Damaged metabolism??

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ha1eyed
ha1eyed Posts: 5 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
So I'm back on the weight loss wagon after gaining some 15lb during my first year of grad school. I lost ~30lb two years ago using MFP with an average calorie intake of 700-1000 a day. I know that's lower than what WHO suggests for weight loss but I was feeling pretty desperate for change at that point.

Flash forward to today, and I'm not losing any weight with my 1200 calories a day. I'm 23yr, 140lb, and 5'3" so my BMR should be somewhere around 1400? I get my 10k steps in every day as well as 2-3hr of cardio a week, so my calorie burn should be even higher. Is there such a thing as a damaged metabolism? Has my body adapted?

Replies

  • Christine_72
    Christine_72 Posts: 16,049 Member
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    How are you tallying up your calories?

    Food scale
    measuring cups/spoons
    Food labels
    Guesstimates

    The very first thing that comes to mind when someone says they're not losing weight on low calories is incorrect /sloppy/inaccurate food logging.
  • MichelleSilverleaf
    MichelleSilverleaf Posts: 2,028 Member
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    If you have a small amount to lose, it's going to take longer than if you had a large amount to lose. Most likely going to get asked what number MFP gave you, how much left you have to lose, are you accurately measuring everything.
  • Debmal77
    Debmal77 Posts: 4,770 Member
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    Christine_72 is correct. You are eating more calories than you think.
  • ha1eyed
    ha1eyed Posts: 5 Member
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    I purchased a food scale about a year ago and use it for any foods I make in the house. Anything else is barcoded or searched for (restaurants etc) to the best of my ability. It's very possible that my calorie counts are off by 100-200 (I do eat out quite a bit and know those numbers are more estimates than actual figures) but is that really enough to stall my progress completely?
  • ha1eyed
    ha1eyed Posts: 5 Member
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    MichelleSilverleaf wrote: »
    If you have a small amount to lose, it's going to take longer than if you had a large amount to lose. Most likely going to get asked what number MFP gave you, how much left you have to lose, are you accurately measuring everything.

    I think MFP gave me 1310 or something close. I manually adjusted it down to 1200. My goal weight is 120lb!
  • nutmegoreo
    nutmegoreo Posts: 15,532 Member
    edited July 2017
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    Even prepackaged items can be off by 20%. Restaurant meals... who knows how accurate they are. So yes, this could be enough to stop the losses.
  • ha1eyed
    ha1eyed Posts: 5 Member
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    nutmegoreo wrote: »
    Even prepackaged items can be off by 20%. Restaurant meals... who knows how accurate they are. So yes, this could be enough to stop the losses.

    What a bummer ☹️ I guess I'll have to cut back on the eating out then.

    So is a damaged metabolism just a myth? I've seen articles that go both ways.

  • Rhaus7
    Rhaus7 Posts: 15 Member
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    I've also seen articles that say it could be both ways. I know a lot of people on here generally say it's a myth, but I'm not really sure. How long have you been at this with no results?
  • nutmegoreo
    nutmegoreo Posts: 15,532 Member
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    I wouldn't call it a myth. There are many factors, including hormones, and reduced metabolism seems to require eating low calorie for a prolonged period of time. But even then, IIRC it's not necessarily a permanent state.

    Wouldn't it be better that you've been inaccurate rather than having a "damaged metabolism?" You can still lose whole eating out, just have control over the things you can. Steamed veg rather than fried in oil. Salad dressing and other sauces on the side.
  • CharlieBeansmomTracey
    CharlieBeansmomTracey Posts: 7,682 Member
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    ha1eyed wrote: »
    I purchased a food scale about a year ago and use it for any foods I make in the house. Anything else is barcoded or searched for (restaurants etc) to the best of my ability. It's very possible that my calorie counts are off by 100-200 (I do eat out quite a bit and know those numbers are more estimates than actual figures) but is that really enough to stall my progress completely?

    barcode entries(as well as regular entries) can also be way off as well.make sure you compare the info from the barcode to the package info or if its not packaged(fruits/veggies) then look up the usda entries for that food and compare.
  • LisaEatSleepRun
    LisaEatSleepRun Posts: 159 Member
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    Hi OP,

    How long has it been since you started to log your calories & increase activity? Many people come here & vent their frustration at 'no loss' after a whole week! Weight loss, especially at your size (I am 5'3 & 125 lbs, so I know your pain) is super slow, which is a good thing because otherwise you would likely be losing valuable muscle mass. I think you need to be super accurate in your measuring, weighing & logging. Also, eat at least 1200 calories per day, for the simple reason that it can be highly difficult to adhere to even that low amount for long periods of time and any lower will prevent you from meeting your daily nutrient requirements. Patience, accuracy & intrinsic motivation are your best friends on this journey, best of luck!
  • Mr_Knight
    Mr_Knight Posts: 9,532 Member
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    ha1eyed wrote: »
    I do eat out quite a bit

    Restaurant numbers are notoriously inaccurate.

  • TimothyFish
    TimothyFish Posts: 4,925 Member
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    Some research does indicate that a metabolism can be damaged, but we're only talking about a few calories. Research also shows that the way to fix a damaged metabolism is through exercise.
  • sak20011
    sak20011 Posts: 94 Member
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    OP, many years ago I dieted to extremes--years of eating 1k calories and exercising a lot, every day. I was underweight (95 ish lbs, I'm 5'2") and suffered varied health problems, which resolved themselves when I slowly went back to a more normal way of eating and got up to 115, which was a healthy weight for me. Of course, over the years more snuck on, and I thought that maybe I damaged my metabolism, but the truth is that once I started weighing every gram of food (andmeasuring every oz of wine!), I realized that no, i was pretty much eating what my maintenance should be--seems to more or less fall in line. I'm also working on building more muscle mass, which should increase RMR.

    When you're a short person without a lot to lose, weight loss takes a lot of time (I'm set up for 1/2 lb a week) and you have to be very exact in measuring because a 150-200 calories miscalculation can make all the difference.
  • bballpoetress08
    bballpoetress08 Posts: 13 Member
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    Could be helpful to also go get your BMR tested. I went to get mine tested when I plateaued last year and from that I was able to estimate TDEE based on my actual stats and then how many calories to cut from there.
  • Iheartrunning36
    Iheartrunning36 Posts: 73 Member
    edited July 2017
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    Metabolism is impacted by many things, hormones, thyroid issues, different medical problems and poor nutrition. If you have eaten like crap for many years, I think it greatly impacts your metabolism. Your body is always trying to create balance and adapt. But if nothing else is physically wrong with you, your young enough to pull your body out of its sluggish state by eating healthy and exercising but it isn't going to happen over night. :) I grewt up with poor nutrition as a kid, my parents weren't the best....It's safe to say my body starved a lot and I did not get the nutrients it needed. It impacted me for many years, i think in extreme situations of deprivation you can damage your metabolism but that is not an educated take, just a personal take on it. I could be wrong. When I moved away from home, and finally had access to food I had food allergies, sensitivities, extreme fatigue and would be sick when eating because of how malnourished I was as a kid. It took years for my body to adapt to a healthy calorie intake and healthy food.

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