Having a hard day

AshleyWLose
AshleyWLose Posts: 17 Member
in Food and Nutrition
So, I am having a really rough day. I have successfully eaten and worked out for 7 days. I have lost nothing. My pants fit the same. And I feel so defeated.

Replies

  • AshleyWLose
    AshleyWLose Posts: 17 Member
    How do you all handle cravings??
  • Kathryn247
    Kathryn247 Posts: 570 Member
    Do you mean cravings for something specific, or the craving to eat everything all the time that got a lot of us overweight in the first place?
    If it's something specific, I might have a little and count it, if I think I can stop at a little.
    For the "I just want to eat all the time" cravings, I remember that I always wanted to eat all the time, whether I was gaining weight or losing weight, and I decided I'd rather be losing weight.

    Hang in there, be determined to stick to your goal!
  • clarkeje1
    clarkeje1 Posts: 1,641 Member
    that's so frustrating! keep at it!
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    A week is not long enough for any kind of meaningful analysis. Also, if you're just starting exercise, you are going to hold onto water to protect and repair your muscles. This can often mask any fat loss.

    Expecting clothes to fit differently in a weeks time is just unrealistic. Losing weight is a long and slow process.
  • brightresolve
    brightresolve Posts: 1,024 Member
    Kathryn247 wrote: »
    ...
    For the "I just want to eat all the time" cravings, I remember that I always wanted to eat all the time, whether I was gaining weight or losing weight, and I decided I'd rather be losing weight.
    ...

    ^^ This is awesome.

    And I agree with all above - a week is just getting started.

    If you continue seeing no measurable results, you could look at the way your are measuring and logging your food - honestly, it takes a while to get that figured out, especially when we really want that portion size to be bigger than it is, or that sauce to have less calories than it does ... A food scale really can help!!

    I try to leave calories for a little treat every day. I like my treat in the evening. Knowing I can have that, helps me stay on plan.

    How are you estimating your exercise calorie burn? In my experience most cardio machines (treadmill, elliptical etc) overestimate the burn and so do the estimates built in here on MFP. Stength training calorie burns are notoriously hard to estimate. If you are eating back all of your exercise calories and the calorie burn you log for exercise is too high, you may not be losing; if you are eating back NONE of your exercise calories, that can cause hunger and cravings.

    Good luck and congrats on getting started - that's the hardest part!!!
  • ritzvin
    ritzvin Posts: 2,860 Member
    AshleyWLose wrote: »
    So, I am having a really rough day. I have successfully eaten and worked out for 7 days. I have lost nothing. My pants fit the same. And I feel so defeated.

    If the bolded is new for you, then some extra water weight is fairly likely.
    Even if not, normal water weight fluctuations can easily hide weight loss in a short time span like a week.
  • AshleyWLose
    AshleyWLose Posts: 17 Member
    Kathryn247 wrote: »
    Do you mean cravings for something specific, or the craving to eat everything all the time that got a lot of us overweight in the first place?
    If it's something specific, I might have a little and count it, if I think I can stop at a little.
    For the "I just want to eat all the time" cravings, I remember that I always wanted to eat all the time, whether I was gaining weight or losing weight, and I decided I'd rather be losing weight.

    Hang in there, be determined to stick to your goal!

    I just want to eat. I want to put food in my mouth.
  • rosiorama
    rosiorama Posts: 300 Member
    AshleyWLose wrote: »
    Kathryn247 wrote: »
    Do you mean cravings for something specific, or the craving to eat everything all the time that got a lot of us overweight in the first place?
    If it's something specific, I might have a little and count it, if I think I can stop at a little.
    For the "I just want to eat all the time" cravings, I remember that I always wanted to eat all the time, whether I was gaining weight or losing weight, and I decided I'd rather be losing weight.

    Hang in there, be determined to stick to your goal!

    I just want to eat. I want to put food in my mouth.

    I have a sweet tooth and I also always want to eat. I have hard candies in the house that I’d break my teeth on if I chewed them. If I’m feeling antsy for sugar, I will have one of those. Hardly any calories, and they last long enough to distract me from higher calorie stuff.
  • Sunshine_And_Sand
    Sunshine_And_Sand Posts: 1,320 Member
    Do you have a weight trend app? I like Happy Scale. It's free. You weigh daily and it smooths out your trend lines so that you can see your overall downward trend despite the fluctuations. You do have to give it time though. You really need about a months worth of numbers to look at before saying something is or isn't working. Good luck!
  • Salixiana
    Salixiana Posts: 37 Member
    For those "just want to put food in my mouth" moments, I eat a few raw carrots or raw radishes, very slowly. Or kimchi. With a glass of water and maybe a half-ounce of cheese, it's surprising how these chewy vegies can calm down that unsettled feeling. I also use perfume. Having a strong fragrance around me seems to substitute for having something in my mouth sometimes.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 34,225 Member
    Sunshine_And_Sand wrote: »
    Do you have a weight trend app? I like Happy Scale. It's free. You weigh daily and it smooths out your trend lines so that you can see your overall downward trend despite the fluctuations. You do have to give it time though. You really need about a months worth of numbers to look at before saying something is or isn't working. Good luck!

    Happy Scale is iOS only. There's also Libra for Android, Trendweight with a Fitbit account (free), Weightgrapher, others. They work best with more than a week of data, too.

    OP: Patience! Bet you didn't gain a huge amount of weight in a week; don't expect to lose it in a week, either.

    For cravings: Don't try to lose crazy fast. Recognize whether your cravings are hunger (physical), appetite (psychological), lack of sleep, stress, boredom, emotion, habit, social triggers, or something else. If the problem isn't physical hunger, the answer isn't eating.

    If it's physical hunger, figure out what satiates you, personally. It's very individual. For some it's protein, others fats, some need complex carbs (potatoes, oatmeal, rice, etc.), some need fats (avocados, nuts in reasonable portions, etc.), some high volume (often high fiber veggies). Sometimes timing makes a difference: Anything from 6-8 tiny snack-y meals daily (or even all-day light grazing) to OMAD (one meal a day) intermittent fasting (or anything in between). Think about (near-)zero calorie satisfiers like herb tea, diet soda, celery, or even water (still or sparkling).

    Treat it as a personal science fair experiment, and figure out your personal formula.

    You can do this!
  • ahoy_m8
    ahoy_m8 Posts: 3,053 Member
    Just following up on the suggestions to double check that your calorie goal is appropriate (deficit not too large). It’s worth making the effort to check this. Otherwise you set yourself up for more struggle than necessary.

    If your calorie intake is appropriate and the issue is the psychological urge to eat, check out Judith Beck
    https://www.amazon.com/Beck-Diet-Solution-Train-Person/dp/0848732758
    She discusses using cognitive behavioral therapy to change stubborn eating habits. Maybe there’s something in there you would find useful. I have eating urges, too, so I know what you mean. Saying “no” to your urges improves with practice. Best wishes, OP.
  • wilson10102018
    wilson10102018 Posts: 1,306 Member
    You have two things going on. Hunger and defeated feelings. You can have hunger and happiness at the same time. You can be not hungry and still be miserable.

    Start with the hunger. Drink water with every meal. It will mask your weight loss but not for long. And, it will reduce the hunger. Eat some bulk items with every meal whether you want them or not. Carrot, raspberries, apples, green stuff, etc.

    Then heed the advice above - one week tells you nothing about your weight loss. Body chemistry for a 200 pound person could swing your weight 5-10 pounds up or down without even getting into sodium intake. Relax. Its a process not an event.
  • Anthem76
    Anthem76 Posts: 81 Member
    [quote="I just want to eat. I want to put food in my mouth.[/quote]

    Check out the volume eaters thread for ideas on how to make ENORMOUS plates of food that are filling, but low calorie. That, along with IF, has changed the way I diet. I'm not hungry and losing. Plus my diet is way healthier, although eating this way allows enough room for treats. Also, if you don't already have one, get a food scale. Mine was about $10-15.

    Nearly 100 pages of great ideas:
    https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10563959/volume-eaters-thread/

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