What am I doing wrong?

[katedan]

Please help I am using nutracheck and consuming 1200 calories a day, I exercise 5 times a week and do allow these calories, so probably 1400 a day. After a week of this i felt certain I would lose weight but I gained 1lb!!!! I am gutted. I am 11st 3lbs and 5ft 4 so def have weight to lose.

Has anyone else had this or any advice please.

Exactly what are you eating?

To put it plainly, you are still eating too much. Sorry but I don’t lose weight on 1200 calories a day

I eat a lot of fish and salad, fruit and soup for lunch. I don't think too bad. I do still have some carbs but I run so need a bit of carbs.

How many calories should I have to lose weight as I say I have been following nutracheck and they set 1200

1400 does sound like a lot, given that you are 5'1". To lose weight, you need to be in calorie deficit so unless your daily life is very active and your workouts are incredibly intense. Maybe try eating a bit less and exercising a bit more, or see a nutritionist.

Your calorie target is reasonable according to the TDEE calculator I just looked at (guessed an age so may be a bit off). You are eating below the maintenance number for a sedentary person your height and weight and you are also doing exercise.

How precise are you being about weighing food, if you are guessing then you are probably underestimating and eating more calories than you think.

Are you drinking enough water?

I don't weight myself at all. Just measure myself every week. Much better indicator.

I eat around 1500/1600 calories a day and still lost a stone in 3ish months and I wasn't on plan all the time either.

I lift weights and muscles have really popped doing this.

It's only been a week and woman's bodies are mental, give yourself a break x

Drinking water is something I need to work on as I still have two diet cokes a day which I know is not good for weight loss. I am 48 and def finding it harder this time to lose weight.

Your body needs water to metabolise fat, so get chugging!

How much water are you drinking? You're probably retaining water and building muscle.

Try 1200 calories a day for.a week with no exercise and see if you lose more.

Your muscles also use water to heal, if you are feeling achy from the exercise then that's a sign that your muscles will need to heal, it's a good thing, but it's a process that you need to account for and upping your fluid intake is how you do that. It doesn't have to be pure water, you can have black coffee or green tea, fruity water etc but if you don't put enough in then your body will hold on to what it's got.

Honestly, how much muscle do you think OP is gaining given she is in either calorie deficit or maintenance and has just started exercising this week????

It may well be water retention as the joints need water round them for protection when exercising

Yoiu havent given it much time OP, carry on for a month and then come back and see

Be patient, stick with it. Over time if you’re counting properly and weighing everything and in a deficit, it will come off, but your body can be an odd thing and take a while to catch up!

You're eating too much or need a 💩

I’m five feet one and since July have lost 38 lbs. I reduced my carbs and this then reduced my appetite. I didn’t really calorie count but probably ate around 1200 per day. I filled up on vegetables, salad, fruit and lots of protein such as eggs, salmon and prawns.
I always think as exercise as separate to weight loss as it’s so easy to then go and eat more than you’ve burned off.
I also gave up my daily diet soda and this was amazing for stopping my cravings for sugar and junk.

Wow that's amazing!! Do you eat carbs now?

Wow that's amazing!! Do you eat carbs now?

Yes i reintroduced them in latish November, I’m still losing a tiny bit of weight but overall it’s more maintenance. I had three big holidays when I was losing weight and stuck to nice quality meals of protein and veg and things liked smoked salmon and eggs for breakfast. I still ate fruit which has sugar in it as I am a fruit and veg nut and I like to eat a lot of every day.

I started low carb and am also going on holiday so worried about making good choices. Which carbz do you eat now and has your appetite increased again?

I started low carb and am also going on holiday so worried about making good choices. Which carbz do you eat now and has your appetite increased again?

I eat bread about 4 times a week, I had chips today, I’ve eaten crisps quite a few times. Yes I’d say my appetite has increased a bit but I’m still eating so much less than I used to. If I feel hungry I’ll have some ham, cheese or olives.

Sorry for by hacking the thread.

Well done Newyear24 as others have said that is amazing. I think I need to cut carbs, I only have a few salad potatoes in the evening but could cut them out.

When I cut carbs in July I lost 6 lbs in a week (mostly water weight) and this was the incentive I needed.
OP do think about your diet sodas, they are evil.

WEIGHT GAIN DOES NOT EQUAL FAT GAIN

There are lots of possibilities why you have gained weight -
Hormones/due on your period and holding onto water
Ate a load of salty food before weigh in and holding onto water
Haven't been for a shit for a few days
Drank alcohol the day before weigh in
Gone from doing no exercise to five days and muscles are holding onto water

It's only been a week OP. Before you go headfirst into the MN diet of one meal a day of fresh air, give it another week. Be 100% with your calories and see what happens then.

Weight fluctuates daily and is a very poor short term measure of fat loss - water retention, food volume and yes, poo can all contribute, women's weight additionally fluctuates due to the menstrual cycle - I am always a few pounds heavier around my period and it's gone again the week after.

If you weigh daily just note it down and take the lowest reading of the week as your progress marker. If your behaviour is negatively affected by the number on the scale each morning (I've lost a pound so can have some chocolate, or, I've put on a pound so may as well just eat what I want and start again tomorrow) then STOP weighing for 30 days, get your head down and stick to your cals then weigh at the end of the 30 days, if you are consistent you WILL see results.

Tape measurements of various areas - waist / arms / thighs / hips are a better indicator of progress over time.

1200-1400 calories is fairly low but you are quite short - don't go lower it will be unsustainable and lead to yo-yoing - but do make sure you are tracking properly including cooking oil, milk in teas, nibbles of cheese from the fridge (who me?) Etc. it's very easy to add an extra 200 cals a day by inaccurate tracking which will slow your weight loss.

Ignore exercise for weight loss - think of it for health and body composition only (don't 'eat back' the calories most exercise trackers vastly overestimate energy burnt) trying to increase your daily movement such as steps, walking, general busyness is much more effective at burning calories than 3 x short bursts of exercise followed by being mainly sedentary for the rest of the week

be patient - at your height and with not a huge amount of weight to lose, 0.5 to 1lb a week would be excellent progress and thus easily masked by the natural fluctuations of your body

Consistency is key, if you stick to 1200-1400 calories a day for 30 days at least 80% of the Time then you will definitely see results. Then keep going!

To recap on my essay:

1200-1400 cals a day (average over the week so can 'bank' some for a more fun weekend)

8000-10000 steps a day (on average over the week)

80-100g of protein a day - will preserve muscle mass and keep you full longer

3 X workouts - weight training preferable to cardio

Do the above for 30 days - you will see great results - good luck

Your BMR is 1327
If you were in a coma and consuming 1200, you'd lose weight.
You need to calorie count accurately or adopt another strategy.

Eat as much veg as possible and sufficient protein may work better than inaccurate calories.

What's wrong with diet coke? I'm underweight (even though I'm 24 weeks pregnant) at 37, and the heaviest I've ever been was a BMI of 20, maybe 21?

I ONLY drink diet drinks, coffee and a little water. I'm drinking one now (non caffeine).

Honestly, if you like diet coke, don't worry about it 😊