HELP.......STUCK!!

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caegem
caegem Posts: 79 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi everyone, I am at the end of my rope, and I need some help! I have been on a plateu for months!! Talk about frustrated......I have tried dropping cals adding more water changing up the excercise..........upping the protein..........HOW CAN YOU eat 1200 cals a day and gain weight?? "CRY"! I started dieting in august 2011 at 190.2 lbs, I was dilligent and dropped about 15 lbs in three months. I started seriously again in January and became so frustrated that I had decided there was something seriously wrong with me! three doctors later and multiple tests and labwork revealed that I am FINE......I am down 16 lbs in 9 months??? That just sux! I have been fitness walking 3-5 miles 3-4 days a week, and doing 30 day shred 3-5 days a week, I also added weight training last week. I know your metabolism slows down as you age, but this is ridiculous!! I am willing to try anything to get to my goal of 155!! My diary is open, if anyone has any sugestions I would really appreciate the HELP!
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Replies

  • yarwell
    yarwell Posts: 10,477 Member
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    your food diary isn't public.

    Did any of the doctors measure your metabolic rate ?
  • kaji13
    kaji13 Posts: 172 Member
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    Contrary as it may sound to your instincts, it's possible you aren't eating enough.
  • ymd1998
    ymd1998 Posts: 1
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    Sorry I'm new to this and I dont know how to veiw your diary. Eat lots of fruit and veg even though they contain calories it burns off a lot quicker than bread, pasta or meat. Try to avoid fruit juices as they are empty calories you could drink a full carton of orange juice in 1sitting which contains several oranges, how many whole oranges do you think you could eat in 1 sitting?
  • TheOriginalGinging
    TheOriginalGinging Posts: 171
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    I started at 1200 and didn't lose anything. I upped to 1450 and have lost now. Crazy, I know. Think nutrition and fitness rather than diet and exercise! Feel free to add me.
  • jmm27
    jmm27 Posts: 34
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    I know it sounds insane but you are not eating enough. Go to fat 2 fit and use the calculators provided to get your BMR (what you burn just by breathing). You should be eating those NO MATTER what! If you dont, you will lose weight at first but it wont last for long. Since you are doing a lot of physical activity too, you'll need to make sure you dont get calorie deficient. Make sure you know your TDEE (it depends on the amount of exercise you do daily). Its safe to cut 500 calories so you will lose 1 lb a week. So if it says your BMR is 1450 and your activity level is very active allowing you 2380 daily calories, its ok to cut 500 from that and eat 1880. Always eat your BMR + at a minimum 200 more. I know it sounds crazy but to lose more, you have to eat more. Good luck :)
  • ermickel
    ermickel Posts: 167 Member
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    I know it sounds insane but you are not eating enough. Go to fat 2 fit and use the calculators provided to get your BMR (what you burn just by breathing). You should be eating those NO MATTER what! If you dont, you will lose weight at first but it wont last for long. Since you are doing a lot of physical activity too, you'll need to make sure you dont get calorie deficient. Make sure you know your TDEE (it depends on the amount of exercise you do daily). Its safe to cut 500 calories so you will lose 1 lb a week. So if it says your BMR is 1450 and your activity level is very active allowing you 2380 daily calories, its ok to cut 500 from that and eat 1880. Always eat your BMR + at a minimum 200 more. I know it sounds crazy but to lose more, you have to eat more. Good luck :)

    So I just did this and my moderately active BMR is 2227. Are you saying I should cut 500 from that making my net calories per day around 1727? Look at my diary I only net about 1200 per day. I am not sure what foods to even add to get that higher calorie amount...suggestions? I have been stuck for 3 weeks now and getting pretty discouraged!!
  • lizziebeth1028
    lizziebeth1028 Posts: 3,602 Member
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    *Your food diary isn't public so it's hard for anyone to give you advice.

    *You can make an appointment with your Doctor to see if there is an issue with your thyroid
  • yarwell
    yarwell Posts: 10,477 Member
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    I am not sure what foods to even add to get that higher calorie amount...suggestions?

    You could get the proper Fage yogurt not the 0% fat one, have bacon not turkey for breakfast, use sugar instead of truvia as a sweetener - there's some more easy calories.
  • ermickel
    ermickel Posts: 167 Member
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    I am not sure what foods to even add to get that higher calorie amount...suggestions?

    You could get the proper Fage yogurt not the 0% fat one, have bacon not turkey for breakfast, use sugar instead of truvia as a sweetener - there's some more easy calories.

    The Fage 0% is really the only low fat I use. I suppose I could add those sugar calories too.Really confusing as it goes against most things you have EVER been taught about dieting and you see so many people losing tons of weight eating at 1200 or less. Do you count fat and carbs at all or just try to reach a good calorie amount every day?
  • dward2011
    dward2011 Posts: 416 Member
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    I would check with my doctor to rule out any possible medical issues. My honest opinion is that you are not eating enough, but again you and your doctor will know better than I.
  • Emancipated_Tai
    Emancipated_Tai Posts: 756 Member
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    This is my EXACT story. I started at 1200 calories and lost about 20 pounds in three months from July - Oct last year. My birthday and holidays caused me to slow my efforts. I re-charged mid Janurary, but by the end of March I still had only lost and gained the same 5 pounds. I didn't start losing weight again until I upped my calories to my BRM which is 1709. I now eat ruffly around 1700-1950 calories a day. Another thing that help was lowering my carbs. I am usually about 70g/day. I also upped my protien to around 150g./day. I have lost 15 pounds since April 1st by doing the above.
  • thriftycupl
    thriftycupl Posts: 310 Member
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    Check out the group Eat More to Weigh Less. I hit a plateau in terms of weight loss for 6-8 weeks. I was incredibly frustrated, but then I started to read. Lots of great information here on how to take care of our bodies.

    If you'd like more friends on your journey, feel free to add me.

    Good luck.
  • amcglothlin
    amcglothlin Posts: 4 Member
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    Is that net calories after exercise?
  • kitkatkmt
    kitkatkmt Posts: 178 Member
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    May be worth visiting a nutritionist. I saw one before I started using MFP, and I'm very glad I did - she helped me to shape out my ideal day's worth of food. May be worth a try! Good luck!
  • callmecaptain
    callmecaptain Posts: 61
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    your food diary isn't public.

    Did any of the doctors measure your metabolic rate ?

    I am not a licensed nutritionist but I can give you several ideas where you could start, like for the fact half the people dieting don’t even know they are prone to diabetes and can simply change their results by eating the right foods for your metabolic rate.

    Also as mentioned above by a obviously smart person who knows what they are talking about because they even mentioned the idea, find out what your metabolic rate is. Doctor or I have a simple questionnaire that I came across that can help you get a better idea.

    Everyone always asks questions but are they ready to try the answers……
  • basketcasemama
    basketcasemama Posts: 1
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    I've done lots of plateaus and I feel your pain. Nothing for frustrating than doing the right thing and still now getting results. There can be lots of reasons.

    1) You aren't eating enough. Yes, entirely true, yes, you need to calculate BMR and be in that range.

    2) You are eating enough but not calculating it right. Not writing down everything we put in our mouth even bites and tastes can kick you in the butt when dieting. Reassess your diary and see if you see anything that jumps out at you.

    3) Eating the same thing day in and day out. Alot of people find it convenient to stick to the same Breakfast Lunch and dinner plan day after day because it's convenient and they know the calories so it is easy to remember. Trouble is your body adjusts easily and sometimes shaking it up will jar that scale.

    4) What you are eating. I've dieted many many different ways over the years WW, JC, protein shakes, low calorie, Atkins, etc. Nothing worked. In my frustration of sticking at the same weight for 2 years I tried a drastic measure. I dropped all the sugar and white flour from my diet. Basically if it's in a box, I can't eat it. I shopped the outside aisles and grabbed some canned beans. I laid off caffeine, chemicals, additives, and I'm eating clean. And guess what -- 12 and 1/2 pounds in a week. Mind you my hubby is on the same diet and is cheating here and there. He lost a pound. So it illustrates a good point. If you are in it to win it, you have to be honest with yourself, you have to commit to yourself and your goal and you need to learn to jump the hurdles instead of running head long into them.

    5) You are exercising too much. Like eating not enough, over exercising can cause fat storage. Switch up the exercise, do a day of weight training and then walk the next day, then back to weight training, then do a cardio day, then rest a day, then weights again and so forth. This gives the body a chance to heal and recuperate but keeps the metabolism cranking.

    6) You aren't eating often enough. If you are not eating 3 to 6 small meals daily then your body will kick into plateau. Your body needs fuel to burn, and if you don't constantly give it a little fuel the fire goes out. Eat 3 meals daily and three snacks. I like to do a protein and a carb, like fruit and nuts, or peanut butter on an apple or celery. Protein especially when exercising is so very very important.

    Hope that helps.
  • focus4fitness
    focus4fitness Posts: 551 Member
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    Are you sure you're really eating only 1200 calrories a day? If all the tests came back negative, I would check on that. Plus are you doing any cardio? I need to do both cardio and calorie counting to make a dent in my weight. Good luck lady!!
  • kimsimm
    kimsimm Posts: 5
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    I am not sure what foods to even add to get that higher calorie amount...suggestions?

    You could get the proper Fage yogurt not the 0% fat one, have bacon not turkey for breakfast, use sugar instead of truvia as a sweetener - there's some more easy calories.

    The Fage 0% is really the only low fat I use. I suppose I could add those sugar calories too.Really confusing as it goes against most things you have EVER been taught about dieting and you see so many people losing tons of weight eating at 1200 or less. Do you count fat and carbs at all or just try to reach a good calorie amount every day?

    You really want to have your calories come from clean sources. I totally disagree with the person who suggested that you add in the sugar and pork bacon. Looking at your diary, your calorie deficit is not coming from your fat intake, and increasing sugar is only going to spike your insulin levels and trigger your body to store more of what you take in in your fat cells. You really want your calories to be spread out fairly evenly over the day, eating every three hours and spreading the calories out as evenly as possible. In that scenario, let's say your goal is 2,000 calories per day and you eat 6 times per day, as it looks like you do. That would mean that each of those six times that you eat, you want what you eat to equal about 333 calories.

    You also want to pay attention to your macro breakdown. By that I mean- where are those 2000 calories coming from? A 40/40/20 ratio is pretty standard for those who want to "tone up," meaning gain some lean muscle and lose body fat. If you use 40/40/20, that would mean 40% of those 2000 calories come from Carbohydrates, 40% from Protein, and 20% from fat. You would want this ratio present in your overall daily intake, but to the best of your ability, in each of your daily meals.

    Also, you will burn more body fat by doing regular weight bearing exercise in addition to cardiovascular exercise. The more muscle you have, the more your body will feel ok in shaving off some of your fat stores.

    One last thing- remember that the scale is not your best measurement of fat loss. I have experienced times where the number on the scale went up, but I went down an entire size in clothing. That's because the volume of fat and muscle are drastically different. An easy visual is this: 5 lbs of fat takes up the space of 3 grapefruit, whereas 5 lbs of muscle takes up the space of 3 tangerines. Don't get discouraged if you don't see the number on the scale moving- take measurements and notice the change in the way your clothes fit. Also- the first place you gain it is likely the last place you'll lose it, so don't get discouraged if you lose in your arms or chest, but are hanging on to your stomach. Keep up the regular clean diet, ensure that you eat enough calories from clean sources within your macro breakdown, and combine weight bearing and cardiovascular exercise 4-5 days per week. The change will come.
  • ermickel
    ermickel Posts: 167 Member
    Options
    I am not sure what foods to even add to get that higher calorie amount...suggestions?

    You could get the proper Fage yogurt not the 0% fat one, have bacon not turkey for breakfast, use sugar instead of truvia as a sweetener - there's some more easy calories.

    The Fage 0% is really the only low fat I use. I suppose I could add those sugar calories too.Really confusing as it goes against most things you have EVER been taught about dieting and you see so many people losing tons of weight eating at 1200 or less. Do you count fat and carbs at all or just try to reach a good calorie amount every day?

    You really want to have your calories come from clean sources. I totally disagree with the person who suggested that you add in the sugar and pork bacon. Looking at your diary, your calorie deficit is not coming from your fat intake, and increasing sugar is only going to spike your insulin levels and trigger your body to store more of what you take in in your fat cells. You really want your calories to be spread out fairly evenly over the day, eating every three hours and spreading the calories out as evenly as possible. In that scenario, let's say your goal is 2,000 calories per day and you eat 6 times per day, as it looks like you do. That would mean that each of those six times that you eat, you want what you eat to equal about 333 calories.

    You also want to pay attention to your macro breakdown. By that I mean- where are those 2000 calories coming from? A 40/40/20 ratio is pretty standard for those who want to "tone up," meaning gain some lean muscle and lose body fat. If you use 40/40/20, that would mean 40% of those 2000 calories come from Carbohydrates, 40% from Protein, and 20% from fat. You would want this ratio present in your overall daily intake, but to the best of your ability, in each of your daily meals.

    Also, you will burn more body fat by doing regular weight bearing exercise in addition to cardiovascular exercise. The more muscle you have, the more your body will feel ok in shaving off some of your fat stores.

    One last thing- remember that the scale is not your best measurement of fat loss. I have experienced times where the number on the scale went up, but I went down an entire size in clothing. That's because the volume of fat and muscle are drastically different. An easy visual is this: 5 lbs of fat takes up the space of 3 grapefruit, whereas 5 lbs of muscle takes up the space of 3 tangerines. Don't get discouraged if you don't see the number on the scale moving- take measurements and notice the change in the way your clothes fit. Also- the first place you gain it is likely the last place you'll lose it, so don't get discouraged if you lose in your arms or chest, but are hanging on to your stomach. Keep up the regular clean diet, ensure that you eat enough calories from clean sources within your macro breakdown, and combine weight bearing and cardiovascular exercise 4-5 days per week. The change will come.

    Thanks this is great advice! I do have my daily goals set at 40/40/20. I have lost almost 10" overall doing 30DS and eating clean. I don't balance all my food to be equal calorie amounts maybe I'll play with that. Do you go by your BMR or eat at 1200 calories? I am going to switch up my workouts and do 30DS every other day and do weight lifting on the off days.
  • jmm27
    jmm27 Posts: 34
    Options
    I know it sounds insane but you are not eating enough. Go to fat 2 fit and use the calculators provided to get your BMR (what you burn just by breathing). You should be eating those NO MATTER what! If you dont, you will lose weight at first but it wont last for long. Since you are doing a lot of physical activity too, you'll need to make sure you dont get calorie deficient. Make sure you know your TDEE (it depends on the amount of exercise you do daily). Its safe to cut 500 calories so you will lose 1 lb a week. So if it says your BMR is 1450 and your activity level is very active allowing you 2380 daily calories, its ok to cut 500 from that and eat 1880. Always eat your BMR + at a minimum 200 more. I know it sounds crazy but to lose more, you have to eat more. Good luck :)

    So I just did this and my moderately active BMR is 2227. Are you saying I should cut 500 from that making my net calories per day around 1727? Look at my diary I only net about 1200 per day. I am not sure what foods to even add to get that higher calorie amount...suggestions? I have been stuck for 3 weeks now and getting pretty discouraged!!

    Kimsimm hit the nail on the head. Dont add sugar or pork bacon. Eat clean. Remember you are what you eat. If you wanted to add more calories, a tbsp of peanut butter would do the job and give you protein. I eat the pb2 in regular and in chocolate and its delightful! If you calculated your TDEE (2227) then remember that already takes into account calories you would burn exercising. You would be on the path to lose 1 lb a week if you ate 1727 a day with moderate exercise. Just be sure to not go below your BMR (Harris-Benedict Formula from the fat 2 fit site). You dont want to lose muscle, you want your muscle to eat your fat. So you need to feed your muscles, lean and green. :)

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