Confusing Calories

liaalyn
liaalyn Posts: 112 Member
edited October 2024 in Health and Weight Loss
Okay, I've completely plateaued. I've recently posted about this and got SOME help but I'm looking for more answers. I'm 20, 5'7, 156lbs new goal weight 140....we'll see how i feel WHEN I get there.

I haven't lost in about 3 weeks which is obviously a downer. Am I not eating enough? Too much? I'm working on 1400 calories and working out 1 to 2 hours a day.... every day....used to be 5 times a week but now its 7 (trying to convince myself to take a break but i have no desire to) and I have recently upped my amount of cardio and harder resistance.

Since I am getting closer to goal is it going to be this much harder? What do I need to do??

EDIT: You can view my diary, I try to keep up on it... and I do a lot of weight training in addition to cardio.

Replies

  • davidpm
    davidpm Posts: 208 Member
    I looked at my report for the last 80 days and I realized that I plateau about every 5lbs lost. I'm gradually upping my calories to get towards maintenance. I was around 1280 for a while and I'm up to 1450. I saw a 2lb loss the next week. Give it a try.
  • judykritikos
    judykritikos Posts: 161
    My immediate thought is you're working out too much/too long and your bod is hoarding calories. Cut back the workouts to 5 days. vary the workouts. Change your eating - increase it 2-3 days, then cut 2-3 days. Gotta kick-start the metabolism. If you do the same workout every day - your body will make that it's baseline, and losing will be harder. Give it a good switft kick!
  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,295 Member
    What haven't you lost....weight or fat....? Working out 7 days a week is not giving the body time to heal. Hormones do factor into it and if your truly accurate with your calories, you might want to feed that extra exercise.
  • liaalyn
    liaalyn Posts: 112 Member
    I looked at my report for the last 80 days and I realized that I plateau about every 5lbs lost. I'm gradually upping my calories to get towards maintenance. I was around 1280 for a while and I'm up to 1450. I saw a 2lb loss the next week. Give it a try.

    Thanks.. I will try. What will be hardest for me is eating more.. I get so fully so quickly its hard for me to eat a lot. (Unless of course I go to McDonalds...those are easy calories but who the hell wants to go there?!) Lol
  • liaalyn
    liaalyn Posts: 112 Member
    My immediate thought is you're working out too much/too long and your bod is hoarding calories. Cut back the workouts to 5 days. vary the workouts. Change your eating - increase it 2-3 days, then cut 2-3 days. Gotta kick-start the metabolism. If you do the same workout every day - your body will make that it's baseline, and losing will be harder. Give it a good switft kick!

    I could be. I will realllly try. I do something different every day so that can't be it... but I will start by taking Sunday off since I have the Seahawks game :) Thank you!
  • liaalyn
    liaalyn Posts: 112 Member
    What haven't you lost....weight or fat....? Working out 7 days a week is not giving the body time to heal. Hormones do factor into it and if your truly accurate with your calories, you might want to feed that extra exercise.

    Yesterday I ate back almost all of my calories from working out. I'll keep that up because I have never done that in the past..and see how it goes. I'm not budging weight at all. I weighed in a couple weeks ago at 156, then last week 158..now I'm back at 156.6
  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,295 Member
    Take measurements going forward and check how your cloths fit. When your down to the last 10 or so body composition should be your focus as opposed to weight loss.
  • liaalyn
    liaalyn Posts: 112 Member
    Take measurements going forward and check how your cloths fit. When your down to the last 10 or so body composition should be your focus as opposed to weight loss.

    Makes sense. What are good times to meaure? Once every 2 weeks? 4 weeks?
  • cclaborn22
    cclaborn22 Posts: 85
    I looked at your diary and I would like to see your macronutrient intake for the day, which would be your fats/carbs/protein and see the ratio between them. Also, incorporating more leaner proteins into your diet (egg whites, white fish/salmon, chicken/turkey breast), vegetables, and quality sources of starches will help to give your body the proper nutrience it needs. I recommend definitely NOT lowering your calories any lower or your body may think you are starving it, especially with all of your exercise.

    Taking a rest day off should be mandatory. The fact that you do workout 7 days a week is a mental thing and I totally understand. I used to feel like taking a day off would set me back on my goals, but your body NEEDS that day to recover and rebuild from all the hard work you've been putting in.

    Do you have a trainer at your gym who could do a body fat test on you? That's a great gage to see how your body changes with good nutrition and exercise. The scale is great at first, but they becomes the great discourager. I'm 5'8" and weight 140 pounds, and this is the heaviest I have EVER weighed. It would freak me out, but I am fairly lean and know that the weight is muscle (muscle weighs more than fat). Also, the more muscle you have, the more calories you are burning even at rest.
  • liaalyn
    liaalyn Posts: 112 Member
    I looked at your diary and I would like to see your macronutrient intake for the day, which would be your fats/carbs/protein and see the ratio between them. Also, incorporating more leaner proteins into your diet (egg whites, white fish/salmon, chicken/turkey breast), vegetables, and quality sources of starches will help to give your body the proper nutrience it needs. I recommend definitely NOT lowering your calories any lower or your body may think you are starving it, especially with all of your exercise.

    Taking a rest day off should be mandatory. The fact that you do workout 7 days a week is a mental thing and I totally understand. I used to feel like taking a day off would set me back on my goals, but your body NEEDS that day to recover and rebuild from all the hard work you've been putting in.

    Do you have a trainer at your gym who could do a body fat test on you? That's a great gage to see how your body changes with good nutrition and exercise. The scale is great at first, but they becomes the great discourager. I'm 5'8" and weight 140 pounds, and this is the heaviest I have EVER weighed. It would freak me out, but I am fairly lean and know that the weight is muscle (muscle weighs more than fat). Also, the more muscle you have, the more calories you are burning even at rest.

    Definitely will be getting more nutrients next week. This week I'm on the "I'm broke, whats left of food on my house?" Diet. LOL but honestly I just started logging food again.... I'd say the thing I eat the most of, or at least eat every day would be egg whites. I love those darn things. I normally will eat them after a workout because I'm not normally that hungry, as an omelet with baby spinach...but thats not getting me enough calories! Time to buy more meat and salmon. Thanks!
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