I have exactly 15 pounds to lose to be at my goal but the scale hasn't changed for over a year

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retro_gamer
retro_gamer Posts: 127 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
My weight has more or less maintained at 205 pounds for over a year, my old weight was 189 pounds and I really want to get back to that but I can't find the motivation to eat at below 2,000 calories for more than a day so I'm stuck in a rut where I gain and lose the same 5 pounds over and over again and it's been like that for over a year now. It's kind of like that movie Groundhog Day but not funny, more or less makes me want to punch a hole in a wall.

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  • fowlkes59
    fowlkes59 Posts: 6 Member
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    I weighed 175 in April this year. I got rid of my car and walked as much as I could. I eat healthier now that I don't have a car. Exercise counts alot. I tracked my steps and found that i walked over 10k steps a day. I drink a lot of water and herbal tea. I cut back on my sugar intake alot. Now, as of today, I am at 160 and need new pants. It's not easy but it's worth sweating over. Good luck on your weight loss.
  • mph323
    mph323 Posts: 3,565 Member
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    retro_gamer wrote: »
    The reason I want to weigh 189 pounds is because that's what I weighed at my lightest ever, and that was 5 years ago, I used to be incredibly obese

    OK that's a good start. You've done some hard work to get to where you are now - congratulations :) It sounds like your strongest motivation to lose the weight is because you liked how you looked at 189. Fair enough. Do you have a particular look you're going for? It might be motivating to buy a few clothing items that will fit when you reach your goal. Try them on periodically - as they get closer to fitting you might find that the desire to wear the clothes and have the look you want helps keep you on the straight and narrow :)
  • goldthistime
    goldthistime Posts: 3,214 Member
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    Maybe you'd have better luck continuing to eat 2000 calories a day and create the deficit with exercise.

    Or, if you haven't tried this already, you might try playing with your macros to see if there is a different composition that would help you feel more full.

    Lastly, on the days you try to eat less, how much less are you aiming for? Less than 1750?
  • gothchiq
    gothchiq Posts: 4,590 Member
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    If u don't eat under 2000 idk why u feel starving unless you pick low volume high calorie foods. Maybe u need more vegetables. That's how I fill the hole.
  • Blitzia
    Blitzia Posts: 205 Member
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    ninerbuff wrote: »
    retro_gamer wrote: »
    And I eat like a bird I'm always starving you'd think I'd be losing
    You're NOT eating like a bird or you'd be losing weight.
    You just stated you DON'T eat under 2,000 calories. Birds eat way less than that.

    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


    I agree with this. If you're eating 2000 calories and you feel starving, you may want to change up what you're eating. I eat 1200 calories and while I wouldn't say that's plenty of food, I'm not really starving. (I'm 5 foot exaclty so 1200 works for me, I'm not recommending it to anyone else, just using it to point out that you can find ways to make your calories more filling.) I don't know what you're eating now, but there may be some substitutions you can use to shave off calories and either eat less than 2000 or feel more satiated at 2000 calories. For example:

    1. Replacing full fat dairy with low or non fat dairy (fat free cheese, low fat greek yogurt instead of sour cream, etc.)
    2. Leaner cuts of meat (I like 93/7 ground beef instead of 85/5 - I don't even bother replacing ground beef with ground turkey because lean ground beef can be just as low calorie)
    3. Using less oil - pick things that are grilled or baked instead of fried, use less oil (or none!) when you cook yourself
    4. Vegetables instead of grains and starches - cauliflower instead of rice, zucchini noodles, squash noodles, etc.

    There are a ton of substitutions like this. You may want to check out the food and nutrition thread or consider opening your diary and asking for suggestions. It's definitely impressive that you've maintained and not gained weight for a year, but if you want to keep losing, the unfortunate truth is that you either have to eat less or move more. There's no other solution.
  • RodaRose
    RodaRose Posts: 9,562 Member
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    What foods do you cook or prepare?
  • kenyonhaff
    kenyonhaff Posts: 1,377 Member
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    Blitzia wrote: »
    ninerbuff wrote: »
    retro_gamer wrote: »
    And I eat like a bird I'm always starving you'd think I'd be losing
    You're NOT eating like a bird or you'd be losing weight.
    You just stated you DON'T eat under 2,000 calories. Birds eat way less than that.

    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


    I agree with this. If you're eating 2000 calories and you feel starving, you may want to change up what you're eating. I eat 1200 calories and while I wouldn't say that's plenty of food, I'm not really starving. (I'm 5 foot exaclty so 1200 works for me, I'm not recommending it to anyone else, just using it to point out that you can find ways to make your calories more filling.) I don't know what you're eating now, but there may be some substitutions you can use to shave off calories and either eat less than 2000 or feel more satiated at 2000 calories. For example:

    1. Replacing full fat dairy with low or non fat dairy (fat free cheese, low fat greek yogurt instead of sour cream, etc.)
    2. Leaner cuts of meat (I like 93/7 ground beef instead of 85/5 - I don't even bother replacing ground beef with ground turkey because lean ground beef can be just as low calorie)
    3. Using less oil - pick things that are grilled or baked instead of fried, use less oil (or none!) when you cook yourself
    4. Vegetables instead of grains and starches - cauliflower instead of rice, zucchini noodles, squash noodles, etc.

    There are a ton of substitutions like this. You may want to check out the food and nutrition thread or consider opening your diary and asking for suggestions. It's definitely impressive that you've maintained and not gained weight for a year, but if you want to keep losing, the unfortunate truth is that you either have to eat less or move more. There's no other solution.

    ^ Exactly this. It might be really hard to hear, but there is simply something wrong with your math - your CICO is wrong for some reason and you need to figure out what it is. It's likely portion sizes but you need to figure that out. If you really are logging EVERYTHING correctly, and using a food scale and so on, it's time to make a doctor appointment to rule out other issues.

    If you really are hungry, that's something to address as well. For me, upping my protein content helped a LOT. So does fiber. I personally found a lot of success with high protein fiber bar snacks. (Note: check that they are indeed high protein and fiber and not the average granola bar.)

  • Pamela_Sue
    Pamela_Sue Posts: 563 Member
    edited July 2017
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    One thing I learned very quickly. "The math doesn't lie". I told my dietician I couldn't handle less than 1,800 calories a day because of hypoglycemia. My weight loss corresponded accordingly with very slow weight loss, just as she predicted. I went to 1,700 calories everyday (eating up my 200 calorie exercise deficit) and did only slightly better. Then I did what I thought was impossible and went to 1,500 most days (1,700 if I have a blood sugar drop). I truly did not think this was even possible for me, I would have told you I could NOT live on this few calories per day. But, IF I manage my calories and food groups well, I CAN live on 1,500 calories per day. And I am losing at a reasonable, but steady pace. I realized what I have always told myself and what I am actually capable of are two very different things. We are capable of far more than we realize. Hope this helps in your own journey. It IS a journey.
  • cerise_noir
    cerise_noir Posts: 5,468 Member
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    mph323 wrote: »
    retro_gamer wrote: »
    And I eat like a bird I'm always starving you'd think I'd be losing

    Are you tracking your calories? Your say you need to eat under 2000 to lose the weight you want - do you weigh and measure your food so you know exactly how many calories you're eating?
    This.

    I also think you'd benefit from prelogging your day and prepping meals for the week.

    retro_gamer wrote: »
    And I eat like a bird I'm always starving you'd think I'd be losing
    Heh. My birds eat little bits often throughout the day... they're little piggies.

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