VENT - day 16 not a single pound lost! GRR

So I've cut my calories, very diligent about eating well and not going over.  Working out 5+ days a week (1hr cardio + weights) and I still have not lost a SINGLE POUND! 

My settings: 131lbs, 5'4", moderate activity level, 1500 cals a day

What is going on?  Do I just need to be more patient? 

Hey! So, I'm new here, but I can definitely relate to your situation. I was working out at least 5 times a week if not 6 and eating pretty healthy for about a month, but did not see any change in the scale. I know it's difficult to see, but you may be building more muscle which is why the scale is not changing. I think once you build more muscle, the fat starts to come off and that is when you begin losing weight.

About a week ago I began eating 5-6 small meals a day instead of breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and that is when the weight began to come off. The scale is under that 155 marker now for the first time in a VERY long time. It's surprising how much you can eat with 300 calories each meal and eating this way also changed my relationship with food-I trick myself into thinking I'm eating a lot by eating often, which helps me a lot. Not sure what your eating looks like, but I keep track of everything..time, food, how many cals, etc. Then, if I have time, I look over how I ate for the day and write something I could have done better or something I did well in order to change in the days to come. I often struggle to meet the 1500 mark especially when I'm filling up on all kinds of vegetables and lean meats. 

All in all, it did take me a month to see changes on the scale. Have you seen changes in the mirror? The changes I saw in my body kept me going and my boyfriend noticed as well. Keep up the good work and hopefully you will see results soon! It can be so hard when nothing changes on the scale, but you can do it! What's your weight goal?

Hi Bostonbruiser, I know how you feel. Its very frustrating. I am 5'4/137. I've had to adjust my calorie intake a few times. When I was eating 1500 I wasn't loosing any weight either. I would lose and gain the same 2-3 pounds. I started loosing at 12-1300 calories but then that stopped working cause I started cheating a lot, especially on the weekends. So I started calorie cycling and that has been working the best so far. Its fun and I get to eat over 2000 calories on some days making it easy not to cheat. Calorie cycling got me into the 30's!!!!! I started at 155 in 1/09 and am constantly changing things up work out wise and calorie wise. That just what's worked for me. I know everyone is different, but thought I would let you know what's worked for me since we are the same height. And yes, be patient and keep working out, the pounds will come off.

First of all, if you are working out you can be losing fat and building muscle, and muscle actually weighs more than fat.

Secondly, on my first month I lost barely a pound and was feeling depressed but then the next month lost FIVE pounds. I personally think it takes a while for your body to become accustomed to the new plan.

Good luck and stick with it!

Based on the fact that you are now lifting weights, I'm actually surprised you haven't gained any. By building muscle and losing fat, its a catch 22 if you watch the scale. Muscle weighs more than fat and therefore will counteract any scale progress you are expecting to see for right now. Its not a bad thing though. As you build muscle, your body becomes a better fat fighting machine and the weight will come off in due time. It's only been 16 days. Might I suggest throwing the scale out the window, weighting a month, and then try on a pair of pants that were too tight before. THAT is where you will see your progress.

Hi there!

I kinda want to reiterate what people said is that when you use weights, you tend to gain muslce as you lose fat, so I think the best way to judge how well you're doing isn't necessarily the scale but how your clothes fit.  I have a pair of jeans that are normally super tight when I first wear them, but I avoided wearing them the whole first month I started dieting and then put them on.  While the scale hadn't budged for me, the jeans fit perfectly.  So just keep that in mind.

ALSO - YOU'RE ALREADY AT A HEALTHY WEIGHT - so you're probably not going to see the pounds peal off like some people.  5-10lbs a month is for people that are probably overweight.  Since you're at a healthy weight, 2-3 lbs a month might be a significant change for your body.  Keep that in mind as well.

Hope that helps!

 

Original Post by nycgirl:

First of all, if you are working out you can be losing fat and building muscle, and muscle actually weighs more than fat.

 Excuse me if Im wrong but, isnt it pretty much impossible to build muscle whilst in a calorie deficit??

Original Post by carolally:

Original Post by nycgirl:

First of all, if you are working out you can be losing fat and building muscle, and muscle actually weighs more than fat.

 Excuse me if Im wrong but, isnt it pretty much impossible to build muscle whilst in a calorie deficit??

you're excused

seriously? everything I've learned from the fitness forum claims otherwise

prove it

side note: you're really pretty and i love your clothes

hahahahaha thanks, well no I cant prove it but it would seem logical to me and a few people from this thread http://caloriecount.about.com/thought-id-poin t-ft138895#12 cemented the notion in my mind.

Beginners put on muscle at first.  Then some people with the right genetics can gain muscle while in a calorie deficet.

ohhh

 

by decificit i didn't know you meant taking in less calories than you burn

 

i thought you meant by creating a deficit overall [like subtracting 500 from what you would normally eat] you can't gain muscle

 

 

Original Post by carolally:

Original Post by nycgirl:

First of all, if you are working out you can be losing fat and building muscle, and muscle actually weighs more than fat.

Excuse me if Im wrong but, isnt it pretty much impossible to build muscle whilst in a calorie deficit??

Yea you can still build muscle despite calorie deficit, muscle toning is a really excellent way to burn fat (this should be paired with cardio to get the best results). You don't lose weight but you should notice your body toning up. When your muscles are being exercised and trying to build, if they can't find energy to burn from the new foods you're taking in, it'll resort to using whatever your body has stored (aka love handles, spare tire, thunder thighs, junk in the trunk, ya know)

Can you build muscle that fast? Really? That's like 3lb worth of fat turning to muscle in 16 days!

I seen on a previous post that the biochemical limit to the rate of protein formation in a drug-free male athlete means you can at most build about 28g of new muscle protein a day - with perfect training, nutrition and rest. Unless you're that, you wont swap fat for muscle and even if you're that person, the most you could build in 16 days would be 448g.

If the OP's body burns approx 2160 cals (that is using the moderate activity level) - but only consumes 1500 per day, thats a deficit of around 660 cals per day.

We all know that it takes a deficit 500 of per day over 7 days to lose a pound (3500 cals = approx 1 pound of fat and 3500 divided by 7 is 500 per day). Over the 16 days, a deficit of 10560 cals should have been created and this is 3lb. OK so that's the science part - but each body is different and show results differently. Your 3lb might come off suddenly over night one night. It could be water retention, are you drinking at least 2 litres of water per day?

Instead of scales, have you thought about a good old fashioned measuring tape? You could still be losing inches.

I hope you see results soon. And you will - at the end of the day, calories are just energy and it's all a wonderful science. You WILL get those results.