Just a little bit frustrated...

[GottaLoozIt]

Hi everyone!

The reason I'm posting is because I need a little help figuring out as to why I'm not losing any weight. About a year ago I lost 56 lbs, then went off to college for 9 months where I maintained my weight. Now I'm home for the summer and I'm trying to continue my weight loss. Prior to starting my weight loss program, I did a lot of research and came to the conclusion that I needed to implement strength training into my routine. For the month of June, I was pretty much doing strenth 3x a week, and moderate to intense cardio 5-6times a week (aerobics and on a gazelle machine I have at home). For July, I'm still doing strenth 3x a week, along with ballet 4x a week, and I try to squeeze in 2 sessions of intense cardio a week. My caloric intake usually ranges from 1,500 - 1,800 depending on whether I've done strength training or not. I even went to see a nutritionist who gave me some great pointers (i.e. higher amounts of dietary fiber, protein, less sugar, etc), but even that has not made the scale budge.

I would not mind the scale not moving if my pants sizes were dropping but they are not (shirts do seem to be fitting looser I admit). While my body is definitely looking tighter and more toned, I don't know at what point I have to start getting concerned that the scale isn't dropping since it has been a MONTH. I even tried reducing my carb/sugar intake considerably since I do recognize that they can be a weakness of mine, but I just ended up feeling sick and nauseous.

To give an idea, this is what a sample of what I eat looks like:

Breakfast
2 whole wheat low fat waffles 140
1/2 cups of sugar free syrup 20
2 slices of turkey ham 60

Snack
1 sugar free jello 10
2 slices turkey ham 60
7 whole wheat crackers 130


Lunch
1 cup of lettuce 8
1/2 cup of white rice 102
3 oz of steak 215
1 sugar free pudding 60

Snack
1 kashi granola bar 140

Dinner
2 cups of lettuce 15
1/2 cup of white rice (or other carb) 102
2 roasted chicken drumstick 210
1 sugar free pudding 60

Snack
Orange 40
or
sugar free jello 10
or
sugar free pudding 60

This sample eating plan is a little under what I usually eat in calories since I usually like to eat at least 1,500, but I think it gives an idea.

So what do you guys think? Sorry for the long post...

 

[fatty_doll]

honestly if your body is looking more toned and you say your shirts are fitting better... why worry so much over what the scale says for now? You are probably building more muscle, which of course, weighs more than fat. So as long as your not gainning weight you're right on track. I think it might take a couple more months before you see the scale move, however I'd definitly expect for you to see more good changes in your appearance... which is ultimatly your goal I hope!

 

[KaraCooks]

There are two things that struck me right away:

I'm still doing strenth 3x a week, along with ballet 4x a week, and I try to squeeze in 2 sessions of intense cardio a week. My caloric intake usually ranges from 1,500 - 1,800

You don't say how much you weigh right now, but doing that much intense exercise, I don't think 1500 calories is enough. If you currently weigh 120 lbs, then 1800 calories would be maintenance for someone who is reasonably active. I'm going to assume you weigh more than 120 (although I could be wrong) and you're really working out a lot. I'd think that it's possible you might need 1800 to sustain a healthy rate of loss.

The other thing that struck me is that your diet is almost entirely carbs - and bad starchy carbs at that - and artificial sweeteners with a hint of protein. It's not just how much you eat that will affect weight loss, it's WHAT you eat. You have very few complex carbs, very little protein, practically no healthy fats, and good grief, woman, where are the veggies?? A serving of lettuce is NOT enough for a healthy, balanced diet.

Honestly I think your whole diet plan needs a major overhaul. Here's an option that starts with the basics of what you're eating now but is a helluva lot healthier:

Breakfast
1 whole wheat low fat waffle, spread with 2T natural peanut butter and a sliced banana
2 slices of turkey ham
Grapefruit or grapefruit juice.

Snack
2 slices turkey ham 60
7 whole wheat crackers 130
1 serving low fat cheese or 1 oz extra sharp cheddar.

Lunch
big mixed salad with lots of dark leafy greens and mixed veggies
3 oz of steak or grilled chicken or other protein
drizzle of olive oil and flavored vinegar

Snack
1 kashi granola bar (eh .. I'm ok with this .. but you could do better with real food)

Dinner
1 serving of brown rice, whole grain pasta, or other complex carb
2 roasted chicken drumsticks (or other protein)
1 serving of veggies of some kind - steamed broccoli, roasted zucchini, baked squash ... anything that's a veggie with some deep color and some vitamins.

Snack
low fat vanilla yogurt with some fresh fruit added in
or
frozen mixed berries, heated up in the microwave and topped with a little honey and granola
or
something else in the 150-200 calorie range that includes fruit and or protein

(or, if you're feeling decadent, you can do some air popped popcorn for about a 150 calorie crunchy-salty treat)

 

[GottaLoozIt]

Thank you so much for your input fatty_doll and karacooks!

Karacooks thank you so much for saying it like it is about my diet. I really needed someone else to tell me that I am not eating enough veggies and fruits. I do totally overdo it on the artificial sweeteners. I will sit down and come up with something more nutritious. Your ovehaul to my sample eating plan put me to total shame lol. As for my weight, I weigh 160 lbs and I am 5'3".