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    CHERKYLE   21,399
SparkPoints 		20,000-24,999 SparkPoints
 
 
Not losing!

Wednesday, February 08, 2012

Ok, some of you veterans please help me out!

I have been a member of sparkpeople since 09, gave it a good run in 2010 (lost 32#), 2011 - was a waste as far as weight loss goes...started 2012 with only 12# still off that I had lost in 2010.

Ok - so 2012 I was (am) determined not to let another year go by like last year! I am going to make it count and get this weight off and be healthy once and for all! I have been exercising consistently (something totally new to me lol) I just looked at my streaks and I have exercised over 90 minutes per week for 4 weeks (most weeks have been much more than that) I also am tracking! I stay within my calorie range almost every day (in a month I went over 4 times)

Does anyone know why this is happening? I feel like the weight should be falling off, but every week when I weigh in I am hovering around the same numbers!! IT IS SO FRUSTRATING!!
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  Member Comments About This Blog Post:

GAILRUU 2/9/2012 10:46AM

    I agree with most of the comments on your blog. I find that if the weight loss slows down that I am being careless with my measuring and perhaps overestimating how many calories I am burning. I also learned that as I got close to my goal I had to decrease my calories to show any weight loss. It makes sense since I was not longer carrying around an extra 50 pounds. I exercise a minimum of an hour a day and have grown to enjoy it.

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MORTICIAADDAMS 2/8/2012 3:51PM

    It could be any number of things. Maybe you need to try something different like intervals or calorie cycling or carb cycling. Your calorie needs may be overestimated. Mine are 1200 calories. LOL.

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FITKIZ 2/8/2012 3:32PM

    I agree that a food scale, measuring cups, and measuring spoons are must-haves. They're so helpful to make sure that the tablespoon of mayo you think you're putting on your sandwich not actually 2.5 (I love mayo and used to over estimate how much went on my sandwiches).

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SOOKIE 2/8/2012 2:59PM

    Here are a few SparkArticles that may be helpful to you. Good Luck!

Plateau Busters - Part 1
www.sparkpeople.com/resource/
fitness_articles.asp?id=516

Plateau Busters - 2
www.sparkpeople.com/resource/
fitness_articles.asp?id=522

Plateau Busters - Part 3
www.sparkpeople.com/resource/
fitness_articles.asp?id=534



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GREENTOMKAT 2/8/2012 2:54PM

    I am having a similar struggle. Been stuck at a 20# loss for...a few months! Lol, but I do know that I am gaining A LOT of muscle. I can SEE it. So keep working hard woman! All that muscle will look HOT!!! emoticon (that's what I tell myself) I definitely could do a better job at accurately tracking...thinking of investing in a kitchen scale.

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FITKIZ 2/8/2012 2:48PM

    BLUE is right about something else, little things add up fast. 9 days ago I literally cut 100 calories several times a day out of my tracker because I switched to black coffee. I know how much, because I was measuring every spoonful of sugar and ounce of milk (with measuring spoons) that went into my coffee at least three times a day and had to count them as snacks. Now I can have a serving (I stick with pre-packaged until I'm better at eye-balling--it's just easier for me that way) of chips and an apple and still come out way ahead on my calorie ranges.

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BLUE42DOWN 2/8/2012 2:34PM

    As FITKIZ mentioned at the beginning, "if you're certain your tracking is as accurate as possible". One of the easiest pitfalls to fall into is eyeballing food and guessing the portion rather than measuring. Most times our estimation is going to be smaller than the food actually was.

(There's also a very common kitchen cook pitfall. Tasting, sampling, nibbling as we prepare. It may seem inconsequential, but just a penny seems like nothing but a jar of pennies can add up to several dollars, every calorie nibbled can add up.)

If you are measuring and its accurate, look and see where you've been in the range average through the month. Four days were over, but by how much? Are you usually toward the low, middle or high end of the range? If you're usually toward the high end or your average is at the high end, see if you can drop just 100 calories each day (take a few bites less, drop one snack) to get lower in the range. Give that a couple of weeks and see how it goes. If your weight starts shifting again, then you know that it a better range for loss.

Otherwise, also as FITKIZ mentions: "Put the scale away and look for other signs of positive progress. Are your exercise sessions getting easier, pants getting baggier, etc?" Look for the non-scale victories. Plateaus do happen. Keep up the positive healthy habits, let your body adjust and heal and repair, and usually it will begin moving again in the right direction. Meanwhile, you'll often see results more in inches and lung capacity and some firmness in the muscles underneath.

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FITKIZ 2/8/2012 2:00PM

    If you're certain your tracking is as accurate as possible, it's really easy to under estimate calories in while overestimating calories out, then I'm pretty sure you're building muscle mass. Remember that you've lost most of the muscle you made two years ago. Additionally you'll be retaining water in your muscles for a few weeks as they adjust to new demands. I think that based on what you posted, you're doing fabulously.

It's not at all uncommon to gain weight after a major shift to exercise demands and nutritional habits and it can take several weeks for your muscles to let go of the water and nutrients they hold on to for repair purposes. Your body is probably in a What The F&@%?! phase right now. Make sure your calorie goals are reasonable and you aren't shorting yourself daily calories. Make sure that you're allowing adequate rest. After that, be patient, your body takes time to adjust.

Put the scale away and look for other signs of positive progress. Are your exercise sessions getting easier, pants getting baggier, etc?

One more thing to consider, and this always throws me, is ToM. If you're dealing with monthly hormonal shifts, your body may be in a retention phase right now.

Time of day is also relevant. I always weigh myself in the same clothes and at 9 AM. It might sound a little OCD, but my weight has shifted by as much as 3 pounds between 9 AM and 3 PM.

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SQUARE1ATE 2/8/2012 1:59PM

    I have been on since last year and before I got on I was 162 then when I gave up I kept in the site to no that it was a bad scene by the time I become ready to deal with it again. My advicce is trade every beverage to water. Two more years you will have lost so much weight caluculated at 4.5 puonds a week. Your meals get smaller and your body gets healthier. Just a thought do not worry about how much you eat never feel guilty enough to emotionally eat. Or shame the puounds into places you will regret. You will make small changes like taking the stairs.. and I warn either lost weight fast or do it slow. emoticon

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