no weight loss w.diet and extreme exercise...

For the last two weeks I've taken on a new diet where i'm eating 1200 calories a day (or a little more, depending on the exercise that day) and last week i burned 500 cals on monday, 800 on tuesday, and 900 wednesday, thursday and friday. and another 1,000 saturday.
I've also incorporated some weight training 5 days a week. I have noticed a change in how my clothes fit me, but the scale has not moved, the first week i lost 3 pounds. I am 5'3" and weight 154. The weight should have dropped a little bit more considering i'm burning so many calories, i just don't get it. Any advice!?
Thanks~!

Replies

  • justfungrandma
    justfungrandma Posts: 91 Member
    You are eating too few calories, especially for the amount of exercise you are doing. You need to do the calculations and find out what your numbers should be. Almost everyone should be eating more than 1200 calories. At the very least, that should be your net calories....which would be after subtracting your exercise calories, so if you are burning 600 calories a day, then you should be eating 1800 to make a net calories of 1200. You should never have your net be lower than 1200...thats what we all need to survive without even getting out of bed.
  • Inspired5
    Inspired5 Posts: 7 Member
    Sometimes it takes time for our bodies to catch up. My husband did the same kind of routine below and it took him 4 weeks before he lost any weight. However once he did he lost 3-4lbs every week. Just be patient it will show up.
  • Vaprep
    Vaprep Posts: 18 Member
    Exercise creates stronger muscles, which weigh more than fat. So that could cause it. A drastic new exercise regime will likely create some inflammation (soreness) and the fluid retention can show up on the scale, until your body gets used to its new situation. Your body might just be adjusting and holding on to the weight to see how things are going to go before it lets the weight loose. You might not be drinking enough water (which they say helps with all of the above). If you are doing all the right things, this is when it is essential to be patient. Just KEEP on doing the right things and have faith that your body knows its business. This is where most of us freak out and binge. "Oh well, if I'm not losing weight anyway, I'll just eat a bag of cookies...". Your body isn't a machine, where you can push button A and get result B. Whenever we change the status quo, there is probably a whole lot of adjusting in our bodies that we don't even understand that has to go on behind the scenes. This is a good time to lavish some love on your faithful and hard-working body- maybe a massage, a facial, a pedicure... Be kind and patient. :smile:
  • Rae6503
    Rae6503 Posts: 6,294 Member

    This. You are over-training and under-eating. Set your weight loss goal to a half pound a week (and eat what it tells you). Eat your exercise calories.
  • kiawya
    kiawya Posts: 73
    your not eating enough. You're in starvation mode
  • taso42
    taso42 Posts: 8,980 Member
    If you're going to be extreme, be extremely moderate.
  • Darlingir
    Darlingir Posts: 437
    eat more
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
    your not eating enough. You're in starvation mode

    In 2 weeks?? Highly unlikely. More likely it's water weight from the new exercise, especially since the OP says she's seeing difference in how her clothes fit.
  • Athena413
    Athena413 Posts: 1,709 Member
    If you're going to be extreme, be extremely moderate.

    Love that!

    Sounds like you're wanting results too fast, too. You've only been at it 2 weeks. Back off the cardio, do more resistance training, and give it some time.
  • kealey1318
    kealey1318 Posts: 290 Member
    If you're going to be extreme, be extremely moderate.

    I LOVE this!!! :o) Well said! :smile:
  • Emancipated_Tai
    Emancipated_Tai Posts: 751 Member
    It is going to take more than two weeks to see a difference. I suggest eating more because 1200 calories isn't enough to sustain your body's functions. Find your BRM and eat at that amount. It took me three weeks to see scale weight change after upping my calories, but I dropped inches right away.

    You may want to open your diary, because I’m sure you can get more advice if people can see what your eating. IF your not already, you should log EVERYTHING you consume. This way you can accurately account for your macros and adjust where need be.
  • Athena413
    Athena413 Posts: 1,709 Member
    your not eating enough. You're in starvation mode

    In 2 weeks?? Highly unlikely. More likely it's water weight from the new exercise, especially since the OP says she's seeing difference in how her clothes fit.

    Agreed. Starvation mode doesn't happen that quick.
  • Bakerchk
    Bakerchk Posts: 424 Member
    For one, it's only been 2 weeks, you have to give it more time. Someone mentioned you are not consuming enough calories, I agree. I was eating 1200 calories for 5 months and I lost 15lbs, but I wasn't working out. Once you start working out, you have to consume more calories. Bump it up slowly and I bet you will see a difference. Your body needs fuel when you work out, and if you don't have it, your body will hold onto every single fat cell possible because it's now in starvation mode. Eat more, lose more. It works! But be careful, when I say eat more, I don't mean add a mcdonalds cheeseburger and fries to your day. Eat more healthy foods, or eat more often. I eat 1400 calories and I eat every 2 hours and it seems to work for me. Good luck! Be patient and you will see results!
  • CallMeCupcakeDammit
    CallMeCupcakeDammit Posts: 9,377 Member
    You are eating too few calories, especially for the amount of exercise you are doing. You need to do the calculations and find out what your numbers should be. Almost everyone should be eating more than 1200 calories. At the very least, that should be your net calories....which would be after subtracting your exercise calories, so if you are burning 600 calories a day, then you should be eating 1800 to make a net calories of 1200. You should never have your net be lower than 1200...thats what we all need to survive without even getting out of bed.

    My BMR is 1676. This is what I need to survive if I was in a coma.
  • HYBRIDXXX
    HYBRIDXXX Posts: 86
    HEY MLVAFIADIS HOW OLD R U?
  • contingencyplan
    contingencyplan Posts: 3,639 Member
    1200 calorie intake should be NET, meaning AFTER calories burned from exercise is factored in. Eating any less will HURT fat loss.
  • FitLink
    FitLink Posts: 1,317 Member
    For the last two weeks I've taken on a new diet where i'm eating 1200 calories a day (or a little more, depending on the exercise that day) and last week i burned 500 cals on monday, 800 on tuesday, and 900 wednesday, thursday and friday. and another 1,000 saturday.
    I've also incorporated some weight training 5 days a week. I have noticed a change in how my clothes fit me, but the scale has not moved, the first week i lost 3 pounds. I am 5'3" and weight 154. The weight should have dropped a little bit more considering i'm burning so many calories, i just don't get it. Any advice!?
    Thanks~!

    Eating 1200, or netting 1200? Eating 1200 and doing a lot of exercise is counterproductive. If you mean you ate 1700 on Monday, 2000 on Tuesday, 2100 on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday and 2200 on Saturday, then you should be losing about a pound to a pound and a half a week, which it looks like you are.

    You're barely in the overweight category. Set your goal closer to half a pound a week. To do that you want to NET 1550 to 1600 calories per day. That's NET. EAT your exercise calories. So if you have 1000 exercise calories you eat 2550 to 2600 calories. This should give you a more sustainable loss for someone who has so little to lose.
  • CoderGal
    CoderGal Posts: 6,800 Member
    If you're going to be extreme, be extremely moderate.

    I LOVE this!!! :o) Well said! :smile:
    this lol
  • Exercise creates stronger muscles, which weigh more than fat. So that could cause it.

    What is heavier- a pound of feathers or a pound of brick?
    They are both a pound.
    What is heavier- a pound of muscle or a pound of fat? They are the same as well.
  • moosmumma
    moosmumma Posts: 25
    Hi
    It took me 6 weeks to actually lose weight. I could fit into clothes a size smaller but still weighed the same. It was because I was using weights and toning, muscles is denser than fat and weighs more per square inch. Once I had established a good routine the weight started falling off. Now I'm stuck at 66kg and haven't shifted for over a month.
  • Vaprep
    Vaprep Posts: 18 Member
    That is correct, a pound is a pound no matter what the pound consists of. However, muscle is more dense than fat, so, all other things being equal, if it were possible to compare two people of identical measurements, and one was made up of mostly fat, and the other was made up of mostly muscle, the muscled person would weigh more. Or, let me say it another way, if you had a 12" x 12" cube of fat, and a 12" x 12" cube of muscle, the cube of muscle would weigh more. By volume fat takes up more space, which is why, when a person is building muscle, they may be slimming down but the scale doesn't move. But you knew that...
  • islandnutshel
    islandnutshel Posts: 1,143 Member
    Eat more, fuel your body.
  • meshashesha2012
    meshashesha2012 Posts: 8,329 Member
    OP you're doing fine if you're seeing changes in how your clothes fit. you're experiencing water retention from working out so much, increase your water intake and make sure to throw in a banana every so often to help with any electrolyte issues.

    and more than likely you'd get the same results if you ate more, so why needlessly eat so far below your bmr?
  • skinimin
    skinimin Posts: 252 Member
    weight loss doesn't hit you immediately and it isn't constant, give it time. and PLEASE ignore all these people giving you the old "you're in starvation mode" thing, there are so many reasons why it's wrong. if it was right then girls with anorexia wouldn't lose any weight. If you reaaaallllyy want to be sure speak to your doctor or a nutritionist.

    These people are not qualified to give you any advice that is helpful and neither am I.
  • embstine
    embstine Posts: 5 Member
    I think your machine is broken. You definitly lost weight even little with the amount of calories you burned.
  • embstine
    embstine Posts: 5 Member
    true
  • douglasmobbs
    douglasmobbs Posts: 563 Member
    Make sure you are tracking your exercise and calories as accurately as possible. You are on a low calorie diet being on 1200 calories per day. Although this can be healthy whilst overweight, you have to be very careful with what you eat to make sure you get the nutrition required.

    There is more to body weight than just fat loss - muscle gain. When you change the amount of exercise you do the amount of water your body retains can change. I do not understand the science behind this but have certainly noticed the effect myself.

    The myth that starvation mode will stop weight loss is absurd and cannot be more wrong. Just look at what happens in extreme cases such as people in famine counties, starvation protests and anorexics. All three groups have no or very low calories per day and all three groups of people become unhealthy and thin. I am not advocating very low calorie diets, just using the examples to show that you will lose weight over time if you do not eat enough no matter how low you drop your calories. These examples are not healthy and you should make sure you get enough nutrition in terms of protein, vitamins and minerals etc

    The reason why you should consider eating more is to allow a greater variety in your diet if this will help you stick to it for longer, or if you need to to get sufficient nutrition in your diet, or if you are feeling lethargic/dizzy whilst exercising.
  • moosmumma
    moosmumma Posts: 25
    Hi I bought some scales with a measurement for body fat percentage and water percentage too. If I weigh more it's usually because my hydration level has gone up And i am retaining water. I find it quie motivating as my weight hasn't shifted much but my body fat percentage has gone down. Come to the conclusion am packing on some muscle which is denser than fat and weighs more per square inch. If you are going to exercise more you need to eat more otherwise your metabolism will slow down to compensate for the lack of fuel which will make weight loss harder. It worked for me. I plateaued for two months then calculated what I need to be eating on another website (I think it was fitness frog) and started to eat 1900 cals a day regardless of exercise. I gave myself a week or so off from worrying what I put in my mouth, sort of like resetting myself, but carried on with my usual routine. I'm now back to sensible eating starting to lose weight again. It may not work for everyone but it works for me.