To ask for your advise on how to lose weight

[Cocacola12]

Throughout my teens/20’s I always weighed around 11 stone (I’m 5ft 8) and worked out around 4/5 days a week (mainly running/les Mills classes)
Since having children I’m almost ashamed at how much weight I’ve put on. My scales weren’t working but I had guessed around (gulp) 18stone as I was hovering around that about Christmas time. I always walk 10000 steps a day but didn’t do other exercise. My diet was terrible. My Fitbit estimated I burned around 3000 calories per day. Things came to a head a few weeks ago when I felt almost suicidal, I knew I had to change and my diet and exercise was one thing I could change.

For the past 3 weeks I’ve been doing a les Mills at home class every day (attack or combat) and I generally (according to Fitbit) burn around 600/700 per 45min session. I give it my all. I’ve been walking also, on average doing around 15k steps. According to Fitbit I’ve been burning around 4000 calories a day.
I have been eating around 2000 calories a day.
I would presume eating this much of a deficit would result in weight loss, given how heavy I am. My clothes feel In no way looser. I weighed myself this morning and I was 18st12lbs, much heavier than I had anticipated (obv I didn’t weight 3 weeks ago but really don’t feel like I have lost any weight)
I’m feeling so disheartened. Am I eating too much? Surely cutting my calories by so much compared to what I did eat and exercising intensely every day would after 3 weeks result in some changes.

Ime it's best to ignore the workout calories all together and not adjust your daily allowance based on them. As pps said, it's so difficult to figure out correct burned calories.
I log them, but I don't eat them. It's just a bonus and keeping track of exercise.

The estimate that you are burning 3000 calories a day sounds like way too much. I've been doing two intense HIIT workouts a day plus 2 jogs a week and only burn about 500-600 calories per day total. I don't count calories burned normally throughout the day, only those from exercise that gets my heartrate up. My calorie intake is set to 1200 and then the extra 500 -600 calories means I could eat up to 1800 but I choose not to - average around 1350 cals so I have a decent deficit.

If you think about it op, on average we burn a hundred calories running a mile.

So to burn 4000 calories it’s the equivalent of running 40 miles. It’s a huge amount, hence highly unlikely.

Of course some burn more than others, depending on weight etc, but to burn 4000 calories you’d really really have to going some. To put it in perspective I think James Haskell said he burns 3k. And that’s a really big bloke who intensely exercises.

If you then look at your food intake, it’s highly unlikely you’re consuming 2000 a day, it’s really easy to underestimate it, portion sizes, snacks, drinks, ingredients etc,

So taking the two together you’re likely hugely over estimating how much you burn off and minority underestimating how much you eat.

So for example you’re likely eating say 2600, burning an extra 600 and hence maintaining (made up numbers but you get what I mean) . The amount you eat now is what you need to maintain your weight at your current activity levels.

I only have about 7lbs to lose in total. I started the Fast 800 diet 3 -4 days ago and ive lost 2lbs already.

It's basically the 5:2 diet but they've upped the amount of calories on fast days from 600 to 800. I tried the original 5:2 diet but couldnt do the fast days as i was starving. Those extra 200 calories have made a big difference and i honestly havent felt hungry yet.

The first 2 weeks they advise you to do 800 calories a day, every day, and then switch to the 5:2.

So far I'm really impressed because i'm hopeless usually and never manage to lose weight when i actually try to.

You don’t know your starting weight so you have no idea whether you have lost or not
So this is all rather irrelevant?! Weigh yourself today and that’s your starting weight. It’s also only been three weeks you won’t see much change in that time even if it did say on the scales.

I'm in the calorie deficit camp.

Don't beat yourself up - you've probably lost already. Bigger people need more calories so the smaller you get, the fewer you'll need.

I've lost 1.5 stone and just within the healthy range. It's a daily struggle. My TDEE (without exercise) is 1400 per day. I eat 1200 per day and lose very, very slowly. On 10k steps, it rises to around 1600.

It IS sustainable.

Same here - I lost a stone age 50 and kept it off. I'm only 5 foot tall and 55 now and easily maintain on around 15-1600 cals. I don't do much cardio - just some weights and walking.

16:8 is working wonders for me.. was 74kg last year (I'm 5"2 but with a lot of muscle as I work out a lot) pre lockdown was 70.. today 62kg. GW 58. Dont eat after 8pm. Watch what you eat between 12-8 . .I eat at work because I'm frustrated and stressed, WFH I found myself able to control the urge.
Intermittent fasting is hard, however I reversed my pre diabetes.. and I realised I eat emotionally rather than actually being hungry..
Good luck x

Reduce your calories to say 1400 and do not count the exercise calories as they aren't accurate.

Instead set an exercise goal on top of your set calories allowance .... e.g. 4 sessions a week, 10000 steps a day etc etc.