Help! Im not losing weight.

[outlawtdh]

Hi group.  I'm new to this so hopefully Ive set this up right.   

Im super active, average 15,000-20,000 steps on a slow day.   I run (on treadmill right now) 4 miles in 33 minutes and do the eliptical about 30 minutes.   Days I don't work out at home I riding 3 or 4 horses.  Riding actually makes more steps and burns more calories than my regular routine.   My work out/activity is 6 days a week.   

I'm 5'9" and in my mid 40's.   The weight seems to be creeping on, but will not come off.   The Dr's ran test for Thyroid etc and its all fine.    Since October Ive managed to keep myself to about 1800 calories a day.   Tried to stay low carb, low sugar.    Of course, I have cheat days.    I have not lost a single pound - not one!!!!   In fact, Ive gained about 5.   What the heck??    I've never worked out so much and i never had to monitor my diet before.   I even started eating breakfast (which until a few months ago i didnt do)    Nothings working.   Any helpful ideas or information would be greatly appreciated.   This is beyond frustrating.       

[lilalief]

Hi!

Quick question, do you also take your measurements? It may be possible that you are gaining weight because you are building muscle. I mean... look at how much you've been working out lately.

Good luck!

[outlawtdh]

Hi!  Thank you for the response.
I did not take measurements.   However my clothing is tighter now instead of loose.   In the beginning there was a change in muscle mass for sure.   Now the weight seems to be increasing on my hips and stomach - which isn't muscle mass - it's becoming a spare tire.   😔  It's very frustrating.   No wonder so many people give up on working out and diets. 


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[Akaka]

Hi outlawtdh,

I am in a very similar boat to you.  I'm 45 and am starting to believe this is all due to the onset of perimenopause.  Like you, I've got my fitbit, have increased workouts to 6x/ week and try to keep my calories to the 1600ish range.  Of course, some days I'm more successful with that than others.  My whole life I've always had to be conscious of my weight...it creeps up steadily if I'm not paying attention, but in previous years I've also always been able to lose if I set my mind to it.  That is now definitely not the case and I'm also wondering if that yo-yo pattern is also starting to play a role in what I'm seeing now.

Anyway, I don't have much advice for you, just wanted to say that I feel your pain!! You're definitely not alone in this.  Hoping that some other members may have some advice to share!

[outlawtdh]

I certainly don't want anyone else to go through this, but I'm glad I'm not alone.    Cant take that its age!    If I work out harder or eat less I may end up collapsing.   With all of this I'm gaining about the same amount of weight, at the same rate, as when I ate what I wanted and worked out for fun.    Beginning to think I should just go back to that and give up.   If I could even see a change in my body I would stay motivated, but there have been ZERO positive results.   I'm getting a spare tire, always hungry (which makes me cranky) and spending additional time (I don't have) working out.    If this is getting old - I want no parts of it!  lol

[WavyDavey]

When my weight loss stalled, I was able to kickstart it again by switching from cardio to HIIT. Takes less time too.

[outlawtdh]

What is HIIT?   Love to do something new!
I do alternate T25 and insanity sometimes.   I use to do them regularly.  I definitely was building muscle with them and I just wanted weightloss.

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[GershonSurge]

@outlawtdh

From the CDC: 

• Percent of adults aged 20 and over with obesity: 37.9% (2013-2014)
• Percent of adults aged 20 and over with overweight, including obesity: 70.7% (2013-2014)

End of quote

Is there an answer? Yes, there is. Do what healthy, skinny populations did in the past. I say in the past because there are few areas of the world left where people fit this description. They ate a whole food plant based diet. This means starches for the majority of their calories, non-starch vegetables for their vitamins and fruits. If they eat meat, it is mostly used for seasoning. They also ate meat on the few festivals they had during the year.  There is a way of eating that makes it almost impossible to put on weight. Here it is. Afterwards, I'll give references.

1. No animal products at all. The only thing that can turn to fat in the body is fat. This is a physiological fact. The human body doesn't have the mechanism to turn carbs into fat. They are dissipated by activity encouraged by high energy or they are dissipated by activity at the cellular level that generates heats. Proteins are mostly excreted with urine.

2. No oils such as olive oil, etc. They have 120 useless calories of fat per teaspoon. 

3. Eat food in as close to its natural state as possible. Fresh or frozen vegetables. That's it. No prepared frozen meals.

4. Eat when you are hungry. Don't eat until you are stuffed like Thanksgiving. 

If you are looking for macros, it's about 80% carbs, 10% fat and 10% protein. Usually, it's difficult to get below 12-13% protein because most vegetables contain this much. Don't worry about it. A human's milk only contains 5% protein. That's enough for growth in most humans. The 10% will cover everyone's health and fitness needs.

We've all been brainwashed about food by the food and dairy industry. 

Now, you have some work to do if you want to get better. Yes, I mean better because if you are getting overweight, you are starting to develop the degenerative diseases associated with age. Things like heart disease, cancer, kidney disease, gallstones, osteoporosis, lung disease, etc. The are virtually not present in the populations that eat as I stated above. Your doctor won't help you because doctors don't get nutrition training. They have a profitable drug or operation to supposedly reverse symptoms, not causes. They do excel in trauma and bacteria caused disease. 

I can only give you a starting point to find the truth. I suggest the movie "Forks Over Knives." You can find it on Netflix and other locations.

Then read "The Starch Solution" by Dr. McDougall. Also peruse his website at www.drmcdougall.com. Watch his videos on YouTube and follow the threads to guest speakers. Dr. McDougall is not a lone voice. There are many others. 

A word on exercise: I enjoy it. I also know there are limits to how much a person can accomplish in a reasonable time. It's also easy to be fit (meaning able to accomplish physical activity), but unhealthy. 

Now it's your turn. Try to relax. Watch the movie. Read the book. Watch the videos, and make your own decisions. 

[Dominique]

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@WavyDaveywrote:

When my weight loss stalled, I was able to kickstart it again by switching from cardio to HIIT. 

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"Stalling" implies you created a caloric deficit, consistently maintained it for some period of time, lost weight as a result and then it stopped working. It seems to me @outlawtdh hasn’t gone through that process yet, i.e. her weight loss is more wishful thinking at this stage. Therefore adding HIIT cardio probably won’t be of much help for her. She should focus on the eating side of the equation. It’s not about eating breakfast vs. not eating it, it’s not about eating low-carb vs. high-carb. It’s about finding a way to consistently restrict calories below her energy expenditure. Given that she’s taller than average (for a woman), and also a lot more active than average, it shouldn’t be too hard.   

[Akaka]

Hi Dominique,

If I can weigh in again, I think the problem for outlawdh (and myself) is that we are pretty certain we *are* eating below our calories burned (in her case, quite substantially it seems) and yet we are not just not losing, we're gaining!  It's extremely frustrating but also very worrying if you can't see when it will stop & what you can do about it.  It's a problem I've read about here quite a bit, and I feel like it often seems to be women that report it.  That makes me think that hormones and age may be playing a significant role.  The consensus most definitely is we can't eat lower than our BMR (in my case ~1550), so do we just keep increasing activity?  That doesn't really sound like an option for outlawdh, although she can obviously speak to that better than me.  I am working out 6 days a week, but perhaps not long/hard enough?  I am recording what I am eating quite faithfully & adding up the calories as best I can.  While I'm sure I'm not 100% accurate, I can definitely say I am not eating equal to my calories burned, and certainly not over, and yet the weight keeps increasing. As I say, it's frustrating, but also a bit scary...  Advice anyone?? Many thanks in advance...

[WavyDavey]

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@Akakawrote:

Hi Dominique,

If I can weigh in again, I think the problem for outlawdh (and myself) is that we are pretty certain we *are* eating below our calories burned (in her case, quite substantially it seems) and yet we are not just not losing, we're gaining!  It's extremely frustrating but also very worrying if you can't see when it will stop & what you can do about it.  It's a problem I've read about here quite a bit, and I feel like it often seems to be women that report it.  That makes me think that hormones and age may be playing a significant role.  The consensus most definitely is we can't eat lower than our BMR (in my case ~1550), so do we just keep increasing activity?  That doesn't really sound like an option for outlawdh, although she can obviously speak to that better than me.  I am working out 6 days a week, but perhaps not long/hard enough?  I am recording what I am eating quite faithfully & adding up the calories as best I can.  While I'm sure I'm not 100% accurate, I can definitely say I am not eating equal to my calories burned, and certainly not over, and yet the weight keeps increasing. As I say, it's frustrating, but also a bit scary...  Advice anyone?? Many thanks in advance...

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This is really puzzling. Hormones aside, I don't see how it's in any way possible to add weight during a significant caloric deficit (unless a recomp during strength training). The body would need a surplus of calories to store the fat, no?

I would suggest to take a closer look at the calories in and food logging. It's very easy to overestimate how accurate we're logging and miss calories. If that's not the case, I'm at ends to understand the dynamic happening?

[outlawtdh]

Akaka, we are dealing with the exact same issues.   I monitor my food intake religiously.   Keeping the carbs, sugar and calories low.   I was under 1200 calories each day this weekend with less that 30 carbs each day.    That's about a norm for me.  On my cheat days my calories may get up to about 2200.    The sugar is usually higher because dark chocolate is my weakness.   

While I understand there is reasoning behind the one diet mentioned here - its not a diet I'm interested in following.    I've always eaten fairly healthy.   I could live on vegetables.   I don't eat red meat, pork or fish.   Processed foods are not a big part of my life either.   However, there is no way ill ever give up my dairy products.    Diet adjustments are fine but taking away every single thing I enjoy, just to lose a few pounds, isn't worth it for me.  

Health and fitness wise I'm at the top of the scale.   When they did tests on my heart the physician had a tough time getting my heart to hit the target range.  It took two rounds on the machine and even then it barely hit target and dropped so fast they couldn't really consider their test "accurate".   His exact words "You have the heart of a teenage athlete - its not your problem".    That made me feel great - but can't I have the body of a teenage athlete too?????   

Blood work came back normal and my blood pressure is actually a little too low.   

Not sure when I could add the increased work out, but would be willing to do more if its going to produce results.   I'm active all day long.   Its very uncommon for me to be sitting for more than 10 minutes (I cant even sit still thru a 30 minute sitcom - which makes my husband crazy)   I don't really sleep so I could get up and workout at night.     It just seems extremely excessive particularly when I'm getting no results with the workout process now.   I'm 47, 5'9" and currently 145 lbs.   5 of which I've gained since I started to really focus on eating better and working out more.   Basically I weighed less when dinner was usually beer, wings, fried mushrooms and mozzarella sticks!   I haven't had one drop of anything like that in 6 months - and I gained weight???     

There has to be something else we are missing.   Clearly age is part of the issue but there has to be more.   Are there foods that will boost metabolism in premenopausal women?  Maybe a vitamin can be added to all the other ones I take?   I think both Akaka and I are doing well with our diets, but something is missing.     

I appreciate all the answers and the discussion.    Looking forward to hearing other ideas.   Thank you all.      

[Ennay]

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@outlawtdhwrote: I don't really sleep so I could get up and workout at night.       

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You are solidly in the center of a healthy weight range.  So weight loss will be more difficult.

I highlighted this portion because lack of sleep can be a driver in difficulty losing weight and gain in the abdominal area.  And the constant hunger you talk about. 

I don't think working out more is your solution.  I would look at maybe increasing your baseline calories so that you aren't hungry all the time.  1200 is very low for an active woman.  Throw in HIIT 1-2 days a week (replacing steady state cardio, not on top of) and possibly look at substituting in some weight lifting for some of it.

If you weren't working out before and  now you are you might be seeing some water weight.

If you are cranky and hungry all the time then focus on making changes to alleviate that and the sleep issues first.  If you can't do it forever, it won't work. 

[outlawtdh]

Those are good ideas.  Thank you.   Can you tell me what HIIT work outs are?

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[Akaka]

Outlawtdh, I feel your pain!!

Wow, our stories match up surprisingly well.  I too don't eat red meat, but do eat fish and chicken. I try to avoid processed carbs (sometimes not that successfully...sounds like you're better at that than I am  ).  I am also unwilling to give up the well rounded diet I enjoy, which does include dairy AND  a glass of wine every so often, but also a load of vegetables which I also love. However, I will keep everything below the calories more often than not, and as much as is reasonable for a happy life for myself.

I am 45, 5'8" with low blood pressure and a lower resting heart rate than I would have expected.  I weigh about 35 lbs more than you however, and like I said...it's growing   I wondered if the low blood pressure/heart rate had something to do with the problems in losing...but while I'm physiologically apparently quite fit in some measures, my body mass most definitely is not.

I was on a very high dose of prednisone for a severe allergic reaction last summer and can basically trace my recent gains since then.  I would not have expected that to still be happening however ~7 months later, and so began to wonder if the steroids had pushed me more quickly into the perimenopause window. As you can probably tell, I'm grasping at straws now.

Are you on any type of meds at all?  I haven't been since the short but v. high course of prednisone.

Anyway, just some more to mull over!

[WavyDavey]

Some more specifics might help.

@Akaka, @outlawtdh, how many calories are you burning per workout? What is the average heart rate per workout?

[Daves_Not_Here]

Hi @outlawtdh -- I feel your pain and was in your situation -- eating "healthy", working out vigorously, yet gaining weight, although I'm older at 58.  Fortunately, I was able to get a clue, turn it around, and lose 55 pounds in about 5 months.  At this point, I'm trying to take off the remaining weight while sustaining my new lifestyle to not gain it back.  Time will tell if I'm successful

I have a different take than almost everybody here.  My opinion is that if you already have a higher than average level of physical activity and exercise, the solution is not to increase it.  In other words, if your destination is receding behind you, the recommendation to increase your forward speed is counterproductive.  Another analogy:  smashing your head against the wall is not remedied by increasing the force and frequency at which you smash your head against the wall.

My opinion is that getting control of your weight is 95% about what you eat and 5% about your activity level.  I found that when I diligently logged ALL my food (what I ate, and how much), I discovered the reasons for my weight gain and was able to reverse it.  I initially resisted it - "I shouldn't have to do this".  "I already KNOW I'm eating less calories than I burn.", etc.  Once I stopped with the defensiveness and self-delusions, I was able to make progress.

[Ennay]

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@outlawtdhwrote:
Those are good ideas.  Thank you.   Can you tell me what HIIT work outs are?

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HIIT is High Intensity Interval Training - I won't link because if you google there are lots of resources to give you examples that fit your activity.  You could do it on either running or elliptical  But don't start switching all your workouts to it.  Twice a week max.   and make sure you are also getting in some good recovery days. 

There is a lot of middle ground between eating junk and exercising sporadically and eating 1200 and working out like a maniac and I think you will have to find that. 

[SunsetRunner]

Do you know if you begin to lose weight during the week and then gain weight after the cheat day? Maybe the cheat day is your problem. I can’t have a cheat day. It’s more like a cheat meal and even at that it has to be very restrictive or I will blow all the hard work I did during the previous week.

[outlawtdh]

I wish that was the problem.   I don't really see any loss.  I dont get on the scale daily.  However my weight has only gone up not down.  😞

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