Reassurance?

spaingirl2011
spaingirl2011 Posts: 763 Member
edited October 2024 in Health and Weight Loss
I've spent the last month or so on this site and after the first week where I lost 2lbs, I haven't seen a loss. I'm not kidding. Not one loss. The scale hasn't gone past 160 in about 3 weeks. The first week (when I did lose) I had so much activity going on--between exercise and packing up my apartment and I tried to keep up the same activity level throughout the second week. Only to find that I gained .4lbs. And then I kept my exercise level about the same--burning between 500-700 calories 5 days a week. The week I moved back to my parents' house, I reduced my exercise to burning about 250-400 calories 5 days a week. Still, nothing below 160.

And then I finally came to the conclusion that it might be my food intake. You see, I had MFP set up to lose 1 1/2lbs a week. It put me at 1,200 calories a day. I bumped that up to about 1,330 calories a day. I was not eating exercise calories.

So yesterday, I took the plunge, reset my goals to 1lb loss a week-- which gave me 1460 calories a day. And I ate my exercise calories which almost added up to 1700 calories that day. Now, I've read all the newbie posts and all of the information and I understand intellectually why I should do it. But I'm afraid that I'm going to gain. Or that I'm eating too much (which is why I'm here in the first place).

My height: 5'4
SW: 162
CW: 160
GW: 135

Basically, I'm looking for reassurance that I'm not going to end up looking like a beached whale at the end of the week because I have to eat nearly 1700 calories (or more!) to meet my goal calorie intake.

Thanks everyone! I truly appreciate it!

Replies

  • Autumn15
    Autumn15 Posts: 213
    I'm fairly new on here myself but I was about the same range as you. SW 172 CW 150 GW 135 I have mine set at 1200 calories a day and I do 45 to 60 minutes 7 days per week on the treadmill which bumps my calories up to around 1500 per day now. It was higher when I started but I always try to do my calorie intake for the original 1200 and not worry about using up the exercise calories unless I do a bunch of extra exercise on some days then I still try to keep the calorie inatake around 1400. I've been doing this for about 3 months and I've lost 20 pounds and feel somuch better. I hope this helps.
  • katheern
    katheern Posts: 213 Member
    If you want to be safe, try eating half of them back and see how that goes. People generally under report for calories and over reporting on exercise.

    I can't tell from your food diary but I would also probably track sugar and sodium. I notice when I am less careful about that and go over a lot I tend to stall out and not lose weight.
  • a_stronger_steph
    a_stronger_steph Posts: 434 Member
    Hey - I'm 5'4" and started at 175 lb. My calories have been about the same since I started MFP in March: 1430 calories (to NET!!). At the time that was about 0.9 lb/week loss rate. To be honest, I didn't want to eat less than 1430, because I tend to get quite hungry if I try to eat much less than that. :)

    Anyways. I've lost 26 lbs in total since I started. I usually try to eat my exercise calories back - so on days that I exercise and get another 300 calories, I try to eat near 1730 in order to still net 1430 calories. I do tend to knock some calories off the MFP exercise estimate, because I've heard it runs a bit high. I also underestimate the amount and speed that I walk (I walk at a 3.0 or 3.5 mph pace, but log it as a 2.5 mph pace).

    In about 5 more pounds, when I'm 145 or so, I'm going to set my calorie goal even higher, to a 0.5 lb/week loss, in part because I want to ease my body into maintenance very gradually. :)

    Hope this is the reassurance you needed - you CAN still lose weight eating 1400+ net calories, for certain! I have!!!
  • wjkfloyd
    wjkfloyd Posts: 125 Member
    Give it a week or two and continue to excercise and eat into your excercise calories. I have found it works for me to dip into those 'extra' calories. I think the warnings they give you on here are true, "starving yourself (or not enough calorie intake) will cause you to burn calories/fat slower'.

    Good luck!
  • spaingirl2011
    spaingirl2011 Posts: 763 Member
    Thanks everyone! I'm thinking I'll probably need about two weeks to get my body losing again (seeing as I was 800cals net) since it got so used to being underfed.
  • chevy88grl
    chevy88grl Posts: 3,937 Member
    I'm 5'4" and I eat 2200-2500 NET calories a day and am maintaining 143-145lbs.

    I started at 1700 - didn't lose one single ounce. Moved to 1800 - same as 1700. Moved up again to 1900 - I lost like 1lb in MONTHS (and I do mean MONTHS). Decided to move up again to 2000 - and I went from something like 167lbs to 155lbs in a few weeks. I stayed at 2000 calories (net) and I dropped to 150lbs in about a month. I continued to eat 2000 calories from Sept 2010 to May 2011 and maintained the 150lbs (through the holidays, through injuries, etc). In May 2011, I upped my calories and lost 5-7lbs to bring me to where I am now.


    Gotta eat to lose. Your body NEEDS fuel to feel comfortable enough to lose weight.
  • Jenscan
    Jenscan Posts: 694 Member
    I eat 1600-1700 calories on the days I exercise and am losing effectively. I can't say I don't look like a beached whale yet, but I look LESS like a whale than I used to.

    Really, setting yourself to 1 lb/week as you have is a good idea. Give yourself a couple weeks to let it work.
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