Eating less, exercising more, little change in weight (both ways!)

[Ian1]

Hi,

new here, and have a problem.

I am 22 years old, fit, healthy, at a slightly above average weight. Technically, I do not need to loose weight (I am 6 foot 1 and 188lbs, 185cm and 85.5kg). However a while back, during a medical, it was discovered that I have an irregular heart rhythm which wasn't there 18 months ago when I was 83kg. I was 86.5kg in early june and decided to diet to see if I can get back to >83kg, preferably below 80kg. I know this is not a lot, and it is within normal weights, but you must understand this is for medical reasons to narrow down possible options as to why I have this irregular heart rythem. If I did not have this irregularity, I would not be trying to loose weight as I do not feel I need it for my day to day life

As stated, I am fit. I cycle a lot, can easily cycle for 4-5 hours without stopping. 100 miles? not much of an issue. I am getting into racing too so its not at a snails pace (18-20mph depending on terrain average speed). My lungs are good, Spirometry tests prove that I am above average in capacity and flow. I have a low-ish resting HR (in the high 60s) and can maintain a HR of 180bpm for hours, with peaks of 200 been seen on my HRM when riding my bike, without ill effects. I have incredibly lean legs with 24" thighs and next to no fat on my arms, neck or back. All my weight is contained around my waist and chest.

I do not smoke, I do not drink alchohol. I drink a few cans of diet coke a week, no coffee (another thing to rule out for my heart issue). All other drinks are mineral water, maybe the odd lemonade. I normally drink 1.5l of water, or more, a day. It's 4.30pm here in England right now and I've already drunk about 1.5l of water in liquids alone.

So I lead a good lifestyle, I eat very well, a diet of white meat, vegetables, pasta/rice for dinner, lunch is usually a roll of some sort maybe soup, breakfast is usually cereal and semi-skimmed milk. My whole diet is fairly low fat and low in salt. I do have a terrible sweet tooth but I try my best not to give in! I don't eat a great deal of fruit I will admit, but I also eat virtually no fast food.

No health issues, though a few years back I was struck by e.coli and lost significant weight in a very short time frame (I lost 30kg in a few months, not a nice sight!). I since put 20kg back on when symptons cleared up and I could enjoy my food again and got to ~90kg in the last few months.

So I started to track my calorie intake. Using I log everything I eat, all the exersize I do. I entered my goal weight, my current weight and the rate I wish to loose weight at. It calculated for me that 1807kCal a day would do the trick (2807kCal to maintain weight). I started in mid june, and according to their figures, If I had 1807kCal after exersize a day, I should be, by now around 8kg (16lbs) lighter. Not so! I went from 86kg to 88kg for a few weeks, then dropped to 85.5kg. So in 8 weeks I've lost a huge 500g, or 1lb.

To top this off, my average calorie intake (post exercise) for the last month was 1671kCal, the last 7 days it was a tiny 1489kCal. Average exercise over the last month was 60min/727kCal per day, last 7 days 68min/783kCal per day. Nearly all cycling and mountain biking.

I know these are not sure hard figures, but I just cannot shift this weight! I seem to be doing this by the book, logging kCals, not eating junk, cutting carbs out a bit more

Is there something fundamental that I am doing wrong?

As I said, and I will mention it again, I do not need to loose weight because I am overweight, this is purely health related, recommended by my doctor to narrow down possible causes of my heart irregularity which was not present when I was lighter.

Looking forward to some advise!

Ian

 

[curtwinters]

Hi Ian,

I read about your predicament and I know it may sound strange but perhaps you should up you calorie intake a little. Make sure you spread it out over the day in small meals and have a good breakfast. Your body needs a good amount of calories, otherwise it tends to hold on to the fat in case you don't get enough and your body needs to steal calories from your fat at some point. The body is always looking out for your future "survival" and its ability to maintain. Every body is different so the calculator you use may not be correct for you. The key is keeping you metabolism up, either the body is burning fat or it's making fat, so if your metabolism is at work all day you will burn off those last few kgs because it knows it will receive enough in the subsequent days.

Another thing to possibly look into, is you PH levels. You may be, like most people, running a little acidic. This too prevents weight loss, try putting lemon in your water or eating almonds, dark greens or any fruit that is a bright color. It seems strange but the body converts citric acids from fruits into basic material.

Hope this helps, it worked for me and may not be pertinent to your situation. At any rate good luck!


Curt Winters

 

[911fatty]

Hey things like this can be frustrating, I know. If you are doing that much exercise, you should be eating way more calories. 1,807 calories per day for someone as athletic and active as you are is way too low. Olympic swimmer Micheal Phelps eats over 3,000 per day. Keep in mind that the more active you are the more energy your body needs. Eat more often, every three hours at six small meals per day. This keeps your blood sugar even and keeps your metabolism burning all day. Too much time in between meals causes a drastic dip in your blood sugar levels. The way to burn fat is to manipulate your metabolism and that's how you do it. Also, eat more whole fruit and veggies. These provide you with the proper vitamins and minerals your body needs. With the amount of exercise you do, you are losing a lot of essential electrolytes like sodium and potassium. The electrical function of your heart depends on a certain balance of these electrolytes. When the levels of sodium and potassium are too low or too high, it will cause irregular heart rhythms. Bananas are your best friend. Consult with your doctor to see if this is your case.

 

[Kevin Beacon]

I suggest you to make a balanced diet plan and eat according to this plan. And eat low carb diet and avoid any type of sugar. Then you do regular exercises and also do swimming which is the best for losing weight.