3lbs loss week 1 then nothing! Any advice?

[Allthewhite]

I’ve always been a fairly slim 5’9. However I hit 49 this year and my metabolism seems to have taken a nose dive. I’ve been doing 16:8 for the past 3 weeks and was thrilled week 1 to lose 3lbs but since then, nothing!

I don’t have too much to lose. I’m currently 10st and want to get back to my normal 9.5 so I can fit comfortably into my jeans again. I’m carrying all my weight around my middle.

I’m currently not eating until 1pm then having a fairly healthy lunch (chicken breast plus lots of salad typically) then dinner about 7. Again dinner tends to be fish/steak/omelette plus veg and possibly a pear/apple afterwards plus high protein yoghurt if I’m still hungry. I’m drinking lots of water also.

I just don’t understand why I haven’t lost any more weight. Any thoughts or advice welcome.

I think you need to drop a few calories in your diet or do some extra walking or other exercise. Have you tried working out exactly how many calories you're consuming?

I know a lot of people these days talk about low carb diets being good for weight loss. I eat a balanced diet with plenty of carbs and have lost a fair bit of weight and built plenty of muscle. HIIT definitely helps with that. You definitely want to be eating carbs of you do HIIT though.

Count your calories. 16:8 is not a magic bullet on its own. It is simply a tool to make it easier to consume fewer calories if you are able to keep to an eating window.

Remember that weight loss is not linear - you get losses and sometimes even short term gains (which are water weight if you are genuinely in a calorie deficit).

Remember that it takes 3,500 calories to burn a pound of fat. So you are looking at a calorie deficit of 500 every day if you want to lose a pound a week. And to know if you are in a deficit you need to know how many calories your body uses. There's lots of BMR/TDEE calculators online that you can use.

Finally, remember that weight loss becomes harder the closer your body is to its ideal weight. So unless your aim of 9.5 stone will leave you significantly overweight (which I doubt) then it may prove a bit tough to shift those last few pounds even with a decent calorie deficit.

Hang in there - it can be done.

what is your daily calorie intake?

Many thanks for the replies. I’ve done very little exercise for the past few weeks so really need to pull myself together.

I’d find it difficult to eat less than I do now so hopefully the exercise helps.

Sammi - I’m not certain but I’d guess at 1,200 - 1,300. I’m better during the week but the discipline slides a little on weekends!

Drink plenty of water, really drink lots.