Diet & exercise and no weight loss at all

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m 5 feet and couldn’t lose weight at 1200 calories. I’m eating OMAD most days, and finally losing 1 lb a week.

Similar experience. Thought after the weight loss, could eat normal calories but what it seemed 1200 became my new normal. Always felt tired and weak. Once I ate normal, 1800…. Gained it all back.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It really sucks, but you basically have to go hungry. Stop eating breakfast and lunch, and then do your normal eating for dinner. After a week, you will see the scale move a bit. Once you reach your desired weight, you basically have to keep this up, except maybe you can eat lunch and/or desserts on weekends.

I also had an ED as a teen, and my height/weight/age are similar. I recently loss weight through this method and currently maintaining, but it’s not easy. I feel like my behavior is disordered, but it’s what’s necessary to maintain a normal weight. OTOH, if I just somehow naturally ate less, or didn’t feel hungry or deprived, it wouldn’t feel disordered. But I was raised/conditioned to be scared of hunger. So I’m trying to reframe that now.

I’m already eating less. And not eating except one meal a day is disordered eating no matter how you frame it. How is that the only option?

It’s not your only option. You need to make better choices.

Breakfast - egg white omelette with veggies. Season with salt/pepper/salsa

Snack - apple and 2 teaspoons of almond butter

Lunch large salad measure dressing, nuts or boiled egg whites. Or roll that up into a wrap.

Snack - fruit, nuts (weighed/counted), raw veggies

Dinner - large veggie stir fry with 4 oz lean meat.

Night snack (if you’re even hungry)- Same as above.

The above will land you at about 1,300 - 1,500 calories eating all day long. I’ve lost 12 pounds since July by simply eating better and limiting alcohol to ~2-3 glasses a week.

Np. Are you prepared to live this way forever?

[Anonymous]

As an avid user of MFP who used it to drop 75+lb, I have a few thoughts:

1. Weight loss is math. If you consume more calories than you burn you will put on weight. If you burn more calories than you consume you will lose weight. That is true if you are perimenopausal, menopausal, or an 18 year old boy. The only reason menopause impacts this is because it could impact your basal metabolic rate.

2. If you aren't losing weight it's because you aren't burning more calories than you are taking in. There are only two ways to fix this. Either reduce your caloric intake or increase the amount of calories you burn through exercise and activity.

3. MFP uses averages to calculate your base calories. But those are estimates and not specific to you. Your Basil Metabolic rate is probably lower than the average and therefore you are burning fewer calories then the average person by living your everyday life. There are things you can do to increase your basal metabolic rate and allow you to eat more calories and still lose weight. The biggest one of these is weight training. The more muscle mass you have the more calories your body burns just by living life.

4. How are you measuring calories burned? Are you using a fitness watch like an apple or a garment or a Samsung health? If you aren't you definitely need to get one.

5. I have never had anorexia. And yet I can tell you there have been times where my use of MFP has bordered on the obsessive. I have no medical training but I just want to say it seems like the history of eating disorders and MFP is a potentially dangerous combination so please keep an eye on that and stay in touch with your doctor.

Good luck!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I got a CGM, I'm obese (barely, but still BMI of 30). With the CGM I brought my A1C down to 4.1 from 5.8. I did not lose any weight. For a month I ate as I normally would and tracked and weighted and logged every single calorie that touched my lips. Found that I eat between 1800-2600 cal a day. I maintain at that weight. I then cut calories to a strict 1,600/day. I keep my meals very basic and plan out everyting I am going to eat for the week. For instance today is 2 boiled eggs, slice of sourdough with a pat of butter and 4oz blueberries for breakfast, Lunch is a chickpea and vegetagle cold salad (also contains avocado and feta along woth the veggies), Dinner is broiled skinless chicken breast (marinated in lemon, garlic, OOV, salt and oegano) with green beans and baked sweet potato on the side. Snacks will be 2% greek yogurt with fresh raspberries and naked pistacchios. All I drink it water, hot tea, and black coffee. Never a sugar drink, never alcohol After dinner I get one square of 85% dark chocolate. I have been eating like this now for 2 months. Guess how much weight I have lost? 0 pounds. My body adjusts indredibly quickly to whaterver I am eating and stays at 195lbs no matter what. Only benefit i see so far is I have more energy and my poops are spectacular.

This is not a thing.

First off, it's laughable that you say you ate between 1800 and 2600 calories a day. That's an immense range and not a targeted eating goal. Second, there is no possible way you cut 1000 calories a day out of your diet and did not lose weight if you were maintaining on 2600 calories a day. The math does not work. Bodies do adjust over time; if you starve them they will figure out how to get by with less but that does not happen as quickly as you are suggesting.

[Anonymous]

Op here. I’ve restricted calories even more and upped my step count and other exercise as I can. Still weigh exactly the same.

[Anonymous]

Your exercise seems heavy cardio. Try weight lifting 3x a week and replace some of the cycle run walk days. Also even Whole foods can be heavy carbs. Keep your calories as is, but get your carbs down to 60-75g a day (research how many carbs are in each whole food you eat - will be a challenge, but this totally worked for me)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Op here. I’ve restricted calories even more and upped my step count and other exercise as I can. Still weigh exactly the same.

Are you measuring the oils, butter, seeds, and nuts? How's your carb intake? Over 100g? Are you getting your daily fiber?

You could be in a small enough daily deficit equal to a pound or 1.5 pounds a month weight loss.

I only see weight loss with erratic daily calorie intake. Some days 1500, some days 1000, one or two days of 2000, etc. The slow and steady 1 pound a week drains me and I have no energy for anything, and truly, the only time I see that weight loss is with sub-1000 calorie days, which I'm not doing. I also do small, fist sized meals. Meeting daily fiber and water goals helps a lot, too.

[Anonymous]

I’m 50 so it is a bit different. But it took months of eating way less for me to see a difference. I have always been active so that wasn’t the issue. It was food. But to three months for me to see a difference. I am six months in and it is very slow going. I lost 10 lbs after three months but I looked the same and clothes felt the same. I didn’t notice a different until 25 lbs. I was 175 at 5’3’’. Now 145 and still over weight. It js hard and frustrating and Halloween is going to be a set back. Ugh.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If your BMI is normal you need to eat 1200 calories a day to lose weight.

This... the person early on who said you needed to feel some hunger was correct. There is no miracle hack for the 15 vanity pounds. i am like you: cook everything from scratch, no sugar, eat a very healthy diet, exercise very similar to your, follow glucose goddess reco etc... This brings me to a regular 1500-1800 calories without feeling deprived at all. And that's my maintenance diet. it helps me stay at a nice healthy weight (i am 43 yo and 5"6 by the way).

BUT whenever i want to lose the last 5-10 pounds that would make me look better and back to my 30s weight, i need way more drastic reduction in calories (1200) and i need to feel a bit of hunger.

This is the correct answer. You may be able to lose with 1300-1400 calories if you weight train more..but no way you are losing at 1500-1800 in 40s+ that is maintenance

[Anonymous]

At 160, 1800 would be my maintenance.

[Anonymous]

I eat 1,000 calories a day to lose weight but I'm only 5'2. I now weigh 117. 55 years old.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I eat 1,000 calories a day to lose weight but I'm only 5'2. I now weigh 117. 55 years old.

Omg, I’d die. But thinking back, I guess this is what older women are resigned to if they don’t want to gain weight. I remember my grandmother eating very very small portions- like a bird.

[Anonymous]

Stop eating ultra- processed foods and drinking sugar. You’ll notice positive changes soon.
Sugar is hidden in plain sight, and is causing weight gain.

[Anonymous]

If you have not seen a dietician yet you should.

Your metabolism is probably jacked up and you mitochondria are not working properly.

You need to take steps to reset your metabolism and kill the underperforming mitochondria probably.