in mind when you do body weight exercise you are strengthening your body and when you're lifting weights you are gaining more strength meaning more weight which is OKAY because it's muscles! this can be used for everyday life errands ie;grocery shopping. so you might be losing body fat but gaining muscles, this will take 3 months to notice.

    overall have fun working out on a regular basis because when you forget about how you look and someone says "hey, did you lose weight?" it will feel more rewarding and less stressful.

    your body will not think its starving! thats a myth. when you start a new workout routine your body will retain water to repair muscle. as for more weight meaning more muscle,not unless she is eating in a surplus which when you gain enough muscle as to where weight goes up,you are also gaining fat(which is why many people do many bulk and cut cycles). it comes with the territory.

    now if she is eating maintenance calories she can gain some muscle/lose fat but her weight will remain the same,but she may get smaller as she will be losing fat.as for time frame to notice, women gain muscle slowly so its going to vary from individual to individual and water retention can mask any loss or gain as well.
  • Luna3386
    Luna3386 Posts: 888 Member
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    Readjust your calories under goals. Weigh all solid and semi solid foods with a food scale.