I've put on alot of weight, struggling to lose this time

[Glitterbauble]

Hi all, so my weight has always fluctuated over the years I'm an all or nothing girl so tend to go through periods of being slim and not so slim. I used to jump between a size 10 and 14. 2 years ago I made it my mission to get fit and toned and with the help of the '30 day shred' and various DVD's and alongside eating little got down to 8 stone and a size 8 in a very short space of time. Just over a year ago I got into a new relationship and have spent the time since eating out, drinking every day, started smoking again and snacking on anything in sight, this is probably because for the first time ever I felt able to relax and be happy. Downside to this is I have gained almost 3 stone and shot up to a 12/14 and I've gained 5 inches on my waist :( looking at old progress photos is soul destroying.

I started trying to lose it again 4 weeks ago and so far have only managed 4 pounds, I am really confused by this as I'm doing EXACTLY what I did before, I work out twice a day so maybe 90 mins all in with the same DVD's as before, I keep my calories under 1200 per day max, no weekday drinking or snacking I even stopped smoking so I could hit the exercise hard, the only difference is I relax a bit more at the weekend, maybe have a few drinks on a sat night and a lunch or dinner out once. What seems to be happening is I lose a couple of pounds through the week and come Monday morning they are back on so I'm playing with the same weight constantly, this has never happened before can anyone offer any insight to what I'm doing wrong??

[Owllady]

I'm watching this with interest as I'm finding the same!

[GuybrushThreepwoodMP]

It sounds like you are not eating enough. If you eat 1200 and workout 90 minutes a day, you are starving yourself.

[RunnerOnTheRun]

You stent eating and working out intelligently. If you can workout twice per day then you aren't working out hard enough the first time!! To create an energy deficit plus adaptation (change) it needs to be an efficient workout, one that you physically can't repeat for two days! Rest and recovery is very important.

Without a full food diary it's hard to comment on that side but alcohol really does suppress fat loss.

[RunnerOnTheRun]

Aren't*

[Glitterbauble]

Working out with dvd's at home I can only really work as hard as they are to do. I get my heart rate up and I'm exhausted by the end and I can definitely feel it in my muscles as i'm sore every morning. I do one at around 9am and then again around 2pm so I'm rested between them. I should have said before I don't work out on weekends these are my rest days. Meal wise is similar each day eg breakfast - weetabix, lunch - tuna wrap or omelette with mushrooms and spinach made with fry light then dinner - meat and veg or a bowl of pasta etc. Drinks are water or diet pop in the evening.

My diet slips a bit at the weekend so I might go out for a burger and chips in a pub somewhere but I split this with my dp so we eat half the meal each and then a few drinks in the evening time. Maybe it really is the weekends that are doing the damage as the weekends are the only thing different from how I've always lost weight fast before.

[HappyGoLuckyGirl]

I'm finding the exact same minus the working out. I got down to almost target weight Summer 2014 and now I'm 2 stone up again

I'm hoping that hitting the treadmill and JM 3 day shred 4 days a week will help me along.

I also think a lot of it is messing up your metabolism. Yo yo dieting will do that unfortunately, so every time it is harder to lose.

[mindtheshapes]

It definitely is the weekend and the lack of quality food. Alcohol is calorie dense and it can quickly add up, while not providing enough nutritional value.
I'm not sure about how active you are during the day, but it's hard to out train an inactive lifestyle. You can easily get away with 3 intense training sessions a week, while trying to walk, cycle or swim for an hour or two daily can be far more beneficial in the long run.

[Millliii]

I think you need to do a food diary and write down every single thing that you eat for a week honestly and the portion size and then go back after the week and add up the calories to see if maybe you are underestimating what you are eating. Easily done.

[IthinkIamsinking]

Weight loss can slow down with age. What worked previously wont necessarily work now.

Mix up your exercise.... do you use weights? Reduce the cardio and up the strength training to at least 3/4 times a week. Invest in a kettle bell... there are loads of brilliant videos on YT using them
Only weigh yourself once a month if at all. How do your clothes feel? Take pictures/measurements and monitor how your clothes feel.

[Glitterbauble]

Thanks for all the comments, I have been more sensible this weekend and weighed myself this morning and I've finally seen a drop on the scales of 6 pounds all in so I'm wondering if it's the bloat of the weekend that is usually showing a temp gain on the scales. Anyway to confirm the loss I tried on a pair of jeans I couldn't get over my bum a few weeks ago and I got them on, not wearable but on! so something must be happening. I find it odd the the actual scales aren't changing faster but as long as something is coming off.

IthinkIamsinking - I use weights to do the shred with, will look into a kettle bell too and have just purchased the davina 5 week fit as well to change it up a little. I've also hid the scales for now!

[oldlaundbooth]

It's hard isn't it.

The thing is you can't have massive blowouts every weekend, maybe one weekend per month.

It's super tough but you've got to stick to it 95% of the time. If you don't, you gain like I discovered this morning, grr

If you're careful it will drop off you in no time. You sound in the right frame of mind, OP