Wish this was eaiser.

So, in a week you've lost three pounds? That's a really fast rate of loss. Unfortunately, you're not going to continue to see losses that quickly.

You're not going to lose every day. You're not going to lose every WEEK. Some weeks you'll lose, some weeks you'll stay the same, and some weeks you may even gain.

The only thing that matters is whether or not your general trend line goes down. It's hard, but you have to find a way to calm down, trust the process and give it time to work.

If you lost 3 lbs and are set to lose 2, this means that you exceeded your goal by 50%. Congratulations! I am not sure why you are not celebrating because it sounds like your hard work has paid off in spades. Keep it up, don't restrict too much, and remember when you get a little further down the weight loss road, it doesn't come off as easily as it does in the beginning, and you will need to adjust accordingly. But 3 lbs the first week is outstanding.

ashlee_tx wrote: »

So, I am a week in, Wed-Sat I lost 3 pounds, From sun-today, nothing. I am eating roughly 1200-1400 calories a day. I am drinking slim fast for breakfast and lunch, I have a 100 calorie snack in the afternoon then I have a larger dinner ( 600-750) I am also limiting diet soda for dinner and drinking about 90 oz of water a day . I am well below my grams for fats, carbs and proteins and even the percentage that MyFitnessPal wants. So I am not understanding what I am doing wrong. Is my dinner too many calories? I've tried eating lunch and my slim fast for dinner and just cant do it.
By the time I get home I am hungry, but again I am calculating everything and I'm still not losing. According to myfitness pal I should be losing 2 pounds by just eating 1450.
I have been walking during my lunch so I am burning around 200 calories or so. I may start working out at home to get a better calorie burned..but other than that?

You're not doing anything wrong other than lacking in patience...



This is not mine, but here's a graph of actual weight loss plotted...the trend over time is what is important and what you need to focus on...it's a long process and you're going to have to wrap your head around that and start playing the long game...

ashlee_tx wrote: »

Perhaps I am being a little inpatient, No everything is measured and calculated according the labels. I am logging everything down to my gum and still..no difference. Maybe it just takes a little longer to see some sort of result. I just want to know that what I am doing is working.

3 pounds is a difference. Have patience.

I agree to ditch the Slim Fast. A salad with some shrimp, chicken, or avocado will do a heck of a lot more to fill you up and it will give you much better nutrition. Plus, a real lunch may help you keep dinner to a more reasonable size, especially if you keep your afternoon snack in there.

You're only a week in, and already frustrated. I'd say you need to revise your take on this. Sounds like you're going overboard with the changes, which means at some point, you won't be able to stick with them, and then you will probably gain back everything (if not more) than you've lost. Choose a couple smaller things to change, and start doing things you can keep up long term (Slim Fast is not a long term solution). Maybe substituting sparkling water for soda the first week. Then switch from ranch to balsamic vinaigrette the next week on your salad. Start measuring everything the following week. After that, start measuring and tracking everything.

Smaller steps may not make things magically fall away at a too-fast rate, but they WILL help you get where you want to go and stay there.

Start with some smaller changes, and give your body time to adjust.

Also, when you are tracking, be sure to include things like sauces, dressings, cooking oils, toppings, or other things that are "added" to your food. I've had some sauces that could literally double the calories in a meal while adding very little substance.

Others have said weight loss is not linear. That's true: It's a bumpy series of ups and downs, with an overall downward trend.

Furthermore, you are probably premenopausal. For many women, menstrual cycle water weight fluctuate by 5+ pounds, and that can occur at different points in the cycle for different women.

Others advised patience. They're right.

Here's the definition of patience, for a premenopausal woman: Stick to a new routine for about 6 weeks, through a whole monthly cycle, plus a bit. If you become seriously fatigued or weak or have other negative health symptoms during that time, eat a little more. Otherwise, stick to it.

You mention hunger. I agree with those who say you should ditch the Slimfast, replacing it with actual food. If you're still hungry, experiment with what and when you're eating to find a routine that better satisfies you.

Certainly, eat a sensible amount of protein and fat, for adequate nutrition. The MFP goals are a reasonable starting point; try to come close with protein and fat.

Beyond that, experiment. Different people find different things filling. Some find protein filling, some find fats filling, some need volume (often lots of fiber-rich veggies), some need complex carbs like potatoes or rice. Some people do best if they eat breakfast, some do better if they skip breakfast. Some budget calories for snacks during the day or evening, while others avoid snacks like the plague. Figure out what you need.

Personally, I think it's a good idea to use the weight loss process to find a satisfying way of eating that will not only let us lose weight, but also to stay at a healthy weight, in good health, permanently afterward. This will require balancing calories, nutrition, satiation, practicality and family/social factors. That's complicated, so start figuring it out now.

Finally, on average, it leads to more successes when people find a weight loss approach they can comfortably stick with on the overwhelming majority of days, even if that means slower weight loss.

I've been here since mid-2015, while losing about a third of my body weight, and now heading into year 3 of maintaining a healthy weight. I've seen a bunch of people succeed here, and a bunch of people disappear.

Among the successes, steady moderate progress is the most common pattern.

Among those who disappear, the pattern is mor likely to be white-knuckling big calorie deficits (fast loss rates), using fad diets people don't plan to adopt long-term, demonizing/eliminating certain "bad" foods they say they love, relying on supplements, and that sort of things.

Often, if this group ultimately succeeds, they've alternately white-knuckled and binged/"cheated" so much along the way that they arrive at goal weight later than the moderate, persistent loss people. Then they still need to figure out how the heck to maintain there.

These aren't universal patterns, but they're common.

Think things over, experiment a little. Best wishes!