New here and can't figure out why I'm not losing weight

J

jimbobday

New member
Hi all,

Great to be here and hopefully you guys might be able to help me out.

I can't figure out why I am not losing weight.

My stats are

Weight: 220 pounds
Height: 5'10
Body Fat: 30%

My weekly eating schedule is

Sun - Fri

Breakfast: Omelette with 2 eggs, 1 teaspoon of olive oil, 1 teaspoon of crushed garlic, 1 teaspoon of cayenne pepper and 4 sticks of celery
Mid morning meal: 12 almonds
Lunch: 1 sandwhich with wheatmeal bread, 2 slice of Ham, 2 slices of lettece and 2 slices of cucumber
Mid afternoon meal: 12 almonds
Pre dinner snack: 4 sticks of celery
Dinner: Red meat and veges

I also drink 3 litres of water and 5 cups of green tea per day

Sat
Cheat day

Weekly exercise

3 x 30 minute weight workouts Mon, Wed, Fri morning
5 x 30 minute walks a week
1 x 1 hour pump class

I have kept this up for around 8 weeks now and my body fat % hasn't moved and I have lost 1 pound.

Does anyone have any idea what I'm doing wrong here? I would have though I should have been losing 2 pounds a week with this regime?

Any help would be very much appreciated. Thanks :)
 
Hi, and welcome :)

The first thing I'd do (if you haven't already) is work out your calorie needs and how your food and exercise fits into that (it's possible you're eating more than you think you are). I used this website when figuring out my own needs (it incorporates activity, although it's an estimate): My guess would be if you're not losing weight you're taking in too many calories (or theoretically too few, but your diet looks reasonable to me). Ideally this means weighing your food and calorie counting (as that's the most accurate way of figuring this stuff out), but that's not realistic for a lot of people, so at the very least have an awareness of the food you're eating, how many calories there are in a serve (for example, a slice of the bread I used to buy contains 110 calories- needless to say I don't have that anymore), how filling it is (especially in comparison to how many calories you're taking in), and how healthy it is (not so much for weight loss, more for nutrition reasons- there's no point having a low calorie diet if it's not healthy, although it doesn't look like you need to be told that particularly). That sort of awareness can help you make lower calorie choices (I view these sorts of things as an ongoing experiment- go shopping, look at the label, if the calories/ nutrition are reasonable try it, and if it's not filling for the calorie hit, don't buy it again)

I won't comment on the exercise, that's not something I'm terribly familiar with (I'm not an expert on nutrition either, but I've made it my business to try to figure out what I can).

If your calories are in order (perhaps try a few weeks with a slightly lower calorie allowance- as long as it's over 1800- to see if that helps), is it possible you have a medical condition which is hampering your weight loss? You may need to speak to a doctor.
 
Thanks amy,

I'll measure my calories over the next few days but just working off initial calculations it looks like I'm running around a 800 calorie deficit (Maybe a little to low for me?). This was from what I ate yesterday.

Maybe I will have to talk to my doctor to get some more advice.
 
The guide I go by is 500-1000 calorie deficit (to lose 1-2 pounds a week on average), no lower than 1200 for women or 1800 for men (I'm obviously female, so I don't worry about the male figure, but I've read that some people say 1500 for men- but I keep saying 1800 because I'd rather be safe than sorry). It's all about the averages, so it may also be possible that your cheat day is spoiling the good work you do during the week (I'm not a cheat day advocate myself- more a simple calories in/ calories out advocate- although I understand the need for treats and try to incorporate them into my diet).

Speaking to your doctor is in general a good idea- it looks to me like you're at least working in the right direction (that's not me judging, more saying "I can't comment further, but it seems alright to me")

Would it be worthwhile keeping a food diary (on this forum or on your own, say using a calorie counting program) in order to track what you're eating and double check that your calculations are correct, perhaps get some more detailed feedback with a history? (For the kind of thing I have in mind, feel free to check out my diary, which is linked in my signature. Obviously there's no need to go into the depth that I do, but "breakfast: cup of porridge, milk, teaspoon of honey" tells us something)
 
Thanks again amy.

Just heard back about my blood tests and it seems I do have a few medical issues which may be affecting my weight loss including low testosterone level and vitamin D levels.

So this may be contributing dramatically to my inability to lose weight I will still look at my calorie count but won't measure results to much until I talk to my doctor about treatment options
 
Amy already touched on it, but the key to losing weight (well, besides diet and exercise) is to control your calories in vs. calories out.

Sure, what you're eating might look good on paper, but you need to count the calories you're consuming when you eat those things. Just from looking at what you wrote down, everything up until you eat dinner seems fine and well within your calorie range. But, when you get to dinner, you just say "meat and veg", which could mean trouble. Not because eating meat and vegetables is bad for you - but it CAN be - if you eat too much.

And, you're not really eating a whole lot throughout the course of the day. Celery sticks aren't giving you any calories, neither is the lettuce or cucumber you're putting on your sandwich for lunch. And, there's about 7 calories in one almond, so you're getting 94 calories each time you snack on your 12 almonds. And, you're having a small breakfast too, which isn't full of many calories. One egg is about 90 calories when cooked, so you're not getting much in the morning either.

I just think, from what I see, that you might be somewhat starving yourself during the day, burning up all of the energy you have (and then some) during your workouts, and then by the time you get to dinner, you're so exhausted, hungry and in need of food that you might be shoveling way more meat and veg into your mouth then you might think. And, if you're doing that (which I think we're ALL guilty of when we first start out), then that could be why you're not losing weight. You might be underestimating the amount of calories that you're REALLY eating throughout the course of the day.

So, my advice would be to spread out your calories more evenly throughout the day. Instead of snacking on celery (which gives you nothing), snack on 100 calories or so of yogurt or have a couple of apples, oranges or bananas. And, instead of eating just a ham sandwich with two slices of lunch meat topped with lettuce and cucumber (which also give you nothing), try pairing the sandwich with some fruit or healthy granola bars. That way, you have energy coming to you throughout the WHOLE day and not just the end of it when you eat dinner.

And, speaking of dinner - pay attention to how many calories you are REALLY eating. I know from personal experience that it's very easy to underestimate your calories during dinner time and I know how harmful it can be. There have been plenty of times where I've convinced myself that the MOUND of pot roast, mashed potatoes and gravy I ate for dinner was, "Ehhhh, maybe like 400 calories or so" - but, in all reality, it was probably more like 800 or 900 calories. So, just pay more attention to what you're really eating for dinner. If you're consuming the same amount of calories that you're burning through your workouts, you're not going to lose weight. So, just keep an eye on it and I'm sure you'll be fine.
 
The first red flag I saw was that Saturday was your cheat day. Now, I'm not against cheat days / meals, etc... but you still have to keep calories in < calories out in order to lose weight. If you are going crazy for one entire day, you could easily counter-act any caloric deficit you may have established from Sun - Fri.

Even thought it is a cheat day, maybe you could still track your calories on that day to ensure your not eating so much that you are decreasing your calorie deficit. Like I said, it is VERY easy to do, especially if you are eating out throughout the day (which can lead to 3000 calorie MEALS).
 
My god chef you are so wrong with your give you nothings. How can you say that. VEgeables are not nothing. They are vitamins, fibre and minerals! My god i can't believe you told this guy to give up celery and eat yoghurt. I've nothing against yoghurt. He should have that too. Faaaaaaaaaaaaark! I am really agitated by your reply although it wasn't all bad advice.

I need to chill out. I want to bop you on the head....

Ok back to the OP.

I agree with spreading your meals through the day more evenly. But don't give up your vegetables. Just eat more of them.

And i agree with dwww about the cheat day. YOu don't even tell us what you eat during cheat day. You should own up to it and log the details as well. Otherwise htere is not enough info to analyse.

I reckon give up the cheat days and make every day a delicious food day. Have a look at what i am eating and you can see how to do it. It means you will have to shop and cook though.

But my first thought when you posted was go to the doctor and get checked out. I don't know what hte implications of testosterone on weight loss are but i am pretty they are zero for vitamin D. Are you insulin resistant was what i was wondering. If you are, you will need a special diet which is low in complex carbohydrates and higher in protein and almost zero simple carbs. Continue to work with your doctor.

If you health is not that seriously implicated read my diary and pick up some tips. Read amy's too especially if you prefer to eat meat.
 
Living healthy isn't as difficult as it may seem. Stick to lean meats (chicken, fish). Try it with brown rice and veggies or whole grain pasta. Make sure any bread, rice, or pasta you eat is high in fiber which is usually the 100% whole grains. Stick to a high protein, high fiber diet. Have your calories work for you. Eat light before a workout like high fiber cereal with bananas for breakfast. After you work out drink water with whey protein for optimal muscle recovery. You'll fall into your groove and you'll see quick results as long as you stay active and eat healthy...oh yeah, and try yoga ;). Not only is it physically stimulating, but mentally. It is that sort of high you get from it that keeps you coming back. Healthy and happy!
 
fortyfour said:
My god chef you are so wrong with your give you nothings. How can you say that. VEgeables are not nothing. They are vitamins, fibre and minerals! My god i can't believe you told this guy to give up celery and eat yoghurt. I've nothing against yoghurt. He should have that too. Faaaaaaaaaaaaark! I am really agitated by your reply although it wasn't all bad advice.

I need to chill out. I want to bop you on the head....
Click to expand...

The wisdom you try to bestow us with on this forum is nothing but miscalculated, uneducated and factually incorrect rubbish. Before you start debating with people, claiming that they are wrong and getting all worked up over the advice they are giving the other members on this forum, educate yourself. Pick up a book and read it. Or, hop online and read through some credible, factually correct websites. I don't know where you're getting your information from, but you need to start listening to someone else, honey. Because, you have no idea what you're talking about.

First of all, I said nothing close to "Vegetables are nothing." I said celery. Not vegetables as a whole. Celery.

Eating a stick of celery is not much different than drinking a glass of water. Celery is made mostly of water and there is barely 1 calorie in the average stick of celery. So, eating 4 stalks of celery for a snack gives you - that's right, do that math - 4 calories. There is also an insignificant, almost unregistered amount of carbohydrates, fiber and other nutrients in celery. That's nothing. There is literally almost nothing in celery.

And, just so you know I'm not making this up off the top of my head (which you would apparently like to 'bop me in'), here are 3 different sources to support my claims:







Secondly, yes...eat yogurt. It's good for you. It's relatively low in calories, it promotes proper digestion and it's a good source of calcium. Also, it helps a person feel full, which is something that people trying to lose weight often find to be an attractive quality.

But yeah, I can see why you might have a problem with what I said. :rolleyes:
 
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