Decrease in Cals,Carbs and Fat. Increase in exercise. No wei

tommurry
tommurry Posts: 10
edited December 16 in Health and Weight Loss
Hey all, Im Tom.
31/m that has let himself go over the last couple of years. I decided I was tired of being overweight, though not to a terrible degree. I started around 226 and over the course of a few weeks, I've decreased my calorie intake from easily 3000 a day to 1600 per day or less. My fat is 30g or less and all of my carbs and proteins are less than the given levels. I've also started back exercising in SOME fashion every day. I walk for 20-25 mins, do XBox Kinect games to get my heartrate up and so on.

After a few weeks of cutting my intake and associated calories/fat, etc by about half, I've lost 2 lbs. Im using myfitnesspal on my home computer as well as on my phone. Everything I eat and drink is entered and Im being fairly strict with what I enter. I prepare my food or find exactly what I ate. If I cant find exactly what it was, I find whatever is listed that would be the next level up in fat/carbs/cals/protein just so I know Im within a similar range.

I cant figure out why Im not losing what Im increasing my activity, decreasing my intake by half and eating less sugar and starch overall. If anyone has any suggestions, Im more than willing to hear them. Ive read the threads and I cant find anyone that is in the same situation I am that is also doing the same things I am.

Thanks
Tom

Replies

  • meshashesha2012
    meshashesha2012 Posts: 8,329 Member
    you're a dude, you're younger than me and probably way taller than and i'm eating more than you.. that's probably part of your problem.

    also is your diary open?
  • tommurry
    tommurry Posts: 10
    you're a dude, you're younger than me and probably way taller than and i'm eating more than you.. that's probably part of your problem.

    also is your diary open?

    How does what you eat have anything to do with me?
    I dont know if my diary is open or not. Im still new to this.
    I'm 5'8 if that matters.
  • Raiderxx
    Raiderxx Posts: 105 Member
    you're a dude, you're younger than me and probably way taller than and i'm eating more than you.. that's probably part of your problem.

    also is your diary open?

    How does what you eat have anything to do with me?
    I dont know if my diary is open or not. Im still new to this.
    I'm 5'8 if that matters.

    She is just trying to say that you may have gone to low on your calorie intake. A lack of calories in your system will send your body into starvation mode causing it to hold onto anything and everything that you put into your body.
  • CaseRat
    CaseRat Posts: 377 Member
    You aren't eating enough man..and if you're having less than the amount of protein that MFP is setting, you're probably having around 1/4-1/3 of the protein your body needs. Protein is GOOD!

    http://fitnesswithnatalie.blogspot.com.au/2011/05/most-dreaded-word-in-weight-loss.html


    Read that^ for an insight as to why you aren't losing weight.

    And this, this right here is a gold-mine of information:
    http://body-improvements.com/resources/eat/

    Read it. Takes a long time. But it's worth it.
  • j_courter
    j_courter Posts: 999 Member
    two pounds in two weeks is a loss! that weight didn't jump on you and it won't just jump off. it sounds like you're on the right track and you're still moving in the right direction- D-O-W-N!!! i would also recommend taking your measurements and a starting picture so if the scales don't move you will still be encouraged if you are still losing inches and seeing results.

    it sounds to me like you're doing great. :glasses:
  • tommurry
    tommurry Posts: 10
    You aren't eating enough man..and if you're having less than the amount of protein that MFP is setting, you're probably having around 1/4-1/3 of the protein your body needs. Protein is GOOD!

    http://fitnesswithnatalie.blogspot.com.au/2011/05/most-dreaded-word-in-weight-loss.html


    Read that^ for an insight as to why you aren't losing weight.

    And this, this right here is a gold-mine of information:
    http://body-improvements.com/resources/eat/

    Read it. Takes a long time. But it's worth it.

    Im usually within 10-15g of my target protein number. the first few days, I went over 20-30, then I got it to where I was 3-4 over/under. Now Im able to be around 10-15 under most days. I do go 5 over now and then, but I really try to monitor myself.

    I WILL read all that stuff. Im not worried about the time it takes to do so. Thanks for the info. I do appreciate it.
  • dbevisjr
    dbevisjr Posts: 183
    I think she may think you are starving your body. It is true that in order to lose weight you must burn more calories than you consume but remember that your body burns calories 24/7 no matter what level of activity. For that reason you should never drop below 1200 NET calories per day. My personal thought is that you would have to short yourself on calories for an extended number of days or even weeks to cause your body to go into starvation mode, but I could be wrong on that. So, always watch your NET calories on the main page. Try to always stay between 1200 and your calorie goal.

    That being said, I don't think that is what's happening now based on what you are consuming and the amount of exercise you are doing. When I first started it was a month before I saw any promising progress and I think this is what you are experiencing now. A friend of mine uses a well known PAID program (prepackaged meals, counselling, support, EXPENSIVE) and they teach that your diet and exercise today take 1 to 2 weeks before you see the results in your body. At any rate keep working on it and I am sure you will see progress soon.

    You can make your food and exercise diary public by going to Settings/Diary Settings and go to the bottom of the page to find the Diary Sharing section.
  • tommurry
    tommurry Posts: 10
    I think she may think you are starving your body. It is true that in order to lose weight you must burn more calories than you consume but remember that your body burns calories 24/7 no matter what level of activity. For that reason you should never drop below 1200 NET calories per day. My personal thought is that you would have to short yourself on calories for an extended number of days or even weeks to cause your body to go into starvation mode, but I could be wrong on that. So, always watch your NET calories on the main page. Try to always stay between 1200 and your calorie goal.

    That being said, I don't think that is what's happening now based on what you are consuming and the amount of exercise you are doing. When I first started it was a month before I saw any promising progress and I think this is what you are experiencing now. A friend of mine uses a well known PAID program (prepackaged meals, counselling, support, EXPENSIVE) and they teach that your diet and exercise today take 1 to 2 weeks before you see the results in your body. At any rate keep working on it and I am sure you will see progress soon.

    You can make your food and exercise diary public by going to Settings/Diary Settings and go to the bottom of the page to find the Diary Sharing section.

    My calorie goal I think is 1640 and Im eating 1450-1700 per day, based on where I am. Never going over more than a couple of calories.

    I went ahead and made my diary public. Its only showing a few days, but I guess its a starting point.
  • jennkess
    jennkess Posts: 86
    you're a dude, you're younger than me and probably way taller than and i'm eating more than you.. that's probably part of your problem.

    also is your diary open?

    How does what you eat have anything to do with me?
    **as a male, with age and height, all come into play with calories burned....
    I dont know if my diary is open or not. Im still new to this.*****settings>diary settings> you can open your food diary so other can see and offer advise if needed.
    I'm 5'8 if that matters.

    a Male at 5'8 224lbs 31 years old I get your BMR at 2114 calories with a TDEE setting of little or no exercise at 2536.

    there is a lot of fancy talk about BMR and TDEE the simple version according to my brain is BMR: what your body needs to sustain blood flow, vital organs, breathing, brain activity if you were to lay in bed all day long. it is suggested you don't eat below this #

    TDEE: what your body burns with basic activity, walking talking typing eating- once you add exercise in the mix that calorie # is even higher. to loose weight this is the number you want the deficit from.

    and you can Google both of these for a more clinical description
  • Helloitsdan
    Helloitsdan Posts: 5,564 Member
    5'8" at your weight could easily eat 90% whole foods and 10% junk at 2300 cals and still lose fat while maintaining lean mass.
    Your TDEE is probably about 2800-20%=2240.
    I wouldnt go below 2k.
    Set protein to 30% and fat to 30% and run with it for a while.
    Maybe workout 3-5 times a week for optimal weight loss with lean mass retention.
  • tommurry
    tommurry Posts: 10
    5'8" at your weight could easily eat 90% whole foods and 10% junk at 2300 cals and still lose fat while maintaining lean mass.
    Your TDEE is probably about 2800-20%=2240.
    I wouldnt go below 2k.
    Set protein to 30% and fat to 30% and run with it for a while.
    Maybe workout 3-5 times a week for optimal weight loss with lean mass retention.

    how do i reset my fat and protein?
  • Lozze
    Lozze Posts: 1,917 Member
    Well 1640 sounds like too few calories for you. Depending on how tall you are you could be eating at least 2000-2500 calories per day. You also say you were easily eating 3000 calories but was that measured? We tend to underestimate what we're actually eating. I'm a 5'6 woman and I'm eating the same amount of food as you are. I'm losing weight at a steady pace (33kg/72lbs in 36 weeks) Men need more calories to function then women do.

    Looking at your food diary you don't appear to have changed what you eat just the volume. You will lose weight but it's harder and won't necessarily give you health benefits. Just as a starting off point eat your three meals. Add some fruit and veg into your diet (I didn't see any) and try to start adding water.

    But 2pb is still a loss so don't be hard on yourself!
  • tommurry
    tommurry Posts: 10
    Well 1640 sounds like too few calories for you. Depending on how tall you are you could be eating at least 2000-2500 calories per day. You also say you were easily eating 3000 calories but was that measured? We tend to underestimate what we're actually eating. I'm a 5'6 woman and I'm eating the same amount of food as you are. I'm losing weight at a steady pace (33kg/72lbs in 36 weeks) Men need more calories to function then women do.

    Looking at your food diary you don't appear to have changed what you eat just the volume. You will lose weight but it's harder and won't necessarily give you health benefits. Just as a starting off point eat your three meals. Add some fruit and veg into your diet (I didn't see any) and try to start adding water.

    But 2pb is still a loss so don't be hard on yourself!

    i DO need to drink more water for sure! im just going on the numbers MFP gave me. is that bad?
  • jennkess
    jennkess Posts: 86
    i DO need to drink more water for sure! im just going on the numbers MFP gave me. is that bad?
    [/quote]

    MFP will do math off the goals you give it---1lbs per week goal is a 500per day deficit if you have it set for a 3lbs per week loss it will subtract for you 1500 calories a day - one reason to keep your goal simple and eat back your exercise calories. and most likely even if you set it at 1lbs with exercise you will lose more, but slow and steady win the race.

    read the info- check other feeds on the message boards, search "not loosing weight" are my calories to low feeds. http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/538381-in-place-of-a-road-map - this is a good one, long read yet good.
    after reading and deciding which way YOU want to start, make sure you give it a few weeks before adjusting again.

    and to manually adjust your settings, to go GOALS >change Goals> customize settings
  • tommurry
    tommurry Posts: 10
    I did the calculator for the BMR and it says I need to eat 1946 cal/day whereas MFP said 1640. I also changed the carbs to 40, fat to 30 and proteins 30. See how that works for me for awhile.

    Thanks again to everyone trying to help me out.
  • jjelizalde
    jjelizalde Posts: 377 Member
    I looked at your food diary and you had only one meal and some snacks listed. It appears you are not eating enough. Up those calories and eat back the exercise calories. It seems weird, but you have to feed your body to lose the pounds.
  • juicemoogan
    juicemoogan Posts: 994 Member
    Good luck!

    MFPers are a good resource.. dont just rely on what the website tells you.. Use it as a base, do your own research and then adjust to fit your body! You are moving in the right direction!! Way to go!
  • tommurry
    tommurry Posts: 10
    Thanks to everyone that volunteered advice and suggestions. Feel free to keep in touch. Im new to this weightloss thing and I know I will need help. MFP username is tommurry if anyone wants to add me.
  • dbevisjr
    dbevisjr Posts: 183
    Hello Tom, If I'm right, you said you were around 226 and walking 20-25 minutes each day or doing xbox kinect games. I looked at the calorie count for 20-25 minutes walking and it appears to me that you are burning around 200 calories per session. Not a bad start, keep going and as you can, increase your exercise times and intensity. That will help and at that time I would watch for the need to increase calories. Different people spend different amounts of time exercising and work at different levels of intensity. Some of the people recommending 2000 or 2300 calories a day might have missed that you are only burning 200 calories a day with exercise. Also if you eat 1640 cals and burn 200 your net is only 1440, so like I said, be sure to watch the NET calories on the "MY HOME" tab at the top of the page.
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