Starvation Mode Recovery

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flea
flea Posts: 56 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Ok, so before I started using MFP a couple of weeks ago I was on WW points plan - eating 19points a day (which is what they have given me for my height/weight etc)

So since the beginning of the year I've not lost any weight - any weight I lose goes straight back on the following week :( it was getting very depressing. I joined the gym and on advice of a PT I stopped weightwatchers.

Now I'm on here and I realise for the many months that I was on weightwatcher (since september last year until about 1 month ago) most days I was consuming far less than 1200cals (basically eating a fruit/veg and lean meat diet with a few grains and pulses) So I've been learning about BMR etc and now I'm eating around 1400-1900 cals a day depending on my exercise level).

Can someone tell me how long after they started eating more did weight finally come off again? I've gained a couple of pounds but yes I'm smaller. I'm trying to change my focus from what I weigh to fat percentage lost etc but it's hard and I'd love to be a "healthy" weight (only 1 kg off a healthy BMI).

I'd love to read other successful "eat more to lose weight" stories :wink: :happy:

Replies

  • indianagranny
    indianagranny Posts: 863
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    First of all it is a good thing you upped your calories. Second of all, learn to focus on different things besides the number on the scale. I think for me I actually noticed my clothes fitting better - looser than the number on the scale go down. Instead of the number on the scale focus on the feelings of your inner body changing - how much better you feel all over.
  • SHBoss1673
    SHBoss1673 Posts: 7,161 Member
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    sure flea,
    Glad to have ya.

    so I'll break it down for you, and remember guys, she has 8 lbs to go to make goal, so a lot of the stuff having to do with bigger deficits just plain won't work for her.

    OK, so here's the story (remember, this is just my humble opinion, so do with it what you will), you're pretty close to your goal first, that means you should expect any weight loss to be slow.

    Second, watch out that you don't set your goals per week too high, remember, 2 lbs a week is an agressive goal meant for people in the obese category, your goal should be about 1/2 lb per week loss.

    Third, (and this answers your original question), it can take a while for your body to adjust to new eating habits, usually for most people it takes anywhere from 2 or 3 weeks up to 6 or 7 weeks, so yeah, you might not see changes right away. And yeah, you might see slight weight gain for the first few. See, you were probably in starvation mode, and your body was probably burning way less calories then it would if you were eating maintenance levels of food, it will stay this way for a little while, but once it adjusts, the weight will start coming off again. Just remember, with only 8 lbs to go, you're gonna have to incorporate more than just a calorie deficit, you should be doing at least moderately vigorous cardio type stuff, and I would also recommend 2 days of resistance, anaerobic interval training, or weight training to keep your muscle mass strong and your bone density up.

    I would recommend not weighing yourself for a good month, I know that sounds hard, but trust me, you're just going to drive yourself crazy if you weigh yourself during this transition period. Also I would take some before measurements, because that's a far better way to judge your progress than weight.

    best luck to you!

    -Banks (fyi, if you want to read more on metabolism and exercise calories, click the link in my signature, it has some good posts in it about that stuff)
  • flea
    flea Posts: 56 Member
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    Thanks Banks - I have read all those links that is when it dawned on me that weightwatchers probably wasn't doing my body the best thing.

    I have my weightloss set at 1/2lb :) and I have moderately active which gives me an allowance of 1421 (roughly) and that is about what my BMR is according to this site. so I make sure that I eat as many of my exercise points that I can :)


    Funny you mention not weighing myself as last night I got my husband to hide the scales as I was obsessing over the numbers which wasn't good for my self esteem. Today I measured myself and in 2 -3weeks I've lost what I think is a decent amount of cms (about an inch off almost all places :) and in my torso close to 2 inches)

    I have a trainer at the gym that has also told me not to focus on weight but it's hard when thats what has been drilled into you your whole life.

    I've just posted my photos in my profile so I can definitely now see a difference (and glad I took them of me at my worse as I can see how far I've come) It's actually funny because in one of the pics I was a kg or two lighter than I am now and a healthy BMI (the one in the orange) but in my last photo (in my cool pink pj's haha) I'm looking sooooo much trimmer :smile: even though I'm heavier - I think I look healthier in that pic even though my BMI says otherwise.

    I'm glad I found out that I should be eating more - i was getting really depressed on weightwatchers thinking that for the rest of my life I'll be eating nothing :( so it's nice that I can indulge after a workout with my favourite natural organic peanut butter on toast and not feel guilty about it:wink:
  • SHBoss1673
    SHBoss1673 Posts: 7,161 Member
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    Sounds like you're already in a good place. Good luck lady! Remember that this is for life and you'll do great!
  • CubLub63
    CubLub63 Posts: 12
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    Hello! Here's my story... I was doing well on my diet and I kept a log of everything I ate. I started out eating about 1300 calories and then for some reason my calorie intake dropped to 900. As I checked the scale, I noticed I wasn't losing anymore. So, went back... looked at my food log and realized that the point at which I started to eat less was when my weight stayed the same. So, upped the calorie intake... and I must have started losing not more than 3 days after I started eating. It's weird but, when I think I've eaten too much is when I get the most weight loss. So, from my experience... you have to eat to lose weight! If that makes any sense... still hard for me to wrap my head around that. :tongue: Good luck! :smile:
  • flea
    flea Posts: 56 Member
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    Hello! Here's my story... I was doing well on my diet and I kept a log of everything I ate. I started out eating about 1300 calories and then for some reason my calorie intake dropped to 900. As I checked the scale, I noticed I wasn't losing anymore. So, went back... looked at my food log and realized that the point at which I started to eat less was when my weight stayed the same. So, upped the calorie intake... and I must have started losing not more than 3 days after I started eating. It's weird but, when I think I've eaten too much is when I get the most weight loss. So, from my experience... you have to eat to lose weight! If that makes any sense... still hard for me to wrap my head around that. :tongue: Good luck! :smile:

    Yay that sounds fantastic :)

    I've had my calories upped for about 9days -2weeks (will go back and look) and so hopefully at my next PT weigh in in 6 weeks I'll see a move (now to make sure my husband doesn't give in and tell me where he hid the scales before then). I think I'll try and concentrate on my workouts and take my measurements fortnightly.

    I have a big trip to the USA in 17weeks (I'm in New Zealand) so I'm hoping that is enough time to change my body into something new and fantastic :smile:

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