Speeding up metabolism
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Thanks for all the replies, I see there a lot of big fans of food scales. I will give it some consideration. I still don't believe I'm eating significantly more then I'm logging. Because I was eating such a small amount of food for extensive periods of time, working out and not eating back my exercise calories. I don't know if a food scale is enough to solve that issue. There would be weeks where I would have a shake for breakfast made with water, strawberries and powder, a cup of Frozen steamed vegetables with shredded chicken breast for dinner, and another shake for dinner, maybe a banana for a snack. I would eat that and then workout. Even if I was off by a few hundred calories, it's still a very small amount of food. I had weeks averaging 1000 calories or less. But obviously this isn't realistic, and I feel like I'm starving, so then I try to have a cheat day or eat some of my workout calories. A month later I'm up a few pounds or I weigh the same. My main concern is how eating like this for prolonged periods of time has impacted my metabolism, and my best course of action to address this
You don't have to be eating more than you're logging... you just have to be eating more/at maintenance.
Eat less. Rinse and repeat.
I'm so confused by what you are saying. I've explained what I've been eating. I'm not eating at maintenance.
Then why aren't you losing weight?
As I have stated, I lose and gain the same 10 to 15 lb. I eat very low calories for prolonged periods of time, workout 4 to 6 times a week. As weeks go by, I start to feel like I'm not getting the results based on the effort. I get frustrated and less motivated. I gain all or part of the 15 lb back, and start the cycle all over again. Each time it's supposed to be different, I'm going to exercise more. I'm going to cut my calories more. I'm going to eliminate bread. I'm going to eliminate all processed foods. I'm going to lift weights. I'm going to run longer. I'm going to just have meal replacement shakes. But in the end, I end up where I started
I see something in the bolded... 1) you eat very low calories (granted this is too aggressive of an intake) and you workout 4-6 times per week .. but you lose 15 pounds. 2) You feel like you are not getting the results, but you lost 15 pounds? What results are you looking for you are not getting? 3) You probably throw in the towel because you are doing things to the extreme, its not sustainable therefore gaining it back.
You are in this all or nothing cycle and you need to work on balance and sustaining weight loss and exercise in healthy amounts to help you reach your goals. If you cannot balance things out, maybe seek some outside advice that can help you with your thinking patterns.
I don't lose the 10 and 15 lb all at once. But you are right, I am on an All or Nothing cycle. I think that's my personality. I always joking tell people that I function on 100 or 0. I don't know if I know how to balance. Whenever I start something I always go so hard. Sometimes it's not sustainable in the long run at that effort. Like even with exercise, I can't be satisfied with two or three times a week. I can't be satisfied with low impact. It has to be hard it has to be challenging otherwise I feel like I'm not doing anything. Then I wear myself out2 -
All or nothing is a hard behavior to break. Many of us have been there. You can release yourself from it, though, and just do the steps every day. By taking those regular steps (meeting calorie goals accurately), you develop the habits to continue into maintenance and keep the weight off. You really can do it...it is definitely NOT all or nothing!! (We're all rooting for you!!)5
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Thanks for all the replies, I see there a lot of big fans of food scales. I will give it some consideration. I still don't believe I'm eating significantly more then I'm logging. Because I was eating such a small amount of food for extensive periods of time, working out and not eating back my exercise calories. I don't know if a food scale is enough to solve that issue. There would be weeks where I would have a shake for breakfast made with water, strawberries and powder, a cup of Frozen steamed vegetables with shredded chicken breast for dinner, and another shake for dinner, maybe a banana for a snack. I would eat that and then workout. Even if I was off by a few hundred calories, it's still a very small amount of food. I had weeks averaging 1000 calories or less. But obviously this isn't realistic, and I feel like I'm starving, so then I try to have a cheat day or eat some of my workout calories. A month later I'm up a few pounds or I weigh the same. My main concern is how eating like this for prolonged periods of time has impacted my metabolism, and my best course of action to address this
You don't have to be eating more than you're logging... you just have to be eating more/at maintenance.
Eat less. Rinse and repeat.
I'm so confused by what you are saying. I've explained what I've been eating. I'm not eating at maintenance.
Then why aren't you losing weight?
As I have stated, I lose and gain the same 10 to 15 lb. I eat very low calories for prolonged periods of time, workout 4 to 6 times a week. As weeks go by, I start to feel like I'm not getting the results based on the effort. I get frustrated and less motivated. I gain all or part of the 15 lb back, and start the cycle all over again. Each time it's supposed to be different, I'm going to exercise more. I'm going to cut my calories more. I'm going to eliminate bread. I'm going to eliminate all processed foods. I'm going to lift weights. I'm going to run longer. I'm going to just have meal replacement shakes. But in the end, I end up where I started
I see something in the bolded... 1) you eat very low calories (granted this is too aggressive of an intake) and you workout 4-6 times per week .. but you lose 15 pounds. 2) You feel like you are not getting the results, but you lost 15 pounds? What results are you looking for you are not getting? 3) You probably throw in the towel because you are doing things to the extreme, its not sustainable therefore gaining it back.
You are in this all or nothing cycle and you need to work on balance and sustaining weight loss and exercise in healthy amounts to help you reach your goals. If you cannot balance things out, maybe seek some outside advice that can help you with your thinking patterns.
I don't lose the 10 and 15 lb all at once. But you are right, I am on an All or Nothing cycle. I think that's my personality. I always joking tell people that I function on 100 or 0. I don't know if I know how to balance. Whenever I start something I always go so hard. Sometimes it's not sustainable in the long run at that effort. Like even with exercise, I can't be satisfied with two or three times a week. I can't be satisfied with low impact. It has to be hard it has to be challenging otherwise I feel like I'm not doing anything. Then I wear myself out
Then you know what you need to work on.4 -
Thanks for all the replies, I see there a lot of big fans of food scales. I will give it some consideration. I still don't believe I'm eating significantly more then I'm logging. Because I was eating such a small amount of food for extensive periods of time, working out and not eating back my exercise calories. I don't know if a food scale is enough to solve that issue. There would be weeks where I would have a shake for breakfast made with water, strawberries and powder, a cup of Frozen steamed vegetables with shredded chicken breast for dinner, and another shake for dinner, maybe a banana for a snack. I would eat that and then workout. Even if I was off by a few hundred calories, it's still a very small amount of food. I had weeks averaging 1000 calories or less. But obviously this isn't realistic, and I feel like I'm starving, so then I try to have a cheat day or eat some of my workout calories. A month later I'm up a few pounds or I weigh the same. My main concern is how eating like this for prolonged periods of time has impacted my metabolism, and my best course of action to address this
You don't have to be eating more than you're logging... you just have to be eating more/at maintenance.
Eat less. Rinse and repeat.
I'm so confused by what you are saying. I've explained what I've been eating. I'm not eating at maintenance.
Then why aren't you losing weight?
As I have stated, I lose and gain the same 10 to 15 lb. I eat very low calories for prolonged periods of time, workout 4 to 6 times a week. As weeks go by, I start to feel like I'm not getting the results based on the effort. I get frustrated and less motivated. I gain all or part of the 15 lb back, and start the cycle all over again. Each time it's supposed to be different, I'm going to exercise more. I'm going to cut my calories more. I'm going to eliminate bread. I'm going to eliminate all processed foods. I'm going to lift weights. I'm going to run longer. I'm going to just have meal replacement shakes. But in the end, I end up where I started
I see something in the bolded... 1) you eat very low calories (granted this is too aggressive of an intake) and you workout 4-6 times per week .. but you lose 15 pounds. 2) You feel like you are not getting the results, but you lost 15 pounds? What results are you looking for you are not getting? 3) You probably throw in the towel because you are doing things to the extreme, its not sustainable therefore gaining it back.
You are in this all or nothing cycle and you need to work on balance and sustaining weight loss and exercise in healthy amounts to help you reach your goals. If you cannot balance things out, maybe seek some outside advice that can help you with your thinking patterns.
I don't lose the 10 and 15 lb all at once. But you are right, I am on an All or Nothing cycle. I think that's my personality. I always joking tell people that I function on 100 or 0. I don't know if I know how to balance. Whenever I start something I always go so hard. Sometimes it's not sustainable in the long run at that effort. Like even with exercise, I can't be satisfied with two or three times a week. I can't be satisfied with low impact. It has to be hard it has to be challenging otherwise I feel like I'm not doing anything. Then I wear myself out
This will take a lot of self discovery, patience and working better in terms of management and balance. I think the mental aspect of this is what you need to work on. If you can't work on it while undergoing weight loss/exercise at the same time, perhaps reach out for some professional guidance and help tools that can benefit you. It seems its a vicious cycle and becoming a very unhealthy one, you are concerned about it so this is a great first step.
2 -
This tact is going nowhere.
@TyFit1908
When is the last time you have been to the doctor?
Have you taken your physical measurements and compared a month later?
Have you weighed on a different scale recently?
Do you feel dizzy or weak when you eat less for "weeks and weeks"?
If you knew eating what you thought was too little was not healthy why did you keep doing it?
Now that you are not working how much of your day are you devoting to your weight loss or lack of?
Are you happy outside of carrying a little extra weight?
I had a physical in November, everything was good. However, I've had PCOS for many years.
I have taken my measurements, and in May I lost a few inches in comparison to April. I actually went up two pounds. I decided not to stress out about that. I joined the gym and April and switched up my routine. I was very consistent the entire month. I have not weighed myself or taken additional measurements in the month of May.
I did feel dizzy, sometimes I felt weak. My workout at times suffered, particularly running. Sometimes I was very tired and sleepy. I knew I was eating too little, sometimes I just wanted to see the scale move. Sometimes I ate little because I was trying to cut out all of the high carb foods, and then there just wasn't much else left. I'm not a big meat eater, don't eat beef or pork or shellfish. So when I cut carbs too much, I find myself with nothing really to eat
I'm not working, but it's not my choice. Since I lost my job, I have become a full-time caretaker for my elderly mom. I also Uber Drive to make ends meet. Obviously this been very difficult. The job search has certainly had an impact on my happiness, or lack thereof. Since I am home I hit the gym regularly, and I have made Fitness a part of my daily routine. But something like it down and don't want to do anything . I do have to prepare meals for my mom. She has a sweet tooth, so I have to keep the house stacked with snacks. This doesn't bother me as much anymore, finally got used to all the junk food in the house. When I was working I used to meal prep for the week on Sunday. I'm thinking about doing that again so that I don't have to think about what I'm going to eat each day, hopefully eliminating an opportunity to make bad choices
Ok so here is what I am thinking. You are right. You are at a calorie deficit when you are losing weight. You are also at an unhealthy deficit which is why you have physical symptoms of dizziness and weakness. During this time you are extremely stressed so you are retaining water which prevents the scale from moving. This eventually gets to you which is understandable.
You have to slow down and be patient and if you can't you will need to see the doctor again to determine if you have an eating disorder.
Get a food scale and eat the recommended number of calories for your age, weight, height, and activity level adjusted as needed for your PCOS. Eat back some of your exercise calories. Make sure you eat some food you enjoy. Making getting through the day happy and satisfied (as much as possible) an equal goal to staying in a calorie deficit. Relax and give it 3 months.5 -
100% use a food scale, for everything. I never feel as confident and in control of my intake as when I can guarantee what my portion size is for every meal. I see how some people can get obsessive about it, I am one most definitely one of those people, but I'd rather obsess about weighing food and be in full control of my intake than obsess and be confused as to why the scale isn't moving despite my efforts to the contrary. This is topical for me as I have a work lunch and planned dinner out tonight... I don't know what's being brought in for lunch and will have no way of measuring portions for much of the day and I've been dreading it since the lunch was announced last week.
Another vote for heavy resistance training as well.
3 -
To increase metabolism gain weight.
Or height, but that's harder.
Being younger or male is even harder.
Even those with missing thyroids are vast majority within 5% of normal metabolism. That would be rare to be the issue even if you really did have slow metabolism.
It's the feeling tired and moving a whole lot less that's the kicker.
Oh, your comment about those with PCOS require larger deficits - no, actually not. Opposite.
Body is stressed out already. Deficit eating is a stress on the body.
Too much stress, water retained from increased cortisol.
The fact those with PCOS may move less means they have to eat less.
Now - what is likely the case is you don't move as much as normal calculations are assuming avg person would.
Because you aren't average - you have disease.
Now, eating so little for so long will suppress several body functions making you not burn as much as say MFP calcs or Fitbit is starting foundation with.
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/heybales/view/reduced-metabolism-tdee-beyond-expected-from-weight-loss-616251
If you've never calibrated your Fitbit for stride length - it could easily be inflating your daily burn.
And yes, measuring out your food can be a big difference, especially with the things you list.
And you don't do both things - you weigh it - super easy. Either weigh out a serving to make it easy to log, or weigh out what you want and divide that weight by a serving weight - there's your servings to log - still easy.
Calories is per gram - not spoon or cup - no way around that fact.
And you are gaining water weight if eating 1400 compared to 1200 adds on pounds.
It would take you 17-18 days to slowly add on 1 whole pound of fat if you really thought your daily burn is 1200 but you ate 1400.
Reread that - you are obsessed with scale weight if a non-noticeable 1-2 lb gain in 2 days eating so little more has you thinking it matters in any way.
So ask yourself - are you really concerned with scale weight that no one sees unless you invite them into bathroom when you weigh naked, or wear a sign stating current and goal weight?
Or are you concerned with the way you look and the fat you carry, in other words inches and measurements?
You've been given some solid advice - but if it's no good, and you think metabolism is the excuse - gain weight.
And then move that increased weight around to increase daily burn.
Then you can eat more.
If you are going to slowly eat more right now to help your body get out of stress - then eat 100 extra daily for a week or two at a time.
You should gain water weight.
Eat enough and you'll probably drop some stress water weight too eventually.
Word. And wrt to the bolded: especially if OP is trying to lower carbs, I suspect that some (many?) of those extra 200 Cals or so are carbs, which would also help retain water.
1 -
This tact is going nowhere.
@TyFit1908
When is the last time you have been to the doctor?
Have you taken your physical measurements and compared a month later?
Have you weighed on a different scale recently?
Do you feel dizzy or weak when you eat less for "weeks and weeks"?
If you knew eating what you thought was too little was not healthy why did you keep doing it?
Now that you are not working how much of your day are you devoting to your weight loss or lack of?
Are you happy outside of carrying a little extra weight?
I had a physical in November, everything was good. However, I've had PCOS for many years.
I have taken my measurements, and in May I lost a few inches in comparison to April. I actually went up two pounds. I decided not to stress out about that. I joined the gym and April and switched up my routine. I was very consistent the entire month. I have not weighed myself or taken additional measurements in the month of May.
I did feel dizzy, sometimes I felt weak. My workout at times suffered, particularly running. Sometimes I was very tired and sleepy. I knew I was eating too little, sometimes I just wanted to see the scale move. Sometimes I ate little because I was trying to cut out all of the high carb foods, and then there just wasn't much else left. I'm not a big meat eater, don't eat beef or pork or shellfish. So when I cut carbs too much, I find myself with nothing really to eat
I'm not working, but it's not my choice. Since I lost my job, I have become a full-time caretaker for my elderly mom. I also Uber Drive to make ends meet. Obviously this been very difficult. The job search has certainly had an impact on my happiness, or lack thereof. Since I am home I hit the gym regularly, and I have made Fitness a part of my daily routine. But something like it down and don't want to do anything . I do have to prepare meals for my mom. She has a sweet tooth, so I have to keep the house stacked with snacks. This doesn't bother me as much anymore, finally got used to all the junk food in the house. When I was working I used to meal prep for the week on Sunday. I'm thinking about doing that again so that I don't have to think about what I'm going to eat each day, hopefully eliminating an opportunity to make bad choices
Ok so here is what I am thinking. You are right. You are at a calorie deficit when you are losing weight. You are also at an unhealthy deficit which is why you have physical symptoms of dizziness and weakness. During this time you are extremely stressed so you are retaining water which prevents the scale from moving. This eventually gets to you which is understandable.
You have to slow down and be patient and if you can't you will need to see the doctor again to determine if you have an eating disorder.
Get a food scale and eat the recommended number of calories for your age, weight, height, and activity level adjusted as needed for your PCOS. Eat back some of your exercise calories. Make sure you eat some food you enjoy. Making getting through the day happy and satisfied (as much as possible) an equal goal to staying in a calorie deficit. Relax and give it 3 months.
Thanks so much. This was so helpful. I just need to get off this unhealthy cycle. When I was in my 20s losing weight was so easy. Granted, I didn't have this much weight to lose and I probably wasn't doing it healthy then. I guess I never learned how to lose weight in a healthy and realistic way. I always took the eat less move more to the extreme when I wanted to drop pounds, and that's how I ended up here.5 -
This tact is going nowhere.
@TyFit1908
When is the last time you have been to the doctor?
Have you taken your physical measurements and compared a month later?
Have you weighed on a different scale recently?
Do you feel dizzy or weak when you eat less for "weeks and weeks"?
If you knew eating what you thought was too little was not healthy why did you keep doing it?
Now that you are not working how much of your day are you devoting to your weight loss or lack of?
Are you happy outside of carrying a little extra weight?
I had a physical in November, everything was good. However, I've had PCOS for many years.
I have taken my measurements, and in May I lost a few inches in comparison to April. I actually went up two pounds. I decided not to stress out about that. I joined the gym and April and switched up my routine. I was very consistent the entire month. I have not weighed myself or taken additional measurements in the month of May.
I did feel dizzy, sometimes I felt weak. My workout at times suffered, particularly running. Sometimes I was very tired and sleepy. I knew I was eating too little, sometimes I just wanted to see the scale move. Sometimes I ate little because I was trying to cut out all of the high carb foods, and then there just wasn't much else left. I'm not a big meat eater, don't eat beef or pork or shellfish. So when I cut carbs too much, I find myself with nothing really to eat
I'm not working, but it's not my choice. Since I lost my job, I have become a full-time caretaker for my elderly mom. I also Uber Drive to make ends meet. Obviously this been very difficult. The job search has certainly had an impact on my happiness, or lack thereof. Since I am home I hit the gym regularly, and I have made Fitness a part of my daily routine. But something like it down and don't want to do anything . I do have to prepare meals for my mom. She has a sweet tooth, so I have to keep the house stacked with snacks. This doesn't bother me as much anymore, finally got used to all the junk food in the house. When I was working I used to meal prep for the week on Sunday. I'm thinking about doing that again so that I don't have to think about what I'm going to eat each day, hopefully eliminating an opportunity to make bad choices
Ok so here is what I am thinking. You are right. You are at a calorie deficit when you are losing weight. You are also at an unhealthy deficit which is why you have physical symptoms of dizziness and weakness. During this time you are extremely stressed so you are retaining water which prevents the scale from moving. This eventually gets to you which is understandable.
You have to slow down and be patient and if you can't you will need to see the doctor again to determine if you have an eating disorder.
Get a food scale and eat the recommended number of calories for your age, weight, height, and activity level adjusted as needed for your PCOS. Eat back some of your exercise calories. Make sure you eat some food you enjoy. Making getting through the day happy and satisfied (as much as possible) an equal goal to staying in a calorie deficit. Relax and give it 3 months.
Thanks so much. This was so helpful. I just need to get off this unhealthy cycle. When I was in my 20s losing weight was so easy. Granted, I didn't have this much weight to lose and I probably wasn't doing it healthy then. I guess I never learned how to lose weight in a healthy and realistic way. I always took the eat less move more to the extreme when I wanted to drop pounds, and that's how I ended up here.
So glad you stuck around and powered through!
I hope you find success this time around.5 -
Thanks so much. This was so helpful. I just need to get off this unhealthy cycle. When I was in my 20s losing weight was so easy. Granted, I didn't have this much weight to lose and I probably wasn't doing it healthy then. I guess I never learned how to lose weight in a healthy and realistic way. I always took the eat less move more to the extreme when I wanted to drop pounds, and that's how I ended up here.
Trust me I had a lot of bad dieting habits in my past. If you need any other help just ask. There is a lot of experience and knowledge in this forum so whatever you throw at them I am willing to bet they have an answer.
3 -
This tact is going nowhere.
@TyFit1908
When is the last time you have been to the doctor?
Have you taken your physical measurements and compared a month later?
Have you weighed on a different scale recently?
Do you feel dizzy or weak when you eat less for "weeks and weeks"?
If you knew eating what you thought was too little was not healthy why did you keep doing it?
Now that you are not working how much of your day are you devoting to your weight loss or lack of?
Are you happy outside of carrying a little extra weight?
I had a physical in November, everything was good. However, I've had PCOS for many years.
I have taken my measurements, and in May I lost a few inches in comparison to April. I actually went up two pounds. I decided not to stress out about that. I joined the gym and April and switched up my routine. I was very consistent the entire month. I have not weighed myself or taken additional measurements in the month of May.
I did feel dizzy, sometimes I felt weak. My workout at times suffered, particularly running. Sometimes I was very tired and sleepy. I knew I was eating too little, sometimes I just wanted to see the scale move. Sometimes I ate little because I was trying to cut out all of the high carb foods, and then there just wasn't much else left. I'm not a big meat eater, don't eat beef or pork or shellfish. So when I cut carbs too much, I find myself with nothing really to eat
I'm not working, but it's not my choice. Since I lost my job, I have become a full-time caretaker for my elderly mom. I also Uber Drive to make ends meet. Obviously this been very difficult. The job search has certainly had an impact on my happiness, or lack thereof. Since I am home I hit the gym regularly, and I have made Fitness a part of my daily routine. But something like it down and don't want to do anything . I do have to prepare meals for my mom. She has a sweet tooth, so I have to keep the house stacked with snacks. This doesn't bother me as much anymore, finally got used to all the junk food in the house. When I was working I used to meal prep for the week on Sunday. I'm thinking about doing that again so that I don't have to think about what I'm going to eat each day, hopefully eliminating an opportunity to make bad choices
Ok so here is what I am thinking. You are right. You are at a calorie deficit when you are losing weight. You are also at an unhealthy deficit which is why you have physical symptoms of dizziness and weakness. During this time you are extremely stressed so you are retaining water which prevents the scale from moving. This eventually gets to you which is understandable.
You have to slow down and be patient and if you can't you will need to see the doctor again to determine if you have an eating disorder.
Get a food scale and eat the recommended number of calories for your age, weight, height, and activity level adjusted as needed for your PCOS. Eat back some of your exercise calories. Make sure you eat some food you enjoy. Making getting through the day happy and satisfied (as much as possible) an equal goal to staying in a calorie deficit. Relax and give it 3 months.
Here's more on that:
http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/research-review/dietary-restraint-and-cortisol-levels-research-review.html/
...a group of women who scored higher on dietary restraint scores showed elevated baseline cortisol levels. By itself this might not be problematic, but as often as not, these types of dieters are drawn to extreme approaches to dieting.
They throw in a lot of intense exercise, try to cut calories very hard (and this often backfires if disinhibition is high; when these folks break they break) and cortisol levels go through the roof. That often causes cortisol mediated water retention (there are other mechanisms for this, mind you, leptin actually inhibits cortisol release and as it drops on a diet, cortisol levels go up further). Weight and fat loss appear to have stopped or at least slowed significantly. This is compounded even further in female dieters due to the vagaries of their menstrual cycle where water balance is changing enormously week to week anyhow.
And invariably, this type of psychology responds to the stall by going even harder. They attempt to cut calories harder, they start doing more activity. The cycle continues and gets worse. Harder dieting means more cortisol means more water retention means more dieting. Which backfires (other problems come in the long-term with this approach but you’ll have to wait for the book to read about that).
When what they should do is take a day or two off (even one day off from training, at least in men, let’s cortisol drop significantly). Raise calories, especially from carbohydrates. This helps cortisol to drop. More than that they need to find a way to freaking chill out. Meditation, yoga, get a massage... Get in the bath, candles, a little Enya, a glass of wine, have some you-time but please just chill.2 -
Not that it will persuade you, OP, but there was a time I was completely perplexed about why my weight was NOT responding the way I expected given eating/exercise. A food scale, for a mere $11 on Amazon, solved the mystery, eliminated frustration and yielded RESULTS.
Plus, my baking has improved. I can now accurately adjust recipes for feeding a crowd (without waste). And estimate postage. It's just an all around handy thing to have.
ETA: Weighing food on a scale was the only thing I had to change to get results.
Another vote for a food scale. It is SO NICE to not have to wonder how much to pack a measuring cup, plus I don't have to wash it either.
However, weighing peanut butter makes me sad now that I know how small amount a tablespoon really is.4 -
A food scale, a reasonable daily calorie goal, and a proven progressive lifting program. Keys to success.
https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10634517/you-dont-use-a-food-scale/p1
https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10332083/which-lifting-program-is-the-best-for-you/p1
Reference the "reasonable" above - I plugged your stats into a TDEE calculator. You need 1737 calories per day if you were basically bedridden, no exercise. You need approximately 2996 calories per day to maintain your current weight at your current activity level. To lose a pound a week (reasonable calorie goal), you should shoot for approximately 2400-2500 calories per week. You definitely need a food scale.
0 -
kshama2001 wrote: »This tact is going nowhere.
@TyFit1908
When is the last time you have been to the doctor?
Have you taken your physical measurements and compared a month later?
Have you weighed on a different scale recently?
Do you feel dizzy or weak when you eat less for "weeks and weeks"?
If you knew eating what you thought was too little was not healthy why did you keep doing it?
Now that you are not working how much of your day are you devoting to your weight loss or lack of?
Are you happy outside of carrying a little extra weight?
I had a physical in November, everything was good. However, I've had PCOS for many years.
I have taken my measurements, and in May I lost a few inches in comparison to April. I actually went up two pounds. I decided not to stress out about that. I joined the gym and April and switched up my routine. I was very consistent the entire month. I have not weighed myself or taken additional measurements in the month of May.
I did feel dizzy, sometimes I felt weak. My workout at times suffered, particularly running. Sometimes I was very tired and sleepy. I knew I was eating too little, sometimes I just wanted to see the scale move. Sometimes I ate little because I was trying to cut out all of the high carb foods, and then there just wasn't much else left. I'm not a big meat eater, don't eat beef or pork or shellfish. So when I cut carbs too much, I find myself with nothing really to eat
I'm not working, but it's not my choice. Since I lost my job, I have become a full-time caretaker for my elderly mom. I also Uber Drive to make ends meet. Obviously this been very difficult. The job search has certainly had an impact on my happiness, or lack thereof. Since I am home I hit the gym regularly, and I have made Fitness a part of my daily routine. But something like it down and don't want to do anything . I do have to prepare meals for my mom. She has a sweet tooth, so I have to keep the house stacked with snacks. This doesn't bother me as much anymore, finally got used to all the junk food in the house. When I was working I used to meal prep for the week on Sunday. I'm thinking about doing that again so that I don't have to think about what I'm going to eat each day, hopefully eliminating an opportunity to make bad choices
Ok so here is what I am thinking. You are right. You are at a calorie deficit when you are losing weight. You are also at an unhealthy deficit which is why you have physical symptoms of dizziness and weakness. During this time you are extremely stressed so you are retaining water which prevents the scale from moving. This eventually gets to you which is understandable.
You have to slow down and be patient and if you can't you will need to see the doctor again to determine if you have an eating disorder.
Get a food scale and eat the recommended number of calories for your age, weight, height, and activity level adjusted as needed for your PCOS. Eat back some of your exercise calories. Make sure you eat some food you enjoy. Making getting through the day happy and satisfied (as much as possible) an equal goal to staying in a calorie deficit. Relax and give it 3 months.
Here's more on that:
http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/research-review/dietary-restraint-and-cortisol-levels-research-review.html/
...a group of women who scored higher on dietary restraint scores showed elevated baseline cortisol levels. By itself this might not be problematic, but as often as not, these types of dieters are drawn to extreme approaches to dieting.
They throw in a lot of intense exercise, try to cut calories very hard (and this often backfires if disinhibition is high; when these folks break they break) and cortisol levels go through the roof. That often causes cortisol mediated water retention (there are other mechanisms for this, mind you, leptin actually inhibits cortisol release and as it drops on a diet, cortisol levels go up further). Weight and fat loss appear to have stopped or at least slowed significantly. This is compounded even further in female dieters due to the vagaries of their menstrual cycle where water balance is changing enormously week to week anyhow.
And invariably, this type of psychology responds to the stall by going even harder. They attempt to cut calories harder, they start doing more activity. The cycle continues and gets worse. Harder dieting means more cortisol means more water retention means more dieting. Which backfires (other problems come in the long-term with this approach but you’ll have to wait for the book to read about that).
When what they should do is take a day or two off (even one day off from training, at least in men, let’s cortisol drop significantly). Raise calories, especially from carbohydrates. This helps cortisol to drop. More than that they need to find a way to freaking chill out. Meditation, yoga, get a massage... Get in the bath, candles, a little Enya, a glass of wine, have some you-time but please just chill.
This sounds like it's about me. That has really been my life for years. Go hard or go home. I see that mindset has gotten me in some trouble. I've even had overuse injuries from exercising so hard. And when I try to cut back, it still ends up being more than average. I had a pinched nerve last year and the doctor told me to only walk for exercise. But of course I had to speed walk for 5 miles a day. Not just for this but some of the other things going on in my life I've really been getting meditation is shot. Now more than ever I realize how much I need it.1 -
So many of us have that mindset either on everything in life, or enough, and have experienced the negatives.
I've done it in the past with exercise. guess what that causes - injuries eventually, usually. Which makes it very easy to slip into the go home side of things since you can't go hard now.
Which then leads to thinking the diet to feed the hard workouts doesn't matter - so chuck that out the window too.1 -
I bought a food scale. Picked this up from Target yesterday after reading so many pro food scale comments.
I weighed my dinner last night. It was something I had logged before. Apparently, in this case I was overestimating how much I was eating. Which is scary to think my calorie intake may have been even lower than I thought. I decided to up my calories to about 1700 a day. Ate that yesterday and I was sooooo full. I'm not even going to weigh myself, because I don't want to get discouraged and go back to unhealthy habits.
One question, someone mentioned weighs things like peanut butter and oils. I don't know if my scale is cheap, but I can't seem to get weights for light items. I weighed a small banana today and the scale stayed at zero. Clearly the banana weighs something. For items too light for the scale, do I just guestimate or if if it something like oils, sauces used measuring spoons?
1 -
I bought a food scale. Picked this up from Target yesterday after reading so many pro food scale comments.
I weighed my dinner last night. It was something I had logged before. Apparently, in this case I was overestimating how much I was eating. Which is scary to think my calorie intake may have been even lower than I thought. I decided to up my calories to about 1700 a day. Ate that yesterday and I was sooooo full. I'm not even going to weigh myself, because I don't want to get discouraged and go back to unhealthy habits.
One question, someone mentioned weighs things like peanut butter and oils. I don't know if my scale is cheap, but I can't seem to get weights for light items. I weighed a small banana today and the scale stayed at zero. Clearly the banana weighs something. For items too light for the scale, do I just guestimate or if if it something like oils, sauces used measuring spoons?
How are you assuming your dinner weighing was accurate if the scale doesn't register a banana? Definitely a fault in the scale - even bad ones weigh in 5 g increments...2 -
Did you maybe accidentally tare the scale with the banana on it?2
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I'm not familiar with that scale, but I'd start by pressing the unit button. I assume it will cycle through different metrics like grams, oz, etc. Perhaps it was set to lbs, so anything that doesn't weight a minimum (say .25lbs) shows as zero? Change the units to grams or oz and see what you get.
Lots of assumptions there... like I said, I'm not familiar with that scale.3
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