Seriously frustrated. I've been trying to eat reasonably healthy and work out since mid-January.
I work out anywhere from 4-8 times a week, depending on the week. I burn between 700-1000 calories each time I work out. I eat at least 1370 calories a day, and monitor my fiber, fat, sugar, carbs, and sodium.
I've lost 10 lbs. 10. that's it. 10.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10.
I have gone down some pant sizes. But I want that number to move. No...I need that number to move.
I've tried so hard. But really...10 lbs in 7 months? Something has to give.
I am wondering if you potentially aren't eating ENOUGH. I know that sounds counterproductive, but if you are only consuming 1370 kcals (or around that number) per day your body may be in starvation mode. I am a Biologist with emphasis in Anatomy and Physiology and it might be that your body requires more fuel so that it doesn't hold on to fat and burn your lean body mass. Have you had your body fat tested? If you have been consistently working out burning on average 800 kcal let's say 5 days a week and eating only 1370, and your bmr is somewhere around 1500 kcal (I don't know how old you are but that is with an age of 25 and height and weight added in) then you would be putting yourself at a daily deficit of 930 kcal per day, 5 days a week which is cutting out enough calories to lost about 1.5 a week for 7 months should be 42 pounds! When you first began this process your body was "shocked" by the change in your eating and exercising habits and began to shed the fat. However, sustained time periods of severe calorie deficit in the form of not enough fuel being put INTO your body (not the same as burning it through exercise) can cause your body to worry that it won't be getting the proper amount of calories and it begins to actually store fat, and use your lean body mass (see that as muscle) for fuel. The hard thing about that is that protein is actually less calories per gram when used (4 as opposed to 9 for fat) and this causes your metabolism to SLOW DOWN. Unfortunately many people believe that eating less food and exercising excessively will help them to lose weight faster, when in reality staying close to your BMR of 1500 (maybe only cutting out 100 calories of food) and exercising to BURN calories is a better way to lose weight consistently. This way your body isn't going to "hold on" to the fuel it desperately needs, your metabolism stays boosted (eating 5-6 small meals for those 1400-1500 kcals helps a lot too!), and you continue to consistently lose weight without the plateaus that extreme caloric deficit can cause. I hope that helps, perhaps sticking to a strong 1500 kcal diet and burning those 800-1000 kcals a day would be a good boost for your body for a few weeks and you would probably see a loss in that time (not huge but should be about 1-1.5 lbs per week with your BMR calculation). Also adding in strength training of any kind (lean muscle burns calories when you aren't doing anything!) is a great way to boost your BMR so that you can stay within a reasonable calorie consumption number without starving your body. I know that was really long but I hope that it helps! Keep trying and stay positive!
Dont give up! My only suggestion, and I am no way a doctor or nutrition expert is cut back your calories slightly, just slightly. Like 1250-1275. I eat a 1200 calorie diet and some days, I don't even make it there. I know this can be counterproducitve but since starting my SBD and my excercise regime, most of the time I feel bloated and disgusting by the end of the day and I hit 1200. Maybe its because I eat so many veggies, and they are very light on calories.
You may have just hit a plateau and it will pass but adjustments must be made. Before I started SBD and exercising, I was eating exactly like I was before I got pregnant with my son. No soda, juice, white flours. I ate lots of fruit, etc. But I remained at the same weight until I start SBD (eating only lean meat and veggies, and making sure to eat good fats instead of bad ones) and started making an effort to exercise. Really look at what you are doing and see where improvement can be made.
I completely agree with munstermummy--it really sounds like you're not eating enough. I didn't eat back my exercise calories last time I lost weight, and it became harder and harder to lose as I dropped my calorie consumption, thinking that was the problem. I was burning too much and not consuming enough. I know better this time, and I'm finding it much easier and a better experience overall. If you have a smartphone, I recommend finding an app that lets you track calories in and calories out. I use MyFitnessPal and love it. It makes life easier. If you can't use an app, several websites do the same thing. Best of luck!
Have you talked to your doctor about this? If what you're saying is accurate, it seems like you should be able to lose more than 10 lbs in that time frame. If you have a thyroid or other hormonal issue, that can make it really hard to lose weight. Not to freak you out or anything... maybe it's just something you could talk to your doctor about, if only to rule out those possibilities .
The best thing to start doing (if you are not already) is writing down EVERYTHING you eat and recording it into a calorie counter to get an accurate account of what you are eating on a daily basis and how much you are taking in.
In addition, as we all know, muscle weighs more than fat and the fact that you have went down a few pants sizes speaks volumes. Maybe you should start using a tape measure and seeing what your body fat is.
I also agree that you may not be eating enough. Last week I didn't eat as much as I normally do and I actually stalled...the minute I started eating more of the RIGHT foods my weight started going back down.
I read that you eat at least 1370 cals a day so I am guessing that is not the max. What is the max amount? I would try a day of counting every single calorie because its easy to eat as much as you burn, or enough to be losing 1/2 a lb a week or so. If its too overwhelming to calculate the how healthy your meals are-I know it is for me-just focus on the calories for your log for now and see how much it amounts to.
I think that the starvation mode is semi-hooey. Your metabolism can slow down...with actual extreme starvation, or very low calorie intake over time. But even if it did (and it doesn't sound like you are consuming little enough for your body to think that it is starving) it won't slow down the point where it is only burning 1300 cals a day with all your activity. There is still a deficit if you are eating that much a day.
1300 cals a day is burned by just sitting around. Cardio can cause some bloat also.
Just to clarify, starvation mode for your body isn't about calorie burning so much as it is your body holding on to (conserving) calories because it "thinks" you will keep depriving it of fuel for a long period of time. It automatically stores these calories as fat rather than as lean muscle because fat is the best storage medium for a fuel deprived body. It is scientifically proven that if you aren't eating sufficient calories and you are exercising heavily, your body will begin to burn through your glycogen stores housed in your muscles and liver (think of glycogen as super consentrated carbohydrates, its base is glucose) and then will move to protein (muscle) before fat because it knows the fat will keep it "alive" longer. Unfortunately this is tje physiological response to fast and drastic cutting of calories which seems like the fastest way to lose bit reallu isn't. Again just wonderung if you've had your body fat tested? Obviously you are losing some fat because of tje inches lost but it might be interesting to see what the percentage is and adjust yourself based on that rather than the scale. Somewhere in the 20-26% range is good so that might be a better indicator.
Yup, that is starvation mode. I read up on it and the studies on it, but I haven't found concrete evidence that it actually happens, just the theory that your body starts storing things as fat once the body starves itself. I did find evidence that the body starts storing water weight through.
If you've lost a few sizes, that's a huge improvement, and I would recommend abandoning the scale for awhile. If you're working out that much, you may be creating a ton of muscle, in which case, the scale won't show it. Do you feel you LOOK smaller? How many sizes have you lost? All things to think about.
I do use myfitnesspal, that is where the 1370 calories came from. When I began my weightloss journey, I typically fit in a size 18. I am now fitting into a size 14. I don't feel that I look any different at all. I see no changes, but my dad made comments in the beginning. I suppose that when I look at my drivers license, which was renewed in November, I see one...I don't look like that anymore.
The bad part is, I am so used to eating my low calories, eating 1500 seems impossible. All I do now is eat, and I log everything I eat. Somedays I struggle to eat the 1370. I don't know my max, because I do allow myself indulgences once a week or so out with the girls.
It's so hard, because I've stuck with this for a while now, longer than I ever have before, and here I am, feeling like I'm failing.
Here is my workout schedule for this week:
Sunday: 12 hour power outage, didn't get much done
Monday: weightlifting
Tuesday: zumba; 30ds
Wednesday: weights; 30ds
Thursday:agility ladders, steps, bands; 30ds
Friday: 30ds
Saturday: 30ds
wow, bopbot, according to that site, just to lose fat I need to eat 1641 calories a day...I put in that I exercise 5 times a week. That's a lot...it's almost scary thinking about increasing my calories. I got so comfortable eating so few.
I may try upping my calories for a week or two, to see if there is a difference. If that doesn't work, I'll try the calorie cycling.
I'm now considering going to the doctor and having blood work done. I have had several knowledgeable people look over my food diary and something isn't right.
I'm so tired of working my butt off, and NOT working my butt off. I'm starting to get depressed, and desperate. Not ready or willing to quit, but I feel so hopeless. Maybe I'll never be fit.
Frustration
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