Struggling to stay on track

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  • vivmom2014
    vivmom2014 Posts: 1,647 Member
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    I just want to congratulate you on quitting smoking. I understand the travails of slow/no weight loss -- it is maddeningly frustrating. But as the wise old saying goes, give it time. Maybe relax a bit on the scale stress and enjoy your ever-increasing health and wellness!
  • murp4069
    murp4069 Posts: 494 Member
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    Congrats on quitting smoking and on the 50 lb loss! Both are great accomplishments. Based on the above comments the best place to start may be tightening up your logging. If your husband is cooking and you don't want to put it on him to weigh everything (my husband has told me that counting and weighing takes all the joy out of cooking for him, so I don't ask him to do that), consider overestimating dinner calories a bit more. My husband cooks a few times per week, usually before I'm even home from the office which makes it impossible to keep track of ingredients and amounts even if I wanted to. Things like roasted chicken aren't too difficult, but sauces, soups, etc. are really difficult. I try to find some entry in the database that is similar, and estimate high. Generally this seems to work pretty well to keep me on track and within my calorie goals on a weekly basis.

    I may have missed it, but I don't know how tall you are or how close to goal you are. For what it is worth, as I got smaller and closer to goal (aka less fat) the water weight I retained after exercise became a lot more significant/noticeable. I started a new exercise program weeks ago and the scale also hasn't budged in weeks - it's literally been exactly the same for 4 days in a row now. But, I've been tight with my logging and I know that in the next few weeks, it will even out and I'll see a good loss on the scale.
  • laurenebargar
    laurenebargar Posts: 3,081 Member
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    murp4069 wrote: »
    Congrats on quitting smoking and on the 50 lb loss! Both are great accomplishments. Based on the above comments the best place to start may be tightening up your logging. If your husband is cooking and you don't want to put it on him to weigh everything (my husband has told me that counting and weighing takes all the joy out of cooking for him, so I don't ask him to do that), consider overestimating dinner calories a bit more. My husband cooks a few times per week, usually before I'm even home from the office which makes it impossible to keep track of ingredients and amounts even if I wanted to. Things like roasted chicken aren't too difficult, but sauces, soups, etc. are really difficult. I try to find some entry in the database that is similar, and estimate high. Generally this seems to work pretty well to keep me on track and within my calorie goals on a weekly basis.

    I may have missed it, but I don't know how tall you are or how close to goal you are. For what it is worth, as I got smaller and closer to goal (aka less fat) the water weight I retained after exercise became a lot more significant/noticeable. I started a new exercise program weeks ago and the scale also hasn't budged in weeks - it's literally been exactly the same for 4 days in a row now. But, I've been tight with my logging and I know that in the next few weeks, it will even out and I'll see a good loss on the scale.

    my stats are:
    Starting weight: 217
    Low weight (before quitting) 166.8
    Current weight 177
    Height: 5'4


    And I do over estimate but thats a great suggestion, and most of the time he will leave the recipes up and note any changes, he also tries not to add oil or butter etc to the meals unless he needs to. that is how I worked it before I would over estimate and breakfast and lunch + snacks are all weighed. I also normally make a low calorie soup I eat throughout the week if I am super hungry. And all of that is weighed as well!
  • murp4069
    murp4069 Posts: 494 Member
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    laurenebargar wrote: »
    murp4069 wrote: »
    Congrats on quitting smoking and on the 50 lb loss! Both are great accomplishments. Based on the above comments the best place to start may be tightening up your logging. If your husband is cooking and you don't want to put it on him to weigh everything (my husband has told me that counting and weighing takes all the joy out of cooking for him, so I don't ask him to do that), consider overestimating dinner calories a bit more. My husband cooks a few times per week, usually before I'm even home from the office which makes it impossible to keep track of ingredients and amounts even if I wanted to. Things like roasted chicken aren't too difficult, but sauces, soups, etc. are really difficult. I try to find some entry in the database that is similar, and estimate high. Generally this seems to work pretty well to keep me on track and within my calorie goals on a weekly basis.

    I may have missed it, but I don't know how tall you are or how close to goal you are. For what it is worth, as I got smaller and closer to goal (aka less fat) the water weight I retained after exercise became a lot more significant/noticeable. I started a new exercise program weeks ago and the scale also hasn't budged in weeks - it's literally been exactly the same for 4 days in a row now. But, I've been tight with my logging and I know that in the next few weeks, it will even out and I'll see a good loss on the scale.

    my stats are:
    Starting weight: 217
    Low weight (before quitting) 166.8
    Current weight 177
    Height: 5'4


    And I do over estimate but thats a great suggestion, and most of the time he will leave the recipes up and note any changes, he also tries not to add oil or butter etc to the meals unless he needs to. that is how I worked it before I would over estimate and breakfast and lunch + snacks are all weighed. I also normally make a low calorie soup I eat throughout the week if I am super hungry. And all of that is weighed as well!

    That's really nice of your husband! I wish I could get mine to do that!
  • laurenebargar
    laurenebargar Posts: 3,081 Member
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    murp4069 wrote: »
    laurenebargar wrote: »
    murp4069 wrote: »
    Congrats on quitting smoking and on the 50 lb loss! Both are great accomplishments. Based on the above comments the best place to start may be tightening up your logging. If your husband is cooking and you don't want to put it on him to weigh everything (my husband has told me that counting and weighing takes all the joy out of cooking for him, so I don't ask him to do that), consider overestimating dinner calories a bit more. My husband cooks a few times per week, usually before I'm even home from the office which makes it impossible to keep track of ingredients and amounts even if I wanted to. Things like roasted chicken aren't too difficult, but sauces, soups, etc. are really difficult. I try to find some entry in the database that is similar, and estimate high. Generally this seems to work pretty well to keep me on track and within my calorie goals on a weekly basis.

    I may have missed it, but I don't know how tall you are or how close to goal you are. For what it is worth, as I got smaller and closer to goal (aka less fat) the water weight I retained after exercise became a lot more significant/noticeable. I started a new exercise program weeks ago and the scale also hasn't budged in weeks - it's literally been exactly the same for 4 days in a row now. But, I've been tight with my logging and I know that in the next few weeks, it will even out and I'll see a good loss on the scale.

    my stats are:
    Starting weight: 217
    Low weight (before quitting) 166.8
    Current weight 177
    Height: 5'4


    And I do over estimate but thats a great suggestion, and most of the time he will leave the recipes up and note any changes, he also tries not to add oil or butter etc to the meals unless he needs to. that is how I worked it before I would over estimate and breakfast and lunch + snacks are all weighed. I also normally make a low calorie soup I eat throughout the week if I am super hungry. And all of that is weighed as well!

    That's really nice of your husband! I wish I could get mine to do that!

    Haha Yes its nice but still not easy to track always! He really likes eating "healthy" (I know everyones definition is different) foods so the oil and butter is just as much for him as it is for me
  • 1houndgal
    1houndgal Posts: 558 Member
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    laurenebargar wrote: »
    yirara wrote: »
    Water weight.

    Think about it: 3500kcal equal 1lbs. 6lbs equal 21.000kcal. You cannot magically get 21.000kcal out of thin air to gain 6lbs of fat.

    It seems like an awfully long time to hold onto water weight is the only thing I was thinking.
    laurenebargar wrote: »
    yirara wrote: »
    Water weight.

    Think about it: 3500kcal equal 1lbs. 6lbs equal 21.000kcal. You cannot magically get 21.000kcal out of thin air to gain 6lbs of fat.

    It seems like an awfully long time to hold onto water weight is the only thing I was thinking.
    laurenebargar wrote: »
    yirara wrote: »
    Water weight.

    Think about it: 3500kcal equal 1lbs. 6lbs equal 21.000kcal. You cannot magically get 21.000kcal out of thin air to gain 6lbs of fat.

    It seems like an awfully long time to hold onto water weight is the only thing I was thinking.

    Think homeostasis. Every day your body tries to keep a steady state when it comes to electrolyte balance at the cellular level.

    The things your body responds to are things like hormone levels, sodium intake, potassium intake, insulin levels, protein levels, etc etc.

    Healthy functioning bodies retain water as do health compromised bodies retain water. Or vice versa, when it comes to dropping water weight.

    You cannot control all things responsible for water gains or water losses, and that is a good thing for survival's sake.

    Yes you can help get your body into a better balance by reducing a unhealthy sodium intake, reducing an unhealthy amount of food intake (including a "safe for you intake of calories, carbs, fats, proteins, etc) for instance.

    Staying active can help, by avoiding being too sedentry during the day, etc. And a healthy amount of water intake helps also.

    But in all it is a balancing act for your hard working body to maintain every second of the day. And some unhealthy folks have to take medications to get into a better balance or address water retention concerns.

    I would recommend to the OP not to weigh so frequently unless your dr says you need to, as it will drive you crazy watching your body's weight swings.
  • tinkerbellang83
    tinkerbellang83 Posts: 9,136 Member
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    I don't know how scientifically correct this is but Nicotine is a stimulant, and might affect bowel movements, much the same as caffeine does, if that's the case and you've quit perhaps, you're just "bunged up"? Try a little more fibre or a pro-biotic?

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