Counting calories and put weight ON! :'(

[harriet2802]

I need to lose 2 stone. I am 11st10 at the minute and feel awful. I go on holiday in 7 weeks and desperate to shift a stone if I can. For the past fortnight I've been calorie counting very strict, eating around 900-1000 calories a day and running 3k most days on a morning. I lost 2lb the first week, but this also coincided with a sickness bug, and then today I have weighed myself and I've actually gained 4lb?!

I have been logging all my food and I promise I haven't cheated! I thought it was basic science that if you burn more than you eat then you will lose weight. I'm so upset and frustrated. I feel like I've worked my backside off for nothing.

I am changing my diet again next week to more protein based foods and no carbs. please tell me this will be more successful?

I have tried everything. Slimming world doesn't work for me either and it frustrates me that people I know never step foot in a. Gym and eat chocolate on diets such as sw and ww but lose more than me when I'm barely eating and in the gym 5 days out of 7 :( I am so upset.

Any help is appreciated. I'm dreading my holiday now.

900-1000 calories a day is horrifically low. Even more so for someone running 3km a day.

Don't cut out entire macronutrient groups.

Don't be afraid of good, healthy fats such as avocado, natural nuts (as opposed to those with added sugars, salts etc).

Take measurements and progress photos, the scale isn't the be all and end all.

Muscle does not weigh more than fat. 1lb of something is still 1lb. Muscle is more condensed than fat, meaning someone weighing 140lbs with 19% body fat will have smaller measurements than someone at 140lbs with 29% body fat, despite weighing the same. On the flip side someone with lower body fat and more muscle may weigh more than someone with lower muscle tone but the same measurements.

And track accurately. There's a science to working out cooked v uncooked measurements and weight for food such as chicken to ensure you are eating the correct amount and can calculate calories.

I always thought the "starvation mode" was more about sudden changes to your diet. A bit like when you first take up exercise.

Your body goes WTF? and almost goes into shock and holds water etc.

Then after a week or so the body adjusts. But a lot of people get disheartened and think it isn't working.

I would say that you must be hungry OP, surely?

I know the starvation mode theory is one oft trotted out but it's bunkum.

If you are really eating that little and also exercising that much then you ought to be losing weight, there are no two ways about it. If you aren't then either you aren't logging accurately or there's a medical issue which needs investigation (e.g. Thyroid problems)

Make sure you're weighing properly and also not forgetting to log things like drinks.

Also are you eating your exercise calories back? If so you may be vastly overestimating what you've burned.

I too, got very disheartened. This weekend marked 2 weeks with no loss despite sticking religiously to 1450 cals a day, counting carefully, 15,000 steps daily, lots of water and absolutely no cheating. So....I thought my 11 year old scales were wrong and bought nice new ones. Bang! A kg heavier!!!

I felt like throwing in the towel until I put on some black jeggings i havent worn for a month, to walk the dogs.

They were literally hanging off me!!!

Crazy though, that I'd rather see the numbers on my scales go down!

Really check your logging, because even with simple things like bananas... mfp gives you calories for a medium banana which is let's say 90kcal. Medium is a relative measurement though. So always go by weight.
One thing that helped me was a little kitchen scale. It was a bit tedious weighing everything, but it does help you understand how big portions of some things are.
Also make sure you always weigh yourself within the same parameters: time of the day, clothing, before/after eating.

Just cut out the sugar and refined carbs. The rest takes time. But if you cut out the sugar and white bread / white pasta / white rice you will lose weight.