I'm Sooo Discouraged Right Now!!

why are you eating 1200? something tells me that 1200 was not recommended by MFP

Edit: ah nvm, it's really early and my brain is slowly waking up ><

What I see is that you are eating under your Daily Goals and not eating your exercise calories back. That might be one of the reasons of your plateau. You need to shake your metabolism. Change your exercises as well as your body gets used to them and manages the burning more efficiently

Don't be discouraged. I see from your diary you are eating a lot of prepared foods and have a sweet tooth!

Try going more raw.. example, instead of the pre-made peanut butter crackers, go with some celery and natural peanut butter. Or some dried apricots and a tablespoon of peanut butter... You will feel fuller and your body will be happier.

Take a look at the foods you're eating and do an honest evaluation of your diet. I went through a week of your diary and I don't think I saw a single veggie. You're eating tons of sugar, hardly any protein, and very little fiber. What is it you're doing for exercise that's burning over 1000 calories a day?

I'm a big believer that it's not just the amount of calories you eat but what they are composed of. If you're only eating 1200 a day then you need to make sure you get nutrients from your food. Your diary shows a lot of sugar, white flour, and processed foods. Try eating clean, you'll be surprised at what a difference it makes.

Your diet seems to be pretty much all garbage, so not surprising you stopped losing weight. You probably lost in the beginning because just a cut in calories was a shock to your system, but that won't work for most people for very long. Try eating a healthy balanced diet with lean protein, fresh fruit and veggies, and whole grains.

Also, your profile isn't visible so we don't know anything about you, like age, height, and if you are a man or woman. Based on your calorie target of 1200, I'm guessing you are probably a woman of smaller stature, and if so you really have less room to play around with junk food (and the older you are the less and less you can get away with it). Also, MFP tends to overestimate exercise calories, so you may be eating back too many, and depending on your metabolism and extent of exercise, you may not need to eat any back at all.

If you haven't already done so. I'd suggest looking up your BMR (Basic Metabolic Rate) to see how many calories you burn just doing nothing. You subtract 500 calories from that number as long as it under 1200. If you eat to few calories your body will lose weight slower than if it gets all the nutrients you need. Obviously if you eat too many than you'll put on weight.

When you add in your exercise to MFP. I don't suggest eating the calories you work off. In order to lose weight you have to go into a deficit. Hope this helped.

That sounds good. I also was not eating healthy. Thank you.

You have very irregular eating habits. Do you get irritable and really hungry during the day? I started eating oatmeal, eggs, yogurt or even toast with peanut butter, and some fruit for breakfast and I didn't get so ravenous by lunch. Ideally, something with protein and fibre. it keeps you feeling full for longer and takes a while to digest.
Try to get at least one full serving of fruit or veggie in with each meal. When I was working outside of the home, i would buy my lunch at the grocery store. A whole wheat sandwich or sushi, a piece of fruit and either a real fruit juice, latte or water to drink, and I would be set until a late dinner. Or I brought lunch from home. A bit more work but healthier and a lot cheaper. If burger king is your only option, maybe get a listing of their menu with nutritional values and choose the healthiest five options and rotate between them through the week.
Also, my best defense against my sweet tooth, is I try to exercise before I eat a treat. If I burn off the calories before, it feels more like a reward. Instead of eating it and then exercising and the workout feels like a debt to be paid.
And don't drown yourself drinking too much water. I usually get in five cups a day, but then I also get fluid from fruit and veg, as well. I'm more concerned about people who drink 3-4 liters a day and what they are doing to the electrolyte levels in their bodies.
Hope you get out of the slump soon. :-)

The last couple of days looks like you ate a lot of processed food and that contains a TON of sodium which will cause you to retain fluids which translate into weight. Try tracking your sodium and see where it's at, plus yesterday you were under 1200 which is a problem when you factor in your exercise. If you're going to burn that many calories, you need to eat more than 1500-1600, which I know you usually do.
Just my 2 cents...
God bless,
Karen

im in the same bost, the scale hasnt moved in a week, its torture...:frown:

I'll say the sodium. You've been over a lot lately, some days almost 4k...that's gonna cling to that water...