Feeling deflated - weight not dropping 😔

I am really struggling mentally with the number on the scales. I am 100% in a deficit, I weigh EVERYTHING.

It’s been 2 1/2 weeks being on this strict diet and the scales haven’t budged at all. I dropped 1lb yesterday but today it’s gone back on 😩 I am devastated.

Will the scales ever drop? Or am I doing something wrong?

Working out 5 times a week. Am I not taking enough rest days? Should I just work out every other? My workouts are mostly weights, I do add some cardio in there, jumping jacks, jump squats etc.

What am I doing wrong? Please help! I feel so deflated today. I’m trying so hard!

I weigh 61kg, the heaviest I have been. Usually I sit at around 56kg so want to shift some weight. I’m 5ft 2.

I have had lots of good advice on here recently. I guess I’m just looking for someone to tell me if I’m doing anything wrong. Thank you in advance.
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Replies

  • leah9985
    leah9985 Posts: 66 Member
    I am really struggling mentally with the number on the scales. I am 100% in a deficit, I weigh EVERYTHING.

    It’s been 2 1/2 weeks being on this strict diet and the scales haven’t budged at all. I dropped 1lb yesterday but today it’s gone back on 😩 I am devastated.

    Will the scales ever drop? Or am I doing something wrong?

    Working out 5 times a week. Am I not taking enough rest days? Should I just work out every other? My workouts are mostly weights, I do add some cardio in there, jumping jacks, jump squats etc.

    What am I doing wrong? Please help! I feel so deflated today. I’m trying so hard!

    I weigh 61kg, the heaviest I have been. Usually I sit at around 56kg so want to shift some weight. I’m 5ft 2.

    I have had lots of good advice on here recently. I guess I’m just looking for someone to tell me if I’m doing anything wrong. Thank you in advance.
  • quiksylver296
    quiksylver296 Posts: 28,443 Member
    @leah9985, have you downloaded a weight-trending app? It will help smooth out the fluctuations and let you see your overall weight trend. Happy Scale for Apple, and Libra for Android are popular ones.
  • leah9985
    leah9985 Posts: 66 Member
    edited January 2021
    Can I just thank everyone (again), for giving me great advice! You’ve certainly lifted my mood today, I was so down about it this morning. I do see change in my pictures and inches have been lost so I need to remind myself that I am heading in the right direction.

    It’s so easy to not see results initially and give up. I can see why so many people fail at the first hurdle, but I am determined for that not to be me.

    Can weight training be a bad thing by any chance? I want to lose weight on my thighs, but I’m doing a lot of squats with a barbell (only 15kg). Would this mean that I will get muscly legs and not lose weight on them?

    I will definitely download a weight-trending app to help me, thank you @quiksylver296 😊

    I actually don’t know what I would do without the support of all you lovely lot on here! Thank you!
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,843 Member
    leah9985 wrote: »
    Can I just thank everyone (again), for giving me great advice! You’ve certainly lifted my mood today, I was so down about it this morning. I do see change in my pictures and inches have been lost so I need to remind myself that I am heading in the right direction.

    It’s so easy to not see results initially and give up. I can see why so many people fail at the first hurdle, but I am determined for that not to be me.

    Can weight training be a bad thing by any chance? I want to lose weight on my thighs, but I’m doing a lot of squats with a barbell (only 15kg). Would this mean that I will get muscly legs and not lose weight on them?

    I will definitely download a weight-trending app to help me, thank you @quiksylver296 😊

    I actually don’t know what I would do without the support of all you lovely lot on here! Thank you!

    @quiksylver296 - are your legs "muscly" yet? How much weight do you squat and how long have you been at it?
  • leah9985
    leah9985 Posts: 66 Member
    kshama2001 wrote: »
    leah9985 wrote: »
    Can I just thank everyone (again), for giving me great advice! You’ve certainly lifted my mood today, I was so down about it this morning. I do see change in my pictures and inches have been lost so I need to remind myself that I am heading in the right direction.

    It’s so easy to not see results initially and give up. I can see why so many people fail at the first hurdle, but I am determined for that not to be me.

    Can weight training be a bad thing by any chance? I want to lose weight on my thighs, but I’m doing a lot of squats with a barbell (only 15kg). Would this mean that I will get muscly legs and not lose weight on them?

    I will definitely download a weight-trending app to help me, thank you @quiksylver296 😊

    I actually don’t know what I would do without the support of all you lovely lot on here! Thank you!

    @quiksylver296 - are your legs "muscly" yet? How much weight do you squat and how long have you been at it?

    No they aren’t, they don’t appear muscly at all to me, still quite soft 🤦🏻‍♀️

    I am only squatting 15kg, is this too much?

    I’ve have done weight training in the past but I’ve officially been back on it since 1st Jan.

    I know I can drop the weight, I dropped from 126lbs to 112lbs in 2014. However, I looked too skinny and I definitely had body dysmorphia, a path I do not want to go down again.

  • springlering62
    springlering62 Posts: 7,334 Member
    I’m glad you brought up the body Dysmorphia yourself. I was going to suggest that, although it’s early days for being two weeks in.

    Are you taking progress photos? That’s the one thing I wish I’d done from the start. It would have helped me considerably to be able to compare. It’s only been in the past few months that I can see a thin person in the mirror, and tbh it’s photos that have helped with that process. The camera does not lie, even when our freaking brains do.

    This is a wonderful thread and ought to be stickied.
  • leah9985
    leah9985 Posts: 66 Member
    ninerbuff wrote: »
    leah9985 wrote: »
    kshama2001 wrote: »
    leah9985 wrote: »
    Can I just thank everyone (again), for giving me great advice! You’ve certainly lifted my mood today, I was so down about it this morning. I do see change in my pictures and inches have been lost so I need to remind myself that I am heading in the right direction.

    It’s so easy to not see results initially and give up. I can see why so many people fail at the first hurdle, but I am determined for that not to be me.

    Can weight training be a bad thing by any chance? I want to lose weight on my thighs, but I’m doing a lot of squats with a barbell (only 15kg). Would this mean that I will get muscly legs and not lose weight on them?

    I will definitely download a weight-trending app to help me, thank you @quiksylver296 😊

    I actually don’t know what I would do without the support of all you lovely lot on here! Thank you!

    @quiksylver296 - are your legs "muscly" yet? How much weight do you squat and how long have you been at it?

    No they aren’t, they don’t appear muscly at all to me, still quite soft 🤦🏻‍♀️

    I am only squatting 15kg, is this too much?

    I’ve have done weight training in the past but I’ve officially been back on it since 1st Jan.

    I know I can drop the weight, I dropped from 126lbs to 112lbs in 2014. However, I looked too skinny and I definitely had body dysmorphia, a path I do not want to go down again.
    Message me your training program. I'll look it over and maybe I can give you advice.


    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

    9285851.png


    So basically, I do roughly the same workout each time....

    Squats with 15kg barbell x20
    Goblet squats 10kg dumbbell x20
    Backwards lunge 15kg barbell x20
    In and out jump squats (no weight) x 20
    Squat pulses with resistance band x30
    Leg raises (on all fours) with resistance band x20
    Kettlebell swings 10kg dumbbell x20
    Oblique side bends with 10kg kettlebell

    I repeat this 3 times.

    I often add jumping jacks for one minute after each full set. I tend to do a one minute plank at the end of the session too.

    I will have days where I work more on my upper body too, it can vary but doesn’t vary massively.

    I appreciate you looking at this, thank you x

  • leah9985
    leah9985 Posts: 66 Member
    AnnPT77 wrote: »
    leah9985 wrote: »
    kshama2001 wrote: »
    leah9985 wrote: »
    Can I just thank everyone (again), for giving me great advice! You’ve certainly lifted my mood today, I was so down about it this morning. I do see change in my pictures and inches have been lost so I need to remind myself that I am heading in the right direction.

    It’s so easy to not see results initially and give up. I can see why so many people fail at the first hurdle, but I am determined for that not to be me.

    Can weight training be a bad thing by any chance? I want to lose weight on my thighs, but I’m doing a lot of squats with a barbell (only 15kg). Would this mean that I will get muscly legs and not lose weight on them?

    I will definitely download a weight-trending app to help me, thank you @quiksylver296 😊

    I actually don’t know what I would do without the support of all you lovely lot on here! Thank you!

    @quiksylver296 - are your legs "muscly" yet? How much weight do you squat and how long have you been at it?

    No they aren’t, they don’t appear muscly at all to me, still quite soft 🤦🏻‍♀️

    I am only squatting 15kg, is this too much?

    I’ve have done weight training in the past but I’ve officially been back on it since 1st Jan.

    I know I can drop the weight, I dropped from 126lbs to 112lbs in 2014. However, I looked too skinny and I definitely had body dysmorphia, a path I do not want to go down again.

    If you have fat on your legs, you will lose some as you lose some as you lose weight. It may not go first, but it will go. Having more muscle will tend to make things "tighter" looking loooong before it makes them bigger or muscle-y.

    The reason kshama asked Quiksylver about muscle-y legs is that Quik is renowned around here for her strength-training accomplishments. In her current profile picture, all those medals hanging from her arms are from winning competitions by lifting Really Big weights. IIRC, in November she squatted nearly 10X your current 15kg. IMO, she looks strong and sleek, especially dem legs, not bulky.

    Moreover, since muscle mass gain is slow at best, it's not like you're going to wake up one morning and think "gleeps! I'm bulky!". If you reach a point where you like your musculature, you shift to a maintenance routine.

    Like others have said, patience: At your weight, fast fat loss will make your body look worse, not better. If you go with the 0.5 pounds per week (as I agree would be great, especially if you want to get "toned" alongside), there may be *months* where the scale isn't super clear about progress. Photos or tape measurements will give a more complete story.

    Want quick results in fat loss? Maybe cut calories, do a boatload of cardio. (But watch out for the misleading stress water retention heybales warned about.)

    Want good results for appearance? Patience, slow fat loss, good progressive strength routine faithfully performed, and enough moderate cardio alongside to keep your cardiovascular system tuned up (because that will help with complexion, attractive vivacity, etc.).

    Don't do the "fast fat loss" thing. It's a bad plan for appearance *and* health. Stop stressing about the scale, and in particular don't treat the number that shows up as a measure of your self-worth. It's just a momentary snapshot of your body's relationship with gravity, only useful as a metric once you have many successive such snapshots, weeks to months, to show you a trend.

    Thank you so much for this. I completely agree with everything you said, again another person who seems to know what they are talking about.

    I, as you can probably tell, am pretty clueless so to actually get some true knowledge and insight into how your body works is super helpful!

    The weekly pictures I’ve been taking most certainly show change and what appears to be weight loss. The measurements also demonstrate this. I just need to remind myself that this is a marathon and not a sprint and as this is a lifestyle change for me and not a quick fix I need to be patient and stop stressing! It clearly isn’t helping.

    Thank you so much!

  • leah9985
    leah9985 Posts: 66 Member
    I’m glad you brought up the body Dysmorphia yourself. I was going to suggest that, although it’s early days for being two weeks in.

    Are you taking progress photos? That’s the one thing I wish I’d done from the start. It would have helped me considerably to be able to compare. It’s only been in the past few months that I can see a thin person in the mirror, and tbh it’s photos that have helped with that process. The camera does not lie, even when our freaking brains do.

    This is a wonderful thread and ought to be stickied.

    It’s actually good to hear that it’s not just me that’s been through it! It’s a scary thing. I look back at the pictures now and cannot believe how thin and unhealthy I looked, but at the time I was posting the pics on here asking people how to lose stomach fat! The mind of a scary thing at times.

    I am adamant I do not want to go down that road again. I want to be happy, healthy and fit. I do want to lose a bit of weight but nothing to the extent I did before, hence why I am coming here for advice and sometimes just to get a bit of perspective on things.

    I have taken weekly pics and there is definitely a difference. Mostly to my waist and hips. The front of my stomach doesn’t seem to have changed that much which is disheartening as that’s the bit I hate the most!! But I’ve dropped 5 inches off my waist!

    Thank you for taking the time to reply.