Weight loss

sf619 · February 2019

Hi! First time writing here.im trying to drop 33 lbs. I was trying a diet of sugars below 20 grams a day, fat below 40 and protein at least 60. I lost my first 4 lbs then stalled. Stayed there for a few weeks and switched to keto. Lost 1lb in 3 weeks. And have been very strict. I moved back to the other diet and my bro who introduced me to this went over it with me and thinks my calories are too low. I'm 700-800/day. But I can't figure out how to raise the calories without raising the fat or sugars/carbs. And I fear I have bounced around and am overall confused now. I weigh 173 and am 5'7. My goal is 140 and healthy. Any ideas for raising calories? I feel like I'm eating all day. I don't know how my calories are so low.

Panini911 · February 2019

i'd recommend you stop chasing fad diets and random ways of eating. weight loss comes from eating at a calorie deficit repeatedly over time. how you eat and what you eat (and WHEN you eat) only helps for satiety and overall health. I don't overly worry about macros (fat, protein, carbs) and successfully lost weight as expected.

Enter your stats in MFP and eat what it recommends for a reasonable rate of loss. with so little to lose look at 1lb a week. PLUS eat back exercise calories.

get a food scale weigh all solids, carefully measure liquids (measuring spoons/cups) be careful on selection of entry in food journal. Log everything you eat/drink.

Read these posts with more details on the above:
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1080242/a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants/p1

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1399829/step-by-step-guide-to-losing-weight-with-myfitnesspal

Muscleflex79 · February 2019

sf619 wrote: »

Hi! First time writing here.im trying to drop 33 lbs. I was trying a diet of sugars below 20 grams a day, fat below 40 and protein at least 60. I lost my first 4 lbs then stalled. Stayed there for a few weeks and switched to keto. Lost 1lb in 3 weeks. And have been very strict. I moved back to the other diet and my bro who introduced me to this went over it with me and thinks my calories are too low. I'm 700-800/day. But I can't figure out how to raise the calories without raising the fat or sugars/carbs. And I fear I have bounced around and am overall confused now. I weigh 173 and am 5'7. My goal is 140 and healthy. Any ideas for raising calories? I feel like I'm eating all day. I don't know how my calories are so low.

a lot is not adding up here - you say you feel like you are eating all day - yet are only at 700-800 calories per day? unless you are eating lettuce and nothing else all day, I don't see how that can be. also, if you were truly eating 700-800 calories per day the weight would be flying off. sounds like you are not weighing your food? start there to get a true idea of how much you are consuming.

kenyonhaff · February 2019

Are you weighing your food?
Are you logging your food?
Are you set up with a goal with MFP?

sf619 · February 2019

Thank you all. The diet my bro has me doing isn't a fad like the keto. Just the ore gastric surgery diet. I am not having that surgery. He did though and lost a lot of weight prior by doing this. I am logging. Except during the keto. I wasn't logging. I probably had 5000 calories a day during keto cause I was thinking as long as my carbs were low I would be ok. Nope lol. I'm also weighing everything. And yes, lots of salads. Breakfast is typically one egg. Snack low fat pollyo string cheese. Lunch either salad or tuna. Dinner grilled chicken and broccoli. At this point I am having a difficult time constantly watching to make sure I don't go over on fat or sugar. I like the idea of just watching calories! Cause maybe I won't be so sad about it. Cause I feel I am the strictest I have ever been on my life and it's soooo slow. I do have thyroid issues and am on meds. So it could be that. But just hoping for more guidance on HOW to lose weight best.

janejellyroll · February 2019

sf619 wrote: »

Thank you all. The diet my bro has me doing isn't a fad like the keto. Just the ore gastric surgery diet. I am not having that surgery. He did though and lost a lot of weight prior by doing this. I am logging. Except during the keto. I wasn't logging. I probably had 5000 calories a day during keto cause I was thinking as long as my carbs were low I would be ok. Nope lol. I'm also weighing everything. And yes, lots of salads. Breakfast is typically one egg. Snack low fat pollyo string cheese. Lunch either salad or tuna. Dinner grilled chicken and broccoli. At this point I am having a difficult time constantly watching to make sure I don't go over on fat or sugar. I like the idea of just watching calories! Cause maybe I won't be so sad about it. Cause I feel I am the strictest I have ever been on my life and it's soooo slow. I do have thyroid issues and am on meds. So it could be that. But just hoping for more guidance on HOW to lose weight best.

Gastric surgery diets are typically planned to be short-term diets done under medical supervision. Why did you choose this plan?

tulips_and_tea · February 2019

sf619 wrote: »

Thank you all. The diet my bro has me doing isn't a fad like the keto. Just the ore gastric surgery diet. I am not having that surgery. He did though and lost a lot of weight prior by doing this. I am logging. Except during the keto. I wasn't logging. I probably had 5000 calories a day during keto cause I was thinking as long as my carbs were low I would be ok. Nope lol. I'm also weighing everything. And yes, lots of salads. Breakfast is typically one egg. Snack low fat pollyo string cheese. Lunch either salad or tuna. Dinner grilled chicken and broccoli. At this point I am having a difficult time constantly watching to make sure I don't go over on fat or sugar. I like the idea of just watching calories! Cause maybe I won't be so sad about it. Cause I feel I am the strictest I have ever been on my life and it's soooo slow. I do have thyroid issues and am on meds. So it could be that. But just hoping for more guidance on HOW to lose weight best.

To answer your question at the end: by focusing less on the type of food you eat or suggestions by someone else and monitoring your actual calorie intake. Even if you do keto you have to track calories.

You specifically state that you'd prefer to just count calories so do that, accurately and consistently. Don't make things complicated by overwhelming yourself with inaccurate information from others.

sf619 · February 2019

My brother did it and lost a lot of weight and when he told me about it, it sounded like a healthy way to lose weight. And it probably is! Haha I'm probably just doing it wrong. I added 1/2 cup of granola and some pistachios today. But counting my dinner ahead of time that's still only getting me close to 1000 calories but I'm already over on fat. So I'm trying to balance the fat/sugar/carbs/protein/calories and it's making me crazy cause it's impossible.

kenyonhaff · February 2019

sf619 wrote: »

Thank you all. The diet my bro has me doing isn't a fad like the keto. Just the ore gastric surgery diet. I am not having that surgery. He did though and lost a lot of weight prior by doing this. I am logging. Except during the keto. I wasn't logging. I probably had 5000 calories a day during keto cause I was thinking as long as my carbs were low I would be ok. Nope lol. I'm also weighing everything. And yes, lots of salads. Breakfast is typically one egg. Snack low fat pollyo string cheese. Lunch either salad or tuna. Dinner grilled chicken and broccoli. At this point I am having a difficult time constantly watching to make sure I don't go over on fat or sugar. I like the idea of just watching calories! Cause maybe I won't be so sad about it. Cause I feel I am the strictest I have ever been on my life and it's soooo slow. I do have thyroid issues and am on meds. So it could be that. But just hoping for more guidance on HOW to lose weight best.

You haven't answered the questions on whether you're logging, goal, weighing, etc. The best way on MFP is to do exactly that.

You can certainly choose to do it on keto, low carb, low sugar or whatever...BUT you do not have to!!! BUT you have to pick a goal, select how much to lose per week...and then log your food in accurately.

janejellyroll · February 2019

sf619 wrote: »

My brother did it and lost a lot of weight and when he told me about it, it sounded like a healthy way to lose weight. And it probably is! Haha I'm probably just doing it wrong. I added 1/2 cup of granola and some pistachios today. But counting my dinner ahead of time that's still only getting me close to 1000 calories but I'm already over on fat. So I'm trying to balance the fat/sugar/carbs/protein/calories and it's making me crazy cause it's impossible.

It's a diet designed for people who have a pressing medical need to lose weight to prepare for surgery. That it's judged to be less risky than severe obesity *for them* doesn't mean that it's necessarily the best or safest plan for others. Also, they're being medically monitored to ensure they're getting what they need. You (presumably) aren't.

Balancing out macros exactly isn't necessary for weight loss. Hitting specific macro goals is something that *some people* find useful for satiety or fitness, but it's completely optional for the rest of us. Of course, you want to ensure you're getting sufficient fat and protein to thrive. But you can do this without hitting a narrow range daily.

Why do things that make you feel crazy?

Many of us are just eating to ensure we hit our (reasonable) calorie goal, making sure we get enough of what we need each day without overthinking it, and pretty much just making this an everyday part of our lives.

kenyonhaff · February 2019

sf619 wrote: »

My brother did it and lost a lot of weight and when he told me about it, it sounded like a healthy way to lose weight. And it probably is! Haha I'm probably just doing it wrong. I added 1/2 cup of granola and some pistachios today. But counting my dinner ahead of time that's still only getting me close to 1000 calories but I'm already over on fat. So I'm trying to balance the fat/sugar/carbs/protein/calories and it's making me crazy cause it's impossible.

Don't worry about the fat. Don't worry about the sugar. You probably won't be all within your macros all the time, and that's fine.

What matters is the calories on MFP.

And even then, it will take a little time for you to learn how to work within your limits and goals. That always takes a little trial and error. But in the long term it saves a lot of grief because you develop knowledge and skills and techniques rather than just eating what someone tells you to.

Remember what works for your brother may not work for you. His nutritional needs are different even if just by the difference that he's male.

amy19355 · February 2019

you don't need to reinvent the wheel.

start with the sticky posts for newbies - https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10300331/most-helpful-posts-getting-started-must-reads#latest

AnnPT77 · February 2019

sf619 wrote: »

My brother did it and lost a lot of weight and when he told me about it, it sounded like a healthy way to lose weight. And it probably is! Haha I'm probably just doing it wrong. I added 1/2 cup of granola and some pistachios today. But counting my dinner ahead of time that's still only getting me close to 1000 calories but I'm already over on fat. So I'm trying to balance the fat/sugar/carbs/protein/calories and it's making me crazy cause it's impossible.

Eating way too few calories is absolutely not "a healthy way to lose weight". It's a way to get weak, fatigued, lose more than minimum muscle alongside fat loss, maybe lose hair and get brittle nails, trigger gall bladder issues, and more.

People who've had weight loss surgery are under close medical supervision to make sure they stay healthy. You're not. Take the weight loss slower.

It's good that you're over on fat, because there's a decent chance that you're targeting too little fat for best health.

The idea that fat is bad (for most people) is outdated. I suspect fat is kept low for people right after weight loss surgery because of gastric issues that can occur. If you didn't have surgery, don't worry about it.

You need fat for good cellular health, for digestive throughput (i.e., avoiding constipation), for hormone balance, and more. Eat fat. If you can get a fair portion of it from monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fat sources (like nuts, avocados, olive oil, etc.), that's good nutritionally (so the pistachios were an excellent add). A lot of us here think that 0.35-0.45g fat daily per pound of healthy goal weight is a good daily target, as a minimum. Eating more won't hurt you, as long as it doesn't crowd out other nutrients you need.

Calories, pure and simple, determine weight. Nutrition is also important, so work toward getting enough fats, enough protein, and plenty of nice varied, colorful veggies and fruits (for micronutrients and extra fiber). For most people, carb intake can fall where it falls, within calorie goal (people who are diabetic, insulin resistant, or for whom they cause appetite/craving issues may need to pay more attention to them; most of us needn't).

It's:

Appropriate calories for weight management + well-rounded balanced eating (with a few treats occasionally) for nutrition and enjoyment + fun exercise for fitness = best odds of continuing long term good health

. . . and long term good health is what most of us want, isn't it?

Best wishes!

Weight loss

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