I know that I shouldn’t weigh myself, and I also know that there are diets out there that advocate lots of protein and few carbs, etc., etc. At the same time, I know that – on here especially – there is the ‘eat less, do more’ brigade, that suggests weight loss is simple. But for me, it is not proving to be.

15 days ago, I cut my calorie intake almost in half, and have only exceeded 2000 calories once in the last two weeks. I am averaging probably about 1900 calories every day. Using MyFitnessPal, I am consuming about 50% carbs, 30% protein, and 20% fat as part of my 1900.

In addition, I have done 30 minutes of swimming daily, save for 3 days on which I was too sick to go, and commute to work by bike most days.

For all that, I lost a kilo in the first number of days, which I assume was water weight, but I haven’t dropped anything since. 10 years ago, I went through exactly the same process, with the exact same approach to diet and exercise, and lost consistently and steadily each week for a few months until I was down to 75 kgs, whereas I can’t seem to shake anything now.

I know it is, as someone on here said, a marathon not a sprint, but I need some encouraging signs at this stage! Either that or some pointers. 🙁

Simple solution – Too many carbs. Swap protein to 50% and carbs to 30% and see how you go.

More complex solution – list your actual diet and we can look at what you are actually eating.

Alright kudos, I’ll look at that. The only thing is, I get sick of protein, and I never had to make such a radical change to the make-up of my diet before.

I mean, of course quantities change, but the switch from 50% carbs to 50% protein seems a bit artificial and unsustainable. I want to make sure that, as well as losing weight, I also change my terrible eating habits.

But if I’m wrong, I’m wrong, so I don’t mind hearing it.

I am averaging probably about 1900 calories every day.

I can sympathise. I’ve been on a diet since Jan 1st and I’ve been consuming around 1500 calories per day maximum.

I was 108 kilos on Jan 1st and am now 100kg. I’ve done this before (started at 110kg and got down to 100kg) and did it the same way. Just not eating very much in general but making sure the diet is balanced.

This time I’m aiming for 95kg, which will be lightest I’ve been in over 10 years.

It’s working and there may be lot’s of variables that are making a difference but really it’s not any more complicated than calories in/calories out.

The hard part is putting up with the vague and persistent sense of hunger although that is actually getting easier.

15 days ago, I cut my calorie intake almost in half…
For all that, I lost a kilo in the first number of days,

Am I missing something?

Your weight took a long time to put on. It will take a long time to lose (if you do it sensibly in a long term sustainable way).

A kilo in 15 days is excellent progress.

Unless you have changed it then MFP sets the weight loss at 1lb per week. So 1kg (2.2lbs) in 2 weeks is ahead of goal. Well done.

How much water are you drinking? you need to be properly hydrated to flush the toxins away and there for lose weight.
What food are you eating? Calories really are not the be all and end all of losing weight,
Its about the eating the right food. Good clean non processed food.
swap potatoes for sweet potatoes. No bread.
Eat as many fruits, veg as you like. esp green veg. Avoid caffiene and booze.
Try some HIIT training. Or hill sprints on your bike. Short sharp bursts. Tabata training is very good.

Drawing on my own experience…. could it be possible that you have been sleepwalking and breaking into Greggs?

Certainly seems like you’re doing all the right things. Especially when considering the calories in vs calories out. Perhaps the weight isn’t moving, but changing? Muscle mass is denser than fat.

Shout at me if I’m wrong.

Calories really are not the be all and end all of losing weight,

Really? I thought that was the whole point. You lose weight when you consume fewer calories than you burn.

Have you considered the 5:2 fasting diet?

Eating the right food is about losing weight. Eat as natural non processed food as you can.

Stay well clear of all low fat processed food.

Low fat processed food= chemical shit storm. Which will make your body hold onto fat.

Avoid the fads (idiet, fasting, tabatha training etc.)

Continue what your doing, make sure you are being honest with yourself with what you enter in myfitnesspal.

Give it a month, if you find you haven’t lost weight then, knock another 100 off your daily total or increase your exercise. Springs around the corner so exercise will be easier.

Be patient, your 10 years older than last time, it becomes harder to lose the weight with age.

Dump the carbs for a few days each week. Weight just falls away.

Your plan of action sounds fine to me. Just keep doing it for 15 months rather than 15 days and i’m sure you’ll see a big difference.

What are you eating, what’s your start weight, what’s your goal weight and what’s your current weight, what’s your daily activity level etc. etc. etc.

What’s the make up of your 50% carbs?
That’s your fuel for swimming and cycling.

Also be wary of the data in MFP, the Calories are often right but there’s a lot of stuff where the Carbs, Protein and Fat are either not there or totally wrong. Always check the data with the packets.

Also do you drink alcohol? If so are you remembering to log that.

I dropped from 100ish to 68 but am back up to 78ish just now, using calorie counting thrugh MFP, and was losing at around 1kg a week (I was set for 500g a week), but that involved big weekend road rides and commuting as hard and fast as I could (which isn’t very).

My diet is utter baws, if I could get my head to take the chocolate out of it, it would be easy…

I’ve got 360kcal left for the day, oops.

So what am I doing wrong, then?

Not much really, 2kg in 2 weeks is good.
If you think more diet change is necessary, alter the composition of the 1900 calories to more vegetables. You still want enough energy to exercise.
Instead of five a day, aim for 7 or 8 a day.

Nice to see all the old generalisations and misconceptions getting another airing.

Some diets work for some people, other diets work for others. An eating plan that makes you eat in an un-natural way for a short period of time is very likely not going to lead to a long term weight loss.

For me, the principles of the idave diet are sound. Avoiding food and drink which induce an insulin response seems to cut out cravings for sweet and fatty food and affects the way your body lays down and consumes fat.

How much sugar are you putting in? I don’t mean actually adding sugar yourself, I mean how much food do you eat that has added sugar? Here’s a clue, if it comes in a packet or a tin, it’s almost certainly got sugar added. If it says low fat on the outside, it definately has sugar added.

How do you think your body responds when it finds the calories dropping? Do you think it maintains the same metabolic rate?

Starving your body is not the right answer. It’s the right foods that needs to go in. List the foods here so we can all argue about them.

As others have said – you’re not doing badly – you didn’t get overweight in 2 weeks so don’t be suprised you haven’t become skinny in 2 weeks.

Above all – ignore anyone who tries to tell you about Toxins – they are talking utter, utter, utter crap…

My personal preferred method of weight loss: Dysentry. 10 kilos in 10 days – which given my starting point made a fair bit of difference to my appearance…

IDIET………..for the win 😀

15 days ago

stick with what you are doing, don’t go down the faddy diet route, if you eat healthily with fewer processed foods and refined sugars and continue the exercise you will lose weight. you obviously have the ability to stick to a plan without wavering you just need a little patience.

Your taking in 1900 cal and your body needs probably 2300-2500 to go every day, realistically you’re not “that” far in deficit. 2kg loss over that period is pretty good, well done, keep going.

BigJohn + 1

We are all different. MFP and calories in/out….move more just doesn’t work for me.

Find out what food types and proportions are right for you and the weight will reduce naturally.

If you eat what is right for you, you will feel satisfied and counting calories will be irrelevant, as you will only eat what you need.

Different foods do different things to your body. It’s NOT really as simple as calories in vs calories out. This link hints at the complexity involved

The only thing is, I get sick of protein

really, what protein are you eating then?

It’s NOT really as simple as calories in vs calories out.

Calories are a pretty blunt estimate and I don’t doubt that our bodies are for more subtle than that, BUT I do think there is an issue with people overthinking weightloss.

“Calories In < Calories Out” does work.

Yes, it is oversimplifying. Yes, it is an imprecise estimate. Yes, I’m sure food types, insulin spikes, GI, star signs and sun spots etc matter.

But at the end of the day: simple is good!

“Calories In < Calories Out” is an easy to understand and easy to stick to simplified model that results in weightloss.

Good article that. I have absolutely no training in this area but I’ve always been immensely suspicious of the calories stuff. It made no sense to me whatsoever and I suspect, that without the incessant shite from people who are making money out of calorie control, it makes little sense to anyone else either.

My body is my body. Yours is yours. They are different in the same way we have different coloured hair and a different sized cock, they consume at different rates and they’re not stupid, out bodies are the result of millions of years of evolution, they’re pretty smart. In times of plenty they will speed up their processing, in times of little they haul it back. It’s pretty obvious when you think about it.

As is what you put in being the important thing, not how much of it. if you’re cocking up its internal governance by filling it with starnge substances, it’ll go all cockeyed on you.

Avoid the fads (idiet, fasting, tabatha training etc.)

Do you mean Tabata? What’s wrong with it? It’s a mental calorie-burner and all round fitness-accelerator from my experience…

I think any post on any diet/ weight loss thread needs:

178cm and 75kg

Stats….

I’m with GrahamS on this, it’s pretty easy to over think this, stop putting food in your mouth, is pretty much all that’s required if you want to loose a bit of weight.

I’ve always been immensely suspicious of the calories stuff. It made no sense to me whatsoever and I suspect, that without the incessant shite from people who are making money out of calorie control, it makes little sense to anyone else either.

makes sense to me from a purely physics point of view.

Calorie is a measure of energy. Energy makes things go.

The fact that one person’s engine may be more or less fuel efficient than mine, or have a better ECU, is largely irrelevant.

If I put in less energy into my system but require the same amount of work from it then something has to give (fat stores).

(188cm / 86kg, down from 99kg when I started MFP)

If I put in less energy into my system but require the same amount of work from it then something has to give (fat stores).

Well no. See, your body’s not a simple heat engine. It has three or four different kinds of fuel, and three or four different engines that all work in different ways and different times. Plus you don’t just get a low fuel light when one thing’s low, you get a complex shift in the behaviour of the whole vehicle.

In short, not all calories are the same, not all energy expenditure is the same, and not everyone’s body responds the same way to different calories and expenditure.

But at the end of the day: simple is good!

Not really. You could apply gross oversimplifications to anything. Want to get rich? Easy, make more money, spend less!

Technically correct, but not helpful in any way.

So, basically, your body is a Toyoto Prius? Or 2 Toyoto Prius’s duct taped together? God was actually quite a bit ahead of his time, wasn’t he?

molgrips – Member

If I put in less energy into my system but require the same amount of work from it then something has to give (fat stores).

Well no. See, your body’s not a simple heat engine. It has three or four different kinds of fuel, and three or four different engines that all work in different ways and different times. Plus you don’t just get a low fuel light when one thing’s low, you get a complex shift in the behaviour of the whole vehicle.

In short, not all calories are the same, not all energy expenditure is the same, and not everyone’s body responds the same way to different calories and expenditure.

But at the end of the day: simple is good!

Not really. You could apply gross oversimplifications to anything. Want to get rich? Easy, make more money, spend less!

Technically correct, but not helpful in any way

For a fat bloke, you think (eat) too much.,

Yeah I get all that mol and I understand what you are saying, but at the end of the day the simplified model does work.

How many people have reduced their calorie intake, increased their exercise and gained weight as a result?

You could apply gross oversimplifications to anything.

Yep, and that’s what we do with any remotely complex system that we want people to be able to understand without spending years researching it. We develop a “good enough” model that may not be the whole truth but works.

I’m with the simpletons on this 🙂 Eat less move more is as good and easy as it gets. Now I’m slightly longer in the tooth I have to eat even less and move even more to get the same result, something I’ve yet to manage!

I’ve seen it mentioned a lot so I just joined that there myfitnesspal and put in my meals and activities for the last 4 days. I was happy to see that for 3 of the 4 days I was in significant calorie deficit (the days I rode in). The day I was in surplus for everything (drove in) it was a snickers that took me over the edge, actually seeing that had a pretty big impact and will hopefully stop me eating another. I already said no to Friday afternoon cake!

Big red numbers I can understand. Complicated analysis of the human body I could probably understand too if I had the time or the energy to spare, but I don’t.

165cm
Don’t know, will weigh myself later (for MFP)

Molgrips – thanks for that link. I’ve been struggling to understand how the various food types are used by the body and that makes more sense than most stuff I’ve read.

FWIW I’m currently on a low-carb eating strategy and I’ve felt a difference in how my body reacts when my stomach starts to feel empty. Previously I’d have felt fatigued and slow. Now I just carry on at the same level.

I’ve lost about 1kg per week since I started it.

just joined that there myfitnesspal and put in my meals and activities for the last 4 days. I was happy to see that for 3 of the 4 days I was in significant calorie deficit

Beware that the general consensus seems to be that MFP massively overestimates the calories for cycling (and a few other exercises).

I generally knock at least a third off what it (or Endomondo) says.

You’re probably still under, but possibly not by as much as you imagined.

How overweight are you? If you’re not very overweight, weight loss is slower if you want to lose a few pounds than if you have stones to lose.
I’ve been trying to lose weight on the 5:2 fast diet. I’m not overweight, just want to lose between 5 and 7 lbs really, but I find it hard because I get really hungry if I really cut my calories.

Your hunger levels will depend what upon those remaining calories are made up of.

Your hunger levels will depend what upon those remaining calories are made up of.

True.

You’d have to eat around 10 kilos of cabbage to get to 2100 kcal 😉