very slow weight loss... please help

I have been reading all the little threads and they have been very encouraging

I'm seeing a couple things in this post. First, you said that you COMPLETELY changed your diet. I could never eat what you are eating in a day. It would totally freak my body out. Plus, I wonder how probable it is that you can stick to that way of eating? It could probably a mind/body thing. If you've completely changed your lifestyle your body may be having a hard time adjusting to such a dramatic change. Second, you said that you are doing upwards of 45 mins of cardio followed by weight training. It sounds like you have completely gone gung ho, which is great, but there again your body is trying to adjust to this dramatic change. The first thing it is going to do is hold on to all of its resources. You might try doing a cleanse. Even a simple lemon water cleanse may help or a full on colon cleanse. I would also pay close attention to your protein/carb/fat amounts. If you notice an imbalance you might try to equalize it. Also, you might back off a little bit on the weight training, and start eating some of your "old" foods. I know it sounds crazy, but your body just may be in a state of shock from so many changes at once. Whatever you do, don't give up. It will happen.

I know from my own previous attempts at weight loss that when I go from being inactive & eating poorly to exercising every day & eating at my goal, I don't lose. Or I do but very, very slowly. So slowly that I get discouraged & frustrated & go right back to my bad habits. This time around, I started dieting to get that part under control before I incorporated exercise. I was going to wait until 30 lbs lost through diet before adding exercise, but I hit a plateau at 25lbs. Then I ended up gaining back 2 pounds, which doesn't sound like a lot but it felt like the end of my world. That's when I brought exercise in. I've only been at it for a week so far, but I've lost what I gained back plus some.

My advice is to learn your body & what works for you. Calorie fluctuation & having some days higher in protein or carbs than others, having rest days from the gym...those are things that I thought sounded like advice that was going to slow down my progress & keep me fat, but they're working.

Good luck!

Have some of your friends check out your food diary. "Tons of fruit" can mean too much sugar.

How's your sodium?

I would suggest cutting your calories back,sounds like you are taking in enough calories to maintain.Just a suggestion and mayby beef up the cardio a bit:)

in case this might be helpful: if you have an opportunity to workout in the mornings, try to do your cardio then (maybe eat a banana or something smaller to hold you through the workout). that way, your body would've burned all the carbs overnight and when you do your cardio in the morning, you'll be sourcing straight from fat calories. If you workout in the evenings or after a meal, do a short warmup and do weights first. This anaerobic workout will source the calories from the carbohydrates you just ate and by the time you do your cardio, you'll be burning fat calories. I have also struggled with super slow weight loss, particularly because similar to you, I am in a health BMI range and after two kids and nearly 40, well, is not as easy. One thing that really made the weight come off for me was to decrease (remove if you can) the dairy intake. Dairy is generally bloating. Also, as we get older many of us become mildly lactose intolerant which means your body has an immune (swelling, or fluid retaining) response to it that does not necessarily make you sick. Try to incorporate the whole lean protein, lower carbs deal. Have you explored mild food allergies? That also makes us hold on to weight.

Meanwhile, hang in there. As someone else said, you didn't gain it overnight. You said you're doing this for health reasons and health is not a seasonal goal, right?

together in health!

i'n in the same boat. Ive been on here for 30 days now and have only lost 9lbs. i'm at 1200 calories a week. and i walk 5 days a week. I weight my self every sunday and the scale is saying i'm only loosing .2 i'm freaking frustrated. I wonder am i eating too little calories do i need to up it WHAT?

i'n in the same boat. Ive been on here for 30 days now and have only lost 9lbs. i'm at 1200 calories a week. and i walk 5 days a week. I weight my self every sunday and the scale is saying i'm only loosing .2 i'm freaking frustrated. I wonder am i eating too little calories do i need to up it WHAT?

9 pounds in only 30 days? thats awesome

you people are killing me. that is a great loss for 30 days!

what the hell? did you gain it that fast? HELL NO YOU DIDNT!

keep going...as you lose weight the loss rate slows down...we are a complex body...it takes time to adjust to the new better fuel

I just looked at your diary. You are not eating nearly enough. You are netting less than 1000 calories on most days and you are working out a lot.

You need to eat your exercise calories back.

If you have your MFP goal set at a loss of 2lbs, you need to change that too. Especially if you are already at a normal BMI.

There is a lot of great advice here! But more than anything else, you need to find what works for you. For instance, I have to eat a high protein diet. I eat lots of high quality, low fat protein (doctor wants me getting 100-125g a day). Everything else is low calorie and low carbohydrate. It's what works for me. Protein shakes, salads, chicken-turkey-pork are my friends. But this won't work for everyone!
Some people take longer than others to lose weight. I can lose pretty quickly until I hit a "healthy BMI" and then I struggle with every ounce beyond that. And wow, I can put it back on way faster! This last creep upwards was the longest one, but I have put on 30 pounds in a few weeks. It sucks! I do suffer from hypothyroidism, but I was able to lose weight best before I started getting treatment for it!
Keep at it! You will get there!