Why am I not losing weight?
Replies
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I checked many BMR and maintenance calculators online and your BMR is 2380-2690 calories and maintenance is about 3500 as a sedentary person. Do you guys really think that he is overestimating his calories of a full 1000?
I personally don't weigh my foods anymore and base myself off of Tupperware volumes and cups/tablespoons and am losing weight but I'm aiming for under my BMR. If I did hit a plateau... I would go back to weighing once I put it on my plate, just to see if I was overestimating in the first place. If you do not want to weigh your foods forever, at least do this for a few days just to see if it's the problem.1 -
Yes, because he is 300+ pounds and not lost weight in 2+ months. In one reply Wally indicates he is no longer logging, just eating what he usually eats and based on that - decided its 2300 calories.
Not logging, assuming one is eating 2300 translation: one has no idea how many calories are being consumed.
Solution: accurately & honestly log all calories consumed, using a food scale for solids, for 6-8 weeks and report back.I checked many BMR and maintenance calculators online and your BMR is 2380-2690 calories and maintenance is about 3500 as a sedentary person. Do you guys really think that he is overestimating his calories of a full 1000?
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I checked many BMR and maintenance calculators online and your BMR is 2380-2690 calories and maintenance is about 3500 as a sedentary person. Do you guys really think that he is overestimating his calories of a full 1000?
I personally don't weigh my foods anymore and base myself off of Tupperware volumes and cups/tablespoons and am losing weight but I'm aiming for under my BMR. If I did hit a plateau... I would go back to weighing once I put it on my plate, just to see if I was overestimating in the first place. If you do not want to weigh your foods forever, at least do this for a few days just to see if it's the problem.
It took 9 months to lose 25lbs. I'd say the guesses have been way off from the start because at 330lbs it's relatively easy to get into a deficit. And at 3lbs per month losses, there was less than a 500 calorie per day deficit. It's really really easy to creep up those 400 calories when your intake is already around around 3000 calories per day. That's a serving of chips and a splash of oil/dressing/mayo too much. A slightly bigger than it should be serving of cheese. A large soda. Not so hard to add 400 calories to your day unwittingly.12 -
tinkerbellang83 wrote: »DharmainHeels wrote: »lindak1961 wrote: »cut out the potatoes and the oatmeal, in other words no starches. Set your macros to 10% carb, 50% fat and 40% protein. Also, go to a keto friendly FB group. trust me...try this for 2 weeks and get back to me. I think you will find that this will work well for you.
This. I did not lose weight for years and I was doing everything "right". Cut out carbs and sugar - bam - 15 lbs in a month!
You will lose a lot of water weight initially by cutting carbs but that still doesn't solve anything in the long term. It is more likely that you weren't doing everything "right"
Well thank god all of that water was in my butt!!!!
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VintageFeline wrote: »I checked many BMR and maintenance calculators online and your BMR is 2380-2690 calories and maintenance is about 3500 as a sedentary person. Do you guys really think that he is overestimating his calories of a full 1000?
I personally don't weigh my foods anymore and base myself off of Tupperware volumes and cups/tablespoons and am losing weight but I'm aiming for under my BMR. If I did hit a plateau... I would go back to weighing once I put it on my plate, just to see if I was overestimating in the first place. If you do not want to weigh your foods forever, at least do this for a few days just to see if it's the problem.
It took 9 months to lose 25lbs. I'd say the guesses have been way off from the start
This was my thought, too. And speaking for myself, when I was used to eating way too much food, I wasn't the best judge of portion sizes.
But still, OP, you've done a great job! Maybe just time to take it to the next level
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VintageFeline wrote: »I checked many BMR and maintenance calculators online and your BMR is 2380-2690 calories and maintenance is about 3500 as a sedentary person. Do you guys really think that he is overestimating his calories of a full 1000?
I personally don't weigh my foods anymore and base myself off of Tupperware volumes and cups/tablespoons and am losing weight but I'm aiming for under my BMR. If I did hit a plateau... I would go back to weighing once I put it on my plate, just to see if I was overestimating in the first place. If you do not want to weigh your foods forever, at least do this for a few days just to see if it's the problem.
It took 9 months to lose 25lbs. I'd say the guesses have been way off from the start because at 330lbs it's relatively easy to get into a deficit. And at 3lbs per month losses, there was less than a 500 calorie per day deficit. It's really really easy to creep up those 400 calories when your intake is already around around 3000 calories per day. That's a serving of chips and a splash of oil/dressing/mayo too much. A slightly bigger than it should be serving of cheese. A large soda. Not so hard to add 400 calories to your day unwittingly.
I completely failed to even consider that first part! Yes, very true, I guess I believed the fact that he was weighing everything at the beginning but it may have only been for a month or two?1 -
paulwatts747 wrote: »Maybe the OP is considering the Atkins diet, a diet of nothing but protein and water. Apparently it works, if you can manage to endure it for any period of time, but the consequences of consuming nothing but protein might be a bit difficult to live with. Running a calorie deficit definitely sounds more sustainable.
Atkins is not nothing but protein and water. Some people may eat practically that way on a Very Low Carb Diet (VLCD)/carnivore diet, or perhaps a very extreme ketogenic diet. Neither is Atkins, either. What the Atkins diet is, is the only diet I know people have misunderstood and mischaracterized for 45 years and counting.0 -
Hey guys I found this great article on weight loss plateau.
Check it out : https://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calculator.htm
Here is an excerpt:
The Weight Loss Plateau
Over time our bodies adapt to the lowered calorie level.
Our body becomes more efficient at using energy (lowered metabolism), and therefore burns less fat. This is why most of us reach a weight loss plateau.
At this point, the only option is to boost metabolism:
increased cardio,
weight training,
'cheat' meals (i.e. occasional high-calorie meals),
cycling (or zig-zagging) calories,
even manipulating macro-nutrient ratios can all help to do this (don't forget adequate sleep and hydration).
You often find that the nearer you get to your goal weight (or body fat percentage) - the harder things get!
Continually dropping calories only serves to lower metabolism even further - the moment you return to 'normal' eating - the weight comes back on.29 -
wally2wiki wrote: »Hey guys I found this great article on weight loss plateau.
Check it out : https://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calculator.htm
Here is an excerpt:
The Weight Loss Plateau
Over time our bodies adapt to the lowered calorie level.
Our body becomes more efficient at using energy (lowered metabolism), and therefore burns less fat. This is why most of us reach a weight loss plateau.
At this point, the only option is to boost metabolism:
increased cardio,
weight training,
'cheat' meals (i.e. occasional high-calorie meals),
cycling (or zig-zagging) calories,
even manipulating macro-nutrient ratios can all help to do this (don't forget adequate sleep and hydration).
You often find that the nearer you get to your goal weight (or body fat percentage) - the harder things get!
Continually dropping calories only serves to lower metabolism even further - the moment you return to 'normal' eating - the weight comes back on.
What you're talking about is adaptive thermogenesis and some of these things can help negate that a little HOWEVER I don't think this is what you are seeing, I think you are eating at maintenance, sure go ahead and calorie cycle and have a weekly deficit rather than a daily one (I do this because it fits with my lifestyle) BUT you still need to start measuring your food accurately. Chances are you're underestimating your food and over estimating your burns, get some scales and measures, start weighing and logging everything from scratch, even condiments and beverages and only eat back a percentage of your exercise calories (until your rate of loss matches your goals). You should hopefully start seeing some movement again. Good luck x7 -
wally2wiki wrote: »Hey guys I found this great article on weight loss plateau.
Check it out : https://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calculator.htm
Here is an excerpt:
The Weight Loss Plateau
Over time our bodies adapt to the lowered calorie level.
Our body becomes more efficient at using energy (lowered metabolism), and therefore burns less fat. This is why most of us reach a weight loss plateau.
At this point, the only option is to boost metabolism:
increased cardio,
weight training,
'cheat' meals (i.e. occasional high-calorie meals),
cycling (or zig-zagging) calories,
even manipulating macro-nutrient ratios can all help to do this (don't forget adequate sleep and hydration).
You often find that the nearer you get to your goal weight (or body fat percentage) - the harder things get!
Continually dropping calories only serves to lower metabolism even further - the moment you return to 'normal' eating - the weight comes back on.
Most likely utterly irrelevant in your case.
Start tracking your food, including weighing everything you can and measuring (spoons/cups) the rest.10 -
What others have said - If you are not weighing your food (and especially if having anything calorie dense like oil or fatty meats) those calories can most definitely creep up.
Also- have you recalculated your target calories? BMR will go down as you lose weight, so unless you adjust your target calories every few pounds, the calorie deficit for your daily target calories will have decreased.0 -
Adaptive thermogenesis happens after long periods of substantial calorie restriction, but you've only lost 25 lbs in 9 months which points to a very modest calorie deficit, nothing that would have put undue stress on your body. You really just need to take the math more seriously. Is there a reason you are resistant to doing so?7
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How do you really adjust your calories in my fitness pal?0
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wally2wiki wrote: »How do you really adjust your calories in my fitness pal?
Go to settings, diet & fitness profile, and update your current stats, activity level not including purposeful exercise, and weekly weight loss goal.
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Just to give you a visual reminder of why it is so important to weigh and log all of your intake-- Here's my happy scale chart. That huge dip is when I bought a scale and started using it.
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Adjusting calories for losses here is again not the issue. It's 25lbs, at most a downshift of 60 calories per day or so.
OP, your metabolism hasn't adjusted, you had the same deficit I shoot for right now at 160lbs and I have never unknowingly plateaued.
You're eating more than you think. That's it. There is no mystery. You're eyeballing. Humans are notoriously terrible as a general rule at eyeballing. Just log accurately and consistently with a food scale for 4 weeks and see what happens.10 -
wally2wiki wrote: »Hey guys I found this great article on weight loss plateau.
Check it out : https://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calculator.htm
Here is an excerpt:
The Weight Loss Plateau
Over time our bodies adapt to the lowered calorie level.
Our body becomes more efficient at using energy (lowered metabolism), and therefore burns less fat. This is why most of us reach a weight loss plateau.
At this point, the only option is to boost metabolism:
increased cardio,
weight training,
'cheat' meals (i.e. occasional high-calorie meals),
cycling (or zig-zagging) calories,
even manipulating macro-nutrient ratios can all help to do this (don't forget adequate sleep and hydration).
You often find that the nearer you get to your goal weight (or body fat percentage) - the harder things get!
Continually dropping calories only serves to lower metabolism even further - the moment you return to 'normal' eating - the weight comes back on.
Wally, I mean this in the most kindest of ways :flowerforyou: Stop looking for excuses, all you need to do is accurately log your food, which for now means weighing everything you eat, finding accurate database entries and logging it ALL.
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wally2wiki wrote: »Hey guys I found this great article on weight loss plateau.
Check it out : https://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calculator.htm
Here is an excerpt:
The Weight Loss Plateau
Over time our bodies adapt to the lowered calorie level.
Our body becomes more efficient at using energy (lowered metabolism), and therefore burns less fat. This is why most of us reach a weight loss plateau.
At this point, the only option is to boost metabolism:
increased cardio,
weight training,
'cheat' meals (i.e. occasional high-calorie meals),
cycling (or zig-zagging) calories,
even manipulating macro-nutrient ratios can all help to do this (don't forget adequate sleep and hydration).
You often find that the nearer you get to your goal weight (or body fat percentage) - the harder things get!
Continually dropping calories only serves to lower metabolism even further - the moment you return to 'normal' eating - the weight comes back on.
It certainly won't hurt you to kick your metabolism in the rear. When I hit a plateau, I spent a week doing tabata, and it made me feel better and more able to go on. I don't recommend tabata unless you are fairly fit already but you can add some higher intensity intervals to your workout.
However, I still think the issue is that you are underestimating your calories and need to eat less and measure more. It is very easy for a tablespoon of peanut butter to become three, over time.1 -
If you are not weighing and logging all your food, start. If that does not work, see a doctor because somethng is wrong.1
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Adding to my previous post - you have only been losing three pounds a month. You are not restricting your calories enough to be causing your body to react to the lower calories by reducing your metabolism. You are currently obese and should be able to lose two pounds a week without overly restricting your calories.5
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rheddmobile wrote: »wally2wiki wrote: »Hey guys I found this great article on weight loss plateau.
Check it out : https://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calculator.htm
Here is an excerpt:
The Weight Loss Plateau
Over time our bodies adapt to the lowered calorie level.
Our body becomes more efficient at using energy (lowered metabolism), and therefore burns less fat. This is why most of us reach a weight loss plateau.
At this point, the only option is to boost metabolism:
increased cardio,
weight training,
'cheat' meals (i.e. occasional high-calorie meals),
cycling (or zig-zagging) calories,
even manipulating macro-nutrient ratios can all help to do this (don't forget adequate sleep and hydration).
You often find that the nearer you get to your goal weight (or body fat percentage) - the harder things get!
Continually dropping calories only serves to lower metabolism even further - the moment you return to 'normal' eating - the weight comes back on.
It certainly won't hurt you to kick your metabolism in the rear. When I hit a plateau, I spent a week doing tabata, and it made me feel better and more able to go on. I don't recommend tabata unless you are fairly fit already but you can add some higher intensity intervals to your workout.
However, I still think the issue is that you are underestimating your calories and need to eat less and measure more. It is very easy for a tablespoon of peanut butter to become three, over time.
You can't "kick your metabolism" into gear. That's not how it works.10 -
rheddmobile wrote: »wally2wiki wrote: »Hey guys I found this great article on weight loss plateau.
Check it out : https://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calculator.htm
Here is an excerpt:
The Weight Loss Plateau
Over time our bodies adapt to the lowered calorie level.
Our body becomes more efficient at using energy (lowered metabolism), and therefore burns less fat. This is why most of us reach a weight loss plateau.
At this point, the only option is to boost metabolism:
increased cardio,
weight training,
'cheat' meals (i.e. occasional high-calorie meals),
cycling (or zig-zagging) calories,
even manipulating macro-nutrient ratios can all help to do this (don't forget adequate sleep and hydration).
You often find that the nearer you get to your goal weight (or body fat percentage) - the harder things get!
Continually dropping calories only serves to lower metabolism even further - the moment you return to 'normal' eating - the weight comes back on.
It certainly won't hurt you to kick your metabolism in the rear. When I hit a plateau, I spent a week doing tabata, and it made me feel better and more able to go on. I don't recommend tabata unless you are fairly fit already but you can add some higher intensity intervals to your workout.
However, I still think the issue is that you are underestimating your calories and need to eat less and measure more. It is very easy for a tablespoon of peanut butter to become three, over time.
You can't "kick your metabolism" into gear. That's not how it works.
Actually, it is. High intensity exercise increases resting metabolism.9 -
wally2wiki wrote: »Hey guys I found this great article on weight loss plateau.
Check it out : https://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calculator.htm
.
Or you know you could try and log accurately since that's likely your problem based on what you've told us so far.9 -
Argh! Look, there are two options here. Weigh and log all foods accurately all the time, stay within calorie allowance and lose weight, OR keep looking for reasons not to and don't lose any weight.10
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Hello all ... when you say calorie deficit, do you mean you should exercise off the amount of calories you take in on a daily basis? Newbie here, trying to understand the terminology and methods. I need to lose 40, and am set up to eat 1200 calories a day. My job is sedentary, and due to a back injury, the most exercise I get is daily walks. Thanks for any/all input.2
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Calorie deficit means eating less than your maintenance calories. Whatever that is.1
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Elizabeethan wrote: »Hello all ... when you say calorie deficit, do you mean you should exercise off the amount of calories you take in on a daily basis? Newbie here, trying to understand the terminology and methods. I need to lose 40, and am set up to eat 1200 calories a day. My job is sedentary, and due to a back injury, the most exercise I get is daily walks. Thanks for any/all input.
If your GOAL is 1200 a day then eat 1200 a day. That already includes your deficit. When you log your walk (which is great exercise) you can eat more because otherwise you are making your deficit larger than it needs to be. At 1200 calories you could skip the walk, do zero exercise and still lose weight.4 -
Elizabeethan wrote: »Hello all ... when you say calorie deficit, do you mean you should exercise off the amount of calories you take in on a daily basis? Newbie here, trying to understand the terminology and methods. I need to lose 40, and am set up to eat 1200 calories a day. My job is sedentary, and due to a back injury, the most exercise I get is daily walks. Thanks for any/all input.
Perhaps take some time to read the stickied threads - there is lots of helpful information that may answer lots of your questions
(you burn calories just living though!)3 -
Elizabeethan wrote: »Hello all ... when you say calorie deficit, do you mean you should exercise off the amount of calories you take in on a daily basis? Newbie here, trying to understand the terminology and methods. I need to lose 40, and am set up to eat 1200 calories a day. My job is sedentary, and due to a back injury, the most exercise I get is daily walks. Thanks for any/all input.
The moment you logged in my fitness pall that you wanted to lose 2lbs/week , 1.5lbs per week, 1 lbs per week or 0.5lbs per week, it calculated a calorie deficit and told you to eat a certain amount. Eat that and you will be in a calorie deficit.0 -
Thanks for all the replies and constructive advice. It's been 10 day and no loss yet, but hopefully soon. I'm really diligent about weighing and measuring, and limiting sugar (my Achilles heel).0
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