First off im new here so hello to everyone! But im so frustrated ive been counting calories eating about 1200 to 1300 calories a day! ive cut out all liquids other than water and diet green tea and i work out for a hr a day cardio. i have not lost any weight and the other day i actually gained. im soo frustrated i havent given up but im feeling like why should i work this hard if nothing is going to change

Hey there, and

At your starting weight, it may have been a bit too much, too fast to go to 1200-1300 calories. Some people find they just can't lose at intake that far below their BMR. Any reason you decided to go that low?

Second, how long have you been at the same weight. The scale, unfortunately, fluctuates - new exercise programs, hormones, too much sodium - all can result in water retention, which will show up on the scale, even though you're losing fat. A week or so at the same weight isn't necessarily a troublesome sign.

Third, what sorts of foods are you eating? Some people find that they only lose if they're getting adequate protein/nutrition/etc. Maybe you can give us a sample day so we can see what you're consuming.

For how long?

Well i started on Sept 1, so its been about three weeks! im really busy at school so i try to eat things that i can eat on the go! ive been eating oatmeal with soymilk for breakfast, a special k meal bar for lunch, tuna on wheat bread or a salad or something for dinner. i try to get some fruit for a snack somewhere it there if i have time!

There's no way for anyone to be 100% on the cause of your problem, but here are my thoughts:
1. You're eating too little. At your weight, if I went below 1500, I'd stop losing. I've heard something similar from a number of people, but the number varies depending on who you are.

2. Your body is not used to exercise. It may need time to adjust. Personally, I have noticed my calves can get up to 2 inches larger (in water) when I up my cardio a great deal. I wouldn't blame it all on water and exercise, however. My guess is that your body thinks you might be starving, and is reacting to try to save your life.

Good luck!

I'm going to guess that you're just not eating enough - your body is saying "I'm starving". Are you faithfully counting those 1200-1300 calories a day, or just estimating?

Were I you, I'd experiment by raising my calories 100 a week until I got to 1500-1600 and see if that helped the situation. I'd also put some effort into getting a real lunch (bars are great, but not every day...real food will help you stay more satisfied and I always lose better when I eat it) and eating more regularly (pack your snacks!).

ok thanks for the advice! i guess i might be doing the extreme! i do count the calories so its not a estimate i record everything i eat. I guess im going overboard. i told my family i noticed that i lose weight during the weekend when im a little more relaxed about my exercise and food which was weird to me but thats makes since that my body thinks its starving. its just hard because i have one of those parents that thinks that if i dont eat i will lose weight so its kinda programmed in me not to eat to try to lose the weight. but thanks for the advice

im with everyone else. they *just* convinced me that you can lose weight by eating more, lol. when i started on this site i was plateauing at 1000 cal/day and now im cycling 12-1600 and finally losing again. sometimes you DO need more, even though i thought that was ridiculous when i first heard it. i was at 180 and 5'8" and 1200 wasnt enough for me, so you may need to go up quite a bit. dont be afraid!

ok thanks for the sample diet im gonna eat more calories and see how that works!

PayPay--I notice that you are using soy milk with your oatmeal. Are you hypothyroid? If so, in addition to the good advice you have already received, one other thing to consider is that if you are hypothyroid and are taking synthroid or the generic equivalent, soy will negatively interact with your medicine and decrease its effectiveness. I am take synthroid and was drinking soy for awhile. When I tried to figure out why I wasn't losing weight and why I was suddenly losing more hair (a classic hypothyroid symptom), I did some research and found the information about the soy/synthroid connection. Anyway, I just wanted to bring this to your attention in case the soy might be playing a factor.

Good luck!

J

Nope i dont have hypothyroidism that i know of. im tested for it often because i have alot of the symptoms but so far they have found nothing! I drink the soymilk because im lactose intolerent!

There are literally dozens of ways to tweak a diet and exercise plan. Amounts, quality, time, intensity .... Do a bunch of reading here at 3FC. See what everyone else is up to. Ask questions. We're here to help.

I have a question. You say you have lost no weight in the 3 weeks you have been on a low calorie plan, but according to your side bar you have lost 8 pounds. When did you lose the 8 pounds? What did you eat when that came off? Something was working at one time.

I am in the same boat as you and I am eating close to 1700 calories everyday. But I have hypothyroidism and my medicine was recently changed. Doctor won't see me for 6 weeks until the new medication shows in blood work. So, I am stuck too.
But hang in there, hope this too shall pass and we are on way to glory!