very, very discouraged

It can be hard to accept that eating more will mean you end up weighing less, but I agree that you sound like you are way under where you should be.

I have the same problem a lot. Mine is trying to find the time to eat, but yes eating enough is really important. metabolism needs a good boost. Also, try some weight training. It keeps your calorie burn going all day.

It can be hard to accept that eating more will mean you end up weighing less, but I agree that you sound like you are way under where you should be.

^^^ this. Your body is not getting enough fuel to feel secure enough to 'let go' of what it IS getting. Eating that little, your body thinks it must save what it is getting in case it doesn't get more - this is "starvation mode". By increasing your calories, your body will recognize that it gets appropriate nurtirion and you will start to see the scale move in the right direction!

As stated above by others, I too am no expert

But if you are eating so few calories, will your body not hold onto whatever it is getting and store into fat?

The body needs certain levels of calories, fat , proteins etc in order to function

When you deprive it, then body goes into starvation mode and will grab anything it can get and start turning to fat

I mentioned this in another forum - there is technique called calorie shifting or the zigzag method...its basically where you eat varying levels of calories over the course of the week ..but you really should discuss with a doctor

Also see a doctor in case there is something else at play

Thank you so much for taking the time to reply. I am exercising for more than an hour a day and burning 420-490 calories each day on the elliptical to prevent my metabolism from slowing down. If I ate 1200 calories a day, I would not lose, I would gain weight. In fact, about two weeks ago I did eat more calories for about three days in a row and gained 3.5 lbs, which came off as soon as I returned to the exercise and reduced calorie plan. But since then, I have not lost a single ounce.

Yes, you may gain weight when you up your calories -- at first. And I'm pretty sure your 3.5 lbs gain from your 3-day reduction was just water weight (impossible to gain that much fat in 3 days on 1200 calories). My advice would be to eat at maintenance calories for a month and see where your weight is at (I think you need to get your body back to equilibrium). Then, if you want to trim back calories, do a moderate decrease of calories for a couple of weeks and check your status.

Also, have you considered adding strength training to your routine? I've been reading that as you get older, it is more important to add muscle to keep your metabolism up. I've shifted my routine to be more strength training-focused and less cardio and it has made a big difference. Just a thought.

I hope this helps! Good luck!

I have to agree with all the other posters:

1. Eat more
2. Add weight lifting along with cardio

Good luck!

I have to reply and echo what several others have said---you are putting your body into starvation/survival mode, so your systems are naturally going to hold onto everything to survive. You do need to eat more--but what you eat more OF and what you eat less of makes a HUGE difference.

I would advise you to try avoiding and cutting out, as much as you can, any sugars that are not coming directly from fruits and veggies. Also, maybe tone down the exercise JUST a tiny bit. Again, you don't want to discourage your body from burning fuel by throwing it into a panic.

I am not personally in your same place in life, BUT, for what it's worth, my mom is in her mid 50's, and she has been eating mostly simple and healthy for years, but just recently she was able to add daily walking to her life again, and she has starting losing weight that she wanted to drop for a while. So exercise is definitely needed, but overdoing it can have the reverse effect so don't go extreme. Take it up gradually.

I'm sorry it's been so discouraging for you, but don't give up! You can get healthy and strong and find your ideal state of fitness. You CAN! Just be patient with your body; it has many adjustments to make and this is going to take time. Try to focus on goals of consistently avoiding a foods that give the wrong fuel, making time for rest, and select 1 day of the week on which to reward yourself (nothing too crazy, of course, but something you can enjoy as a treat).

I hope this helps!!

Oh Yeah and PLEASE stop comparing yourself to your friend.

Being inspired by someone else's determination and discipline is one thing. Expecting your body to respond like theirs is quite another thing--and that's NO help at all.

You are beautiful and valuable already just as you are--- do what will be healthiest for you because of this, not to reach some standard and become OK. I'm sure you've heard all that, but I have observed that we all seem to need reminders of this no matter who or how old we are

In fairness, any change at all needs time for your body to adjust to the change. Try a higher caloric intake for at least a month and see what happens. 3 days isn't long enough to truly judge. I plateaued for nearly a month, tried decreasing and I gained! Then I tried increased my calories a little above where I started, and I'm losing again. I don't think you are high enough on calories. And a PP mentioned dairy. At 67, your body will be screaming for calcium and vit D, so please add milk to your diet and consider vitamin/mineral supplements to help with the nutrition deficit that happens with age.

First of all, I'm a 67 year old female. I have been dieting since Feb. 15, which is six weeks ago. I am using my fitness pal to track my calories. In the past I have found that I have to really cut my food intake in order to lose weight. I am keeping my calories to 900 a day AND using my elliptical almost daily for about 420 calories. I have lost only five pounds in all that time. I am getting very discouraged and wondering if this is due to my age or what the problem is. My diet consists of grapefruit, broiled fish, salads with very little dressing, 1 or 2 pieces of multigrain bread a day, 1 or 2 ounces of chicken, and one 6 oz. glass of white wine a day. My wight loss partner is losing four or five pounds a week - but seeing her fast progress and my slow progress is not helping. I want to lose 20-25 lbs and have 15-20 to go. Any suggestions?

Look at it this way: if you are eating 900 Calories a day and burning 420 of them through your elliptical that means you are only netting 480 Calories a day, there is no way your body can run correctly on so few Calories and it will hold onto everything that it can. You need to help your body realize that it will get fed properly so it can release the extra weight. As (nearly) everyone has said, Eat more and you will lose. Many of us have done the low-calorie thing and hit the same wall that you are. Trust us.

Try looking at the sugar in your foods. Its there, believe me. Sugar in wheat bread, Sugar in wine, sugar in Carbs found in fruits and veggies. Honestly, look at all the sugars and then take it from there. You are going to get some, just do your homework and see all the hidden in what you eat. Try it for 2 weeks, then see where you are at. ~ Just a thought. Good luck !

From your picture it appears you are not obese or extremely overweight. When you start working out you may gain weight as your muscles repair themselves etc. Additionally as a woman you weight may fluctuate with your "cycle"..Its been addressed a thousand times on here about min calories. 1200 is a MINIUMUM for women. If you are excercising you need to eat you execercise calories BACK. You didnt gain the wieght in a week, it will take time to slim down and adding some strength training will help tone you. it WONT neccessairly make you lose weight. Give it some time watch to see if your clothes fit better etc. its not about being a number on the scale its about being healthy. A healthy body is attained through proper diet and excercise. If your goal is to lose 20 pounds then you stop excercsiing and eating right you will gain that weight back plus some i assure you. Being fit is a lifetime dedication not a part time or temporary thing. I see it all the time on here and this is the second post like this today I have made. Dont mean to preach but what I am saying is true, people dont want to beleive tht the only way is the hard and long way. Soemday they might find a way to geneticlaly alter people to be a certain body fat percentage somehow until that day its diet and execercise, not starvation, pills, surgeries etc.

and while you're eating those extra calories, eat them every 3 hours or so! i think that'll help your metabolism more than all that exercise. good luck - hope to hear a more positive message from you soon!

I know it's hard to believe, but you must eat more to lose weight. We need fuel to burn fat, and you're lacking the fuel to do so. At this point your body is in starvation mode.