not losing weight
 

Im following the plan but in 3.5 weeks i have lost only 4 pounds including none last week. I dont have that much to lose so I expected a slow go at things, but I am countering that by working out every day and drinking lots of water.

how do i get my body to quit stalling?Its like it wants to resist weight loss?

THat being said, my clothes are all loser. I put on clothes that did not fit 3 wks ago and people have noticed my loss... but I like to see a drop in the scales too. advice?

You might actually be slowing yourself down with working out every day. My coach told me when I started absolutely NO working out for at least the first two weeks while your body adjusts, and then after that only very light exercise if I must. I honestly haven't exercised at all the whole time for fear of slowing down my loss. What kinds of workouts do you do? This is such a low-calorie diet, that anything more than light exercise such as walking or yoga may be throwing your body into "starvation mode". I know it seems counter-intuitive, but if you must exercise, you may want to actually ADD an extra protein packet to increase your losses. I know some people on the boards here have had great success with exercising, and I think most of them add an extra packet or some extra protein. You may want to check out the exercise thread.

Another note, if you are exercising every day, and seeing lost inches and better-fitting clothes, you are probably just replacing the lost fat with gained muscle. Which is not a bad thing, since it is really the size and health factor we should all be aiming for, rather than a number on a scale.
Do you work with a coach? Have you talked to them about this? I would say mix things up a little and see if it makes a difference.

I ditto Princess Jessica (which is what we call our 9 yr old niece by the way!). You may find that exercising (and consequently NOT upping your carb intake) might be putting you in starvation mode too...which will substantially slow down or stall your weight loss. I think I read somewhere that this can make you retain water too.
I agree that the loss is a little slower when you have less to lose - but you should still be losing even a minimal amount. If you can, why don't you give the working out a break for a week and see how it goes (I know this is probably a big 'if' and you love working out...but I had my biggest loss - excluding the 1st WI - during a week when I didn't even walk my dogs)

you are probably shock it too much with the drastic diet change and the workouts. Try backing off the work outs for awhile then slowly add them back a day on, a few days off, then a day on again until you find the balance you can lose and workout at.

When you start off you are trying to get your body to use a new fuel source so, trying to exercise on top of that can be a bit challenging. If that is your body experience, it may be being stubborn.

I actually didn't know about the exercise bit until I read this thread. My coach says that I can workout but do about half the intensity as I normally would. I had already signed up for bootcamp every morning - but I go maybe every other day. My last 3 days I have plateaued but I'm feeling good today so I hope the numbers are generous tomorrow.
Like everyone else has said to me Kate, its about the inches loss and not so much about the scale numbers. I have received many compliments and actually feel lighter everyday! I agree that it is probably muscles over fat that is causing the slow drop in numbers.

I have been exercising since day 1 and have had (what I consider) great losses. If you do a quick thread search for "exercise" or "working out" you will see some great discussions regarding this very topic. I have posted more than once my experience with exercise and IP. The long and short of it is I exercise 5-6x per week and I always add an extra packet on days I work out.

Also, there are other factors here. You don't have much to lose. Someone who has 100+ pounds to lose are going to lose at a much faster rate, especially in the beginning. And you are absolutely losing inches, which is definitely attributed to the exercise.

For me, my goal is not necessarily about the number on the scale but clothes and size. There is another thread talking about this, but I feel like once I am in a comfortable 4 or 6, I will be at goal. That could be at 140, 130 or somewhere in between or even 125. I do not know.

Stay focused on the positive and keep at the program! It does work. And you are already 4 pounds closer to goal. If you weren't on the program, you wouldn't be able to say that.

Here is something I posted in another thread:

I have been exercising since day 1 on IP. I was consistantly working out prior to IP as well. I workout 5-6x per week, pretty intensly and I add an extra packet on any day I exercise, sometimes 2 if I find myself very hungry. I am very happy with my losses and feel that exercise has contributed to them, not hindered them. I also feel that the exercise has helped me lose inches and keep me toned and tight. I don't have any sagging skin that some people are saying they have.

My typical day looks like this:

9:00- IP packet
12:30- 6-8 oz. protein, 2 cups veggies, salad & 1 t. olive oil
4:00- IP Restricted
5:30-6:30- Work out
6:30- IP RTD shake
8:30- IP packet, 2 cups veggies, salad & 1 t. olive oil

This has been working very well for me. I would highly recommend having an extra packet on days you exercise. You could try it for a week and see how it goes

Another

During the week I workout in the early evening, but I get up on Saturday mornings to workout. What I do is:

7:00- IP Packet
8:30-9:30 Workout
9:30- IP ready to drink chocolate (immediately following exercise)
12:30- 6-8 oz protein, 2 cups veggies, salad & 1 t. olive oil
4:00- IP Restricted
7:00- IP packet, 2 cups veggies, salad & 1 t. olive oil

It has been working great for me. Definitely scale your workout to your energy level. The first 3 weeks my energy was way down and I had to really take it easy with exercise. Ever since then, I have noticed that I am at or above my energy level before IP.

And finally:

I have been working out since Day 1. I do Crossfit, so it is a pretty intense workout. I think if you were working out before IP, you can continue to do so. I would make sure that you supplement with a 4th packet immediately following your workout. Also, personally, I have found that the weeks I work out, I show better losses than those I don't. I know a lot of people say you shouldn't work out b/c that is what the protocol says, but do you seriously think the athletes that Dr. Tran developed this program for ever stopped working out? I don't think so.

I also think part of the reason that they say "no exercise" is because most people don't work out. And it is kind of like a "one step at a time" thing. You don't have to workout to lose weight on this program and that is appealing to most people. Just concentrate on eating better and losing weight.

For me, however, I started seriously working out 6 years ago and it is a part of my life. I workout 5-6 days a week and I told my coach right from the start that I WILL NOT stop. I worked so hard to make it a habit, for it to be something I looked forward to and craved, that I would never give it up. That is why I supplement with an extra packet. I also listen to my body and some days just do not the energy (especially in the beginning) so I scale back.

Like I said, exercise has enhanced my losses, not the other way around. But it might be different for everyone. I think you should give it a try for a couple of weeks and see what happens. I am also lossing mad inches, which I attribute to the workouts. You might find that instead of 3 pounds a week you lose 2, but if you are toned, then you will look so much better and the inches will really show. I am wearing clothes now that I had when I was 10 pounds lighter, and they are really getting lose. I truly believe that it is due to exercise.

If you look at the body awareness site you will see how true this is. At the same height and weight some people look flabby and some look so toned.

Thanks y'all.

I actually lost a couple pounds and so I hope that means I am out of my stall...coincidently, i have had a couple late nights with work and errands and did not work out, so that may have helped. I do plan on still working out because i think its helped my inches, not necessarily my weight though. BUT, i think i will cut down how much I do and see how that works...

also, I switched my meat to earlier in the day -- without meaning to, I just did due to work and I think changing things up helped.

Its still not a lot of weight and I am not going to lose tons... I am beginning to accept that since I am athletic, my ideal weight may not be 130. I am already in a size 6 although I weigh more than my size 6 friends...so it may be that I am closer to 140. as long as I get down to around a size 4. Like Bride2be said, I guess I should care more about the inches and looking thinner, but when you are eating so little and working so hard, its so frustrating to not see the scale move down... thanks for the encouragement. Jenny, I think you shared your eating schedule with me before so I might use it. It seems to be working for you.

Also, small question...how do I get a tracker and post my picture?

ok I think I added a tracker...lets see if it works...

I think averaging a pound a week at your weight is perfectly normal. Look at the Biggest Loser for example- they work out like 4-6 hours a day, and women at your size only lose 2-4lbs per week. So it would only make sense that a normal woman would lose about one.