counting cals doesnt work
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Going off on a tangent here - PBJ can I just say, your last two profile pics have been lovely.
Now to the point in question my own recommendation would be to go back to basics:
weigh everything & log it
drink plenty of water
Take your vital stats and monitor them
Throw the videos away (OK just put them in the cupboard instead), get yourself outside and workout in the fresh air. The addition of other people seeing you exercising will give you a boost and naturally make you work that bit harder. Incorporate resistance, interval and weight training. Set yourself some small circuits and build up from there intersperced with some jogging/sprinting/walking. You should know a whole library of exercises from the videos you have been doing - but doing them outside will add a different dimension - get your MP3 blasting your favourite tunes and you will find yourself worker harder and for longer. Ensure you are doing the exercises correctly and maintain form throughout - none of this half arsed stuff I see people doing - give it your ALL.
Incorporate a rest day.
You could try zig zagging your calories at the same time that you make these changes to kick start things.
Try fiddling with your macros to increase protein and reduce carbs - this works for some people and worth a try.
If all else fails, a quick visit to your doctor can determine if there is a medical reason for a prolonged plateau.
All the very best.
M0 -
Are you watching the amount of sodium you eat? This site recommends no more than 2500mg of sodium a day and I have heard the FDA recommends no more than 2300mg a day. Sodium can cause bloating which can make you not lose weight. Are you making sure you drink at least 8 glasses of water day? also very important. Just a thought!0
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I mostly do videos. I was doing turbofire. That didn't work so I went back to doing my jillian ones and added weight and do the more advanced versions of her exercises. I was doing the killer buns and thighs 3 days a week and ripped in 30 four days a week and piloxing 2 days a week. So some days I did more than one video. I can workout at the student gym which is pretty crappy but it has some weights and cardio equipment so I guess I will try that. When I do go there I do interval cardio.
When you say Turbo Fire didn't work, what do you mean?
How long did you do it for? What was your expectations?
I've been doing Turbo Fire since March and since then I have lost 28 pounds and arond 20 inches all over. Was it all from Turbo Fire? Maybe... but I have no way of knowing that it definitely was. I'm just happy to have achieved that loss.
I followed the turbo fired schedule for a month. I expected to see more toning and a harder work out but I was disappointed and found the work outs too easy, especially the sulpting ones and I even had harder resistance bands than she was using0 -
I'll argue with you!0
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Are you on the pill?
Multiple studies show that the pill does NOT affect weight loss. The only form of birth control that is proven to cause weight gain is the depo provera shot. so, are you on depo? Do you have thyroid problems? Are there any other medical factors that could be causing this?
the studies are WRONG! You do gain weight not always very much, I NEVER gain weight with out overeating and when I went on YAZZ I gained 10 pounds and I barely was eating anything. I have gotten rid of some of it switching to another pill ,but honey you gain and I did not over eat or get lazy your welcome to look at my profile , it changes your body because the hormones make your body think it's pregnant and need to feed a baby.0 -
Are you on the pill?
Multiple studies show that the pill does NOT affect weight loss. The only form of birth control that is proven to cause weight gain is the depo provera shot. so, are you on depo? Do you have thyroid problems? Are there any other medical factors that could be causing this?
the studies are WRONG! You do gain weight not always very much, I NEVER gain weight with out overeating and when I went on YAZZ I gained 10 pounds and I barely was eating anything. I have gotten rid of some of it switching to another pill ,but honey you gain and I did not over eat or get lazy your welcome to look at my profile , it changes your body because the hormones make your body think it's pregnant and need to feed a baby.
When I started the pill I was NOT eating a calorie deficit, exercising or eating fewer calories then before the pill and I did NOT gain weight. Since you are 100% positive that you can't take the pill without gaining weight, was it all a dream or maybe I was just hallucinating?0 -
I know it's frustrating... I've been gaining and losing the same 1 lb now for almost 3 months, but to say something 'doesn't work' is a little naive. If you are in a calorie deficit, you will almost always lose weight, eventually. If you're not losing weight, you are either 1) not burning as many calories as you think you are, 2) consuming more calories than you think you are, or 3) doing a bit of both. The same goes for me. I'm not losing weight so I must not be burning as much as I think/eating as little as I think.
Maybe your heart rate monitor isn't 100% accurate. Maybe you're calorie counts aren't 100% accurate.
Try tightening up your calorie consumption first. Measure everything. With teaspoons, tablespoons, cups, and even a scale if you have one. Its a pain in the butt, but it will give you a more accurate guesstimate on calories.
If you think your HRM is accurate, than set your calorie intake at 200 to 500 calories below your estimated calorie burn. Stick with it religiously for a month. If you still aren't losing weight, decrease your calorie intake by 200 and wait again.
Don't give up on exercise. Find something you like and stick with that religiously too.
It sounds like you are giving up on exercise programs too because they 'didn't work' and that doesn't really make much sense to me... unless by 'didn't work' you mean they caused too much discomfort.
That's what I suggest
That's what I'm planning to do once I get rid of some excess cortisol (a.k.a. stress, and I'm being facetious about the cortisol). Right now, I'm just holding the course because I need to feed my brain cells. 0 -
I mostly do videos. I was doing turbofire. That didn't work so I went back to doing my jillian ones and added weight and do the more advanced versions of her exercises. I was doing the killer buns and thighs 3 days a week and ripped in 30 four days a week and piloxing 2 days a week. So some days I did more than one video. I can workout at the student gym which is pretty crappy but it has some weights and cardio equipment so I guess I will try that. When I do go there I do interval cardio.
When you say Turbo Fire didn't work, what do you mean?
How long did you do it for? What was your expectations?
I've been doing Turbo Fire since March and since then I have lost 28 pounds and arond 20 inches all over. Was it all from Turbo Fire? Maybe... but I have no way of knowing that it definitely was. I'm just happy to have achieved that loss.
I was going to ask the same thing. Turbo Fire is a great workout for me to do at home. You might not be burning enough calories per day. You lose weight by burning more calories than you consume.0 -
Perhaps it's currently not working for you. I, however, am doing just fine with it. Are you taking measurements or are you just weighing yourself? And, while this isn't the nicest question, I'm going to ask it anyway. Is your goal weight realistic or do you want to look like an underweight runway model?0
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That's kind of a bold statement...Saying counting cals doesn't work. If it doesn't work then how can you explain the millions of people who have lost weight by counting cals? Lol.
Plateaus happen to everyone...It's just part of it.0 -
add strength training to what you already do0
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When you eat "crap" it's generally higher in calories.. why don't you try increasing your calories without saying your "eating your exercise calories"
In another words, eat 1500 calories a day everyday whether you workout or not. But don't pay any concern to how many calories you are burning, therefore you wont fall victim to thinking you need to eat them back.
When I was at a plateau, I increased my daily calorie intake and the weight started to drop off. Just one more idea to try.. everybody is different.0 -
Something you may want to ask your dr. about is to check your thyroid tsh levels. That will throw you out of wack too and make it hard to lose weight! If your thyroid isn't working correctly, it causes problems. Just an idea.0
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Have you tried Zig zagging caloires?
I don't know why it works, but it seemed to for me.
I do 2-4 days close to my MFP target for my caloric in take and then
I do a day at what the maintenance calories for my GOAL WEIGHT.
I've only had a couple of minor plateaus
and really kept me from feeling too deprived which helped me stick with it.
There were a couple of times when I got frustrated and gave up and had a splurge day or meal.
Always seem the following day is when the scale would move.0 -
Open up your diary so that you can be better helped.0
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Have you tried increasing your calories slightly with healthy foods? When I hit a plateau, I increased my intake by a couple hundred calories, and started losing again. As you get closer to your goal weight, you will need a smaller deficit (i.e., no more expecting to lose 2 lbs/week).0
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I agree with rainbowbow. It does and doesn't work. At the same time. Here's the thing, "calories in, calories out," is s decent working model for how the body works. Calorie counting helps you learn portion control, makes you think about what your putting in your body (do I really want a scone? Or do I want to eat soup and chicken and a small dessert instead?). And, generally speaking, it works a good portion of the time for a good portion of people.
But, you know? The body is also really complex. We AREN'T simple machines. So, yes, sometimes, adopting other models can be helpful. And you know...this isn't really that controversial. Why do athletes do all kinds of fancy regimens, why do models do all kinds of crazy things, why do people have plateaus, why do women after pregnancy have a hard time losing the last 10 pounds, why can already thin third world farmers, doing really heavy work, live on 500 calories a day for months and months without keeling over dead? Because, our bodies aren't that simple. And, the fatter you are, and the longer you've been fat, the less science knows about how you use food for fuel. That's why they keep doing experiments on fat people...there ARE things they just don't understand.
But, calorie counting is probably the simplest, most elegant model...especially in the beginning of weight loss.
So, stick with it. Eventually you'll come out the other side. And, if you want something else to "try," do a search on "plateau" on the forums. There's lots of accumulated advice here.
I know some people are.suggesting that you are "doing something wrong." Maybe, maybe not. But weight loss is a personal journey. Its about YOU figuring out what works for YOU. Just don't give into the temptation of trying "crazy diets" because you're not having consistent success. Very few people do.
Thank you for sharing your moments of doubt with us. We're here to support you through it.0 -
Here comes REALLY BAD ADVICE!!! I was in the same situation very early on in my program. I got so discouraged that I ate crap for a while. I mean, I was almost off the wagon, the only thing I still had going was that I was still logging all the trash I was eating. Then, I got back on the band wagon. I do workout DVDs (love Jillian), but I'm slowly adding jogging. I'm losing like a normal person now!
By the way, THERE IS NO FAT THAT CAN STAND UP TO RUNNING FOR MONTHS AT A TIME!!! I don't always have the time or energy, but I swear by the effects of healthy eating + RUNNING!0 -
Make sure you are accurately counting the calories in. If you don't have a food scale, that's essential. Get a good one for home, and a cheapie for the office if you eat food other than what you bring from home. Measure and weight EVERYTHING. Make sure you are using an accurate calorie count, as some of the entries in the database are not accurate.
You count the calories in pretty precisely with enough effort. But you can never count your calories out accurately. It's easier to see the calories going out when you're working out. But that's what, 3 hours out of 168 hours a week?
Look at the percentage that MFP adds to your calorie requirements based on your activity. It's not that much.
Where do all the other calories go?
Most of it goes to create heat. Cold blooded creatures can eat once a week, because they don't use energy keeping themselves warm.
And a lot of it goes to your level of fidgeting and moving about during the day when you aren't "working out." Obese people shift their weight less often, jump up from their chairs to get things less often, pace the floor less often, take the stairs less often, and are generally more efficient at not wasting effort doing things the hard way.
Turn down the thermostat in your house. Dress light. Move around more to keep warm. See what you can do while pacing instead of while sitting. Never ride an elevator if you can take the stairs. Turn off the TV. Get recorded books, podcasts and old radio programs, and pace the floor or walk outdoors while listening. Walk to destinations that are within a mile from home. Get a shopping cart to haul your groceries home in. There are lots of things that will raise your metabolic rate. And they're more enjoyable when you don't have to move a massive amount of weight on overloaded knees, now that you've taken off some weight.0 -
Here comes REALLY BAD ADVICE!!! I was in the same situation very early on in my program. I got so discouraged that I ate crap for a while. I mean, I was almost off the wagon, the only thing I still had going was that I was still logging all the trash I was eating. Then, I got back on the band wagon. I do workout DVDs (love Jillian), but I'm slowly adding jogging. I'm losing like a normal person now!
By the way, THERE IS NO FAT THAT CAN STAND UP TO RUNNING FOR MONTHS AT A TIME!!! I don't always have the time or energy, but I swear by the effects of healthy eating + RUNNING!
To be clear, the bad advice is that I think eating poorly sort of "reset" my system. I may be wrong, but before I didn't see progress. My body was fighting me too hard.0
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