Could anyone tell me where I'm going wrong?

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emmclah
emmclah Posts: 7
in Health and Weight Loss
Hello,
I've been trying to lose weight for the last 5 months or so. I've lost 11lbs but I've now been stuck in a plateau for the last 6 weeks approx. I can definitely feel I'm losing weight in some my clothes and can get into a size 10s which I never could before but can't see the results on the scales and other clothes feel tighter than they did.

I was weighing myself on the Wiifit before which I think was slightly skewed so bought myself some proper WW scales which admittedly gave me a shock so I've been trying a lot harder with food and exercise and bought myself a cross trainer a week ago which I'm really enjoying, just wondering why it's not showing on the scales and if I'm doing anything wrong.

Thanks for reading

Replies

  • hezzyhlo
    hezzyhlo Posts: 55 Member
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    Are you tracking absolutely everything that goes into your mouth? It looks like you are not even getting up to the 1200 calorie mark on most days.. That may be your culprit. Maybe experiment a bit with increasing that to see what happens!
  • pgfatty
    pgfatty Posts: 43 Member
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    hi

    i have the same problem.

    scale show only 5kg loss but i dropped from size 14/16 to a comfortable size 12.

    here i was all depressed abt my small loss but was losing cm all along.

    dont be despondant......
  • Meloonie
    Meloonie Posts: 144 Member
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    If you aren't eating enough that could be the problem. It could be worth changing things around a bit too, as in what you are eating. If you eating a lot of the same foods all the time, your body gets used to it.
  • stephyy4632
    stephyy4632 Posts: 947 Member
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    I took a look at your diary and you need to eat more if you are logging correctly now. MFP is already set up to give you a cal defect and most of your days you have anywhere from 300-600 cals left over for the day

    add your water intake
  • d4gkaige
    d4gkaige Posts: 2 Member
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    I am having the same problem, but also dont forget as you work out more you will start to build muscle. which would explain why the numbers on the scale haven't changed but your clothing size is. When that starts to happen it is a hard platuea to over come but very possible. The other portion of the equation i agree with the others, you can afford to eat more .:bigsmile:
  • cramernh
    cramernh Posts: 3,335 Member
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    Hello,
    I've been trying to lose weight for the last 5 months or so. I've lost 11lbs but I've now been stuck in a plateau for the last 6 weeks approx. I can definitely feel I'm losing weight in some my clothes and can get into a size 10s which I never could before but can't see the results on the scales and other clothes feel tighter than they did.

    I was weighing myself on the Wiifit before which I think was slightly skewed so bought myself some proper WW scales which admittedly gave me a shock so I've been trying a lot harder with food and exercise and bought myself a cross trainer a week ago which I'm really enjoying, just wondering why it's not showing on the scales and if I'm doing anything wrong.

    Thanks for reading

    Why allow yourself to stress over a scale that isnt giving you the numerical results? You should stick with the measuring because only THAT is the most accurate way of seeing progress. Weight fluctuates over everything, daily, within the day, etc.

    If you keep stressing about a scale, youre gonna put that weight back on thus being your own worst enemy..
  • dieseljay74
    dieseljay74 Posts: 376
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    Make sure you are meticulous with tracking everyday for a while so you can gauge exactly what you take in. It's amazing how much gets overlooked....my morning coffee creamer, fish oil pills and vitamins account for 50 calories alone....most overlook these. That's 350 calories alone not to mention everything else that gets left out throughout the week. Very easy to get skewed.
    If you find you are tracking on point and still not losing it's likely an insufficient calorie intake.
  • AReasor
    AReasor Posts: 355 Member
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    As long as your inches are going down, you are improving. Not just improving, getting healthier. I had times I hid my scale and went entirely by measurements. I still wanted the validation the scale would give me, but I couldn't deny the 3inches I lost from my waist.

    Sooooo the clothing part of it.......I found a pair of skinny jeans that I had gotten too big for and hid in the back of a drawer. I put them on and the waist and booty were too big. But I couldn't wear them because the calves and thighs were too tight, due to my new rockin muscles. An awesome problem!

    Your weight loss and healthy lifestyle might not be going just how you want. But you are making good progress.

    KEEP AT IT!!!!
  • emmclah
    emmclah Posts: 7
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    Thanks very much for all your replies. For those of you that say to eat more what kind of foods would be best? I don't want to be eating more of the wrong foods again and cancelling out my exercise and good work.

    Thanks again
  • twinmom01
    twinmom01 Posts: 854 Member
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    Thanks very much for all your replies. For those of you that say to eat more what kind of foods would be best? I don't want to be eating more of the wrong foods again and cancelling out my exercise and good work.

    Thanks again

    You need to measure yourself....the scale is just that...if you are actively working out a lot your body is going to retain water for muscle repair...also fat takes up a lot more volume than muscle - so if you are burning fat it may take a while for say a 4-5 lb loss to register on the scale...but loosing 4-5 lb of fat could show a huge difference in body composition.

    I haven't taken a look at your diary but you definately need to fuel your body if you don't fuel your body it gets mixed signals of "I'm only getting a little bit of fuel from food for the workout so I am going to hold on to the reserves (i.e. fat) I have" which can stall out weight loss as well...

    Healthy choices are whole fresh foods - like

    veggies and fruits (skew more towards veggies than fruits)
    good fats like nuts, avacados, coconut and olive oils
    protien sources - eggs, chicken, turkey, beef (I keep hardboiled eggs and roasted chickn in my fridge to nosh on)
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,293 Member
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    You are not eating nearly enough. You should not be getting less then 1200 Net (1200 plus eat back what you burn. Your weight loss goal may also be too aggressive for the amount you have to lose. Here is a guide for setting weekly weight loss goals:
    If you have 75+ lbs to lose 2 lbs/week is ideal,
    If you have 40-75 lbs to lose 1.5 lbs/week is ideal,
    If you have 25-40 lbs to lose 1 lbs/week is ideal,
    If you have 15 -25 lbs to lose 0.5 to 1.0 lbs/week is ideal, and
    If you have less than 15 lbs to lose 0.5 lbs/week is ideal.
  • brookeaghajani
    brookeaghajani Posts: 3 Member
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    Although sort of counter-intuitive, your weight shouldn't be the bar by which you judge your progress. Your body composition is much more important, and if your clothes are fitting better- then you are absolutely making headway. As you prob. know, muscle weighs more than fat, but takes up less room. Also, if you have been doing the same thing for awhile, you'll need to mix it up. Our bodies are smart- so we will learn how to do more with less if we keep the same exercise regime and always eat the same foods. Also, I didn't look at your diary, but eating small meals at least 4-5 times a day, and not eating for at least 3 hours before you go to bed will help. Your body needs 12 hours a day without having to digest food.....
    :wink:
  • mkgolden1
    mkgolden1 Posts: 2 Member
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    find a way to measure your percent body fat. The typical method can be off, but over time it is the most important thing to track, way more important than weight. As others have noted, as you workout, you will lose fat but also build muscle. That will result in small movements in the scale, up or down. But the % body fat will change noticeable. The best way to notice is in how clothes fit. :)

    As someone else said though, make sure you track EVERYTHING you eat. It is somewhat disconcerting, but there can be a tendency to 'cheat' yourself a bit.
  • michelehedges
    michelehedges Posts: 14 Member
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    Wow! Fish oil pills have calories? Good to know!
  • emmclah
    emmclah Posts: 7
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    Thanks all. Not been on the forum in a while, just wanted to post to say it's finally moving down to 11st 9 now with a stone lost in total, only 1 1/2 stones to go :o)
  • emmclah
    emmclah Posts: 7
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    I'm now 11st 5lb having followed the closer diets plan for just over 2 weeks :o)
  • cindymeyerhofer
    cindymeyerhofer Posts: 8 Member
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    I think it is important to remember that if you are exercising, you are building lean muscle mass, which weighs much more than fat. So I would measure the inches coming off in addition to the pounds so you don't get discouraged. Eating more protein is a good idea as well which will help you avoid the yo-yo dieting cycle.

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