So after seeing a photo of myself (I'm sure some of you can relate) on Feb. 10th, I immediately went into action. I started taking a kickboxing class 3x/week, I immediately began tracking every bite.
I joined WW online and tracked every bite for the first week and the scale didn't budge. For two weeks, I have counted calories and stayed in perfect harmony. The scale budged this time -- in the form of a 1 pound gain.
I am TRYING not to freak out. I am trying to be Zen and be the tortoise, not the hare. I am trying trying trying but I want to cry. I want to stop being hyper-focused on the scale but I need that one thing to cooperate so I know I am doing it RIGHT.
Has this happened to anyone? What adjustments did they make?
PS, I am eating about 1500 calories a day, very limited carbs/alcohol so I don't think I can go any lower.
Since you started an exercise plan at the same time as you started your new eating plan, it's possible that the short-term effects of new exercise are masking any fat loss you have from the new eating.
Changing your exercise plan - picking up something as strenuous as kickboxing, especially if you were doing no exercise before - can cause fluid retention for a while as your muscles adjust and heal. Fluid retention can easily add 4-5 pounds of weight while you might have lost only 2-3 pounds of fat in your two weeks. Hormones can affect fluid retention too so if your period is this week (I am assuming you are female because of your stats) then that could be another contributing factor masking your actual fat loss.
I don't know for sure that this is what happened, but it is one possibility. It happens to me all the time; my fluid-weight fluctuations are much larger than my rate of fat loss, and can mask a whole month's worth of fat-loss results. It's maddening but there's not a lot I can do about it except wait it out. You are doing right to concentrate on the longer-term view. I know WW expects you to see losses every week, but in my experience I do not see weight loss every week. I lose in fits and starts, with lots of fluctuations in between - that is just how my body is. A month is the only meaningful time-scale for me to really see weight loss.
Others will chime in with other suggestions such as having your thyroid checked or make sure you are measuring your food as carefully as you think you are. But I like to wave the flag for patience and waiting out fluid swings, so here I am doing that. Good luck and good strength to you.
Thank you Carter. I am taking deep cleansing breathes, your post helped me to calm down.
I am a longtime lover of exercise, but yes, this winter has been slower than usual, aside from some snowshoeing and yoga.
I am also on the second day of my period -- not the best day to weigh in.
I think my calorie measurements are accurate if not liberal -- this week I am going to try adding a small handful of nuts to my diet each day to see if the extra nutrient-rich calories help in any way. If anything, I think I need to eat more but anyone with weight issues struggles with that paradox.
I get really emotional thinking about failing. I am not sailing on willpower right now -- just a firm, quiet resolve that I want a different life for myself that involves being a healthy weight. It's like I feel it in every corner of my mind, now i just NEED my body to cooperate.
You have reminded me to keep on it, thank you for the reality check.
Breathe. It's been 15 days and you've taken up kickboxing. I gained weight when I started doing cross fit. My muscles were growing and sore and that makes your body retain water. I gain weight after 8 hour long strenuous hikes too, during which I burned 5600 calories and it stays on for days.
Your weight loss is largely dependent on your food intake. Like 90%. Exercise is good for building health and strength and flexibility and balance but don't count on it for weight loss.
1500 sounds like a great number to stay with for a little while. Be sure you are drinking enough water, and just settle in for a bit.
Also, take measurements and before photos now. Those will help you track progress even when the scale is crawling.
But how are you feeling? Are you feeling lighter, are your clothes a little looser, is your skin glowing? Are you feeling stronger and more confident? There are lots of ways to measure your progress besides stepping on a scale and sometimes we need to stop putting so much emphasis on that little box. Maybe take a couple of weeks or months off from the scale and put the focus on how your new routine is making YOU feel, not how it's affecting the box on the floor.
I agree with seagirl and carter. Whenever I start a new exercise program, I gain a couple pounds of water weight, and it totally covers up any fat loss for a week or two. If I were you, I'd stick with 1500 calories and your exercise program and just give it a couple weeks. Definitely take pictures and measurements, too - with a program as intense as kickboxing can be, you're sure to see some nice muscle gains.
Such great advice! I can't add to what the others have said. I just wanted to chime in with my best "hang in there", "be patient", and you will succeed!!
Sigh. Thank you all so much for bringing me back to center. I knew this "journey" would be hard physically and socially but I didn't expect to be so emotionally fragile.
Several years ago, a co worker of mine convinced me to do Atkins with her, so I did, well, really, a modified version of it- I couldn't go below 40 carbs a day, or I would get sick.
Anyhow, we did this for over six months together, and I was the exercise queen while she sat back and watched me. She lost over 60 pounds while I lost *drum roll please* 8 pounds. Yes, that's right, 8 pounds! Now, here's the very weird and strangest part of it- I went down four dress sizes, while she went down none. I weighed in at 249 and worse a size 18. Yet, she was still in size 20. We started at the same weight almost, too. Go figure.
My husband's cousin started running several years ago. She is all toned and firmed, and goes to the gym for daily spinning classes as well. She went down a couple of sizes, yet didn't lose one blessed pound. Yet, she looks fantastic, and not a once of fat on her.
Who knows why our bodies do this?
Please don't give up. I know it's frustrating and I myself have another long journey ahead of me- every time in the past I was on the road to getting this weight off, some medical issue set me back (Grave's disease, sleep apnea, and a few others). Hopefully, all of my medical issues are better now. I went to the doctor yesterday- they told me they were proud of me because I lost 20 pounds since October, and that I lost 10 of them in the last two weeks. It doesn't reflect on my ticker below (I've only lost 5 pounds since I added it two weeks ago, waiting for a ten pound loss to change it).
Hang in there. As others have said- take measurements instead. Sometimes what is on the scale doesn't reflect how healthy and toned your body is.
everyone above has already posted everything i would say about it...just don't lose hope and give up!...i also find sometimes putting the scale away for awhile helps me to focus on my SELF more, how my clothes fit, how i feel etc rather than ignoring that in favor of what the scale reads...that's just ME, how i relate to the scale, not saying you are like that...
A few thoughts. I agree that starting a new exercise plan can result in water retention so you can pounds on the scale that aren't real pounds.
You indicate you are 5'4" and weigh 180 pounds. I am also 5'4" and weigh about a pound more than that.
How much you can lose eating 1500 calories a day really does depend on your activity level. Do you know what your basal metabolic rate is? There are a variety of calculators out there. Most of them are based upon your age and weight. I find those seem to overestimate my calorie burn.
If you know your body fat percentage, I like the Katch McArdle calculator:
For me, my BMR using the formula is about 1350 calories a day. That is just BMR if I was laying around all day. I wear a Fitbit so I know that how many calories I burn beyond that is highly dependent on activity.
Now, Fitbit using a BMR calculator that is more generous than the one above, by about 100 calories (that is, it puts my BMR somewhere around 1450 calories roughly). On days that I don't leave the house (not uncommon since I work from home) if I am on the computer a lot I may burn according to Fitbit only around 1600 calories and I really think that is over stating it by about 100 so really close to 1500 calories. If I'm eating 1500 calories then I won't lose weight.
Of course, I don't always sit around the house. I did a long walk the other day in the neighborhood (over an hour long). It is a hilly neighborhood so Fitbit counted almost all of it was very active minutes. I also did some weight lifting. According to Fitbit I burned just over 1900 calories (again, I think it was probably closer to 1800 calories).
Now, we all vary as to activity. Someone who has a job where they move around a lot more burns a lot more calories for example. But, depending on your lifestyle kickboxing a few times a week may not add a lot of calories to your daily activity.
So - I do think your lack of a loss may be temporary due to water retention.
But, if you continue to not show a loss than you don't have a calorie deficit. In that case, you may not be burning as many calories as you think. Another possibility is that you are eating more than 1500 calories a day. I also count calories and am also really careful in doing it. However, I sometimes eat out and I'm not at all sure that restaurants are all that careful that what they make matches up with the calorie counts that restaurants may show. So, even if you are really careful, if you eat out much, it doesn't take a lot of mistakes by restaurants to put you over on calories.
This can't be normal
Good luck and good strength to you.
I weighed in at 249 and worse a size 18. Yet, she was still in size 20. We started at the same weight almost, too. Go figure.
