stuck! in more ways than one

have to say that i am just a bit fed up everyone. past ten days have seen no movement in weight loss and am stuck at 279lb. have been consistent on my intake at around 2500 given that burnt cals including allowance is around 4000. one problem seems that for last week i reckon have only had one bowel movement. i tend to eat a fair bit of fibre and i average around b- on nutrition gauge.it is getting to me as i never do less than 10000 steps on the good ole pedometer. drink a fair bit of water too. any ideas. feel pretty low today. and to be honest if it werent for my good old pride!!1 i think i'd say sod it

geoffery sussex uk

hay Geoffery, dont give up!! on the olde poo front (hehe) have you tried pheylum husks? you can get them at holland and barret i think, if that doesnt make you poo i dont know what will!! LEPICOL is the products name!

aww dont worry, This happens to us all!!exercise exercise and exercise + water.... hum why no loss? well from my own experiance

i (used) to workout every day, as in do my eliptical every day. I stoped losing weight and was like ah?? what?? so i stoped exercise for two days.. i did a walk instead. Jumed on the scales two days after and BOOM! i was at 129!! take a break from exercise for a few days, lett your body agust and then see if you lost! i did!

btw, for every lb of muscle gained you only need to eat 50 more cals :D

aw, geoffreyp, don't give it up!  a lot of times the body needs a little change now and then, whether it's a day of rest, with more calories, or a harder workout and fewer calories. 

it's great that you've got the calorie deficit figured out, and you WILL lose it soon, doing as you are doing.  but in my six months here i've seen LOTS of posts about the benefit of going OVER your calorie limit for a day and then cutting back.   it somehow  tricks your body into giving up some extra fat and water.

the other thing you can do is just to KEEP DOING what you are doing, and it is guaranteed to break.  you are on one of the dreaded "plateaus" and what you need to do is look at the progress you've made and ask yourself whether you REALLY want to throw it all away?

thanks for that. i know its just a temporary thing but i made a real mistake at the start by putting extra pressure on myself when i decided to raise monies for a local charity, sponsoring me by the pound lost. puts too much expectation on me....still, i shall hang in there

geoff

geoff, how about putting a ticker on your profile?  that's another nice way to reinforce your progress.  (besides the weight graph.)

Geoff - I was having the same problem with backing up.  Felt awful and weight not going anywhere.  I take fiber capsules which consist of mainly psyllium husks.  Then drink lots of water (I have problems with this).

If you are burning 4000 cals, maybe you need to eat 3000 cals.  I am in the same boat as you with the weight.  Stuck.  OR worse yet yo-yoing.  NOT FUN!!  It is frustrating and discouraging.  Someone told me to eat more.  So, I am trying that.  I am just passing on the same suggestio to you.

I am going to add you to my friends list and we can keep track of each other.  Just knowing you are not in this alone helps.

Hang in there.  Together we can do this.

its only 1pm here in scorching sussex uk and am on 2500 cals for the day so gonna have to really pull my socks up. mind you i have walked around 11000 steps today and 4.75 miles in all so thats good

Have you tried being inconsistant?  Sometimes we need to send our bodies a signal that it's ok to let go of the fat.  Eat more for 3 days, then drop back to less than usual, then go back up to your usual.

As for the constipation - there are plenty of products available to help.  Drink a lot of water with your high fiber foods too.

Well I say you are about do for a few pounds to magically disappear reall soon.  Someone had made the suggestion to switch it up a little.  That helped me out of my last stall.  Your body is just getting use to your exercise routine and food intake.  Upping your calories for a couple of days and then dropping back keeps it guessing so it will be more generous with letting go of the fat it is storing :)

You can do it.  Don't give up.  I think it is great that you are doing this for charity as well.  It is a win/win situation :)

Have you tried prunes or apricots for the other situation?  Just don't make the mistake and eat too many :(

(((HUGS)))

Trish   

going off at a tangent slightly i was wondering....i wear a pedometer to keep  track of steps etc in a day as i walk a lot. how should i work it out with regard the "allowance" for naturally burned cals as mine is around 3500. should i just note how long i walked and then enter it in log. am not sure how to work out what is "extra" calc burned or whats part of estimated daily allowance of cals burned....if that makes sense

yes, that's a little hard to figure.  there really isn't a way to log "steps" so keeping track of the time you walked is the best way to log it in as an activity.   it kind of depends on whether you include that walking as part of your "base-line" activity level.   some people list themselves as "sedentary" in their "expenditure" and then log in everything they do. others (myself included) just list it as "light activity" and don't log any extras.  it pretty much up to you how compulsive you want to be. 

incidentally, any TIME you spend at an activity is deducted from the "base-line" time, and added as the "activity" time, so it is pretty accurate.  does that make any sense?

day almost over and need to look at re focussing tomorrow. ended up on 6000 cal junk out. and burned about 4000

cant let it get me down so will look again at the tools section, refresh everything and stick to whats required. dso hate giving myself a hard time, but be oc i kinda have to!

Is it too late for you to plan out a menu for tomorrow?

I also have been cutting up fresh fruit and placing it in a "ziploc" baggy in the fridge.  I find I am eating lots more fruit by doing that.  Now if I can just make myself eat more veggies.  :)

You are doing so well.  How are you feeling?  Are your cloths getting looser?  The scale will move downward.  Just keep up the good work.

Trish    

Just briefly scanned over the comments, but wanted to make sure you are drinking a lot of fiber. Fiber will cause constipation if you don't drink enough water.

Hi Geoffrey! 

Three things:

1) I have been stuck 14 days now with only a pound loss, BUT! I took measurements this morning and in comparison to 21 days ago, I have lost 3.5 inches from my waist, 2.5 from my hips, 1 from my arms, 1 from my thigh, etc.!!  So, your body may be making adjustments you just can't tell from the scale.

2) How much sodium do you usually have?  That can cause water retention big time.  The average person, who doesn't have heart/bloodpressure/diabetes issues, should consume 2300mg a day or less.  You may be surprised with a 3000 calorie+ food plan at how much salt you're taking in.

3) Fiber.  Ahh, yes.  I just researched fiber, and the average male should have 38g or more a day (women, 26 or more unless pregnant).  If you're not getting this, you might want to add veggies, beans, fruits, oatmeal, La Tortilla Factory tortillas (14g and only 80 calories/no fat in a large one!), or even a fiber suppliment.  Do be careful increasing fiber, though, as increasing more than 5mg a day might cause some bloating, cramps, or even (ahem) gas.  Your body will get used to increased fiber, though, I promise!  I ate 15g a day when I started, and now eat over 30 a day on a regular (no pun intended) basis.

Good luck, and maybe if you post your typical day's intake from the food log, we could give you some more suggestions!  I hope you'll stick with it!

:)

am gonna post my progress on my daily journal so do feel free to pass on any observations on my day. had an inauspicious start by finishing off the pat of fruit and fibre 400 g worth so off to a 700 cal breakfast but will be out soon for a good healthy walk with loadsa water.....humid uk