Why aren't I losing weight? Following all the rules, but nothing working

[Sticklebug]

My weight has gradually crept up since having kids and am now 60kg (5'2") and would like to be about 57 kg. Part of motivation is that my legs and upper arms have got big and lots of my clothes don't fit. We are going on holiday on 31st March too so would like to look better for the beach.

I have never dieted before, mainly because I have always had a good balanced diet and been fairly active. I know that part of the problem is too much wine, too much grabbing food on the run at work and not enough exercise. We had also got into the habit of 1-2 takeaways a week.

So, stopped drinking 3 weeks ago, using 'fitness pal' to monitor my calories. I am on 1200 calories a day, and being pretty good at meeting it. No snacks at all and only one day when I went a lot over (away for weekend). Doing more exercise.

I have deliberately only weighed myself once a week. But I am still 60kg-on the dot....not even lost a lb!!!

Any ideas on what I am doing wrong, am really disheartened now and feel like a large .

How do your clothes feel? Do they feel looser? Sometimes weight can be misleading, especially when you first start exercising more & developing better muscles (which weigh more than fat). Don't give up!

No, clothes feel the same. I just weighed myself on someone else's scales in case mine were broken....still exactly 60kg!!

Bump

Are you accurately recording what you eat? Weighing and measuring is a fag but it's hard to know what 100g looks like until you get your eye in. Also time of the month can affect or even eating a packet of crisps (water retention).

Are you accurately recording what you eat? Weighing and measuring is a fag but it's hard to know what 100g looks like until you get your eye in. Also time of the month can affect or even eating a packet of crisps (water retention).

May need to focus more on the food measuring as tend to guess. I don't eat big portions anyway though and generally eat healthy food. I am mostly cross as I have given up wine, which I had assumed was the main problem, and it has made no difference!

On the upside you have found how to maintain.

Dont guess. U will be surprised how little 50g of rice or 50g of cheese actually is. I am also doing a low calorie diet using my fitness app and allow myself 1400 calories. I have lost 11 pounds since starting it on 14th jan. I am 5 ft 6 and weighed 10 st 12 before i started.

Dont give up on yourself. you can do it!! I find this app brill. My sis and my mum both use it too and they also find it helpful. If you want to pm me we can become friends on the app if you like so we can support each other.

What is 'fairly active'? Are you eating and exercising at the right time of day to get your metabolism going. Unless you increase your metabolism you are going to struggle with weight loss. The best bit is that once it's at a higher level you burn more calories doing nothing than you did beforehand ;) You also need to change your lifestyle to keep the weight off, otherwise it will be a short term gain.

You may be undereating

It may be that 1200 is too low for you. Check out the BMR and TDEE calculators on the 5:2 thread OP and work out 80% of your TDEE and eat to that.

I had the same last week. I had simply eaten too much! 5 good days, one ok and one absolute shocker. I find crisps, chocolate, stock cubes, or anything remotely salty will do it for me. One packet of crisps can make 2lbs of difference the next day. Trying harder this week.

Donmac - 'fairly active' mainly involves running up and down stairs at work and a dance class once a week. I know that I need to do more exercise, but no time to fit any in (and actually find it very boring....)

Still on 1200 cal and not cheating....still at 60kg!!!!

Hi Sticklebug, What are you eating for your 1200 calories? The type of calories we consume can have a huge effect on weight and fatloss, and it may be that you need to adjust the kind of food you're eating.

Normal day would be:

Breakfast - banana and either porridge or a muesli bar (depending on whether I have meetings first thing)

Lunch - homemade vegetable soup and bread with a salad or chicken breast with a salad
Fruit salad

Dinner - homemade quorn lasagne, chicken curry, vegetable chilli, tagine with couscous

I don't tend to snack and if I do it would be a few raw nuts.

I have had only 3 glasses of wine in the past 21 days (all on seperate nights).

I have gone over the 1200 calories only 3 times in the past 21 days - once majorly with a big chinese meal out and the other 2 times, just by about 100 calories.

I don't feel hungrey, so assume that I am not starving myself!

I could've written this myself OP.

I've been really watching what I eat the last two months and I've lost a grand total of 3lbs!

I've tried the 5:2 but I just put the weight back on during non-fasting days and recently used MFP.

The only diet that worked for me long term was Slimming World and i found it hard to eat enough so it makes me wonder if 1200 calories is just too low for me.

I have heard the eat more diet so might have to investigate.

Come over to bootcamp It's the only "diet" that has worked for me and that I've felt happy sticking to.

I'm doing slimming world so not quite the same, but have noticed that people who are really strict do not lose as well as those who have their allowance of choc/wine/crisps etc e.g. you could easily eat a standard choc bar a day on slimming world if you were sensible about your meals. Not sure if that helps, but maybe you aren't eating enough?

Stickleback

Your basal metabolic rate, as I calculate it, is 1373 (assuming completely sedentary). By only eating 1200 cals a day, you are eating less than your body needs to power itself - keep your heart beating, brain thinking, etc. Your body will be hoarding calories at this level, convinced that the famine is here...

You should eat at least 1373 cals a day, but no more than 1648 (your total daily energy expenditure - again assuming sedentary). Once you increase the amount you're eating, you should see the weight start to come off. It seems counter-intuitive, but it is the tool your body uses for survival.

Don't use feeling hungry as a measure - your body will "switch off" those feelings if you don't succumb to them, as they are a distraction from the immediate goal of surviving in famine. Do you feel hungry once you start eating?

It's also worth saying that you are a healthy BMI, so it's always more difficult to lose in that zone.

Don't give up hope it will happen!

link to TDEE calculator - thefitgirls.com/tdee-calculator.aspx

Just beige/white vertical blinds or the coloured ones you can get?

Oops wrong thread!

Yippee!!! I took the advice above on board and am eating about 1400 cals a day, less carbs but still a balanced diet, the occasional and I have lost 1kg!

Not much, I know, but after 6 weeks of absolutely no change to my weight and logging every calorie it at last feels like progress. Still need to work on doing more exercise

Knitted- I have sent you PM.

Wow!! Well done Sticklebug!!!

The body is an amazing thing, it's designed to keep us working in all sorts of extreme conditions, but, once it's reached a healthy weight, it will hang on to fat ready for the lean times. It's why very overweight people lose weight very quickly when they start restricting, the body knows it needs to get the weight off to be healthy. Once you start getting to a healthy weight, your body will be less willing to give up reserves, and needs convincing that there's enough food around for it to be able to give up fat.