No results! Would love to hear feedback

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I've been on and off MFP for years (I think the first time I was 16 so that's about 7 years ago) and tend to waiver and lose motivation and quit a lot. I've been back in for about 3-4 weeks now to finally settle losing weight to help my scoliosis, overall health and get my family off my back. I've been seeing nutritionists my whole life and have had MRIs and multiple tests to see why weight loss is not easy for me. Everything turned out to show no results other than the ordinary so I decided to try to stick with it and not lose focus this time around. Now. I'm 5'9"/5'10" (haven't measured myself in years) and weigh about 200 lbs. the weight gain has been gradual throughout my life and I'm definitely at my heaviest now. I tend to eat quite well normally even when I'm not dieting but have a heavy preference for carbs and olive oil being half Italian and living in Italy half the year. I'm currently on a 1390 calorie a day allowance which I've been sticking to except for maybe the occasional glass of wine or protein bar that will send me 50-100 calories over. I've also been excercising at least 4 times a week both with strength training and cardio. This morning I went to the gym, empty stomach and hadn't drunk any water, and weighed myself to discover I'm at 101.3 kg meaning I've gained 4 pounds since starting this weight loss trip. Does anyone have any suggestions or answers as to why I'm not losing any weight (or inches, because it's not a question of muscle over fat) despite eating fewer calories that usual (I normally eat well as I said but tend to overeat because I love food). I'm sick of going to doctors and getting no answers and trying diets (I've been dieting on and off since I was 10) and seeing no results. It's starting to truly hurt me psychologically and I know that normally at my size with my previous level of inactivity the first few weeks should be the ones where I see the biggest changes in terms of pounds shed.

Thanks and sorry for the lengthy post but wanted to give context.

Replies

  • RuNaRoUnDaFiEld
    RuNaRoUnDaFiEld Posts: 5,864 Member
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    Hormones due to ovulation or TOM.

    High salt meal

    More exercise, I could go on and on. You have to stick with it.
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
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    You have to keep in mind that it's just science. Do you KNOW that you've been eating less than you burn? Like, REALLY know? Are you weighing everything you eat, logging everything you eat and drink, and using accurate entries? Then there's absolutely no way that you're not losing fat. That's really all there is to it.

    The scale doesn't tell all the stories because you might be retaining water (which can happen when you start to exercise again, and happens a LOT to women because of hormones), or you didn't poop, or your shoes are heavier... You just really have to trust that science that if you're 100% sure that you're eating at a deficit (and that's where a lot of people are wrong), you will lose weight.. it might just take a while to show up on the scale.
  • animatorswearbras
    animatorswearbras Posts: 1,001 Member
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    Increasing your exercise means you retain alot of water for muscle repair, it's natural and not something to worry about although it is upsetting the first time you hit the scales after working so hard to see the numbers go up. But it will reverse and you will be losing fat whilst gaining water. (whatever you do don't try to take water weight loss pills or diuretics to get a false read on the scale)

    On top of this make sure you are accurately logging, get some digital food scales and volume measurers like jugs and spoons for your liquids/sauces/condiments. Also be honest with yourself, if you have a bad day don't miss logging a day because you over ate, log it and move on as the data will help you, also don't eat back ALL of your exercise calories (especially if you're guessing your burns through MFP database as it can't tell how hard you were working out) until you figure out how much you are genuinely burning through rate of loss over a couple of month period, maybe start at eating back only 50% of exercise cals until you get a handle on it, at the same time don't crash diet by eating too little you're more likely to quit, if you're struggling change your goals to a slower rate of loss. Good luck x
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
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    Do you weigh yourself on the same scales each time?
  • LivingtheLeanDream
    LivingtheLeanDream Posts: 13,342 Member
    edited June 2017
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    Different scales will give different readings.

    How you can do a workout on an empty stomach I have no clue :/ I would be fainting and lacking the energy to power through my workout (but that's maybe just me).

    If you are logging your food accurately then you have to trust the process and keep going. The results will happen but it takes time.
  • Muscleflex79
    Muscleflex79 Posts: 1,917 Member
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    SuzeQFIT wrote: »
    Look up Joe Cross = he has a Netflix movie out (on his website too) it's called Fat, Sick & Nearly Dead - watch it and I mean, seriously sit down, take notes watch it... its been a life saver for me.

    are you kidding? this is where you want OP to get their info from?? no - OP, as others questioned, are you weighing everything you eat??
  • rybo
    rybo Posts: 5,424 Member
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    My only comment is that your calorie allotment seems very low. How are your energy levels?
  • Longevity100
    Longevity100 Posts: 84 Member
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    What does a typical day of eating look like for you? Meal by meal
  • Longevity100
    Longevity100 Posts: 84 Member
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    Also post up your exercise program
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
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    What does a typical day of eating look like for you? Meal by meal

    why not just look in OP's diary - if they have it open of course!
  • ltkasmala
    ltkasmala Posts: 109 Member
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    I took this journey seriously five years ago and lost almost 85 pounds. Sadly, I have menopause/hormone issues that started three years ago and these have caused me to slowly put weight back on. And it doesn't seem to be budging regardless of what I do either.... I do know this, when I started out I, too, thought I ate well. And as far as quality of food, I was probably right. But eating too much good food can also keep you from loosing weight, which was my problem and maybe yours, too? That's why this site is helpful as you can visually see the calories (fat, protein, etc) in everything you eat so you can start making better choices. The site/app doesn't magically make you a smaller person. But it does make you think about what your eating and what else you do doing the day (amount of exercise). I feel that is what the real selling point of MFP is and what people seem to overlook. I'd make sure I was logging in as accurately as possible and get what would average out to 25-30 minutes of exercise a day. If that means four days of 60 minutes or seven days of 30 minutes... Whatever fits your schedule best. I recently discovered I was consuming too much sugary foods, which apparently is my weakness and my enemy. I threw all sugary foods away, literally, and the past week have eaten much better and can already feel a difference. Assess what you are eating and doing and this may turn the scales the other way! Hope this helps!
  • sllm1
    sllm1 Posts: 2,114 Member
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    Are you weighing your food with a food scale?

    I would also reiterate that you can't just jump on any scale - they will all give you different readings and you can't make a judgment by that.
  • ugofatcat
    ugofatcat Posts: 385 Member
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    Please open your diary so we can take a look.
  • evergreenlake
    evergreenlake Posts: 73 Member
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    As others have said, logging all your meals and calories, every snack and drink, is important! But also check your macros levels, you're body might hold onto carbs more and that could be hindering you. Make every workout count, don't let yourself get too comfortable with one routine.
    Keep going and trust the process! We're here to encourage you!
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,868 Member
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    Do you only have the two data points...starting and this particular weigh in? Is this scale the same scale you used for your initial weigh in? You were at the gym, so I assume you were clothed...were you clothed on your initial weigh in? Did you ingest any food or beverage before this weight in? Were you fasted on you first weigh in?

    You should weigh in on the same scale and under the same conditions...most people do this in the morning before they've ingested food or drink and after using the bathroom and unclothed. If you weigh in after you've eaten, the food you've ingested is going to show up on the scale...if you haven't used the restroom, waste will show up on the scale...if you're clothed, you're also weighing your clothing. You'll also need more than a couple of data points to actually perform any kind of meaningful trend analysis...weight loss and weight management in general is about overall trends over time, not the particular weigh in to weigh in number.