I started officially calorie counting exactly two weeks ago. I have gained 1 pound. Everyday I eat 1400 cals. I have gone over my calories 2-3 times and not by that much. I work out for an hour or hour and a half. I do both cardio and strength training. How is it possible I'm not losing weight- nevermind GAINING.
I am so unbearbly frustrated right now, I can't stand it. I can't starve myself, I can't work out much more than I do now. Am I just supposed to be fat? I can't try low carb anything- because A. I don't want to. B. It's nearly impossible being a vegetarian!! The one thing that I keep going back to is TOM. I am due any day now, but I never really noticed whether or not I gain weight right before. I want to give up so badly right now.. I can't bear to wake up again and see the scale go up. What else can I do?
Hang in there. You could weigh more for a couple of reasons. TOM can add a few pounds and so can working out. Both are temporary. Stick with it and see what happens.
Stop weighing yourself for a week or two. Keep calorie counting and exercising. Take a big, deep breath (or two.) Did you also just start strength training? Are you eating lots of sodium, drinking more water than usual? Is your scale right? Are you sure you are writing down all your food and have correct calorie counts?
Calorie counting and exercise has been the pathway to success for me. It is currently TOM for me and I gained. Loss has been slow for me, but persistence has been key. You have a number of variables to check before you give up the entire experiment. Keep with it and don't stress. I have faith that it will all work out.
Did you just start exercising, or did you just change in some way, maybe increasing the intensity? If so, THAT's why. I always gain weight when I intensify the exercise. If you're at all sore, you could be retaining as much as two pounds of water just for muscle repair. And my body just hangs onto the pounds when I exercise, sometimes for as much as a month, and I'm not alone.
Someone in the 100 lb club just posted pictures of herself with a 24 lb loss, and no lie, it looks like she's lost 80 lbs. But she has become much more fit and toned through exercise, so the scale has been SLOW but the difference is nothing short of amazing.
My point is, hang in there, and don't trust the blasted scale.
What are you using your calories for? Making good, healthy food choices is necessary to lose weight. How about posting a day's menu? Also 1400 calories may not be enough with how much you are exercising.
I think everyone has mentioned the possible reasons here, a personal note: If I don't eat healthy whole foods, and spend my calories on like drive through crap...i gain due to the sodium and fat levels. something to consider if your meal plan isn't balanced it could be affecting your rate of loss and water weight.
Ugh - I had a similar problem (similar size as you, going for 1400 cal/day). It has been a slow, slow journey. It's true, the exercising made me gain weight for a while - I started running. Seems like everyone else says the pounds just melted off when they started running, but not for me! But I could definitely see differences in my body even when I didn't lose weight. Ironically, I didn't see any differences in measurement either - talk about frustrating! But I definitely looked better, so that's something. And it took probably 4-6 weeks to see that.
The only thing I can add to the advice so far, since I am mostly vegetarian (trying to make myself eat more fish, but I go back and forth on that one) is: Don't go *low carb* but consider paying attention to the carbs for a bit.
So - maybe you are doing this already - but I don't eat any refined carbs right now. Not even much whole wheat. And usually only 1 serving of grain each day - 1/2 c. brown rice or quinoa, maybe a whole wheat pita. I'll have 1 or 2 servings of fruit as well.
Most of my protein comes from soy - tofu, tempeh, soy milk, "fake" meat products - dairy - nonfat Greek yogurt, nf cottage cheese, lowfat cheeses, 1% milk - and eggs. (And fish, of course, but that doesn't work for you...)
I am eating mostly by South Beach right now, and it is very veggie-friendly. There are lots of folks who take the principles of SBD and apply it to Weight Watchers or calorie-counting. I tracked my food consumption before and after making this switch. Carbs went down, but I still average ~100g/day, usually more. My protein went way up (I aim for close to 30%, almost never make it) as did fat (I am focusing on trying to get lots of monounsaturated fats - olive oil, nuts, avocado, etc.)
Anyway, even if you don't sign on to the whole South Beach thing, consider checking it out. The "rules" keep you eating healthy: 4.5 cups of vegetables per day, minimal saturated fats, only whole grains, etc. And there are lots of vegetarians doing it.
I only started losing when I shook up my diet in this way. With calorie-counting I could justify a lot of less-than-ideal choices.
to you, whatever you decide to do! If anything, I hope it helps to know there are people out there struggling, too.
P.S. I am still a calorie-counter, if that makes sense... I track everything.
Thank you all soo much for your encouragement. I am really trying to relax and listen to everything you all are saying and not throw in the towel and hide under my bed with a box of cheese-its. I am also going to try reallly hard to lay off the scale for a while. I actually plan on giving it to my mom to hide from me for a while. hehe.
To answer a few questions- I drink about 60-70 oz. of water a day. This is a serious increase as opposed to what I was drinking before. I think somedays I would only drink diet coke and coffee. EWW. So yes- that's a big change. For the last few months I have been working out fairly inconsistently. In the last three weeks- I have been going 6x a week. My workout consists of 45 mins on the bike, 30 mins walking uphill on the treadmill, 15 mins on the stairmaster and then a yoga or biggest loser strength video. Maybe that seems like a long workout- but I am very sedentary during the day. I sit a lot!
This is my usual menu, if anything seems fishy or a possible obstacle- let me know! Breakfast:
Highfiber cereal, nonfat milk, half a banana or
whole wheat english muffin, pb, half a banana Lunch:
Apple
Vegetable Soup or
Salad topped with a mixture of beans,rice and salsa Dinner:
Occasionally a lean cuisine if in a hurry or
Veggie burger with a lot of veggies or
tofu with a lot of veggies Snacks:
I usually have 1-2 wasa crackers with hummus. dessert occasionally depending on what my parents have around.
Again, thank you so much for your input. If it wasn't for these forums- I would be knee deep in ice cream right now.
EmmaD- Do you know how many grams of protein you eat a day? I am usually under on my protein according to sparkpeople. I just find it hard to fit in! I will check out the SBD boards for some ideas though!
What are you using your calories for? Making good, healthy food choices is necessary to lose weight. How about posting a day's menu? Also 1400 calories may not be enough with how much you are exercising.
This was my first thought ... maybe not enough cals on exercise days
To answer a few questions- I drink about 60-70 oz. of water a day. This is a serious increase as opposed to what I was drinking before.
and this has to weigh something inside you til you pee it out!
Try not to flip over 1 lb gain. It really is nothing in the grand scheme of things. Even up to 5 lbs can be things other than fat. PMS water bloat, too much sodium in diet, pee, poo, etc.
The scale only shows weight change. It doesn't tell you if it is water you drank or rocks in your pockets.
Um.. that doesnt add up to 1400 cal unless you're eating so much cereal, PB or rich deserts.
I eat around 1400 and this is what it looks like:
A protein shake with 1% milk & A tablespoon of Flexseed Or oatmeal with 1%milk and Flax seed:300
2 cups of Coffee with half&half and splenda: 40
Snack: an orange: 50
Lunch: A big salad with chicken, sprinkle of almonds and 1tbsp of fat free dressing: 300
1/2 cup cottage cheese: 80
Dinner: An ommlet with a piece of toast. 300
Dessert: 1/2 cup Greek yogurt with Almonds: 250
I eat more food than you.
I do eat 1400 calories- that is just the main gist of what I eat. There are random snacks or additions to my lunch or dinner to make it add up, unless sparkpeople is decieving me!
The only reason I am hesitant to up my calories- is like I said- I sit a LOT during the day. I feel like I barely move unless I'm working out! We'll see, the scale is now hidden for 2 weeks. If it doesn't budge or goes up- it's going into the ocean.
This is my usual menu, if anything seems fishy or a possible obstacle- let me know! Breakfast:
Highfiber cereal, nonfat milk, half a banana or
whole wheat english muffin, pb, half a banana
why don't you just start out by switching up your breakfast to something pretty much protein. Like have 2 eggs and some avocado and 1/4 of a grapefuit or something.
sometimes your body just needs a switcheroo from what it usually eats, and also a switch from carb to protein, especially for breakfast.
how can this be?
to you, whatever you decide to do! If anything, I hope it helps to know there are people out there struggling, too.
