Eating within calorie deficit, then why am I gaining?
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JasmineDiver22 wrote: »This is gonna sound stupid to some of you and you will probably roll your eyes, but what is TDEE??
TDEE is how much energy (calories) your body needs in a day to maintain its current size. If I recall all the bits off the top of my head, you've got: energy spent just being alive (BMR/RMR), energy spent digesting food (forgot what this is called), energy spent on normal daily activities (NEAT) and energy spent on intentional exercise (forgot what this is called too). There should be some posts in the stickies explaining in more detail, but basically, it's the number you need to be under in order to lose weight. How much you are under determines how fast you lose weight. Roughly.6 -
Just for perspective from my own last few days, I gained 4 pounds in water weight while still eating at my 1200 per day goal. How you ask? A combo of the fact I gain water weight during the last 1.5 weeks of My cycle and also I have eaten a ton of high sodium foods over the last week. It's cool though, in a week it should all drop off plus the fat that I'm still losing from my deficit. I'll wake up one day and be 5 pounds lighter!
Keep eating at a deficit and eventually it will all start to work out! You'll also start to learn when your body naturally gains water so it won't be as much of a shock. I found this out through months of daily weighing.2 -
TDEE is your total daily energy expenditure. Google tdee calculator.
That's barely any calories for your weight. Your body will adapt and you will have to keep going lower and lower with your calories to see loss. Find your TDEE and eat 200-400 calorie deficit of it per day.2 -
JasmineDiver22 wrote: »This is gonna sound stupid to some of you and you will probably roll your eyes, but what is TDEE??
Total daily energy expenditure. It's different from BMR (basal metabolic rate). BMR is what your body needs to function (keep your organs going, your heart beating, etc.). TDEE takes activity level into account.0 -
Total Daily Energy Expenditure. Basically, how much you burn during a normal day. Ideally, you want to eat above your BMR (the amount you burn just by existing, even if you're in a coma and not moving 24x7), but below your TDEE to lose weight.
Obviously, TDEE will fluctuate based on your activity.2 -
JasmineDiver22 wrote: »This is gonna sound stupid to some of you and you will probably roll your eyes, but what is TDEE??
total daily energy expenditure - its what your body burns calorie wise through all activities (just living, non purposeful and purposeful exercise)0 -
JasmineDiver22 wrote: »This is gonna sound stupid to some of you and you will probably roll your eyes, but what is TDEE??
That was my first post question on these forums about 6 months, 45 pounds, and almost 500 posts ago. Armed with the knowledge of what it is (explained a few times in the posts above mine) and how important weighing and measuring portions are, it's been pure gold.
If you maintain a deficit, trust the process and give it time, you will be happy. Don't hurry - just do the process.14 -
Honestly, if you're logging is spot on, most likely it's just water weight from all of the sodium in the soup, I would just keep what your doing, and wait it out, it will straighten it's self out. Like people of have said weight loss isn't linear. I lost 4lbs last week, and have stayed the same so far this week, with eating at a 2lb deficit.1
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Thanks you guys for all the help0
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Canned soup= three days of extra water weight for me. Just keep doing what you're doing and it will absolutely work. It's sodium...5
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Thanks @Goober1142 I hope that's all it lol1
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try to eliminate processed foods, and foods with added sugars. Go whole foods and keep those foods under in a calorie deficit. for me it was too many sugars. I thought I was eating so healthy! Yogurt, and whole grain breads, whole wheat bagels, diet and low fat foods. WOW was I wrong! I didnt lose weight until I cut out sugars and carbs. since Jan I am down 32 lbs!
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JohnnyLowCarb wrote: »try to eliminate processed foods, and foods with added sugars. Go whole foods and keep those foods under in a calorie deficit. for me it was too many sugars. I thought I was eating so healthy! Yogurt, and whole grain breads, whole wheat bagels, diet and low fat foods. WOW was I wrong! I didnt lose weight until I cut out sugars and carbs. since Jan I am down 32 lbs!
If you're cutting out carbohydrates, how many whole foods could you possibly be eating? Meat and eggs?
OP, you can lose weight eating things like yogurt, whole grain bread, bagels, and low fat foods as long as you are in a calorie deficit. Eliminating these foods isn't necessary for weight loss.14 -
@JohnnyLowCarb omg! If I don't eat any carbs, I'll be depriving myself and that will throw me off the bandwagon and I'll give up. I can't not eat carbs.
what do you eat then..? 6 -
Well I was late to the game never mind!0
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JasmineDiver22 wrote: »@JohnnyLowCarb omg! If I don't eat any carbs, I'll be depriving myself and that will throw me off the bandwagon and I'll give up. I can't not eat carbs. what do you eat then..?
You can eat carbs. The important thing for weight-loss is a calorie deficit, not how you get there. Part of the trick is finding what combination of macro-nutrients (fat, carbs, protein) keeps you full and energized. For some, it's low-carb. For others, high-carb. What's important is what works for you, keeping in mind to get enough protein (20%-ish minimum) and healthy fat (20%-ish minimum).7 -
JohnnyLowCarb wrote: »try to eliminate processed foods, and foods with added sugars. Go whole foods and keep those foods under in a calorie deficit. for me it was too many sugars. I thought I was eating so healthy! Yogurt, and whole grain breads, whole wheat bagels, diet and low fat foods. WOW was I wrong! I didnt lose weight until I cut out sugars and carbs. since Jan I am down 32 lbs!
This is not necessary. I lost ~73 pounds and I eat processed foods, and foods with added sugar and bread and carbs. I don't eat many "diet" foods, but that is just a personal preference since I don't like the taste of artificial sweeteners. Stick to a deficit and the weight will come off. You are most likely retaining water from the sodium. Some women retain a lot of water during different times of their menstrual cycle. As others have said, weight loss is not linear. You will lose some weeks, and it may look like you gain some weeks, but the overall trend will go down if you eat at a deficit.5 -
also when scanning foods the database can be off and you still want to weigh those foods as well,then scan if you want and find the right entry as labels can be off by up to 20%. I used to scan stuff and found that most of the entries were off or completely wrong. so I stopped doing that. you dont have to just cross reference anything. but I was on a medication a few weeks ago and I was retaining close to 10 lbs of water, its now just coming off day by day and its been more than 3 weeks. so yes it can be water weight.3
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JohnnyLowCarb wrote: »try to eliminate processed foods, and foods with added sugars. Go whole foods and keep those foods under in a calorie deficit. for me it was too many sugars. I thought I was eating so healthy! Yogurt, and whole grain breads, whole wheat bagels, diet and low fat foods. WOW was I wrong! I didnt lose weight until I cut out sugars and carbs. since Jan I am down 32 lbs!
Plenty of people lose weight eating high carbs too. It's all about controlling calorie intake.
If you like low carb and can see yourself using that as a maintenance strategy that's great. But elimination diets never helped me maintain, I always went back to old habits. The best diet helps you lose weight AND helps you keep it off too.4 -
JohnnyLowCarb wrote: »try to eliminate processed foods, and foods with added sugars. Go whole foods and keep those foods under in a calorie deficit. for me it was too many sugars. I thought I was eating so healthy! Yogurt, and whole grain breads, whole wheat bagels, diet and low fat foods. WOW was I wrong! I didnt lose weight until I cut out sugars and carbs. since Jan I am down 32 lbs!
Plenty of people lose weight eating high carbs too. It's all about controlling calorie intake.
If you like low carb and can see yourself using that as a maintenance strategy that's great. But elimination diets never helped me maintain, I always went back to old habits. The best diet helps you lose weight AND helps you keep it off too.
I am losing simply by focusing on protein intake and staying on calorie deficit. I probably eat ALLLLL the carbs and then some.
Poster, keep doing what you're doing. I'm also having a bad week since the scale isn't moving (just this week) and I'm on an aggressive cut so losing 1lb per week is crucial.. but I also have to factor in the fact that I'm on my TOTM and I probably won't see a difference in the scale until it's over. BUT, there's definitely a difference in my progress pictures (pic I took last week and the pic I took today). So don't stress!
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JasmineDiver22 wrote: »It's only been 17 days. Early I know. But my first 2 weeks I lost 2.5 pounds. I thought if you ate within your calories, you'd lose. I've been sick for almost a week now and haven't been able to go walking. (Yes that simple for others but I'm heavier and that's all I can do for now) when I first started, I was eating fruits, lots of veggies, and protein, and would treat myself to something if I had the extra cals but in moderation. (Like a Starbucks cake pop that's only 170 cals, or halo top ice cream) and on days where I had a lot of calories left from exercise and walking everywhere during the day/night, I ended up having well over 700 cals left. That's AFTER I had a huge meal. (Was only once though) Sometimes I'd have anywhere between 500-200 cals left. Just too full to eat the rest. The only thing I been eating is chicken noodle soup since being sick. Not sure if it's that, that made me gain because all of the sodium for the entire can because sodium cause water weight?? Idk. I'm honestly just really upset right now.
OP, I'm not sure why you are getting such complicated answers. If I'm reading correctly, you lost 2.5 lbs after 2 weeks and now have gained some weight in the last 3 days. This is perfectly normal! Water weight fluctuates every day, up and down, and will drive you crazy if you let it. Some people will also lose in "whooshes", they lose very little for 3-4 weeks and then "whoosh" 4 lbs one day. Being sick can make your body do some weird things too.
It would be great if our bodies would react immediately and exactly to what we do every day, but they don't! Just keep at it and look for a trend over weeks. If after a couple of months you are not losing at the rate you expected, THEN it will be time to look deeper. Good luck :drinker:7 -
JasmineDiver22 wrote: »This is gonna sound stupid to some of you and you will probably roll your eyes, but what is TDEE??
I am glad you asked because I had no idea either. Hang in there, it sounds like you are trying and even if you don't see the results on the scale right now, know that they will come. I agree with a previous comment suggesting measuring.
Keep up the good work!
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One more thing to check, are you putting yourself down as "sedentary" and then logging exercise, or are you putting yourself down as "active" and not logging exercise? Or are you putting yourself down as "active" and ALSO logging exercise, because that could make your calorie goals off.
Keep chugging along soldier!
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@timtam163 I'm putting myself down as sedentary and then any exercise I do my Fitbit adds my calories into my fitness pal. So like if I walk 1.5 miles it'll add 300 cals extra on to my normal cal deficit. Should I not be doing this??1
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Before I bought a fitness tracker I read the Which reviews (UK consumer association). Fitbit monitors could regularly overestimate calorie burn by up to 40%. That's why I bought a Garmin, and even then I don't link it to my account, I use it to make sure I'm not over-estimating my walking speed and putting down 4mph when I'm actually only walking 3mph. Try unlinking your fitbit (you don't have to stop using it entirely) and using the MFP estimates - I know some people think they are overgenerous, but I lost my weight using them AND eating back my calories so they can't be that far out. If you walk at 3MPH, 1.5 miles will take you half an hour. For me at 10st 5lb that is 106 calories. I know if you're heavier you will burn more, but try adding the time and effort rather than the fitbit calories.2
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JasmineDiver22 wrote: »@timtam163 I'm putting myself down as sedentary and then any exercise I do my Fitbit adds my calories into my fitness pal. So like if I walk 1.5 miles it'll add 300 cals extra on to my normal cal deficit. Should I not be doing this??
That seems fine in theory but how are you burning 300 calories doing 1.5 miles of walking? I burn about 120 calories running 1.5 miles and maybe 100 walking that distance, probably less... I'm puzzled. Can you give a few more examples of calorie burns for activity? Might help to see if you might be off there.2 -
JasmineDiver22 wrote: »@timtam163 I'm putting myself down as sedentary and then any exercise I do my Fitbit adds my calories into my fitness pal. So like if I walk 1.5 miles it'll add 300 cals extra on to my normal cal deficit. Should I not be doing this??
That seems fine in theory but how are you burning 300 calories doing 1.5 miles of walking? I burn about 120 calories running 1.5 miles and maybe 100 walking that distance, probably less... I'm puzzled. Can you give a few more examples of calorie burns for activity? Might help to see if you might be off there.
She posted earlier that she was obese, so she might be burning more as a heavier individual. Either way, this was a good catch and OP should make sure she isn't overestimating that burn.2 -
GemstoneofHeart wrote: »JasmineDiver22 wrote: »@timtam163 I'm putting myself down as sedentary and then any exercise I do my Fitbit adds my calories into my fitness pal. So like if I walk 1.5 miles it'll add 300 cals extra on to my normal cal deficit. Should I not be doing this??
That seems fine in theory but how are you burning 300 calories doing 1.5 miles of walking? I burn about 120 calories running 1.5 miles and maybe 100 walking that distance, probably less... I'm puzzled. Can you give a few more examples of calorie burns for activity? Might help to see if you might be off there.
She posted earlier that she was obese, so she might be burning more as a heavier individual. Either way, this was a good catch and OP should make sure she isn't overestimating that burn.
Fair point. After looking at some calorie counters, it looks like 300 would not be far off for a heavier person. Haha! I walked like 3 hours the other day and MFP only gave me 120 extra calories using the step adjustment feature (life's not fair...) hence my gut instinct that 300 was too high. But it's very likely correct.
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GemstoneofHeart wrote: »JasmineDiver22 wrote: »@timtam163 I'm putting myself down as sedentary and then any exercise I do my Fitbit adds my calories into my fitness pal. So like if I walk 1.5 miles it'll add 300 cals extra on to my normal cal deficit. Should I not be doing this??
That seems fine in theory but how are you burning 300 calories doing 1.5 miles of walking? I burn about 120 calories running 1.5 miles and maybe 100 walking that distance, probably less... I'm puzzled. Can you give a few more examples of calorie burns for activity? Might help to see if you might be off there.
She posted earlier that she was obese, so she might be burning more as a heavier individual. Either way, this was a good catch and OP should make sure she isn't overestimating that burn.
Fair point. After looking at some calorie counters, it looks like 300 would not be far off for a heavier person. Haha! I walked like 3 hours the other day and MFP only gave me 120 extra calories using the step adjustment feature (life's not fair...) hence my gut instinct that 300 was too high. But it's very likely correct.
My stupid fitbit rarely counts walking as active minutes anymore. Which, you know, is awesome because I'm actually starting to be able to jog more than ten seconds without getting winded, but is making my fitness goals more difficult to hit. /humblebrag3 -
I know it can be annoying trying to use weight. Just the fact that you are out there working out and watching what you eat shows that you are on the right track. Also, there will be ups and downs when trying to lose weight, just keep doing what you are doing. For some people, the weight just seems to just melt off. While others, like myself, it takes time. For myself, what I do today I will not see the results from the workout or my eating habits until 6 weeks from now. Also, weight loss is not only how many pounds you lose but also how many inches you lose or how tone you are. Don't give up! I wish you much success on your weigh loss journey.2
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