Weight loss frustration!

NatashaPolizzotti
NatashaPolizzotti Posts: 12 Member
in Motivation and Support
So I am 21 years old and I currently weigh 140. At the beginning of last year I was 165 due to birth control and just eating too much rice and beans and soda etc. I am Dominican so that kind of food is a big part of my culture. For the past 4 weeks I have been eating at a deficit of 1350-1400 calories (I am only 5'2) gcx43yty8pgw.jpg
consistently and doing a PPL split and HIIT 3x a week. My weight is dropping so slow and I'm getting so frustrated because it seems that every time I hit 140 my body doesn't want to drop any more weight. I'm not going to stop but it's really starting to mess with me mentallyuv55jqf5ozjc.jpg

Replies

  • leopardessa
    leopardessa Posts: 17 Member
    First of all you are gorgeous!

    Secondly I completely empathize with your situation. I remember after getting halfway to my original goal the scale froze for a over a month and I felt really discouraged. Just keep doing what you are doing, though. That's what I did and then after a while the scale resumed going down slowly.

    Giving up soda was a great thing, but it's okay to have a glass once in a while. In fact having a "cheat" day once a week helped keep me motivated. I would try my best to not go over my calorie intake too much, but if I did I would not beat myself up.
  • NatashaPolizzotti
    NatashaPolizzotti Posts: 12 Member
    Yea every once and a while I have diet Sunkist and it tastes exactly like the real thing! I eat more flexible I would say I allow myself to have healthy thing that taste good and also fit my macros. And thank you!
  • leopardessa
    leopardessa Posts: 17 Member
    You're welcome!

    I agree with you about diet Sunkist. I feel the same about diet Fanta orange and diet Dr. Pepper and even certain brands of diet root beer like Barq's and A&W. When I do have soda once in a blue, I indulge on a regular one. A friend told me that while diet soda has no calories, believe it or not in the long run having regular soda as an occasional treat is better for your body overall.
  • verodzrosas
    verodzrosas Posts: 84 Member
    I completely understand!! A Boricua over here! Just hang in there and keep going! You are beautiful, just rock it in all phases!
  • Luna3386
    Luna3386 Posts: 888 Member
    Slower is probably better at this point so you don't lose muscle mass. What if, at 140, you switch over to body recomping?
  • vespiquenn
    vespiquenn Posts: 1,455 Member
    Are you updating calorie goals as you get to lower weights? The lower the weight, the less calories are needed to maintain. It's recommended to update every 10lbs lost.

    Secondly, are you using a food scale to measure all solids, including scannable prepackaged foods? If not, you're likely eating more than you think. A stall is more often than not related to inaccuracies in logging.
  • quiksylver296
    quiksylver296 Posts: 28,439 Member
    You look amazing!


    I second the food scale suggestion. It's a major eye opener.
    https://youtu.be/XpHykP6e_Uk
  • lorrpb
    lorrpb Posts: 11,463 Member
    Do you weigh all your good on a food scale? This is the most accurate method for determining calorie intake. You are prob eating more than you think you are, especially since you state that your food is very high in calories.

    Every culture had high calorie food and there are ways to modify any recipe to keep the flavors but reduce the calories. Perhaps you could look into this and try a few change ups. If you're not sure how to do this, you could post a recipe in the Recipe forum and ask for good on how to refuse calories.

    Of course, there's always portion control too!, But that might not be enough for a diet full of high calorie dishes.
    Hope this helps!
  • reyoflightphoto
    reyoflightphoto Posts: 76 Member
    Weighing your food is huge but also know that at this point your loss per week should only be about 1/2lb. This is the fine tuning stage.
    Another thing is to think of it this way. If you are losing 1 pound a week, you are eating at a 3500cal deficit. If you are losing 1/2lb a week, you are eating at a 1500cal/week deficit. If you are not losing any weight, you're not eating at a deficit. These are the hard cold facts. So many people say "I am eating at a (insert number here) deficit and I am not losing weight." Statements like this are false. This is impossible. Turn it around. I am not losing weight, therefore I am eating at maintenance. But you also have to look at the big picture. Don't just base it on today's scale reading but the averages over time. Sites like Trendweight.com can be helpful for this. In fact they do all the work for you and give you a report like this. https://trendweight.com/u/d3de78258b8b42/
    This tells me, based on pure fact, that I am eating 200 calories a day too much and need to back it down if I want to keep my weight off. This is so much more helpful than others opinions on how many calories I need based on my height and weight and gender. This is simply based on fact and very helpful. You might give it a shot.
  • NatashaPolizzotti
    NatashaPolizzotti Posts: 12 Member
    I weigh everything down to my sauces on food scales everyone. Thanks for the suggestion but I already do that, I am very very accurate with my intake. I think what's happening to me is that I am just gaining muscle while losing fat. Because I am losing inches even though the scale isn't moving as much. I just need to be patient.
  • NatashaPolizzotti
    NatashaPolizzotti Posts: 12 Member
    lorrpb wrote: »
    Do you weigh all your good on a food scale? This is the most accurate method for determining calorie intake. You are prob eating more than you think you are, especially since you state that your food is very high in calories.

    Every culture had high calorie food and there are ways to modify any recipe to keep the flavors but reduce the calories. Perhaps you could look into this and try a few change ups. If you're not sure how to do this, you could post a recipe in the Recipe forum and ask for good on how to refuse calories.

    Of course, there's always portion control too!, But that might not be enough for a diet full of high calorie dishes.
    Hope this helps!
    The high calorie foods that I mentioned I don't eat anymore I have cut those all out for a while now. And I actually have some cool recipes maybe I'll share some like protein mac and cheese etc. and yes I do use a good scale. I weigh everything down to my sauces lol. Thank you
  • NatashaPolizzotti
    NatashaPolizzotti Posts: 12 Member
    quiksylver296 wrote: »
    You look amazing!


    I second the food scale suggestion. It's a major eye opener.
    https://youtu.be/XpHykP6e_Uk
    quiksylver296 wrote: »
    You look amazing!


    I second the food scale suggestion. It's a major eye opener.
    https://youtu.be/XpHykP6e_Uk

    Thank you so much! And yes I do use a food scale
  • NatashaPolizzotti
    NatashaPolizzotti Posts: 12 Member
    vespiquenn wrote: »
    Are you updating calorie goals as you get to lower weights? The lower the weight, the less calories are needed to maintain. It's recommended to update every 10lbs lost.

    Secondly, are you using a food scale to measure all solids, including scannable prepackaged foods? If not, you're likely eating more than you think. A stall is more often than not related to inaccuracies in logging.

    Yes hun I weigh everything I put into my mouth unless it's water/ zero calories lol.
  • NatashaPolizzotti
    NatashaPolizzotti Posts: 12 Member
    Luna3386 wrote: »
    Slower is probably better at this point so you don't lose muscle mass. What if, at 140, you switch over to body recomping?

    Yea I've been at a steady deficit for about 5 weeks and have lost 4 pounds so I guess it's not too bad I'm just being impatient. And yes I also lift very heavy and do a push,pull, leg, split so this is definitely increasing my muscle mass which I think is another reason the scale might not be going down as much
  • quiksylver296
    quiksylver296 Posts: 28,439 Member
    NatashaPolizzotti wrote: »
    Luna3386 wrote: »
    Slower is probably better at this point so you don't lose muscle mass. What if, at 140, you switch over to body recomping?

    Yea I've been at a steady deficit for about 5 weeks and have lost 4 pounds so I guess it's not too bad I'm just being impatient. And yes I also lift very heavy and do a push,pull, leg, split so this is definitely increasing my muscle mass which I think is another reason the scale might not be going down as much

    Oh my! You are being totally impatient! :p I'd kill to lose 4 lbs in 5 weeks at this point. As you get closer to goal weight, you can't really have big losses every week (without doing dumb dangerous things, like eating VLCD).

    You are on the right track. Put on your patient pants and keep on, keeping on!
  • CharlieBeansmomTracey
    CharlieBeansmomTracey Posts: 7,682 Member
    NatashaPolizzotti wrote: »
    I weigh everything down to my sauces on food scales everyone. Thanks for the suggestion but I already do that, I am very very accurate with my intake. I think what's happening to me is that I am just gaining muscle while losing fat. Because I am losing inches even though the scale isn't moving as much. I just need to be patient.

    in 4 weeks its not going to be much muscle(if any),even though you lift heavy,its hard to gain muscle in a deficit especially for a woman,even in a surplus of calories it takes time for a female to build muscle. if your weight hasnt budged in awhile it could be due to water retention,waste,that time of the month,etc.just keep doing what you are doing and go from there.you are losing fat if the scale isnt moving much. use a tape measure and start measuring once a week as well. that can tell a bigger picture as well.
  • Mizz_Mo
    Mizz_Mo Posts: 64 Member
    If you haven't already entered your body measurements I highly recommend that you do. Get a Myotape (https://www.amazon.com/AccuFitness-MT05-MyoTape-Body-Measure/dp/B000G7YW7Y) - it makes it easy. Unlike weight - these you will only want to do once a month or so.

    The scale is a great tool - however, it is only PART of the picture. There will be times you are doing everything right but the scale isn't moving. This is where having a record of your measurements can help keep you on track.

    And trust me when I say - seeing the measurements shrink is even more satisfying than watching your scale move down!

    Here is a great discussion to help remind/emphasize why we shouldn't get hung up on what the scale says:
    https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10233808/look-different-but-scale-stays-the-same
  • Lleldiranne
    Lleldiranne Posts: 5,516 Member
    Don't put so much importance in the number on the scale. Pay attention to how you look and feel. The lifting that you're doing is going to help maintain muscle (and potentially build some if you are eating at maintenance) while you lose any fat. 140 puts you barely into the overweight category, so you can work on the recomp and shape your body how you want, even as you slowly chip away those last few pounds.

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