New here, need to lose 100 lbs

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txcraftr
txcraftr Posts: 133 Member
in Introduce Yourself
Hi, I'm new to the site. I found it accidentally but it seems like a great place so far.

I really need to get some good advice. I have been really exercising hard for the last few months, doing about an hour or a little more at the gym on the elliptical, treadmill, spinner,stairmaster. According to the machines I burn between 500-600 calories per session. I do this at least 4 days a week and recently upped it to 5 days a week, usually workout 2 days, take 1 day off, 2 days, etc. My eating has been pretty good. I stick to program at least 5 days a week. I do tend to stray a little on weekends but not unhealthy food, just too much and only up to around 2000 calories. I stick to between 1,200 and 1,500 cals all other days.

The biggest problem I am having is I am NOT losing a single pound. I feel as if I am doing more exercise than I have ever done in my life and I keep adding to it doing intervals and harder things all the time but the scale will not budge. I'm about ready to find a doctor who can figure it out for me, is it hormones, or because I'm over 50. I've always been overweight. Is it that my muscle is just heavy? It's a real puzzle to me. Anyone have this problem? I am also looking for some good pals to lose weight with. Could be that I am doing something wrong and maybe some extra feedback would help.

I would appreciate any feedback ya'll could give me and I would be happy to be a friend to anyone who wants to be mine.:flowerforyou:

Replies

  • maggie107
    maggie107 Posts: 7
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    Look at your food values, too much sodium, fats, sugars? That may tell you something. Remember muscle weighs more than fat. I have over 100 pounds to lose also, I'm 20 down now. All I do is walk every night about 3 miles. I never eat my exercise calories. I wish you luck, maybe a Doctor could shed some light on your non weight loss.
  • mjbauer
    mjbauer Posts: 13 Member
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  • azsuzi
    azsuzi Posts: 1,169 Member
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    Hello and welcome! Since your diary is not public, I can't tell you if there's anything you might change to help you drop the weight. From my experience though, you need to make sure you drink enough water, eat plenty of fresh fruits and veggies (especially veggies) and cut out all of the processed snack foods. Give your body the right mix of whole foods and exercise and the weight will come off! Hang in there and good luck!
  • shawnscott5
    shawnscott5 Posts: 295 Member
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    You may be trading "fat" pounds for "muscle" pounds. If you are working out that much and staying within your calories, it may just be that. Or you could be at a stand still, everyone goes through it and it will pass. Good luck and feel free to add me!! :smile:
  • RunLiftEat
    RunLiftEat Posts: 213 Member
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    With all your exercise, you are making your muscles more dense. Muscle weighs more than fat by volume, so scale numbers aren't always the best to go off of. Are clothes fitting better? Do you look more lean, but don't notice a decrease in lbs? That could be the reason, but it could also be that you could also have hit a plateau. The human body adapts in amazing ways. try switching up your cal intake. Go over by 500 one day, 300 under the next, over 100 the next, under 300 the next, so that your total weekly cals are the same as if you stuck to the same amount each day. That can help you get out of a plateau funk.
  • jeninabilan
    jeninabilan Posts: 369 Member
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    WELCOME!!! This site is SUCH a great tool and I love all of the supportive people :) Add me as a friend and we can be encouragement buddies! hehe
  • Kdrules
    Kdrules Posts: 49 Member
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    Do you have any health problems like diabetes or high blood pressure? Are u taking medications. I have over 100 to loose and I work out a lot and stay under my calories however I only loose about a pound a week. Last year I tried and I didn't loose anything but I was on prednisone and that medication made it very difficult for me to loose weight.
  • txcraftr
    txcraftr Posts: 133 Member
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    Thank you for replying. I'm hoping to figure this out pretty soon, it is quite disappointing to feel like I'm doing things right and not making any progress.
  • txcraftr
    txcraftr Posts: 133 Member
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    I havent been here long enough to start my profile or food diary but I will do it real soon. Thank you.
  • txcraftr
    txcraftr Posts: 133 Member
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    Yes, my clothes are fitting better, sort of like I've chisled off the bumps and lumps but not really showing too much with a tape measure either. Thanks for the advice. I will try anything to try and get some change on the scale. I do have a lot of muscle and yes it may just be getting denser. I am enjoying working out. I feel so much better. I know its good for my heart and body and great for my spirits. Just wish I could buy smaller clothes. Maybe some day.
  • spottedlee
    spottedlee Posts: 372
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    I havent been here long enough to start my profile or food diary but I will do it real soon. Thank you.
    That could be it,, like you, I am in my 50s,, been going to gym for over a year with no luck, I thought I was eating enough and my family eat ALOT and all of them are skinny,, as soon I started the diary, i realized that i was UNDER eating,, I read that we need to eat in order to lose.. It wasn't easy and I am still feeling like I had to force myself to eat,,, I lost 2 pounds in one week (i joined MFP last week.)

    Try it,, do it, starting tomorrow.. you might be suprised.
  • velvetkat
    velvetkat Posts: 454 Member
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    start with logging your food. Log everything that goes in your mouth. This will give you an idea of how much you are eating and if you are eating the right amounts. Set your goals for your foods under the settings. It wont let you set them for more than 2 lbs a week I think, but this is the best way anyway to lose weight and be healthy. Drink your 8-10 glasses of water. Just water, do not count soda in that. You can then begin to log your exercise also. When you can and if you can afford it get a heart rate monitor with a chest strap. You can get decent ones for less than $100. That will give you a true reading of what you are burning in the way of calories.
    Cutting out certain things like too much sodium and processed foods and other things are good but take your time... You cant change them all overnight. I started out logging my foods and watching what I was eating, exercising and logging that also. I had 120lbs to lose.. Now I only have 29lbs to lose! I started in February of this year so be patient!!

    Friend me if you would like.

    oh by the way.. I am 53!

    url=http://www.myfitnesspal.com/weight-loss-ticker]4925355.png[/url]
    Created by MyFitnessPal.com - Free Calorie Counter
  • lucyboop
    lucyboop Posts: 2
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    So I would like to put my 2 cents in regarding how much muscle weighs. Ok here goes. A pound of feathers versus a pound of nails is still a pound!! Muscle does not "weigh" more than fat. It takes up less volume. Let's say you have 2 people that weigh 130 pounds and are the same height but one looks noticeably heavier. Why you ask? They weigh exactly the same! It is because muscle is more dense and a pound of it takes up less space in your body whereas a pound of fat is less dense and takes up more space so the person who has more fat in their body compared to someone who has more muscle will look bigger. All those personal trainers who tell you that muscle weighs more than fat are wrong!! If you take one of those balancing scales, you know the kind that have 2 sides and you put 1 pound of muscle on one side and 1 pound of muscle on the other, they will be equal!! The difference is the piece of muscle will be much smaller than the piece of fat.
  • meex
    meex Posts: 135 Member
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    try cutting out carbs, That is literally the only diet that works for me. No bread, rice flour etc only green vegies. Also i lost around 10 kgs in 2-3 weeks by doing bikram yoga, can't recommend it enough
  • missyyclaire
    missyyclaire Posts: 572 Member
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    I think the best thing going on this website is the food diary. I can't begin to tell you how much I've learned by logging my foods for a few months here. Jump in, log your food, you will learn so much by being able to see exactly what you're getting calorie, fat, sugar, protein, fiber wise etc. I'll bet you will see that scale budge 7 days after starting this.

    Keep doing your exercises, that is soooo good that you're doing that much!

    Spend as much time perusing this site too...it's so informative and the people are incredibly understanding and supportive.

    Welcome! (I'm going to request you as a 'friend')

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