How am I not losing weight?

[Ifwallscouldtalk]

My meals are

Breakfast - 40g plain porridge with semi skimmed milk, handfuls of berries and a small amount of nuts.

Lunch - chicken salad wholemeal roll or a salmon roll with a muller corner yoghurt

Dinner - Home made meal maybe a pasta dish, spag bol, roast, curry, stir fry, jacket potato. Never a big portion.

Generally no snacks at all unless maybe a piece of toast if I'm especially hungry. Maybe a couple of biscuits at the weekend but definitely not snacking on junk all the time.

Drinks only water or coffee with no sugar.

I'm brisk walking for an hour a day, working out twice a week squats, weights etc.

I only want to lose 4-5 pounds but it's not happening.

Use wholemeal pasta and change the milk and yoghurt to soya alternative. Amazing how much dairy affects fat storage.

Are you counting calories, factoring in oils on food, wine on weekends etc?

I'm eating approx 1500 calories a day, I count calories weigh and measure everything and my Fitbit says I'm burning 2000.

I don't drink wine or any alcohol at all. I only drink water and coffee.

Too many carbs, not enough vegetables.

Eat food, not too much, mostly plants.

Aim for roughly 60% vegetables, 25-30% lean protein and 10-15% healthy fats/dairy.

Keep an eye on the calories, ie try to stay 300-400 calories below what you need to maintain your current weight.

I think you need to focus meals around vegetables, your dinners sound very carb heavy. And swap your muller corner for fruit.

How old are you? Losing weight gets trickier once you enter the menopause.

I don't think Fitbit is very accurate.

Try to include strength training. Muscles weigh more than fat. Try Caroline Girvan on YouTube.

I've cut out carbs and been doing intermittent fasting sticking to 1300 calories and I've lost 18.5lbs in 6 weeks. It's working wonders and I feel great. I have another 1st 13 to lose to get to my goal

Your day feels very carb heavy.
Id stop the roll and pasta and add alternatives. Salad or extra protein .

I love cauliflower rice at the moment and the courgette spaghetti is a good alternative to get more veggies

If you're in a calorie deficit you will lose fat but the scales may not move much if you're doing weights, you need to be consistent over a long period of time and use your clothes as a guide rather than the scales.

You’re eating too many carbs and not enough protein.

Eat food, not too much, mostly plants. This except replace plants with protein.

I think the point here is you only want to lose a very small amount. That suggests you've barely anything to lose. What is your height and weight?

I was in your position a couple of months ago. I stayed consistent and eventually the scale shifted downward. Just took some patience and persistence.

I'd say reduce the carbs and sugar slightly. Still have some when you're working out.

Any nice meal ideas for lower carb more veg focused dinners? I could swap my sandwich for a salad and I know it would work but to be honest I get really fed up eating like that I really like sandwiches., potatoes and carbs.

I'm 38. I am doing some weight training, I do squats, lunges, arm weights and more and I'm quite firm and toned.

My bmi is 21 I literally only want to shift a few pounds.

5 foot 5 and 9 stone 4.

I only want to get to 9 stone or a tiny bit below.

Sometimes you need to cut back more to reach the lower weight. Then eat slightly more to maintain.

But what height and weight are you? If you're already very lean those last few pounds will take long time to come off. Don't worry about the carb thing - it's nonsense. Be sure to weigh/measure your food raw, especially calorie dense things like nuts and pasta. Butter on bread etc also calories dense so needs accounting for - as do all snacks and milk in coffee etc

Sadly you've all confirmed what I already thought which is upping the veg/protein and lowering carbs.

I just don't want to eat low carb. I think if I did reduce carbs even one meal a day for a couple of weeks it might do the trick.

Sorry x post. Ok so you're almost identical to me and losing 4-5 pounds would take me being extremely strict for at least 2-3 months. Is it actually worth the effort to chase a number on a scale? Honestly I chased seeing an 8 on the scales for ages and did get there after months of consistency but it was so hard to stay there! I've also realised I don't look any different at 9 stone 3 than I do at 8 stone 13. Maybe worth thinking about? Could it be body recomposition you want rather than weight loss?

I'm 5 foot 5 and currently weight 9 stone 4.

I only want to lose 4 pounds or so.

@Ifwallscouldtalk why do you want to lose 4 pounds?

Given your BMI is 21 and you only want to lose a couple of lbs I think you're going to have to go right down in your eating - keep the breakfast, make lunch a salad, more of a 'diet'/not carbs not animal fat dinner and no snacks at all or non-tropical fruit (apples, pears) or veg only.

The only answer is that you are not decreasing calories enough to lose (at least at a noticeable rate). It's energy in Vs energy out. I weigh 10 stone and I have to eat less than 1200 to lose weight. Work out your TDEE and eating 500, calories below this per day should give you a 1lb per week loss.

Sorry cross posted.

I know what you mean about it just being a number. I was 8 stone 12 and it's crept up a bit. I know it's really not a number but it frustrates me.

great advice!! Like I said you need to cut back even more to get to a lower weight.

Can you fast until lunch time from the previous evening so effectively skipping breakfast?