CICO not working, why?

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  • BelleRequin
    BelleRequin Posts: 15 Member
    Have you really had your iron checked, and have you, not just your doctor/endocrinologist looked at it? (because low iron does affect thyroid). Being 'low' but in the normal range can still significantly affect your health, and ability to lose weight.
  • MomOnAMission76
    MomOnAMission76 Posts: 200 Member
    BelleRequin wrote: »
    Have you really had your iron checked, and have you, not just your doctor/endocrinologist looked at it? (because low iron does affect thyroid). Being 'low' but in the normal range can still significantly affect your health, and ability to lose weight.

    Yes, I was in fact on the lower side of the normal range. I asked her about this specifically and she said it was "fine"...I do take a multivitamin with iron, I suppose I could take an additional supplement to see if it makes an impact.
  • Zomoniac
    Zomoniac Posts: 1,169 Member
    To echo others, ditch the cups, and as someone else said, switch to metric. It's far more precise. 0.1 oz is around 3 grams, and if you're working with something calorie-dense like butter where there are over 7 calories per gram then you need that precision.

    Also, cups are a measure of volume (same with spoons), and solids shouldn't be measured by volume (I've never understood this, it seems to be a standard American thing to do it, but if you use the same cup and the same pasta and weigh out two cups then 99% of the time you'll have two different amounts because of how it tessellates). Anything that isn't a liquid (though with non-whole milk and water you can use 1g=1ml) should be done by weight.
  • kimny72
    kimny72 Posts: 16,011 Member
    Tessellates! Awesome word, I am challenging myself to use it in a sentence this week. Or at least tell someone else about it :smiley:

    OP, I believe iron is a supplement you need to be careful with, as you can over-supplement. Just a heads up!
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    MomOnAMission76 wrote: »
    Something I just thought of and wanted to post here for insight...I've been measuring my proteins in cooked ounces. A 6 oz chicken breast would cook down to maybe 4 oz, so I've been entering 4 oz. Have I been doing this wrong all along?

    Unfortunately, the "verified" green check marks are used for both user-created entries and system entries. To find system entries for whole foods, I get the syntax from the USDA database and plug that into MFP.

    For packaged foods, I verify the label against what I find in MFP.
  • VeryKatie
    VeryKatie Posts: 5,961 Member
    edited September 2018
    Do you eat out at all? If you do, assume all the portions you are served at 20% more calories than the website says (enter as 1.2 per item). I did some reading and it seems on average, eating out is 20% more (some more, some less, but taking it all in). And packaged items like yogurt and granola bars, do you weigh those? They are often 5 to 10% heavier than the package says (therefore, more calories).

    But honestly, I don't even know if that would make enough difference for you since you are allowing 300 calories (1600 to 1900) for wiggle room. So the most likely culprit is using the wrong database entries/measurements... Also keep consistent for at least 3 weeks before determining if something is or isn't working. Bodies don't lose weight linearly and some people experience the "whoosh" effect, where at a deficit, weight holds steady for a couple weeks and then "WHOOSH" they drop 5 lbs in a day. And repeat that pattern. So sometimes it just takes time figuring out how your body will react.
  • MomOnAMission76
    MomOnAMission76 Posts: 200 Member
    VeryKatie wrote: »
    Do you eat out at all? If you do, assume all the portions you are served at 20% more calories than the website says (enter as 1.2 per item). I did some reading and it seems on average, eating out is 20% more (some more, some less, but taking it all in). And packaged items like yogurt and granola bars, do you weigh those? They are often 5 to 10% heavier than the package says (therefore, more calories).

    But honestly, I don't even know if that would make enough difference for you since you are allowing 300 calories (1600 to 1900) for wiggle room. So the most likely culprit is using the wrong database entries/measurements... Also keep consistent for at least 3 weeks before determining if something is or isn't working. Bodies don't lose weight linearly and some people experience the "whoosh" effect, where at a deficit, weight holds steady for a couple weeks and then "WHOOSH" they drop 5 lbs in a day. And repeat that pattern. So sometimes it just takes time figuring out how your body will react.

    We don't eat out often, because I don't feel like I can justify the cheat just yet due to not losing very much. When we do, I will keep this in mind. I don't weight packaged foods, I tend to trust the packaging. This would probably only apply for my 0% fat yogurt and the occasional protein bar.

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