Wow, it really works!!!!!

So, I had to take a 4 week hiatus from working out. I kept my calories between 1300 and 1400 while not working out. Lately I have been walking and doing about 30 minutes on the elliptical on a low setting (had a back injury, so taking it lightly). I find that the break actually did me good. My endorphins are kicking in MORE than before (was running at least five miles, no endorphins). Plus, I am eating MORE. I am losing weight!!!!!!!! It could be muscle, but I dont think so, because all I did was cardio. Now, I am doing more stretching and light weights. You really do need to feed your body and find a good balance to lose weight. DO NOT STARVE YOURSELF! I am down to 115 and I eat around 1600 calories. It is great!  

Good for you!! Finally someone who gets it, how refreshing! I'm glad for you, now keep passing on the message.

BG

I agree.... I have been sick with sinusitis for almost a full week now, and I have not been able to workout at all. (cant breathe).  Luckily I still had a decent appetite.  I still managed to eat 1300-1600 calories daily and am still losing weight..... (the bad part though is that I did not drink much water) :(

claps wildly it's so nice when it finally clicks and we figure it out lol :) Im so happy for you :D I know I had resistance to learning this very important lesson and it cost me in the forms of marathon plateaus the whole definition of insanity thing....doing the same thing and expecting different results :P... I was queen of that for the longest time. 

I actually had a very serious illness in december that took me pretty much out of commission for the better part of two months.  During that time I ate a lot because I was recovering and exercised precious little and figured I'd gain and be all back to where I started.... when I started exercising again and kept my calories up same thing happened... broke through the plateau started losing again and slimming down/toning up :)

I think sometimes the breaks and changing things up do help.  I really do believe there can be too much of a good thing with exercise too... its all about finding that balance.  Hooray for you :D

Tell me more about this balance thing that you now understand.  I do not get it....yet, but the concept of it is starting to make sense.  Is it:  Eat a certain number of calories according to your weight for energy purposes and exercise regulary as the best weight loss technique???

nhberry, yes you must eat enough to keep you going and eat back some calories you burn, a 500-800 per day deficit is what to shoot for. If you go to this website and read it, it will help. It's a long read, but well worth it. It helped me understand better. Recommend this article to a friend by e-mail here!

BG

Well, calorie count said that if I wanted to lose weight and be sedentary I had to eat 1360 calories. I chose sedentary because I could not work out AT ALL for a month. This seemed like a lot of calories to me, but I thought "what the hell". I actually have quite an appetite and never had trouble eating my calories. When I was working out ALOT I would eat between 1500 and 1600 calories and burn between 600 and 700. So, really I was under the suggested 1200 (you still with me??) . I was very resistant to eating more and I plateaued (sp?). I would run my heart out and eat so little for the amount I was running. I was never content and always kicking my own butt. Then I got injured and was forced to re-evaluate. Now, my focus is on strength and flexibility. Once I am 100% healed I am going to focus more on yoga and less on running. It feels better and I look better!!!! I am eating more and working out less!!! I am not eating a ton, but what is reccommended on calorie count. I am not going under 1200. If I burn 250 calories I eat about 1500-1600 calories in the day. I weigh less than I ever have. Sorry this is so long. . . .

well i have been doing the program for about two weeks now and i have not lost any weight.. i actually gained two lbs. But I refuse to give up because giving up would mean I'd have to go back to my previous crazy eating patterns and for the first time in my life I'm placing my mental/emotional stability as my main issue and honestly I've nevr been as content with my food relationship as I have these past two weeks. So today is a new day and I don't care what the stupid scale says right now. I'm so happy to read that it is really working for so many people, and I hope in a few weeks that will be me : ) Ahh I do have a question, I started working out a lot and before working out I was eating 1300 calories.. so what should I be eating now? I'm 5'4 and 145 lbs. But I mean should I eat absolutely all the calories I burn at the gym?? Coz that'd be a lot ( like 500 more ) Thanks

Yes. If you are supposed to eat 1300 (which makes sense at 5'4 , that is my height as well), then if you burn 500, you need to eat 1800. What will probably happen is that you will have more energy and then feel more like burning 700. Then you can eat another 200 calories! ! It just takes time. . . . Not eating enough is no fun and it is self-sabatoging. I am a horrible speller! lol! Trust me. I eat a lot and have steadily lost weight. . . . Keep in mind, I do not eat a lot of "empty calories". I eat nuts, fruit, veggies, good carbs (like whole wheat bread (Rudi's Organic)). I eat ice cream (skinny cows). I eat a lot of bran buds. I eat ALL DAY LONG!!!!!  

Ok, so now this is starting to connect.  Now let me use myself for example.  First of all let me start by saying I need to lose A LOT of weight.  I am 289 and since starting cal-ct I have been eating between 1300 to 1900 calories a/day and exercise about 4 times a week Jazzercising and walking.  I have lost 11 lbs in one month.  When I did a profile it said I should eat about 2700 calories and exercise to lose weight but I thought that was an insane amount (possible mistake - huh).  So anyway am I on the right track and am I sabatoging myself on days when I only eat about 1000 calories because after all "I am on a diet."

1000 seems too low. How tall are you?

5 ft 7 inch

I have no idea what is right, wrong, or otherwise anymore.  I decided to try the whole eating more calories thing 3 weeks ago.  I decided the worst case would be I would gain more weight and hey I have been there and done that before so why not give it a shot!

I read that it would take 10 -14 days before I would see any loss.  I decided I would give it 3 weeks my daughter talked me into a month instead.  On day 10 I lost 3 lbs.  on day 13 I gained 4...I got fed up but remembered my one month commitment.  today is day 20 and I lost 5 lbs.  My biggest problem is I am so over my healthy weight that I need to eat half the house to get enough calories and I have now figured out that I was probably only eating about 1000 calories except for binge days most of my adult life.  I pray to all that is in power that this works but how do you eat that many calories without junk food?

Start eating some potatoes or a roll with dinner. They are both good carbs and add calories that are hard to get if you only eat salad and carrots. I've found upping my calories just a bit helped jumpstart my metabolism, which in turn made me start loosing again. I gained over 40 pounds quitting smoking July 2006. I still  have a long way to go, but I'm loosing weight the healthy way. Go to this website and read it. It's a long read, but worth the time. It's a bodybuilding website, but we can ALL relate to what it tells you. Recommend this article to a friend by e-mail here!

BG

Start eating some potatoes or a roll with dinner. They are both good carbs and add calories that are hard to get if you only eat salad and carrots. I've found upping my calories just a bit helped jumpstart my metabolism, which in turn made me start loosing again. I gained over 40 pounds quitting smoking July 2006. I still  have a long way to go, but I'm loosing weight the healthy way. Go to this website and read it. It's a long read, but worth the time. It's a bodybuilding website, but we can ALL relate to what it tells you. Recommend this article to a friend by e-mail here!

BG

wow im insanely jealous. i feel so low. fat low. not skinny low. enjoy your good fortune.

What I do is basically eat all day long as recommended by my trainer.  I eat every 2 ? 3 hours which gives my energy and keeps my blood sugar even (I am not diabetic but this is important to not have dips in blood sugar).  A snack should be less than 250 cal and a meal should be at least 500 calories.  Also I make sure to eat a breakfast within an hour of getting up.  If you don?t eat breakfast your metabolism slows down for a whole 24 hours so don?t? skip it.  I make sure there is high protein in my breakfast and I take protein after my work outs.  I use whey protein power isolate because it is very low in fat and carbs but high in protein (30 ? 31g protein, 0.5 ? 1g fat and 0.5 ? 1.5g carb depending on vanilla or chocolate).  It is very important to feed your body fuel and if you work out a lot you need to replenish it or your body will store rather than burn. 

Oh my god I want to do this! but how do I eat 1800 calories a day?? I can't even get up to 1200 without feeling so full that I feel like my stomach will explode. I'm definitely going to do this, because all I have to lose is 20 lbs, which is not a lot in my opinion. But if I gain like 20 more lbs, I'm suing! lol jk, I would be pretty peeved though. So, uh, let's hope it works! :D

Btw, congratulations to the people who found that it worked!! You guys are my idols right now!

I keep hearing people say "How do I eat 1600 calories??" Are you all really couinting everythign you eat??

I have a banana for breakfast

A South Beach Bar for breakfast

Fruit or veggies for snack 

Frozen Lean Cuisine(or something like it) for lunch

More fruit or veggie for snack

Rice and chicken for dinner

After this I am consuming about 1300-1400 calories a day depending on the snacks.

If you just eat Nuts (almonds have like 210 calories in a 1/4 cup)

You will be able to eat the calories. Make sure you are counting eveything and measuring the right portions.

It is all a delicate balance with calories in and calories burned.  It takes time to work it all out and your body will need time to adjust to a new routine.  With me now my body is hungry every 2 hours and I don?t even have to look at the clock my body is so on time it is crazy!  Sometimes my trainer gives me heck for not eating enough (because I have to write down when and what I eat, the calories, fat, carb and protein in my meals).  You want the calories but not high fat and for carbs you want the good carbs.  If you eat on a regular schedule it might be easier to get in all your calories.  You might not feel as full because you are eating a small meal rather than a large one.

I keep seeing this article referenced "Wow it really works!" from bodybuilder.com but I can not for the life of me actually find the article to read. Someone PLEASE HELP. This info is excatly what I need. After reading all your posts I think I may be a victim of not eating enough calories and lossing momentum becasue of it.

I tried the suggest article link but I still can not figure out how to pull up the ACTUAL article. I searched on their website with no luck either. Any suggestion I would love. Thanks and congrats to all that know and have made this information work for them ;)