What am I doing wrong?

beccarockslife · April 2012

I can't be happy with the small steps Ive taken though. Yes clothes do fit a little better, But I hate how I look when I see myself in a mirror, I don't have more energy at all, I'm exhausted all the time, and I guess I'm in a little better shape then I was before...
It's just, I've put so much emotional energy into this, and I feel like I'm getting no where and nothing I do works. I don't want counting calories, carbs, sodium and fats to control my life.

Why are you trying to lose weight?

Is it completely for vainity reasons? Probably not. There are a million other good reasons to lose weight however long it takes.

CouchSpud · April 2012

Uhm, tortilla chips, turkey ham, bacon, cheese, chocolate brownies... have you looked at the salt content in those? especially the tortillas? Because heck, do I gain weight over night when I eat chips (and by the way you do not gain 4lbs fat in two weeks unless you eat shedloads more nor do you gain 4lbs of muscles)

A lot of processed meat has shedloads of salt in it, turkey ham and smoked turkey and rashers can be beyond bad when it comes to salt, crisps (or chips) are anyway. I agree with others, there seems to be a lack of fruit and vegetable and you could potentially drink more

Don't give up, the others are right, you need to figure out your own way, MFP can only give you a standard guideline, but as always in life one glove doesn't fit all

lisag2007 · April 2012

I agree with others....more fruit and veggies....and some protein with each meal may help too. One of my fave snacks is cottage cheese with strawberries sometimes with a tsp of honey. Sounds odd, but it's fabulous if you like cottage cheese. Don't give up, you maybe have gained muscle and keep switching up the workouts....it'll eventually show on the scale. If your clothes are fitting better, then things are changing. Good luck to you and keep up the good work.

roozombie · April 2012

I can't be happy with the small steps Ive taken though. Yes clothes do fit a little better, But I hate how I look when I see myself in a mirror, I don't have more energy at all, I'm exhausted all the time, and I guess I'm in a little better shape then I was before...
It's just, I've put so much emotional energy into this, and I feel like I'm getting no where and nothing I do works. I don't want counting calories, carbs, sodium and fats to control my life.

So, don't let it control your life. Maybe you need a break from tracking all your food all the time, but I would pay more attention to what other people have said. Getting in more fresh fruits and vegetables as a regular part of your diet will help. You don't have to be a slave to your calorie count, but you do need to re-learn portion size and think a little more about the nutritional content of the food you're having. Check the labels of the food you buy and avoid things with super long ingredient lists or lists that have multiple ingredients that you can't pronounce or don't recognize. You really also ought to have your thyroid checked if you have not done so, as that will just keep you from losing if there is a problem from there. You may also want to think about your exercise choices-can you add in more strength training? This will help you increase your lean body mass, boost your metabolism and let you eat more calories overall. Also, what people have said about water is true--it's also necessary for your body if you want it to repair itself from exercise. Good luck!

Edit to add: If you want MFP to change the macro ratios that you track, click on your goals and choose to do custom settings. This will let you change your macro percentages. If you read around for macronutrient percentages, you might find one that works better for you. I don't do low carb, but I know that if I am much over 100g/day on carbs that I end up craving more carbs whereas protein can provide greater satiety and cut out cravings, if you have them.

Pakse · April 2012

I have been trying to lose weight since November, at least actively. In February I completely overhauled my diet and exercise program and have dropped 15 lbs and 2 pant sizes. I lowered my carb intake and increased my protein. I also eat 6 times a day with an average of 150-200 calories per meal. My diet consists of chicken or lean beef, complex carbs such as brown rice and sweet potato, fibrous vegetables such as asparagus, broccoli or green beans and almonds as well as oatmeal and eggs and egg whites. I mix in 2 protein shakes, usually one in the morning after am workout and one in the afternoon after cardio during lunch hour. Spices (in the dried herb/fresh herb variety) are free! If you find yourself bored with that chicken breast use a different flavor combination!

By splitting your meals into smaller portions throughout the day, you are constantly adding fuel to your body instead of forcing it to guess when it might get it's next nutrition and then go into panic mode and store those excess materials for later use.

If you combine weights with cardio it helps tremendously. Muscle uses more calories for energy than fat, so your rate of burn throughout the day rises the more lean muscle you build. You will not get bulky adding weight lifting to your exercise regime. As a female you simply do not have the testosterone levels in your body to get into that man-figure most people think of when lifting weights. I also do cardio for a minimum of 35 mins 2x a day. If I can not make this due to work and school schedules, I try for at least once a day. I do treadmill or elliptical and do a variance on my speed. By increasing my speed (intensity) for a period and then dropping down to a slower rate, my body is never sure what I am doing at a given time!

Cut the alcohol out! When you drink you negate the exercise you did for the day and it takes approximately 72 hours to acclimate back to your pre-drink mode. For example, if you exercise Friday morning and drink Friday night, you have ruined the beneficial gains received from the am workout and your body will not be fully back to its self till about monday!.

My diet is a little strict for most people and because you only live once, I allow myself 2 cheat meals per week. I plan it out ahead of time so that I am not just ordering a pizza, for example, and eating as much as I want cause I can justify it by saying it is my cheat meal. I go out and still make choices such as grilled over sauced etc.

I encourage you to research research research. I am now addicted to whatever I can find regarding changing my lifestyle.

** These are things that have worked for me. I am not trained in any nutritional programs or training. I only recently discovered this site so my diet and nutrition logs are not complete nor accurate. **

jenniejengin · April 2012

Bump

Chalesie · April 2012

I can't be happy with the small steps Ive taken though. Yes clothes do fit a little better, But I hate how I look when I see myself in a mirror, I don't have more energy at all, I'm exhausted all the time, and I guess I'm in a little better shape then I was before...
It's just, I've put so much emotional energy into this, and I feel like I'm getting no where and nothing I do works. I don't want counting calories, carbs, sodium and fats to control my life.

You have to remember that it didn't take 2 weeks to gain the weight so it won't be gone in a short period of time. It will take dedication and more time to lose the weight. You are on the right path you just need to be patient with yourself and know that you are taking the steps in the right direction.

I know that when I reduce my carbs and eat the buld of them in the morning and afternoon I have better results... and perhaps doing this will help with your energy levels as well.

Give yourself some time... it will happen you just need to stay dedicated to it and make some little tweaks.

stormieweather · April 2012

Here are some things I've learned about how my nutrition, and my exercises work to help or prevent me from losing weight.

For me, I don't lose weight unless I eat enough protein. So I have to keep my carbs lower than MFP's standard setup and my protein higher. My protein goals are set to 30% of my calories and carbs are limited to 40%. Fat is the rest.

Also, I don't burn nearly what MFP and the machines tell me I do. Not even close. A really good zumba session burns 340 calories...for me. Lifting weights is maybe 90 calories extra for 40 minutes. I can only add the calories from fitness related, purposeful exercise, and then, only the low numbers I really burn. Before I knew and when I ate back those calories, I stalled myself out.

And my guesstimates on food serving sizes is generally pretty bad, so weighing and measuring is the only way for me to get it right. A chicken breast that is 5 oz instead of 4, 3 tablespoons of salad dressing instead of 2, 1/4 cup of grated cheese is a tad bit more than a tablespoon, a bowl of ice cream is NOT a 1/4 cup serving....etc.

An unmanaged "cheat" day can kill a weeks worth of hard-earned deficit. 3 alcoholic drinks at 200 calories ea, dinner at Olive Garden at 1,900 calories, a piece of cake at 600 calories, your child's leftover french fries and you have completely obliterated 6 days of 500 calorie deficits. If you are going to have cheat or maintenance or eating out days...make sure they are accounted for in your hopes and goals.

Measurements trump scale readouts. If you are losing inches, that is the most important thing because that is what people see, not your scale. Every month on the 1st, I measure my body in 7 specific spots. Even though I've only lost 8 pounds this year, I've lost 12 1/2 inches.

Your body doesn't know that Sunday (or whatever) is weigh in day. It doesn't know that on Monday at 9:02pm, you finally have a 3500 calorie deficit and boom - drop that 1 pound of fat. Mine take 2-4 WEEKS to see any results of anything I'm doing (good or bad). That's almost a MONTH. So be patient and keep up the hard work. The results WILL show eventually, but you have to stick to it.

Good luck, and feel free to add me if you would like. :flowerforyou:

yustick · April 2012

I am 57 days into my commitment to lose weight and I am doing better than ever. I have a long way to go. I'm obviously not an expert and truly can't predict what tomorrow brings, but this is what I think right now....

In my previous weight loss attempts, I have always been highly emotionally reactive to the scale. Now, I am focusing on the math. I weigh, measure and record everything I eat carefully and I use a BodyBugg and Fitbit to calculate my calories burned as accurately as possible.

So far, my weight loss is always within a couple pounds of where I should be based on my cumulative calorie deficit. It is making me a firm believer in the simple concept of calories in/calories out. It is a comfort to feel that I know what to do and if I do it, I will lose weight. I may simply need to wait out temporary weight fluctations.

That being said, I highly recommend tools to help you accurately measure calories in and out. A scale, measuring cups and spoons and a Bodybugg or similar device.

I think the BodyBugg is more accurate especially for strength training and other intense workouts. I paid $155 for device and display delivered. However, after the first free six months, there website costs about $10/month. I personally hate their website, but am willing to pay $10/month, just to update my weight and unload the data from my BodyBugg...if it is a reliable tool.

Fitbit has a nicer and free website. The device costs around $100. Results are comparable to the BodyBugg on lightly active days. However, it overstates my calories burned during drive times. I have learned to override this, but it would be too time consuming if I were in and out of my car all day.

Good luck!

What am I doing wrong?

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