when will the change come.
 

so I'm back, from 2009. still in college, still fat. ive been working out, staying under 1600cals a day, working out 3-4days a week. NO RESULTS! I did have two Eff Up days. potluck :( but it wasn't too bad! I just don't understand why I can't lose weight like I used to be able to. btw, I had a baby since then. is this affecting me? im 15lbs heavier than I was before.. now 260!! UGH! wondering if I'm eating too many calories. maybe too much sodium? carbs? I just want it to work this time! I'm working harder than ever & not seeing any improvements.

oh PS,
it's only been a month since I've changed my eating habits & exercising.

Are you accounting for everything you put in your mouth? Condiments, etc? Are you tracking with an app? Are you correctly estimating portion sizes? I would start by looking into that, if it were me. If you are staying at 1600 six days a week, even taking into consideration your average weekly off plan day you should be losing.

I agree with the above poster. Are you 100% sure that you're tracking everything you eat and that you're tracking it correctly? I've noticed a lot of people on this board use cup, ounce, spoon or whatever it is to measure out their food. This is not the best way to do it. If you don't weigh your food on a scale then I'd suggest doing so. That's the closest you'll ever get to being 100% sure of what you eat.

If you track everything correctly and know for a fact you only get 1600 calories in, I'd look at your calories out. What type of work outs do you do? Do they really burn as much as you estimate? Most counters on gym equipment are WAY off and it could lead you into thinking that you're burning more every day than you actually are.

Then, if none of the above works, I'd look into what you're eating. Are you getting enough protein? Too many carbs? Are you drinking enough water? While mathematically and theoretically it's correct that it's calories in vs calories out when losing weight, but the body is so much more complex than that and we all react to food differently. Maybe you can't handle that many carbs, or maybe dairy stalls you.

Last of all I just want to say that 1 month is a short amount of time and you shouldn't expect to see miracles in such a short amount of time. I'm sure if you keep going for one more month you'll see results.

I think we sometimes underestimate the quantities we consume on our Eff Up days. I certainly do. I had an Eff Up week when I was in Texas during spring break. I told myself I ate an average of 3,000 cals per day during that week, but if I'm honest it was probably closer to 3,500. Perhaps you can write down exactly what you eat for a couple of days and share it with us. That will give us a better sense of what you may be doing wrong, if anything.

Freelance

1) Buy a kitchen scale and weigh and record everything that passes your lips. If the scale isn't an option at least record everything.

2) No more Eff Up days. Freelance is right, it's easy to underestimate calories. If you're going to a social event like that potluck, bring your own on plan food with you.

3) Stick with it!

While you shouldn't expect to see drastic results immediately, you should have seen some loss by now if you were truly on plan the whole month.

I see that you're 5' 8" tall. I believe 1600 is right at the edge of how much someone your height should be eating. Maybe a little more, depending on your lean body mass. When I cut calories and don't lose weight, it's all about the macronutrient mix. I'm eating too many carbohydrates and not enough protein. And I'm also eating unhealthy fats and too much processed food.

I hit a 3-year plateau while I was figuring all this stuff out. I now rarely eat out, and when I do, I am very choosy. I don't eat any processed foods. I don't eat foods that are manufactured "fat-free" or "low-fat", and I never eat anything with low-cal or no-cal sweeteners. I eat plenty of protein, healthy fats and loads of veggies. I'm two inches taller than you and I can lose weight eating just over 2000 calories a day. For my body, it's all about managing insulin levels.

Also, I changed my fitness routine to less cardio and more weight training. Over the last three years, I've increased my muscle mass quite a bit. My body does better with that sort of work. And it makes me happy!

Good luck!

THIS! x1000.

This for sure. A couple eff up days can easily undo a month's worth of deficit! Especially if something like a Pot Luck is involved. No way of telling how things were prepared.

And this!

How old are you? The things that worked for me at 20, don't work at 40. :mad:

The change comes when your change is consistent. Eat clean. Also, have you seen your doc lately? Maybe thyroid issues creeping up?

Good luck! you will succeed with consistency.