Can't lose the final 4lb

Probably just need to be more accurate with your logging. I can't imagine that 4 lbs really makes any difference though - other than you want a nice round number but as mentioned above with fluctuations you're going to see a variety of numbers of you weigh often enough.

Ready2Rock206 wrote: »

I can't imagine that 4 lbs really makes any difference though - other than you want a nice round number but as mentioned above with fluctuations you're going to see a variety of numbers of you weigh often enough.

It depends on your weight and height but if you are near your goal weight, it can make a lot of difference.

sazzle1983 wrote: »

Anyone have any suggestions other than tightening up on my logging? TBH I'm pretty hot on weighing everything anyway. Is maintenance 2000? That's quite a jump from 1200, I'll probably end up gaining more.

If you're confident about your logging, then it's just going to come down to patience.

Your maintenance calories will be dependant on your activity level, and maintenance, by definition is the amount at which your weight remains stable (with natural fluctuations within a range).

My sedentary maintenance is 1650, at which I laugh and say 'no thanks', so I make sure I move enough, either through NEAT (non-exercise activity thermogenesis, ie just moving more) or through purposeful exercise, to get that up higher. Your estimated sedentary maintenance level will be slightly higher, though not by much, because you're younger than me. If you set MFP to 'maintain weight' instead of lose, it will tell you what your predicted maintenance cals are.

Can you give us some more information other than 'I just can't do it'? Are you losing weight? How much? If not, how long since the scale dropped? Has anything else changed in that time? Increased exercise? Premenstrual/TOM? How often do you weigh yourself?

As I said previously, I'm working on getting back down to my goal weight post-winter, I'm four weeks in as of tomorrow. On the scale, I've lost 1.2kg, below the predicted amount, and for a good amount of that time it's gone up and down and up, and down...I can confidently put it down to fluid retention from also getting back to strength training (and that will stay unless I stop training, which I learnt the hard way not to do), getting my premenstrual bloat a few days after starting logging again, a week of actually showing losses, then another week of bloat for ovulation, which has only just dropped off again. If you take the water weight for muscle repair into account, I'm actually right on track. As I said, those natural fluctuations can really mask your fat loss if all you're looking at is scale weight.

Okay, whilst only weighing weekly can be less stressful for those who can't handle day to day fluctuations, you could also very easily miss a drop if one of those random upwards fluctuations happens to be on a Wednesday. If you're up for it, I would suggest weighing daily, and downloading a trending weight app (Trendweight - requires a Fitbit account, but you don't need a Fitbit linked to it, Happy Scale, and Libra are the ones I see mentioned most). The trend app will show both your scale weight, and the trend - ie if you're heading up or down. It's the trend that you're interested in.

Those off plan days on Wednesdays may well be a big part of the problem. I agree with @TavistockToad that you can probably increase your daily calories, and that will hopefully offset the need for you to go off plan once a week. As I said, my baseline cals are 1200 too if I'm sedentary. I aim not to be, because I just can't sustain 1200. If you're exercising four times a week, then adding an extra couple of hundred cals a day should be fine.

And a year at 1200 is just way too long, and you've also had a really stressful (if joyful) few months. Give your body a break for a bit.