6 weeks and no results??!!

I have been working out for six weeks now almost everyday and no results.  I have been running/walking combo for 30 min. to 40 min.  and doing weights.  I feel I have really been pushing myself.  When brain tells me to stop running, I push myself to keep going.  I have been doing various kinds of weight training and pushing myself to fatigue the muscles.  What is going on?

I started in Jan. and lost 15 pounds in the first few months and weighed 136 lbs.  I was eating 1200 calories.   I plateaued for another month and was told I was eating too little so I up my calories to around 1300-1400 and then gained a little back which I kind of expected.  I weigh 141 pounds now and that is what I was when I started working out 6 weeks ago.  I upped my calories to around 1600-1700 and still no results.

I measured myself when I started 6 weeks ago and I just measured myself today.  I measured an inch larger combined from when I started.  I thought I was supposed to be losing inches even if not losing weight!!  I am so discouraged.

Then I find out that my friend is going in for lyposuction next week.  I just feel like I have been busting my ass and nothing is happening and then to hear she is taking the easy way and will probably look great is sickening.  Sorry for the rant.  I just want to know what I am doing wrong. 

I don't have a solution for you, only all my sympathy... I've had the exact same problem... I lost 18 pounds between august and december last year... then I gained back 7 and I've been trying to get back on track for several weeks and I'm not seeing ANY positive results.... don't give up :-) I just keep telling myself that hopefully something will happen eventually, and if nothing else at least I'm staying healthy!

Granted, even that doesn't make me feel CLOSE to as good as seeing the numbers on the scale drop.....

Best of luck :-)

Thanks for the sympathy.  I just hope if I keep doing what I am doing eventually I will start dropping weight or losing inches.  I would settle for either!

What I understand about the calories is: assuming you are a female pre menopause, you would use 11 calories per pound of your weight to keep the weight. You weight 141 so your daily cal spent (not considering exercise) would be 141x11 = 1550 cal/day. I would calculate your exercise as 10 cal/min if you run so we could consider between 300 to 400 cal/day. So, lets say you spend an average of 1900 cal/day. since you are eating 1600/1700 a day you are creating a deficit of around 200 to 300 calories/day. Since 1 lb is 3500cal, if we assume an average of 250 cal deficit a day, you would be losing about 1/2 a pound per week.

I don't know about you but i frequently find myself forgetting to log some small thing that I have eaten in a day, so it would be pretty easy for me to miss 200 to 250 cal/day in my records.  If I were you, I would  drop  my daily intake  back to 1400/1500 cal and see what happens. Or you can always increase the exercise (I'm doing one hour a day). Maybe have 2 bouts of exercise instead of one.

 

hope this helps,

 

Cibele

Thanks cibele,

I can't get it right.  First I was eating to little and now I may be eating to much again.  I went from non-active to pretty active, I just feel something should have happened by now.  ARRGGHH

You are at my goal weight. :)

I know how you feel though. I started this journey 2/5 and for six weeks lost no weight. None, zero, nada. I just kept with it. I have only lost 9 lbs to date but I'm sticking with it. I just had to remind myself to say "no" more than I said "yes" to food. The scale will move. I had to keep tweaking my food. I'm still don't have it perfect but at least I finally started to lose. I use to eat 1350 with no exercise, then 1600 when I would exercise. That didn't help. I would "zig-zag" my calories, nothing. Then I tried sticking to a flat calorie number with or without working out. Then the scale started to move. I found protein, a lot of vege's (some fruit) and salads help. Just keep playing with it. You're young ( I think) the scale is friendlier to you.

By the way. I wouldn't envy your friend, it's expensive, risky and has taught her nothing. You can do this!!!!!

I know I know,  I try not to be jealous but I just get frustrated cause I have not seen results but I am going to modify my diet......again.

well, this is because u r building muscle at the same of loosing the fats.  Its not just all about loosing weight, but get yourself fit! Dun you feel much more fit right now? good job!

I also wanted to let you know you're at my goal weight.    I always find it encouraging to know I'm at someone else's goal weight.  It makes me gain perspective that while it's always great to want to exercise more, eat right, and be healthy overall, you're also at a better place right now than you could be.  Congrats on your consistent exercise.  Stick with it and you'll get there.  Be encouraged!

Thanks everyone for the support. I am starting to get encouraged again.  I read in another post that it takes 6-8 weeks to put on muscle and 4-5 weeks for the water retention to go down so hopefully in another month I will see some results.  I am going to stick with it and work my butt off!!!

You're at my goal weight too! You go girl! I know exactly how you feel. I began in Jan to train for a half marathon. I ran it Whoo hoo! on April 12 and I didn't lose 1 lb!! I was bummed. But I did take pictures in January and after I ran the race I waited a couple of days and took new pictures and wouldn't you know it, I lost noticeable inches! So that has motivated me to keep on going. I'm not running as much, but now I'm working out with Jillian Michaels (Biggest Loser) DVDs. I've got 3 of them that I rotate. 2 are resistance with weights and cardio combo and 1 is just cardio kickbox. To break up the workouts. Then on the weekends I try to do 2-3 miles on the treadmill. I'm just now paying more attention to my calorie intake and I can't wait to take new pictures. Try changing up your workout routines so that you're working your muscles in a different way and your body won't get used to it.

Best of luck to you! And congratulations on the loss :-)

Hey - you are LESS than my goal weight and I've been stuck for 6 weeks also.  I'm doing cardio 3x a week and weights 3x a week.  Like you I've read that your body holds onto water for the first 6 or so weeks to repair muscle (it was a post by melkor the moderator for fitness threads - can't remember where I found it now).  This has encouraged me a lot so you stick with it.  We WILL get there!!

I have decided that despite being tempted to drop the calories I am going to stick with the 1600 I am on at the moment.  I lost a lot of weight on a stupid 1200 calorie a day diet but it mucked up my metabolism and made me feel like crap so I'm REALLY hesitant to reduce.

Perhaps all those hitting a plateau could promise to post here when they break it sharing their secrets

Losing weight is 80% diet and 20% exercise.  If your not eating few enough calories even though your working out it still wont matter.  You need some sort of deficit each week to lose weight.  Also you could be gaining muscle which weighs more than fat which could be causing the measurments to be larger.  Try cardio for a while to burn the fat, and make sure you calorie deficit is at least 500 calories a day, which would put you at losing about 1 pound per week.

Thanks again for the suggestions everyone.  I will repost if and when I finally break the plateau and either lose pounds or inches.  I am getting motivated again.