Hard Time Losing.... Need Input :-)

mrsbadara · November 2011

I’m curious to get some input on my difficulty losing weight lately.

Stats: I’m 5’10, female, 22 years old, and I weigh about 177 right now. My goal is 145-155 (lowest weight in high school was about 150, and I was pretty thin for my height and athletic build).

I got a fitbit in September, and have worn it every day since. I log my calories religiously, over or under, into the fitbit website. I don’t track my exercise calories burned more often than not (I do Pilates reformer three days a week, usually one day of traditional weight training, and at least one day of cardio). My workouts at the moment aren’t over the top or super long, an hour max. So I don’t think I’m over training or not eating enough.

MFP puts my calories at 1,200. Fitbit puts my calories at 1,100 if I don’t move an inch, but raises my caloric needs as my activity raises to maintain a deficit of 1,000 or -2lbs per week. I have maintained a weekly deficit over the past (almost) two months of at least .5lbs to 3lbs. Which would equal at LEAST 5-8lbs by now. But no, I’ve lost about two lbs since I began wearing the fitbit.

Let me say again I am diligent on calories and probably overstate rather than underestimate. My average caloric day is anywhere from a low of 1,000 to a high of 1,800. I’ve had a couple really low and a couple really high days, but always with a weekly overall deficit.

I’ve had my thyroid check recently, nothing is wrong there.

Since my menu isn’t on MFP, let me give you an average.

Average breakfasts:
½ cup oat bran with either cinnamon, 2tbsp brown sugar, or 2tbsp brown sugar and raisins or,
1 cup egg beaters or egg whites with season salt and an apple.
I always have coffee, with either half n half or a more sugary creamer (like the Christmas varieties )

Average Morning Snacks (if I have one)
Apple (Sometimes with peanut butter) or,
Carton of yogurt (fat free cascade fresh)

Average lunch
Whole Foods Salad with their balsamic vinaigrette or,
1 cup egg beaters with half a package of misc steamfresh veggies or,
1 small boneless skinless chicken breast in a ziplock steamfresh with veggies or,
Misc snack foods like an apple, a bag of 100 calorie popcorn, ect.

Average afternoon Snack (if I have one)
Apple (Sometimes with peanut butter) or,
Carton of yogurt (fat free cascade fresh)

Average Dinner
1 cup egg beaters with half a package of misc steamfresh veggies or,
1 small boneless skinless chicken breast in a ziplock steamfresh with veggies or,
Misc snack foods like an apple, a bag of 100 calorie popcorn, ect. Or,
1 Carton “ArticZero” 150 calorie ice cream (haha not the best but fun)

Dinner is where I graze most often. Sometimes I’ll throw in peanut butter with something, sometimes I’ll have more fruit, sometimes more oat bran. Dinner is the most unpredictable OR I don’t eat it at all because of my school schedule. Literally, sometimes it’s just a GoGirl and some mints during class. (I work from 8-4:30 and school from 5-9 M-F).

Also note that the higher protein foods are fairly new to me, in an effort to drum up weight loss I’ve upped my protein/veggie intake. So far no results, but it’s only been a week. Can anyone else share experiences or advice? I’ve been watching what I’m eating and working out for far longer than September….. pretty much since late Spring. But to not much avail. My doctor basically just told me to write everything down which I do. So he hasn’t been much help either.

Thoughts? Suggestions? Questions? Clearly what I’m doing is wrong…. But I don’t want to “diet” because that usually just ends in crazy diet brain. I’m looking for healthy advice, sustainable food choices and living tweaks.

abbigail_r · November 2011

Im no fitness expert but maybe a lil more cardio? Have you been measuring yourself because I guess some people lose inches before losing weight?

britishstar41 · November 2011

My "magic" fix was to incorporate healthy snacks to prevent dinner meltdown. Also, to drink more water. Your menu seems great, but maybe it's not enough for your body? You said IF you have dinner. Maybe one of your goals should be to pre-pack a dinner to take with you to class. As much as I love GoGirls (and am sad they don't sell them where I live now), that's not dinner fare. Good luck!

RTricia · November 2011

cut the grains out for a week - oatmeal, popcorn.

MarleyCats · November 2011

I have a couple of suggestions.

First, if you have insurance, see if it will cover you visiting a dietician or weight loss consultant. They can often give you far more accurate calorie goals than online fitness/weightloss programs can. Plus, they can possibly suggest new foods that will let you break up your routine and maybe find some easy ways to make your goal.

Second, I would try not to go under 1200 calories a day. Much lower than that, and your body will retain weight rather than lose it. You sound like you know that already, and are trying to avoid it, but it always helps to have a reminder. Stick to the 1200 calories/day goal and see if it helps. If it doesn't, you have proven that you can do less and you can go back to that.

I hope this helps, and good luck meeting your goals!

inkyillos · November 2011

I am a 42 y/o female, 5'10", weigh 176 and trying to drop down to 155-160. I don't have a thyroid. My caloric intake per MFP is 1460/day so I am really shocked that yours at 22 would be so low. My first guess would be that your calories are too low. The average person needs roughly 2000/day, 1600/day if trying to lose. That number drops once you reach middle age which you are not.
Your body will go into starvation mode if you are not getting enough daily sustenance and will hang onto every calorie you eat as body fat and therefore you won't lose weight. No one can survive on 1000/day. If you are also ping ponging around between 1000 and 1800 your body is also probably confused which creates stress and stress releases more cortisol...cortisol tells the body to store fat.
I would suggest trying to find a healthy average and try to hit that number each day, especially if you are exercising. If you are only eating 1000 calories AND exercising then your body is really only getting something like 800-900 calories and at 22 y/o you need way more than that.

Also, about your thyroid...did you get it tested by an Endocrinologist? If not than I would suggest that be your next step. Regular M.D.'s and General Practioners know squat about the complexities of the endocrine system. Test results come back placing your number within a 'range' that is deemed normal, however everyone has a different spot on that 'range' that = effective thyroid function for them. Do you have other symptoms? Depression, fatigue, sluggish bowels, irritability, brittle fingernails, dry skin, hair falling out, ringing in the ears, short term memory loss, erratic heart rate...those combined are signs of an under active thyroid. The numbers may say normal but your body may be telling you otherwise.

I hope this helps.

mrsbadara · November 2011

I did do some additional research on a low thyriod.... but I have thick hair, great hydrated skin, strong nails.... I look and feel pretty healthy. I drink water and herbal tea like it's nobody's business. I focus mostly on health and feel like I take pretty good care of myself. But the weight is pretty static.

I will say I had some bad digestion problems a couple months ago and cut out weight weight made a HUGE difference. So I have to wonder if I'm allergic to anything else. I just emailed my doctor this morning to set me up with some kind of allergy test, and a nutritionist if they have a one on one. I know they offer classes but that's just not my style.

It's really frusterating to be so on top of it and no results. Clearly I'm missing something. I will up my cardio and see if that helps... but realistically that's still only two days because of other commitments (I have exercise buddies with various time slots if you will).

ambut · November 2011

First, let me say that your focus on the scale is not going to serve you well in the long run - weight often varies by 1-4 lbs on any given day because of meal times, bathroom schedules, and water weight. So make sure you're weighing yourself at the same point in your schedule on any given day (I do it after a morning bathroom trip but before I get in the shower, which is the lowest point in the day). One major note: if you are not drinking enough water, your body will retain the water you have, which can keep you a couple of pounds heavier than you really should be. There is no reason to cut water intake, so keep a bottle/glass with you to sip on throughout the day. If you're like me and don't drink much plain water, you can try crystal lite, mio, or other water flavoring things. Also, beverages without caffeine or alcohol can be counted towards your total (milk, for example, counts). But whatever your pleasure, drink lots of water, because it will help you lose any water weight you have. One interesting benefit of drinking lots of water is that you don't feel as hungry between meals and, if you drink a glass right before you start making dinner, you won't feel quite as tempted to graze!

Another important factor is the toll that stress might be taking on your body and, hence, your metabolism. If you work from 8-4:30 and go straight to class until 9, you may be stressed to the point that your body's metabolism is changing. If you're in "survivial" mode (because your body actually needs more than 1200 calories to function, for example, or because your body thinks that you're in "trouble" because of the stress), then your weight loss could be slowed. This could be exacerbated by insufficient sleep; many people can "survive" on 6 or 7 hours and then get more on weekends, but really you should be aiming for more than 7 hours a night, which can be really hard if you're on the go from 8am to 9pm. Frankly, that was my grad school schedule one day a week for several semesters, and it was really difficult to keep on top of things, so how you're doing it 5 days a week is beyond me!

I would give your body some time. I know you said you've been using a fitbit since September and getting healthier since the spring, but for some people it takes a really long time for appreciable weight loss to kick in. I agree with the user who said that your measurements might be where the results are showing, rather than the scale. This could be especially true with the strength training and increased protein intake you mentioned. Honestly, I would suggest staying off the scale for at least a week. I get the impression from your post that you check your weight as obsessively as you log calories, and that can actually be damaging to your progress. You see a gain of a pound over the course of a day, or you don't see a change after 3 days, and you get discouraged, which gets you off track. Drink lots of water, stick with your calorie monitoring and exercising, do what feels healthy to you, and check the scale again in a week or two. I usually find that going from minimal water to extra hydration will bring about appreciable results in about 5-7 days, though that varies from person to person.

I hope you get past this semi-plateau! Best of luck :-)

crudd12 · November 2011

I don't think you are eating enough! You should eat your exercise calories! I was on a plateau since last February and how I broke it was stop exercising for a week, eat more and continue to eat more and it worked! I have lost the last 2 weeks in a row! I was walking 3-4 miles a day and not eating enough! Check on this site how many calories you should be eating and put in your exercise and it should tell you what you should be eating each day! I wouldn't go below in! You may be in starvation mode and your body won't let you lose weight! Also I tried everything to break this-exercise more, change my food, etc and the only thing that worked was to stop exercising for a week (only because I hurt my foot) and eat more and it worked! Good luck to you!

Hard Time Losing.... Need Input :-)

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