Why is this not working? Why am I not losing weight while eating 1,200 calories?
Hi everyone! I started trying to lose weight (again) about 2.5 weeks ago. I was bound and determined to not do any fad dieting and instead just eat healthy and count calories.
I'm very short at 5'2" and very heavy at 257 pounds (my starting weight). I am also quite sedentary, therefore I thought 1,200 calories was a reasonable goal.
The first 1.5 weeks, the weight fell off! I lost 11 pounds, though I am guessing a lot of that was water weight. This week, I have lost NOTHING. I even gained 1/2 pound!
Everything online that I've read says that usually happens when people are absentmindedly consuming more than 1,200 calories. That is not my case! I make sure to check the back of any packaged food and I weigh out portions with my food scale. I'm very diligent!
How could I still gain weight? Do I need to start adding in exercise to see the scale budge? Has anyone else had this problem?
Thanks!
To give you an idea, I am 5'8" and am very SLOWLY losing on 1,200 cals/day, with moderate physical activity. (30 minute strength-training workouts.)
I think that you could still lose on 1,200, but if you are hitting a point of stagnation, I have seen recommendations to vary your calorie consumption across a few days to give your metabolism a kick.
Example: Day 1 (1,000), Day 2 (1,500), Day 3 (1,100)
You could vary as extremely or as moderately as you feel comfortable with. But 3-5 days of staggered calorie counts might give you a little kick-start.
Don't be discouraged; you are doing all the right things.
1. Most importantly, it sounds like you are going by one week. Weight loss is not that exact. There have been plenty of weeks that I tracked perfectly and knew I had a calorie deficit and then I weighed in and had gained.
Reasons can be stuff like: water retention. That could be from things like what you ate, medications you are taking, or even eating more carbs this week than last week.
Another one is constipation or simply not having gone to the bathroom.
Also, for me, sometimes I find my loss is delayed by as much as several days. It should have been there, but it isn't.
For women, hormonal reasons. And, also, sometimes I've seen it with heavy exercise particularly if doing something knew or particularly intense.
The net of all this is realizing that you can't just go by one week. I have done pretty well on eating the last 3 weeks. But, I wasn't losing and was up a bit. Today I weighed in for a 2.6 pound loss (which is huge for me). I didn't have that big a calorie deficit this week. But sometimes it just works out that way.
2. You may not have a calorie deficit. You are short so burn fewer calories. If you have a high body fat you will burn fewer calories than someone of the same weight but less body fat. I'm not very tall, older and while a normal BMI, have high body fat. The formulas that Fitbit uses say my RMR (resting metablic rate) is about 100 calories more a day than it is. My RMR is 1120. This is not an estimate. I went to a sports medicine facility and had it tested. The other day I was super sedentary and was at my computer all day. It was raining so I didn't do the hour long walk I do most days. The result was that Fitbit said I burned a little under 1200 calories that day! (Lowest day I remember ever seeing).
Now, you probably burn more calories than I do. But remember that nutritional information may not be exact. I don't know about Europe but sometimes packaged food and restaurant food has been tested and it had more calories than the nutritional info said it had. So, you might be recording stuff fine, but maybe the information isn't right.
Hi Goldana. We have very similar weight and height. I'm in my 60's and can lose at 1400 calories a day. I have some weeks where I lose a pound, a pound and a half, or half a pound. Other weeks nothing. But at the end of the month, if I have lost 4 pounds or more, I consider it a good month. I used to do calorie cycling like TheWhiteDutchess recommended, and it definitely gave me a better weekly loss, but I find I stay on plan better if I keep my calories consistent and a little higher. I admit, I am sedentary. I think getting my Vitamin D levels where they should be has helped; and also my thyroid levels are where I feel best - with the thyroid med I take. I eat whatever foods I want and try to stay within my 1400 calorie range. I tried the Sacred Heart diet once and my weight came to a complete standstill because the calories were too low. I could feel the effects of too few calories on my thyroid.
This is why I won't weigh every day. It would drive me nuts. Some days I can weigh a pound or two more than the next day! Working out your loss over a month is probably more realistic than a week. Also you just lost 11 lb so your body is probably trying to figure out what the heck is going on and then will find a balance.
I've recently started HRT so I can be retaining fluid one day - not the next. Don't worry, you should be losing weight on 1200. I eat about 1300 and I am 5ft 4 and started at 192 lb and I am losing weight. You will get some weeks, maybe even a few weeks in a row, where you lose nothing. It's normal and it does not mean the diet is not working.
Thanks everyone! It was just a false alarm as it was water retention from my period. I didn't know when I would be getting it (as I just had a miscarriage before Christmas) and everything was out of whack.
I still appreciate the advice given though and I will remember it in case I stall out again!
Why is this not working? Why am I not losing weight while eating 1,200 calories?
