Very Discouraged, Need Advice

Hello all,

I realized today that its been exactly 1 year since I joined my gym. And after a year of working out, including expensive sessions with 2 different personal trainers, and trying sooo hard to eat right, I am EXACTLY the same weight that I was a year ago. I was planning on going to workout this morning, but now I kind of feel like - whats the point? And I really just want to go get a fast food breakfast, and give up. I need some encouragement, as well as some advice! I know that many of you have already started to lose weight, and I know I could stick with it if I could just get past the first 5-6 pounds, but I can't even manage that. The most I've lost in the past year was 3 pounds, and that was after a weekl ong vacation where I ate whatever I wanted the entire time - go figure.

So please, if anyone could offer some words of motivation or ideas to help me, I would be eternally greatful. I hate feeling so defeated.

Amanda

no, no, no, no.....NO!  Do NOT give up!!!  Let the people here try to help you.  Can you give me an idea of your caloric intake, your workout routine, your workout frequency, your height, your weight, your age? 

Let's start there Amanda.

Maybe you don't have alot to lose so its coming off slow, also your trainging at the gym so you will be gaining muscle and losing fat (muscle weighs more so i been told )prob why you havent gone down many lbs, are you toning up ?

When you say "eat right' were you counting calories? Diet is key - and it can be that you are eating too much or too little.

I used to think I was eating right - when I look back, I'm amazed that I thought it was a reduced calorie diet. But I was exercising, and I thought that gave me a license to eat a little more. I made really bad decisions, let myself get too hungry so I made even worse decisions... it's no wonder I didn't lose weight.

As bigbear said, give us some more info.

Hello there.

Do you know that muscle tissue weighs more than fat? If you've spent all this time going to the gym, it sounds like you may have lost a lot of fat, and replaced it with muscle, having a healthier and fitter body overall.

I have a sedentary lifestyle and do almost no exercise, so I'm glad to have found this site, as it's the first time in my life I've gone on a diet that actually lost me some weight. I like the fact that it gives you target calories and recommends the number of pounds to lose per week. (1, in my case.)

The combination of this site and your exercise regime seems like a good recipe to help you to lose some of those pounds. Well done you, for sticking at the gym stuff for a whole year! I'm sure the CalorieCount diet will prove an easy challenge by comparison.

Hi Amanda,

Have you taken measurements at all?  Have you noticed a change there?

What about body fat, have you had that measured at all with either of your trainers? 

DON'T GIVE UP.  You do NOT want to _gain_ right now, especially not how you're feeling and with what you've been doing.

Have you worked with a nutritional counselor or dietician?  I've done this a few different times to evaluate my diet for different purposes.. Once my goal was losing weight, then running a 10 m race, now it's building muscle.. So needs can really vary depending on what you're doing at the time.  You should check it out!

Don't give up!!

I am right there with you, missamandak. I just got on the scale this morning for the first time in two weeks and realized that I've now gained back the five pounds I had lost over the last year. Now I'm trying to convince myself to go swimming this morning. ;(

Wow! I just want to say THANK YOU SO MUCH!!! I never imagined I would recieve so much support from a website I've only been using for a few days. I know that one thing I have definitely been lacking in my plans in the past is support, so hopefully this will be a very positive step forward for me. Here are my stats:

Age:23

Height 5'1"

Weight 127

Goal Weight 110

For most of my adult life, from graduating high school until a little over a year ago, I was very comfortable at around 110 lbs I generally ate healthy but didn't count calories, and I worked out occasionally but usually just relied on a few fun workout DVDs I enjoyed, and then going for walks, bike rides, and living a generally active lifestyle. I know my diet changed and I became more sedentary as I started my last year of college and was much busier and more stressed. Which is when I gained about 15 lbs over the course of 6 months. It was this time last year that I decided I wanted to change that and began following weight watchers points (I never joined officially, but used the info my mom had from being a member - it helped her lose 20+ pounds). It never really worked for me, neither did working out - I tried just cardio, just weight training, and a combo of both and again, I had more energy but no weight loss. I guess over the last few months I've tried a hodge podge of things with no real plan, since following the strict plans for the first months didn't really produce results.

Right now I am without a real plan or routine, which I know is bad, so again, any help or advice would be so very helpful.

THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH,

Amanda

Another thing I like to consider is:

Without watching what I eat and not exercising - how much weight would I have gained this past year?

You still are likely coming out ahead being the same weight!

Stick to it.

And like those stated before me: Exercise isn't everything either - make sure you know what you are consuming... be honest... and adjust things if the current situation isn't creating results. 

Okay Amanda...here goes.

It looks like you should be eating around 1400 calories each day.  That would be for you to lose 1lb/week.  Now I got those numbers by using a "Light Activity" multiplier.  Light activity is described as, "light exercise/sports 1-3 days/wk".  So if you were to go for an hour walk 3 days per week, I think this is where you'd "fit".  The beauty of exercise is that the more you do it, the more you can eat.  I have to be honest, I couldn't handle eating only 1400 calories each day...but I'm almost twice your weight.  If you were to go up to "Moderate Activity" (moderate exercise/sports 3-5 days/week), then you could eat 1650 cals per day.  1950 cals if you're "Very Active".  I know that exercise is tough to initiate.  It's a lot like work at first.  Once you get into walking or running or weight training, you'll quickly realize that you will be proud of yourself for getting out there.  You will feel guilty when you skip a day.  The results will be both physically and mentally positive.  

Get a plan, track your calories, establish a routine (there are plenty to chose from), eat the "right" calories, and work hard.  

I haven't been here long either.  What I notice is that a lot ope people get discouraged very easily when the weight doesn't just fall off after the first couple days.  If dieting was easy, everyone would do it...successfully.  I'm not going to lie to you...it's tough.  You will fail your diet on occasion.  Don't let it get you down.  You've got to get right back on that horse!  

You CAN do this Amanda.  You're in the right place for all the support you'll ever need.  Im ust warn you though...people here (including me) are very crtical of "fad diets"...so don't even ask questions about the latest "ice cream and  gatorade diet".  People will set you straight in a hurry!  Do it right and you will do it for your lifetime.

Good Luck! 

You gotta watch out for the fact that you probably have gained muscle over the past year and muscle weighs more than fat. Get your BMI checked (not by the calculators online, they don't take into account the amount of muscle you have). Also, if you are not eating ENOUGH calories while working out, even if you're eating right, then your body will refuse to drop the weight and will instead hold on to it. I don't know what type of diet you've put yourself on, like what you eat when eating right. If you are exercising regularly, and getting a good sweat just about every day then there is no reason you should be eating less than 1500 calories a day. It'll only make your body hold onto that weight. Also, one day a week should be spent almost doubling your calorie intake (or eating what you want that day) so that when you DO decide to get off of the diet, your body is more ready to handle it.

But don't give up. Look at what you are doing! You are already more active than a lot of people out there. And I know you wanted to lose weight, but you obviously haven't gained any weight in a year's time so that is a good thing also! Any diet that is low calorie is one that works, so don't worry so much about low-fat, low-carb, or high-protein diets when you are trying to lose weight. Keep it low-cal, keep the foods good for you, and keep up the great work! You CAN do this, but it's going to take some work, and you are on the right track to getting there!

My daughter is 5'1" and 26yrs old. She weights about 120 and is a size 2. She is solid muscle and looks fantastic. That being said,

#1 take your measurements. #2 weigh your food on a scale and make sure you count everything you eat AND drink. #3 Try lifting weights 2x per week (NROLFW is a great program) and do "something else" life walking, running, swimming... 3x per week. #4 make sure you are getting ENOUGH calories (Maybe about 1500-1600/day) so you don't go into starvation mode. (Days you lift, eat about 300-400 calories more). #5 eat CLEAN--lots of fresh fruit and vegies, lean meat, lots of water.

You WILL see results... even if the scale doesn't drop all that much.

You're at one of the hardest places to lose weight, really. You're already at an acceptably healthy weight, so you don't have a lot of excess fat that can easily come off. If you keep working at it, though, you WILL lose weight. 

Step back and take stock of what you're doing exercise-wise. You already said you're doing a 'hodge-podge;' it might be that you're not really exercising as effectively as you could be. 

As other people have mentioned, consider using a different method to gauge your progress. Have your doctor estimate your percentage of body fat (by taking folds of skin to measure the subcutaneous fat) and take measurements of your waist and hips. Even when you don't lose weight, you can still be changing your body. For example, I've only lost a few pounds in the past few months, but I've had to tighten my belts because my pants are too loose. Actual weight isn't the be-all end-all.

Most of all, don't give up! a lot of us are having to work our butts off - you're not allowed to give up until we do 

As a wise man once said - 'Never give up, never surrender!'

Again, thank you all so much for your advice and encouragement. I'm actually looking forward to going to the gym in the morning! And I defintely have a better plan about what I need to do change my habits and hopefully see some results.

*cheers* awesome, let us know how it goes!

Don't give up.  This journey isn't all about weight it's about the health of your body.  Going and eating fast food and not working out will not better your life!  Try stepping up cardio, if you do 20 minutes on the treadmill then try 30 on the elliptical.  Try different weight routines.  Write down everything you put in your mouth.  I remember being 23 and going out with friends and having 4 toasted almonds ooopsy in hindsight alcohol can add an extra 800 calories on a friday night.  Just hang in there and keep in mind that muscle weighs more than fat and you'll benefit from getting your body fat tested to know where you are at. 

Good luck!

I THOUGHT I was eating well until I started tracking things on this site. When you get started, you have to be BRUTALLY honest and make sure you include everything down to your breath mint. I did this for a couple weeks to see how I was eating. Thats when I realized how many things I grazed on. Things that when I looked back it was almost hard for me to remember I ate it. A cookie here, a couple chips there. Then, I started doing way more fruits and veggies because of the amount of food per calorie it gives you. Feeling full, or at least not hungry, was the biggest thing for me so the fruits and veggies came in handy here.

Anyway, thats what worked for me. Granted I had more to lose as I am 5'9" male and WAS at 220, now 195 since Jan 1st. I still don't count any calories one day a week to allow my self to splurge if I want but I still end up eating pretty well. I also make sure I excersize on that day. I totally contribute my weigth lose to counting the calories which made me eat better. I am a fairly active guy (run about 15 miles per week with another 6-10 miles of mountainous hiking on weekends) and I could not lose weight.

Track everything for a couple weeks then work on follwoing the plan. It will work, trust me. Happy pound shedding!

-Steve