[Frances123]

I would love any advice I can get.

I've got a lot of weight to lose...80 pounds. I've always been a yo-yo dieter and have gained and lost this same amount several times in the past. However, I have committed to making a lifestyle change and really losing it this time.

For 2 1/2 months, I've faithfully gone to the gym.
2 days a week - strength training, 1 hour each.
2 days a week - dripping-with-sweat cardio (70 minutes each time)
1 day a week - brisk one hour walk
1 day a week - jog
1 day off

I've followed Weight Watchers, with the exception of a 5 day vacation, where I walked miles every day but ate junk.

And...I have lost...no weight. On the contrary...I have gone UP a pound. Strangely, I am now 1 size smaller in shirts, but no smaller on bottom. Not sure why I'd be the same on bottom with all the cardio I do.

I journal. I drink lots of water. I write down what I eat. I eat whole grains, fruit every day, lots of fiber, etc. I've gone to the doctor and had blood tests - everything's fine (thyroid, blood sugar). I'm not pregnant.

Because I've committed to the lifestyle change, I'm going to keep plugging along no matter what. But I'm incredibly discouraged. WHY wouldn't I lose any weight after so long? WHY are my jeans not getting any looser (just seem to be losing a few inches on top)? I'd understand if I was close to my goal weight but with so much to lose, it seems like the weight should by flying off with what I'm doing.

Please help!!

[toobig]

How many calories are you eating?

[JayEll]

If you are following WW, why not ask your group leader? Or, you could ask over in the 3FC Weight Watchers forums.

You need to give more specifics on how many points you are eating.

Jay

[toobig]

How did I miss the weight watchers reference? Thanks Jay.

[Frances123]

I'm just doing WW on my own from home. I've done it (successfully) many times in the past so saw no reason to join again...I eat about 1300 - 1600 calories per day.

[PinkHoodie]

For all your working out I doubt you are eating enough...just my personal opinion. Your calories seem very low for someone working out as much as you do. I would try bumping it up, and see what happens...

[Lisa_C]

i would try to eat between 1600, 1700, maybe even 1800 calories. What you're eating just seems so low. It seems wrong to suggest eating more food but if you've gone this long and are not losing any weight at all, something is off.

[mandalinn82]

Do you have a sample day's meal plan? What are you eating?

[Shytowngal]

Are you eating your 35 flex points? People who eliminate them, thinking they will lose weight faster usually see no loss instead.

[Veil]

You might have thrown your body in starvation mode and it's reacting by hanging on to EVERY SINGLE CALORIE because it thinks you are running for your life and can't find anything to eat!! It sounds so ridiculous, but up your calories and that will signal your body "Ohhhh, i am NOT starving... now i will go into these fat reserves and burn 'em up!!" well, that's my two cents!! Keep doing what you are doing, I know your heart and muscles are getting stronger with each work out.

[QuilterInVA]

You are doing your version of WW if you aren't going to meetings or doing on-line. They tweek the program every year. It might be usedful to go to at least one meeting and get the new materials. If you do the plan as written, you will lose weight.

[Frances123]

Thanks for the advice...I will try upping the calories a little. I don't feel hungry and I don't like eating when I'm not hungry, but anything to jump start my weight loss!!

[rockinrobin]

Originally Posted by Frances123

Thanks for the advice...I will try upping the calories a little. I don't feel hungry and I don't like eating when I'm not hungry, but anything to jump start my weight loss!!

Umm, I'm going to strongly disagree with everyone here. If you're not losing weight, increasing your food intake is certainly not going to help things along. Starvation mode doesn't happen when there's still fat on a person, so eating more calories is most likely NOT going to jump start your weight loss, IMO. Nu-uh, no way.

That being said, you haven't told us your weight and your height. Depending on the amount you are looking to lose/need to lose that can change the outlook.

You said you had a 5 day slip up. Is it possible there were any other days that you were off plan? Could it be that you're not measuring correctly? Underestimating your points/calories? Not accounting for a nibble here and a nibble there? I'm not saying that you are, but if it is the case that would certainly explain things.

If you want some further input, by all means, post your menu and we'll be more than happy to give you some ideas on how you can get things going.

[jkinboston89]

Totally have to agree with rockinrobin on this one!

[Shmead]

Originally Posted by rockinrobin

Umm, I'm going to strongly disagree with everyone here. If you're not losing weight, increasing your food intake is certainly not going to help things along. Starvation mode doesn't happen when there's still fat on a person, so eating more calories is most likely NOT going to jump start your weight loss, IMO. Nu-uh, no way.

I agree with you that the term "starvation mode" is a crock, and pretty much any attempt to explain human behavior through evolutionary biology raises my hackles--a person makes up some story about life as a caveman and things it explains why they go through a grocery store counter-clockwise or whatever.

That said, the phenomenon of losing weight more rapidly/consistently on a slightly higher calorie diet is pretty well supported anecdotally, and while it is true that the plural of "anecdote" is not "data", the fact is, AFAIK, we don't have any real data to go on here. To my knowledge, no one has put a large group on 1000, 1300, 1500, and 1800 calorie diets and tracked their weight loss.

I agree, it doesn't make intuitive sense. But the body is a complex machine and lots of things don't make intuitive sense: why to we give people with ADD stimulants? Why does the left side of our brain control the right side of your body? Why do we have an appendix? Science has answers--sometimes good ones -- to each of these questions, but they found the answer by acknowledging that something was happening contrary to expectation or explanation, and by probing for more information about the situation.

Yes, much of the time when people aren't losing weight they are deluded about how much they are eating. But that doesn't mean it's impossible that some other sort of metabolic thing is going on. I mean, PCOS/IR wasn't at all understood until about ten years ago--clearly, we still have a lot to learn about weight loss. I think it's premature to dismiss the possibility that this could be true in some circumstances.