What am I doing wrong!?

[dancingbroccoli]

Hi all, I am after some advice. I put on 4+ stone during pregnancy and I can't shift the weight at all. I still look like I did when I was 6 months pregnant. My DD is 7 months so I know it hasn't been ages but I thought I would be seeing a little bit of results by now and find it really disheartening that the scales and tape aren't changing :(

I am doing HIIT 2-3 times a week (random ones on YouTube) and take my dogs on a country walk an hour every day. I am not exclusively eating salads by any means but I'd say I'm eating quite healthy - much better than it's ever been

A random day would look like -
Breakfast: 3-4 scrambled eggs (cooked in teaspoon of butter) at the weekend, 2 slices of butter toast during the week
Lunch: usually skip but occasionally will have a croissant if there's some in the house
Dinner: changes a lot but usually along the lines of chilli jacket potato or Bolognese or risotto

I don't snack except at the weekends I'll have some biscuits with a tea and maybe some chocolate and a dessert on Sunday

Please help!!! I'm not sure if it's a case of upping the exercise or doing a different kind

Are you counting calories?
Do you know your TDEE?
Are you actually in a calorie deficit?

Really this is about you choosing high fat options and portion size. You’re eating enough calories to maintain your current weight with your current activity levels.

So you need to either go for lower calorie options, or up the exercise.

Calorie intake is averaged over a week, so even if you are within your limit mon to Friday, which you may not be, if you are eating four eggs, chocolate, dessert, biscuits etc, At the weekend it will undo everything done during the week.

Weight loss is calories in verses calories out. You need to track what you're eating, you'd be surprised the amount of calories in some things. I managed to lose weight and still have a bit of chocolate etc every day because I worked it into my calories for the day.
Do you have a Fitbit or Apple Watch etc that could show you how many calories you're burning each day??

More veg, less pasta/rice/toast. Have a proper lunch (salad and some protein) not a croissant! The exercise will tone you up but the diet is what counts as far as weight loss is concerned.

It’s not a lot of food but it’s pretty high calorie options so if portion sizes are big I can see why it might be an issue. Where’s the fruit and veg?

Are you breastfeeding? The hormones can help you hold on to the weight.

But agree with other posters, you need to choose better options. Vegetables, whole grains and lean protein should be the bulk of your diet.

Are you breastfeeding? It can be harder for some women to lose weight whilst still breastfeeding. Lots of women do lose weight easy peasy with breastfeeding but plenty dont!

I use my fitness pal to keep track of my calories. I keep my Apple Watch on during exercise and the dog walks but I'm not sure how accurate that is for telling me how many calories I have burnt but I am usually eating 2-300kcal below not including the weekend.

I didn't think a few snacks at the weekend would have much effect if the rest of the week was healthier but clearly that's where I'm going wrong😓 I'll start being more strict and hopefully see some results and maybe take the dogs for a longer walk each day.

I do agree it is the food rather than the exercise what's stopping me my dinners are usually always pasta or potatoes but I struggle finding things I enjoy. Time to go to the shops to get some more veg!! Fruit is almost non existent but I do have a lot of orange juice - not that it probably helps my cause very much

No I am not breast feeding

Thank you all for your helpful replies!!!

That’s the other thing op, you also need to count what you’re drinking, so if you’re drinking orange juice a lot it is likely to add a lot of calories, you need to count everything.

And yes you can undo it at the weekend, biscuits, chocolate, dessert, they need to be taken into your Calorie count and then average over the week.

But you’re not making healthy choices, and portion size, how much butter etc all adds to The count. These apps are also notorious for under estimating

If you want to loose a pound a week you need to be five hundred a day under, every day, not just mon to Friday, and if you want to loose two pounds a week it’s a thousand under,

Right now even if you are say 200 a day under, yoire eating the extra thousand you’ve banked at the weekend, and it’s so little under that it could be over estimated anyway, and you’re not that much under.

You need to keep an honest account of everything you eat and drink, inc milk in coffees etc, and for the full seven days then total it up and divide by seven and you will see how many calories you are consuming and how far under you are. Portion sizes are also very difficult because oils and fats used in cooking can be misrepresented.

If you're only 200-300 calories under during the week you're probably making that up at the weekends and just maintaining

You say ‘the rest of the week is healthier’ but for breakfast you’re having buttered toast and lunch is a croissant - carbs and fat ! How about yoghurt and some berries or porridge and a wrap with lots of protein and salad for lunch. What do you drink ..water or tea with milk and sugar. You also need to weigh and scan foods for mfp or you’ll easily end up several hundred calories a day more than you thought.

When you add food and drinks to mfp make sure you cross check it with the packaging the first time you add it as there as many entries for the same food with varying numbers.

Weigh everything. Yes it’s slightly time consuming but once you’re in a routine of doing it it becomes second nature.

Drink water. I drink 2-3 litres a day.

Beware hidden sugars. Fruit juice and dried fruit tend to be more calorific than say a portion of fresh strawberries.

Make sure you’re checking the nutrient section of mfp. It shows how many carbs, protein, fibre, fat etc you need a day. I usually only eat half the carbs recommended and over indulge in protein as it keeps you feeling fully and is good for muscle growth.

Buy a set of measuring spoons. I use mine for measuring out tiny amounts of olive oil, any sauces used in marinades and the milk in my coffee.

Those are all high glycaemic load foods apart from the eggs and chilli. Basically that means your body can easily access the carbs and lays it down as fat if not used straight away.

It really isn’t as simple as calories in / calories out (or our poo would be zero calories!)Think of it more as ‘calories absorbed versus.calories spent’.

It’s why so e people can drop the pounds on high fat diets.

The British diabetic association have a great diet plan which can help everyone lose weight, not just diabetics, and you won’t feel hungry either. It’s based on glycaemic load and teaches your body good habits.

Those food types can easily mount up in calories, especially if your dinner portions are large.

2x toast 230 cals
2tbsp butter 200 cals

Croissant 250 cals

Jacket 250 cals
Chilli 250-500 cals

Plus daily beverages maybe 200 cals

So that's 1700 ish on a good day?

I'm 5ft 4, age 36, and I have to stay under 1400 to not gain, 1200 to lose.

The 2-300 calories under includes any drinks. I drink either water or orange juice. I don't bother with tea during the week, it just ends up going cold😅

You mention the apps usually underestimate calories, is there any better than others or is mfp fine to continue with?

I don't usually weigh anything either, I just go from the portion size on the packet so I will start doing that too as I could be unintentionally helping myself to too much

I'm going to draw up a meal plan tomorrow for the next few weeks as by the sounds of it I really need to cut down my calories and swap out all the bread!

How tall are you op?

Do you know what your general intake and output is?

@Bluntness100

That’s the other thing op, you also need to count what you’re drinking, so if you’re drinking orange juice a lot it is likely to add a lot of calories, you need to count everything.

And yes you can undo it at the weekend, biscuits, chocolate, dessert, they need to be taken into your Calorie count and then average over the week.

But you’re not making healthy choices, and portion size, how much butter etc all adds to The count. These apps are also notorious for under estimating

If you want to loose a pound a week you need to be five hundred a day under, every day, not just mon to Friday, and if you want to loose two pounds a week it’s a thousand under,

Right now even if you are say 200 a day under, yoire eating the extra thousand you’ve banked at the weekend, and it’s so little under that it could be over estimated anyway, and you’re not that much under.

You need to keep an honest account of everything you eat and drink, inc milk in coffees etc, and for the full seven days then total it up and divide by seven and you will see how many calories you are consuming and how far under you are. Portion sizes are also very difficult because oils and fats used in cooking can be misrepresented.

Woah, I'm not an expert and you might be, but being 500 to 1000 calories under a day does not sound healthy unless you're doing intense exercise to increase the calories burned. Slow and steady is a better way to lose weight. Just count in your weekend food (and all drink) and I think you'll see this is where your problem is. Don't restrict foods you like as you won't be able to keep this up, have a little of what you like but factor it into your calories for the day.

Would you consider low carb? I eat that way generally. It cuts out all cravings for complex carbs and sugar.

So I tend not to eat breakfast, brunch is a Greek yoghurt with a hand full of low carb granola.

Dinner is usually a protein with either a salad or cauliflower rice, so chicken, pork, steak, bolognaise, burger, salmon, prawns etc.

Eggs are great, boiled, scrambled, fried, poached with mushrooms bacon etc,

Salads are lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber, avocado etc, as I feel like, with an olive oil dressing.

The first two weeks are hell, you’ll eat loads till your body adjusts, then you’re full of energy and your appetite decreases , I go to the gym Five to six times a week.

I suspect you’re under estimating your daily calorie count too. Maybe changing the way you eat totally is worth a try?

Woah, I'm not an expert and you might be, but being 500 to 1000 calories under a day does not sound healthy unless you're doing intense exercise to increase the calories burned

One to two pounds a week is the recommended norm on a diet, it isn’t extreme and to achieve that that’s the calorie deficit required. That’s factual.

Woah, I'm not an expert and you might be, but being 500 to 1000 calories under a day does not sound healthy

500 calorie deficit is perfectly fine unless you're a low weight to start with and therefore have a low TDEE.
Up to 1000 calories is definitely possible if you're heavy AND you exercise. On a very active day I can burn 2800 calories. I could very safely eat 1800 with no ill effects. I wouldn't do that every day but if you exercise it's best not to eat the extra calories you burn.

Just to add, one pound of weight is 3500 calories.
So if you overeat by 500 calories a day, in a week you could gain a pound depending on your exercise.

I never eat back the calories I’ve burnt with exercise because they can be overestimated. Walking 10k steps as a stroll isn’t going to burn as many calories as 10k steps of a brisk walk.

You can't outrun a bad diet

Exercise burns very few cals in terms of what you can eat

You mention what you're eating but not really how much

Eg bolognese -

how much pasta? How much mince and what else in the bolognese sauce?

One person could make a low cal bolognese with 50-75g of pasta, low fat/veggie mince, fresh veg or at most tinned tomatoes and a little purée plus garlic and herbs and only using a small amount of oil to fry the mince off

Another person could make a much higher cal bolognese with much more pasta, high fat mince fried off in more oil, higher cal veggies

Can mean hundreds of cals difference.

Even the toast - what size bread? How much butter? (Butter especially is very calorie dense and when it melts into toast can look like you're having less than you are)

There can easily be 400-500 cals in a croissant and it's not exactly filling! And that's just the croissant - are you having anything in it?

I'm trying to lose weight, a typical lunch for me at the moment is 2 sandwiches made from 4 slices of bread from a 400g loaf (smaller slices), 25g light Mayo, 2 slices quorn ham, 2 slices "plastic" cheese and slices of cucumber - that works out to 438 cals and is a lot more nutritious and filling than a croissant.

I agree there's not much in the way of fruit and veg in your diet either from that snapshot.

I'm also having crudites/raw veg twice a day - celery, carrot sticks, sliced peppers, cherry tomatoes

2 portions of fruit a day and one small drink of apple juice per day (150ml)

Main meals are things like

pasta (no more than 75g) with veg and my home made tomato based sauce

Stir fry - mainly veg, a portion of quorn pieces or strips or sometimes I won't bother and just have lots of veg, I'll either have a sachet of ready made sauce or make my own, served with 1/2 portion ready made rice or noodles or I'll have 80g cous cous

Jacket potato with home made chilli made with Quorn mince, maybe a little sweetcorn or peppers or mushrooms added depending what I have in, tinned tomatoes, a little purée, garlic and spices

My main meals average between 400-600 cals

I'm going by around 1600 cals per day

not including the weekend

As a pp said you could well be undoing the weeks work by what you're having at the weekend.

Being "strict" doesn't really work either. Cutting out the unhealthier options is one step, you have to replace that with healthier lower cal/less calorie dense foods or you'll feel deprived, your body will crave nutrition and you'll cave in

Orange juice - are you inc that in cal intake? Lots of people forget to include drinks. Oj is very high in sugar/cals. You need to drink plenty for health and weight loss but water or at least no added sugar drinks are better. Eg my apple juice is 69 cals for a small drink, but I include in my daily cal intake and account for it.

I looked at mfp and decided against using as anyone can update the database and there are a lot of inaccuracies I found.

I've essentially built my own database on a spreadsheet on my phone I've found the info on packet info or looking up the products with the manufacturers online or reliable sites for raw ingredients.

If you go on the nhs site to do the bmi calculator it also tells you how many cals to maintain and how many to lose weight.

Then you really have to weigh and measure everything! You'll be shocked how much over you've been going. I find it useful with drinks if you check how much your favourite cups and glasses hold. Then you have a fair idea every time you have a drink.

I have scaled, jug, a shot glass thingy (for small amounts of liquid but more than spoons would manage) and measuring spoons.

You get used to what you're having as the correct/healthier portion sizes and adjust mentally.

Hi OP - I'm in a similar position to you - 5 month old DS and I put on over a stone and a half during pregnancy/during the weeks of exhaustion with a newborn where I ate biscuits all night in order to feel alive enough to be able to look after him!

I've been trying to lose weight for three weeks - I've lost half a stone - not splendid but I don't like to be hungry and I'm focusing on DS! Im doing a tiny bit of exercise more for mental health and just doing something for myself. I'm mainly eating fish meat and veg. If you don't mind me saying so, your list of daily food is what I was eating in the depths of newborn exhaustion - carbs and sugar - although I was no doubt eating more than you are and throughout the night!

Typical day - in fact yesterday - was:

• breakfast - smoked salmon and Philadelphia cheese on a slice of rye toast
• lunch - chicken and veg (broccoli, peas and courgette all cooked together - in butter!)
• dinner - crab, bacon, avocado, tomato, mozzarella, rocket and artichoke salad

The thing is it doesn't feel like a diet because it's all delicious. I do eat naughtily at the weekend though - croissants, pasta, pudding etc and I'm sure if I want to accelerate the weight loss I need to stop having quite so many treats! I do think losing pregnancy weight is hard - and having a new baby is hard too! good luck! x

Having 200 less in the week is only 1000 extra for the weekend so 500 a day extra really isn’t that much.
Especially when you consider fitness watches are usually pretty generous with their calorie calculation unfortunately you are probably overeating

I am vegetarian so for example my Bolognese is quorn mince with a tbsp olive oil, tinned tomatoes, tomato purée, mushrooms, onions, carrots, garlic and then some herbs from pots but from reading all of your replies I definitely need to be measuring things out as I have a lot more pasta than mince but I'd still say within a "normal" portion. My idea is probably a bit warped though as my partner has 3x the amount to me but is extremely fit where as I am obviously not.

I feel so silly for thinking 5/7 for being under in calories is fine as it's the majority of the week, I don't know why I thought the weekend would make much difference as it's only the 2 days with something a little extra!!! I guess I wasn't really counting the croissant either as I only have one maybe once or twice a week but that could be an extra 500 cals a week on a small lunch snack

Low carb diet sounds a good idea as that'd eliminate the problem foods for me that I most likely over indulge in.