Cut Calories/Working Out - No Results

[MommyFit24]

Hi, I’m new here...and honestly completely desperate and don’t know what to do.

I’m a 5’7, 35 year old female. I’m a former athlete throughout college who put on a lot of weight after multiple pregnancies.

For the last month I’ve been working out daily, mostly on our exercise bike (which has iFit, changes resistance levels/incline etc). I normally exercise for at least an hour a day, burning at least 500 calories. Conversely, I keep my calorie intake to no more than 1600 a day, with most days being between 1100 and 1400.

Doing all that and...I literally haven’t cut a pound. I started at 253 and have gone up and down a few pounds...but basically on average I’m the same.

With the calories I eat...I’m not eating junk. Salads, vegetables, protein...no binge days, no real junk food.

I just don’t know what to do. Yes, ideally I’d be doing a full body work out, and I do some yoga/using resistance bands and weights, but I’m limited at the moment in my home.

I’ve read theories about I could be building muscle and that’s holding the weight, or I could be holding onto more water weight, or maybe somehow my metabolism has slowed to a crawl....but I have no idea for sure.

Any thoughts/suggestions anyone has would be greatly appreciated!

[SuffolkPunch]

It's important to count calories accurately. You can eat (so called) healthy food but if you have a big appetite, it's still entirely possible to be eating more calorie than you burn - and that's the key thing that will cause fat loss.

Get myfitnesspal and put what you normally eat into it, you might be shocked what it all adds up to.

[MommyFit24]

It's important to count calories accurately. You can eat (so called) healthy food but if you have a big appetite, it's still entirely possible to be eating more calorie than you burn - and that's the key thing that will cause fat loss.

Get myfitnesspal and put what you normally eat into it, you might be shocked what it all adds up to.

I get that....I use noom, and I’m telling you, I’m not eating a lot. I have at least a 1000 calorie deficit every day between what I burn exercising and what I eat. But I’m still stagnant. That’s my frustration.

[colontos]

The thing is, if you are not losing weight rapidly then you are not in a 1,000 calorie deficit. 1,000 cal deficit is way too much imho, btw.

Nobody really knows their maintenance calories from a calculation at something. At your height and weight you should be losing weight quickly at below 1600/day. The fact that you are not means one of two things:

1. (0.01% probability) you have some kind of metabolic disorder/condition and you need to see a doctor
2. (99.99% probability) you are eating more than you think you are

Here's what I recommend. Btw I am in my late 30s, a couple years ago I lost 70 pounds and have kept it off (gained back 15 or so pounds on purpose to build muscle, but that's it). So I know something about how this works.

1. Weigh yourself every day first thing in the morning after going to the bathroom. Log your weight everyday in a spreadsheet, and use spreadsheet functions to automatically calculate your 7-day moving average. This is DATASET 1.
2. Use myfitnesspal and, for a while at least until you get in a rhythm, track all calorie intake obsessively. You need to be a little obsessive for a bit until you get the hang of it. It's okay. Track everything: snacks, sauces, liquids, etc. etc. Shoot for the same calories every day, and hit your protein and fat macros. This is DATASET 2.
3. Do not factor in your calories burned through exercise. You don't know how many calories you're burning. Eat the same cals every day regardless of your workout.
4. Pick a calorie number, eat that for 2-3 weeks and watch your weight. If it's going down at a good rate (1-2 pounds a week), then great, you found your number for a while. If your weight loss is too fast, increase cals by 100 and watch for another 2-3 weeks. If weight loss is too slow or not happening, decrease cals by 100 or 200 and watch for 2-3 weeks. When you change your daily cals, make sure you note that in your spreadsheet.

Last thing, and YMMV, but zero-calorie sodas and black coffee are absolute lifesavers for me. Just something to consider.

Good luck. You can do it. It's tough, and it's a marathon not a sprint, but you can do it.

[TolerantLactose]

I get that....I use noom, and I’m telling you, I’m not eating a lot. I have at least a 1000 calorie deficit every day between what I burn exercising and what I eat. But I’m still stagnant. That’s my frustration.

If you're not losing weight, you're not in a deficit. If there's a discrepancy between what an app says and what the scale days, the app is wrong.

[SuffolkPunch]

I doubt that your maintenance level is 2600 calories. I can see how an app might calculate it like that - but then they do tend to over estimate for people who are overweight (which is unfortunate).

I've you've been averaging 1600 (say) for 1 month and have lost no weight, we can only conclude that you must shave 2-300 calories off your current intake and try that for a couple of weeks.

[sunsean]

I have at least a 1000 calorie deficit

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news - but no, you don't. You may well THINK you do, but results don't lie and if you haven't lost weight, then you aren't eating a deficit, let alone a 1000 calorie one.

You wrote "With the calories I eat...I’m not eating junk. Salads, vegetables, protein...no binge days, no real junk food." - but that is a general statement about good/bad foods - but that's a myth. You can gain weight eating fruit, and you can lose weight eating donuts. It's all about calories, and it's not "what" you eat but how much of it.

Are you weighing the food you eat?

[MommyFit24]

I doubt that your maintenance level is 2600 calories. I can see how an app might calculate it like that - but then they do tend to over estimate for people who are overweight (which is unfortunate).

I've you've been averaging 1600 (say) for 1 month and have lost no weight, we can only conclude that you must shave 2-300 calories off your current intake and try that for a couple of weeks.

Sorry, to clarify, when I say 1,000 calorie deficit I mean:

500 calories burned in exercise
500 calories less than my maintenance level

So, my maintenance level is more like 2100 calories and I’m eating 1600 a day.

[TolerantLactose]

Sorry, to clarify, when I say 1,000 calorie deficit I mean:

500 calories burned in exercise
500 calories less than my maintenance level

So, my maintenance level is more like 2100 calories and I’m eating 1600 a day.

If your weight is not changing, your deficit is zero.

[CBRIT89]

Activity trackers always exaggerate calorie burn, as do apps. It's normally more like 2/3 what they say.

[spradish]

Maintenance calories = the number of calories you burn all day long. It includes everything from calories spent digesting to breathing to typing to washing clothes to exercise.

Calorie intake = the number of calories you ingest per day

Calorie deficit = maintenance calories LESS calorie intake

If you aren't losing weight, you are eating too many calories to lose weight. It doesn't matter if you think your deficit is 500 or 1000 or 1500. That's the bottom line here. It's not something to get upset about. It's extremely common for overweight/obese people to think they are eating less than they really are.

Get a digital kitchen scale and weigh all solid and semisolid foods (e.g., yogurt.) Measure all liquids with a measuring spoon or cup.

Log all of your calories using correct nutrition info. You can get that from the food label or from a site like the USDA Nutrient Database or the Canadian Nutrient File. DO NOT get your nutrition data from MyFitnessPal.

Eat (actually eat) 1800 calories per day for a month while maintaining your activity level and you will lose weight. When I say "actually eat" I mean how many calories do you put in your mouth and swallow. Do not count the calories in your food and then subtract your exercise calories. In fact, ignore what any calculator is telling you about how many calories you are burning. Contrary to what tech companies tell you and sell you, you do not need to know how many calories you burn while exercising in order to lose weight. You only need to track how many calories you are eating and how much weight you are losing or gaining. Once you have that, adjust your calories down or up from there.

Edit: If you don't want to correct the way you're counting calories the way I describe above, drop your intake by 300 calories per day, in general, meaning eat 1300 or 800 or 1100. (Seriously, the fact that you cannot even say how many calories you actually eat and instead list three very different numbers makes it clear that you are not counting calories accurately.)

[MommyFit24]

Thanks everyone. So the basic general point is seeing is that I’m not burning as much as I think I am, and I’m probably eating more than what I think I’m eating.

The digital scale is a good idea, I’ll buy one and start weighing.

It just sucks because I feel like I’m not eating a lot to start with. I’m working out pretty hard for 60-90 minutes a day. Honest to God, no binging, no cheat meals. I’ve been using Freshly and Daily Harvest for a good amount of what I’m eating as well. I just can’t believe I haven’t lost more.

Is there any chance in holding more in water weight? Or that I’ve gained muscle?

[sunsean]

The digital scale is a good idea, I’ll buy one and start weighing.

It just sucks because I feel like I’m not eating a lot to start with.

We see a lot of these similar threads. The bolded word is usually the issue, people 'feel' like they should be losing and are reluctant to accept the truth: they are eating more than they think.

Getting a scale and weighing all your food is a great idea and may be enlightening as to what/how much you're actually eating.

[SuffolkPunch]

Thanks everyone. So the basic general point is seeing is that I’m not burning as much as I think I am, and I’m probably eating more than what I think I’m eating.

The digital scale is a good idea, I’ll buy one and start weighing.

It just sucks because I feel like I’m not eating a lot to start with. I’m working out pretty hard for 60-90 minutes a day. Honest to God, no binging, no cheat meals. I’ve been using Freshly and Daily Harvest for a good amount of what I’m eating as well. I just can’t believe I haven’t lost more.

Is there any chance in holding more in water weight? Or that I’ve gained muscle?

At least you are taking advice. A lot of people seem to flat out not believe us when we tell them this...

Yes, it's possible to hold some water weight, I didn't mention it because it's been a month which is a bit too long to be hanging on to water weight. Muscle gain is not that likely in a calorie deficit - although there can be some temporary weight gain caused by inflammation and glycogen uptake when you first start training big muscles like legs and glutes. Again, a month should have seen some movement.

Be sure to weigh in everyday too - it's easier to see past the day to day 'noise' and spot the longer term trend.

[snailsrus]

Change your cardio those stationary bikes won’t do much unless it’s a spin bike, walking is better

Never include your calories burned in exercise as your deficit

100% promise you, your counting cals is off. 1000-1400 cals a day at your stats you should be dropping lbs weekly, did you ever go back and see what your calories were before you started to diet? Do you have cheat meals? Or days? Do you count coffee creamer/sugar and or oil cooked with, condiments? One guy here was drinking a ton of coffee with creamer and it added like 600 or 700 cals a day, or you drink alcohol or eat out often?

[Noctive]

I get that....I use noom, and I’m telling you, I’m not eating a lot. I have at least a 1000 calorie deficit every day between what I burn exercising and what I eat. But I’m still stagnant. That’s my frustration.

To put that in oresoective, if you were eating at a 1000 calorie deficit a day you should be loosing 2 lbs per week which you could defintly notice, when you make food, do you account for all the stuff like cooking oil and little things? cause imma tell you right now, that adds up? Do you account your seasonigs? do you weight your food?

If you dont know how much food are you eating you cant count calories
If you dont count everything you probably misleading yourself

[Tommy W.]

Understand that a deficit must be figured on a weekly and not daily basis as it's extremely rare to eat the same calories day in and day out. Many people say they eat X calories a day and that's usually the amount a couple days a week then the other days are higher. Couple that with underestimating their actual calories and overestimating their TDEE and you can start to see where the problems are. Bottom line as others have stated that your overall calorie intake is too high.

Fatloss is a product of a consistent calorie deficit over time and nothing more.