Weight-Loss Attempt Not Working?

Is the exercise and weight lifting new, or more than you used to do? Because new or increased exercise can cause water and fluid retention that will mask any fat loss.

You are already at a healthy weight, so with not a lot to lose, any loss you have is going to be slow...less than the pound or more a week you're expecting. 3 weeks is not long enough to determine if what you are doing is working. Give it more time.

It's only been three weeks!
The first weight gain was probably water weight if this kind of workout was new for you or if you weighted after having a more food day. I also say what others have been saying: weigh all your food. I might easily eat 300 calories of veggies and low calorie other stuff per day. If I ate 1450 calories per day plus this then I'd gain weight (yeah, I'm small and old).

I'm also 5'6" and when I was eating 1350 calories a day, working out about 3-400 calories 3x a week, eating clean- it was SO HARD to lose- incremental, because my body A ) had little to lose and B ) was used to living on less calories already. You could be retaining water- I'm actually a little alarmed at the 6-7 days a week exercise since your body does need to rest to repair and build. I agree with others- weigh your EVERYTHING, look into labels that claim 0 calories per serving because if something is 0.9 they can legally label it as 0 since it doesn't make 1. So if you have 8 servings of "0" it could actually be 7.2 - I know it seems silly but little things like that are what caught me up before, especially if you are following macros.

Cut your carbs or experiment- I found that dairy and bread products BLOAT me like no one's business- it is so bad that I can tell mere minutes/hours after eating -say-a sandwich.

Some other things are the salts- if you have a lot of sodium you will retain water. Period. Weigh yourself at the same time every time. Fruit is full of (natural) sugar.

Do you measure/track inches? I 'gained' a bit of weight or the scale stuck for me for a bit there as my fat levels lowered and my body gained muscle. It was incredible frustrating until I started measuring my inches and realized I was slimming, even if the scale was barely moving.

I also agree that 3 weeks is just not enough. The reason why weight is such an issue is that its an easy in, hard out. Easy to gain it, hard to lose it. You have to stick with it. I don't ever expect results until at least a month, if not two. Don't be discouraged!! Your body is changing its habits, changing how it fuels itself, adjusting. It's a masterful machine that has kept you alive and has been adapting and changing to fit your world for years. Also, if you are a little older, its going to be hard to lose- age slows us down a little. Not impossible but give the body a little bit of a break. It will do what its going to do. I know if you stick with it and do things for the joy of them, and marvel at each thing you could do more than you did the day before, before you know it you'll be right where you want to be- and then you keep it up to stay there. Good luck!

crossrunner1497 wrote: »

I have been sticking with 1800-1900kcal a day (but with a zig-zag protocol) for the past 3 weeks. I weigh all of my food except for vegetables, or anything that would be practically negligible calories (spices, very low calorie condiments, etc). I also get 10-15k steps a day and exercise 60min 6-7 days a week (mix of weight lifting and cycling). The first week, I actually gained 2-3lbs, and now I am just back to my original weight. I don’t understand this. I should be losing at least a pound a week, but my weight isn’t budging. I am a 5’6 female that weighs about 140lbs just for reference. I don’t understand what I am doing wrong. I also eat very healthy, with plenty of fruit and vegetables. Any advice is appreciated.

Have you tried intermittent fasting of some sort? you can challenge your body by switching up how you do IF. That might help.

As others have said, if you've only just started or recently ramped up your exercise regimen, that can cause water retention, which would disguise your progress on the scale. It's only been three weeks, be patient with it as your body adjusts to the new normal. If after a few more weeks, you're still not seeing progress on the scale, then consider whether your measurements are fully accurate or your goals are reasonable.