Ok, so I am 21 years old, I began this lifestyle change just over 2 years ago...and until this afternoon, I thought I had lost 93 in two years given my best effort. (Which I still consider to be VERY slow for someone my age)... Well here's the problem: I needed a new scale because I have been weighing myself on my analog bathroom scale (that's only the one I have been weighing on recently, I have had different scales)...I know that those are not too accurate, but I figured I can assume they are correct within 5LBS...So my last weigh in on my home scale (last friday) I was 169)...I go to walmart to buy a digital today (and I weighed myself on several of the digitals they have there)...I WEIGHED 189!!!!!!! I feel like this can not be true but 3 different scales told me that it is! I NEVER IN A MILLION YEARS WOULD GUESS THAT I AM TWENTY POUNDS MORE THAN I THOUGHT!! Here is where it gets worse and more confusing: After the holidays (and during the holidays), I weighed myself on the triple beam balance at the GYN: low 190's, also on my dad's super fancy accurate scale: Low 190's. Since January I have been extra good. Working out A LOT every day. and eating about 1700/day. (or less). About every other weekend I cheat, but not an out and out binge (ex: last sat I ate a donut, sunday I had 2 slices of pizza and half a bag of chips (that's all I ate all day)...Sometimes my weekends look like that). But here are what my weeks look like (I SWEAR)
I'll describe yesterday, because it was a typical week day:
B- 3 LF Eggos with one T LF cream cheese and a quarter of a Banana.

L- Turkey sandwich (3.5 oz carved turkey breast, 1 slice swiss, 2 slices WW bread.

Snack: Banana with handful or cheerios

D-6oz shrimp, arugala salad with 1 T LF dressing, 1 serving of whole wheat pasta.

Snack: 6oz plain Greek yogurt.
(appox 80oz water).

This was my workout yesterday:
75 mins on elliptical at lvl 13 according to the machine it burned 800 cals (and I told it that I weighed 170, I would be burning way more if its true that I'm 189)

I did a 45 min rokin body aerobic tape

I did a 45 min rockin body tape that is for weight lifting. (5lb weights)

In a typical day I have the same activity as a stay at home mom...I wash dishes, do laundry, chores, vacuum, sweep, clean, up and down the stairs at least 20X per day.

also 2X a week, I skip the gym and I walk at least TEN miles in the park. (I did that today).
I NEVER work out less than 5X/wk

I swear all of the above is true.

SO....WHAT's wrong with me?? How could I have lost virtually NO WEIGHT in 6 months of behaving the way I described to you???

I want info on whom I can see, or if there is a way I can be committed into one of those psych wards for eating disorders, or go to a fat camp for 6 weeks...someplace where they analyze my entire endocrine system. If I am not admitted to a facility in the next week or so I fear I will hurt myself. I have never felt this way before this week, but I need help with my mental and physical health. Also I cant really pay to be placed on a psych ward...but as I said, I feel like I am a danger to myself. Where do I begin?

sigh. sounds like you are in rough state of mind. I get there too, and to be honest, I too would love a full medical work up. I think it would really help. You should talk to some one. Reach out. Also, to lose weight you may need to reduce your calories. I'm 274 lbs and I'm supposed to have 1700 cals a day. Being that you are smaller I think you need fewer.

First of all, stop and take a deep breath. Weighing 20 more pounds than you thought is scary.

Before you commit yourself to a psych ward, try go getting your body fat tested. If you are working out as much as you say you are, maybe you gained some muscle.

Also, if you feel like you aren't losing the weight you should be, go to the doctor and get a thyroid test.

I'll let wiser folks comment on diet and exercise because I swear I just get so confused sometimes. Everyone is so different and I'm just now really getting a handle on what I think works for me.

But scales... Don't necessarily trust the Wal mart ones. Digital scales are no more accurate than the old needle on a dial kind. If you scale is on a solid non-carpeted, perfectly flat surface and you never move it then yeah, it's probably reasonably accurate at least compared to other times on that exact scale exactly where it is. But once you move it all bets are off. And if you tip it on its side while moving it, or store it for a while on its side then it can get all giddy and tell you all kinds of wrong stuff. Those poor Wal Mart scales, who knows what they've been up to recently and how they have been abused. Even the fact three scales told you the same thing doesn't convince me they were necessarily telling the truth. Oh, and also with digital scales, any time it's been moved, even a tiny bit, you should get on, let it weigh you, get off, let it reset to 0, and then get on again. That first time it's just calibrating itself and you really really can't trust the number.

Also, consider that you probably usually weigh yourself in the morning and with not many clothes on. That's almost always your very lowest weight of the day. Now have some breakfast (even a small healthy one), some tea or coffee, some water, then get dressed... depending on your clothes and other factors you could be looking at 8 or 10 pounds right there.

So I just wouldn't get too worked up about this. Maybe you haven't lost as much as you thought but it just seems very unlikely you've lost nothing in 6 months.

If you can, swing by the doctor's office. I've no idea if their scales are any more accurate but I like to think they are. If you haven't had a check-up in over a year it's probably not a bad idea. There are lots of physical reasons your weight loss might be so slow and it sure wouldn't hurt to rule them out. Especially for your own peace of mind - stress never helps you lose weight!

Thank you for the advice, clearly what I have been doing, may or may not be working, but my problem with that logic is that: 1700 cals is just over what my bmr comes out to be (checked on various websites)...and I burn about 2000 calories beyond that in my exercise nearly daily, and more if I weigh more than I think I do. I mean nothing changes walking ten miles, that is real, and I do something similar to walking 10 miles every day...that shouldn't be the problem.

Thanks Vladadog- I have my 6 month appointment at the GYN on tuesday, I will then be weighed on her scale....Hopefully its a number I like better. On a side note, I am under constant stress! I hate my environment, my home life, I have no friends, I suffer from constant anxiety, and also depression sometimes...I am also stressed out about moving across the country in August (but I want to do that). If it turns out that I really am around 190 on the doctor's scale on tuesday....I am going to have to get that full blood work up (where the money is going to come from idk, and I am having my mother seriously talk to her psychiatrist friend about where I can go, because I am not mentally stable enough to handle that).

Sockerton-some of that could be the case, but I don't lift more than 10lbs at a time and only do that up to 3X a week. BUT I do look smaller than I ever have, I lost at least 2 inches off my waist since Jan, and just a couple of weeks ago I tried on two pairs of size 10 jeans at Levi's and they both fit, I wear them both regularly. It doesn't seem as though someone who is 5'2" and 190 could wear size 10 pants.

If, like all the experts says, it comes down to calories in vs calories out, I shoud be a lot lighter. I'm 6'1" tall. I've been eating around 1500 cals a day and burning between 700 and 1000 calories in exercise 5 days a week. I can run now. Run. Haven't done that in years. According to all the websites, I should be losing 3-4 pounds a week. But the scale hasn't budged. It even went up. I posted in another forum that I want to punch my scale. And everytime my Wii Fit calls me obese I want to throw it out the window.

No one knows why someone can drop weight quickly, while others struggle. I have a BS in exercise and sports science. No one in school every gave me the magic way to lose weight. I am 246 pounds, and even using everything I know, I can't move the scale lately.

It is trial and error. I don't know how accurate your calorie counts are. Maybe you have to be more accurate. Weigh and measure everything. Maybe you have to change up your diet. Maybe you have to switch around your carbs and proteins. Maybe you should try zig-zagging your calories.

I know this isn't probably what you wanted to hear. I see everyone posting these huge losses and I get jealous. But I just keep thinking, that will be me one day. I will be posting that I made it to one-derland. Or I lost 100 pounds.

Sorry you are feeling this way. I had a really bad day yesterday. I came here. I posted. And everyone comments made me feel better.

Please don't hurt yourself over 20 pounds.

Vlad is right. Digital scales must be on level flooring and always reset to 0 before you weigh. Be sure you have read the directions before you use them--it was very different for me the first time I tried them, but now I like the digital scales.
I really understand how upset you must be but don't despair. Give it a day or two and try weighing at home in the morning (with few clothes on). Then, be sure you do exactly the same thing each time you weigh in. It may not be as bad a difference as you thought. Let us know and good luck!!!

Thanks guys, I will let you all know what happens at the doctor on tuesday, and what steps I decide to take from there. PS I wound up not buying one of those scales because I couldn't handle it.

I would say feel good about how your body looks and how you feel...

I weigh less than 190 and am way taller than 5'2" and I definitely cannot fit into size 10 jeans

scales are super evil.... and who knows maybe you weighed more than your scale said when you started...thats the problem...no two scales are the same

I agree with what HaleyisLove said....

I understand the shock value of the 20lb difference at face value...but have you been losing inches? Have you been going down in clothing sizes or are they fitting more loosely?? If I were to make the scale a God in this...I'd be in a straight jacket every other week....my own weight is not ideally matching up to my size of my clothing...but inches are coming off. Perhaps this could be happening to you because Im guessing that in 6 months...since January ...you have taken notice of changes in your body outside of what the scale reports back to you....or you would have felt like losing it a few weeks back. Have you noticed differences? Are you measuring yourself?

If you are exercising as you outlined above....& the body can build approx 1-2lbs of muscle a month....I am seeing where some of the gain is accountable.....minus your clothing when you weighed, taking the time of day in which you probably weighed yourself on that scale at Walmart which obviously wasnt after your first morning tinkle (which can easily raise you up to around approximately 7lbs mid day or evening)....& maybe youre retaining water, maybe youre not accurately measuring & only guesstimating serving sizes (example..plain small cooked shrimp..a serving is only 3 oz & it has 460mg of sodium per serving)..your daily carb intake may be too high ...maybe you didn't excrete as much as usual or at all...way too many factors play into this.

yeah, i agree.. even if you do weigh 189 you have an amazing body. i am 5'2, 180 lbs and can barely fit into a size 12.

Oh, the dangers of the scale. I started my weight loss journey with a simple needle one and then switched to a digital. The needle one was five pounds off! It happens. I know how you feel.

Dhani

I can understand the shock of seeing a higher number I used to use an analog scale as well. When I bought my first digital it said I was 10 pounds more. I took it back thinking it was wrong but the next one I bought said the same thing. My thinking is that, if you were stepping on the same analog scale all along and it was dropping consistently, you were still losing weight during that time. Perhaps you do weigh a bit more than you thought but you were actually losing if that scale was moving. You can try testing both the analog and digital scale by weighing something you know the weight of, like a barbel or a 10 pound bag of potatoes. See how the scales compare. Try not to get too discouraged. Scales can vary quite a bit. Good luck at your upcoming appointment and try not to let it get you down

You've gotten good advice. The best is to set your scale by the doctor's scale - minus your clothes.

I'd be totally freaking out too.

Because of a foot/ankle problem I wear a small brace on my ankle/foot. So I weigh with my shoes and brace on. So, who knows what my 'real' weight is. Just as long as it's going down and you/we are eating healthfully that's what's important in the long run.