[DeafinlySmart]

I'm a calorie counter and a scale watcher. So far it is working for me. I see many diets on here that are working for many people. It's easy to support someone with a different diet choices (as long as they are healthy) and thus my friend from my homestate and I gladly cheer each other on each and every day. My diet buddy doesn't have a computer (and her phone internet is too cumbersome for this site) and she has asked me to post her story and her concern.

She is a carb counter and a measurement taker. She has been on this diet as long as I've been on mine. She chose this diet because she is a diabetic and her doctor says she needs to watch her carbs. Good reason! She wondered though since January she has not seen a scale loss, if this is normal. I know MANY of you see measurements lost before you see a scale loss or at least at different intervals. Have any of you lost your weight by measurements and not any (or very few) by scale? On one hand, I want her to look into adding another component to her diet because there may not be enough happening (not every diet works for everyone). On the other hand if she is a typical measurement loser, I don't want her to feel bad about her diet or stress her out because that is never my intention.

What has been the way you typically lost weight?

[holicanmc]

In two months I have only lost 3-4lbs but over 6 inches and 4 of those inches were from my chest, ribcage, and waist, exactly where I need to lose the most. Also, from pictures I took I can see quite a difference, my muscles are firmer and larger, and my caliper measurement has gone down as well.

I use as many things as possible to measure progress so I don't get frustrated. Also, this past weekend I worked outside in approx 90 degree heat for 4 hours without feeling extremely fatigued. I remember a year ago just sitting outside in the heat picking weeds was exhausting.

[lilybelle]

Due to health concerns, my doctor told me to do a low-carb plan also. It has worked great for me. There were times during the past 13 months that I did stall for 3-4 weeks at a time. I tried drinking more water, changing up my exercise routine and such with no change on the scale. Then I would just start losing weight again. Everyone is different but this seems like a long time to be stalled. Is she writing down her carbs every day. They are like calories in that it is easy to get more than you think. Plus, with low-carb, even 1 bad day a week can completely stall you for another 4 or 5 days while your body readjusts and gets back into ketosis. I agree that during the times the scale didn't move, I still lost inches. I hope she starts to lose some weight again soon and doesn't get frustrated. IMHO, since her doctor started her on this the only thing I might suggest is have her write all her food down for a week or so and show it to her doctor. He might be able to make suggestions for her that could help.

[DeafinlySmart]

I'm just now getting her slightly over her phobia of journaling and today is her first day to journal. Obviously I can't be there to see if she is eyeballing or measuring. It's not up to me to tell someone what to do as much as it is my role to gently encourage and help when I can. Today I'm doing searches on her foods and telling her the carb/cal content so she can write it easier (since she seems overwhelmed by the whole journaling thing). She appears to be (even when I lived there) to be quite food savvy and picks high quality foods (her weakness is shakes). I think 6 months or so is a long time to stall without a scale loss. I also encouraged her not to rely on the DOCTOR scales and to buy her own. I don't push someone to weigh daily but to weigh in a consistent way (which I feel going to a doc office isn't). Even that wouldn't explain a 6 month stall. I don't know what her inches measurements have been. I wouldn't even know how to judge that anyway. I've stalled. Everybody stalls. My longest was 3 weeks (not including the period I took myself completely off a diet).