No weight loss despite calorie deficit and activity

[Alcyon]

Hi all, 

Look for some advice and encouragement...  

I am new to Fitbit, but not so new to weight loss.  I am almost 26 yo, 5'3", and female.  For most of my adult life my baseline weight has been around 128 - 130 lbs.  A few years back, my weight creeped up to 140 lbs which spurred my first attempt at weight loss.  I had always been active (walking everywhere, working in restaurants), but not much for exercise.  Through exercise (cardio and heavy weight lifting) and maintaining a calorie deficit (1200 - 1550 calories initially, then 1450 - 1700 when lifting more), I dropped to a lean 123 lbs.    

Fast forward a few years, and packing on the stress (job, mortgage) and the pounds, I weighed in this winter at 150 lbs.  Bummer.

I started tracking with fitbit this spring, but it didn't seam to help me...  Although I had it set to a 750 cal. deficit, and later a 1000 cal. deficit, I found I was actually GAINING weight...  So I switched back to the old 1200 - 1550 cal. zone that worked a few years back.  

For the last few weeks I've been hovering between 146 and 148 lbs.  I track EVERYTHING and eat around 1300 - 1350 cal/day.  I drink LOTS of water.  At least 64 oz/day, and usually closer to 80.  I eat a healthy, well-balanced diet that is high in protien and fiber.  I eat mostly fresh and organic foods.  I also exercise several days a week, with full body strength training 3x week, and 30 minutes of high intensity cardio 5x week.  I also walk (acording to fitbit) between 7 - 12 miles a day.  I feel my body getting stronger, and have been increasing my weights and feel myself getting close to needing to change up my overall routine, but I should be seeing a little change on the scale for all this effort, right?    

So what gives.  I have a high-stress job/lifestyle, which I am working on, but apart from the exericse to keep me sane and meditation before bed, what else can I do?  

I'm feeling super frustrated as the first time I attempted to lose weight it happened relatively quickly.  It was work, to be sure, but it paid off pound by pound each week.  Not sure how I can keep the motivation up if I am literally NOT SEEING ANY RESULTS.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions you've got to offer!   

[OdoCat]

If you're doing all of that exercise and only eating 1300 calories a day, that's not enough. You need to eat more and you'll probably start to see results. I'd bump it up to 1800 to 2000 calories at first. Sounds scary, but your body is burning over that if you're exercising every day and doing strength training. 

[euclidprojet]

The other thing is that you are probably fitting into your pants better. If you are exercising to that degree then see if you aren't really just starved and your body conserving calories because of it. It took me months of using this thing to figure out where I am losing weight. I tend to lose, gain a couple of pounds and lose more, all while losing inches. You should have more than one data point as a reference for change. The scale is a deciever.

[Alcyon]

Hi guys,

Thanks for responding!

I wish I could say I have lost inches, but it just hasn't happened.  I measured today, and except for a tiny bit around my arms, all my numbers are the same...  I suppose I wouldn't expect to see so much of a difference there though, as I allowed myself to ease into the weight lifting and am only now back up to lifting what I used to...  

As far as the calorie intake goes...  Initially, when I started with Fitbit, I WAS being prompted to eat closer to 1800 - 2000 cal/day.  Except I gained weight those two weeks...  My weight creeped up from 146 to 153 lbs.  I thought that perhaps my Fitbit was OVERestimating my calorie burn, so I ditched it and went back to eating between 1200 - 1550 cal/day since it had worked for me in the past.  Haven't gained any weight really, but definitely haven't lost any.  

So that is my conumdrum.  It doesn't make any sense to me.  Usually when I attempt to lose weight, I drop at least 2 lbs in the first week and usually .5 - 1 lbs. /week consistently after that until I reach my baseline.  By that point, I EXPECT to plateau or at least have to work harder to see results on the scale.    

[OdoCat]

Maybe see an endocrinologist for any hormonal imbalances. That would be my next step if you're logging and eating the right foods and drinking enough water. 

[Alcyon]

Probably not a bad idea.  My thyroid functions within the normal range, but I do have hormonal issues that have caused other problems for me in the past...  

[Heybales]

I don't see where you mention what Fitbit you have - but with either HR-based or step-based...

Manually log lifting.

Step-based will bady underestimate calorie burn lifting.

HR-based will be inflated.

Weights in the database is standard lifting - sets and rests of 2-4 min, reps 5-15.

Circuit training is rests up to 1 min, reps 15 and above.

Calisthenics is short rests too, reps usually 20 and above, moving from one exercise to another, usually body weight based.

That could indeed have caused increased calorie burn estimate.

But also, depending on when you weighed - 2 weeks not long enough. You retain water for storing more carbs for total carb burning workout. That's increased LBM and increased metabolism dealing with water.

You retain water during repair for 24-36 hrs, even more when starting out.

Easily 3 lbs there.

And if you came from a more extreme deficit diet, just loading up on prior really depleted carb stores would have added more water weight.

I'll bet that gain was all water weight when you ate more, and would have settled out and probably lost it again as stress levels went down.

Elevated cortisol from constant stress can cause retaining upwards of 20 lbs of water. That can mask fat loss, as well as cause more stress.

[Alcyon]

@Heybales 

Thanks for your input!  I have a Fitbit Charge (step-based).  I had noticed that my calories burned during lifting were lower than I'd expect - especially after doing legs, as that usually get's my heart pumping quite a bit.  

For lifting, when targeting small muscles (biceps, for example), I typically work-in two exercises targeting two different muscles groups, primarily to save time.  For example, I will do a set of bicep curls (8 - 10 reps) followed by a set of tricep kick-backs with little to no rest in between.  I always do 3 sets of each exercise.  With legs, I wait 1 - 2 minutes between sets, and complete 8 - 10 reps each set.  Should I change my approach?  

Also, while I certainly wasn't restricting my calorie-intake prior to attempting this most recent round of weight loss, I do tend to eat lower carb meals than the average person...  A lot of salads, vegetables, and proteins, and not a lot of bread, potatoes, cereal, etc.  Although, I have (oddly) been craving oatmeal for breakfast the last week or so!  Should I increase my carb intake on my lifting days?  I am always sure to follow my workout with a protein shake (tera's whey, pb2, banana, almond milk)...  Would you, then, recommend following through with a higher caloric intake for a few weeks and seeing where things go?  In how many weeks would you expect my body to adjust and stop retaining so much water weight?    

[Alcyon]

@OdoCat

 @euclidprojet

So just for the heck of it, I decided to increase my intake to 1800-2000 cal. just on the days that a lift (since I am usually ravenous these days anyway), and mainting a lower range on my cardio only days to see what would happen.  I increased my carb intake on lifting days as well.  Less than a week later, I've lost 2.5 lbs!  

I think I am going to stick with this plan, cycling carbs and caloric intake based on the type of workout I'm getting in and see how things go.  I definitely feel better - have a lot more energy at and away from the gym.  

Thanks for all your input!

[euclidprojet]

Whoo! Awesome sauce.

[OdoCat]

That's great!! 🙂

[djknyc]

This is a really helpful post! I'm happy your calorie adjustments are working. I plan to try a similar approach to see if it solves my weight gain frustration.

[Heybales]

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@Alcyon wrote:

@Heybales 

Thanks for your input!  I have a Fitbit Charge (step-based).  I had noticed that my calories burned during lifting were lower than I'd expect - especially after doing legs, as that usually get's my heart pumping quite a bit.  

For lifting, when targeting small muscles (biceps, for example), I typically work-in two exercises targeting two different muscles groups, primarily to save time.  For example, I will do a set of bicep curls (8 - 10 reps) followed by a set of tricep kick-backs with little to no rest in between.  I always do 3 sets of each exercise.  With legs, I wait 1 - 2 minutes between sets, and complete 8 - 10 reps each set.  Should I change my approach?  

Also, while I certainly wasn't restricting my calorie-intake prior to attempting this most recent round of weight loss, I do tend to eat lower carb meals than the average person...  A lot of salads, vegetables, and proteins, and not a lot of bread, potatoes, cereal, etc.  Although, I have (oddly) been craving oatmeal for breakfast the last week or so!  Should I increase my carb intake on my lifting days?  I am always sure to follow my workout with a protein shake (tera's whey, pb2, banana, almond milk)...  Would you, then, recommend following through with a higher caloric intake for a few weeks and seeing where things go?  In how many weeks would you expect my body to adjust and stop retaining so much water weight?    

---

Saw response that body dropped some stress water already, who knows if more would allow more to drop, or if that's it.

Genetics, total amount of stress in life, ability to recover, ect - all things that makes it hard to guess from person to another.

That method of lifts on minor arm muscles isn't that bad.

But you might test sometime - can you do heavier weight for desired number of sets and reps and if you didn't do another lift between.

Because there is overload by weight - which causes the body to get stronger and if diet allows grow more muscle.

And there is overload by fatigue - which causes the body to stress out and usually add more carb stores to endure better next time.

One extreme to the other is usually obvious, between range needs testing in accord with your goals.

For instance, one time after doing the biceps - hold your breath for a minute while you rest, or attempt to.

Now do another set of curls as normal with breathing.

Now rest and hold breath. Now last set.

Was that harder on the last set?

It's obvious there if it is, what it's overloaded with.

[Mrs_Phillips]

Have you figured this out yet I am having the same problem.... Waaaaahh

[Daves_Not_Here]

Hi @Mrs_Phillips - welcome!  Sounds like you've hit the most common frustration reported here: inability to lose weight in the face of your best efforts.  Here are 2 recommendations:

1.  Browse and search this forum for "plateau" and "can't lose weight" to pull up lots of threads that are filled with helpful information.

2.  Describe your current situation in some detail (age, current weight, starting weight, what you're eating, what you've tried, how long you've been stalled, etc.) and people here will have plenty of suggestions; however, these vary based on your situation.