Trying to get it right

Posted on November 17, 2014

I am in my 2nd six month diet bet. I have lost 15 lbs in this game which is good but it's not as much as I should have lost by now. I have not met my goal for the last 3 months. I admit that in October I was not as consistent with my eating as I should have been but I still thought I was going to make the goal.

This month is not looking much better. At the beginning, November 1st, I had to lose 4 lbs. Now on November 17th I still have 4 lbs to lose but it not's because I have plateaued but rather because I keep yo-yoing with my weight going up one week then down the next, etc. This has been very frustrating.

I'm not exactly sure what the problem is. Some people have suggested that I have been exercising too much. I assure you that is not the case. Last week I exercised four days and that is a record. Since I started this journey in December of last year I have maybe exercised a total of 2 months but I think that is stretching it. I've been losing weight through dieting and not exercise. When I do exercise, like last week, I do not lose as much as I think I shold. Last week I only lost .2 lbs. Whoopie!

Starting this week I am trying to get it right. I am going back to the basics of calories in versus calories out, focusing on the deficit I want to have at the end of the day and not worry so much about the specific calories.

I have done this easily by customizing my daily allowance in my fitness pal. I put in my maintenance weight as my supposed goal so that each day I can just work on having a certain amount of calories left by the end of the day. If I exercise I will only eat as many of the "extra" calories as I need to to make sure that I am at the "right" deficit. I'm aiming for a weekly deficit of 5,250 which will supposedly equal out to a loss of 1 1/2 lbs a week, give or take a few ounces.

I do enjoy having one day a week that is a little "freer" but I've decided that having a free day is not working. It used to work. I used to be able to eat freely on one day and still lose weight during the week but I think my free days have gotten freer and freer and have started to sabotage me. So, I am trying to get to a deficit of 3,000 between Sunday and Tuesday and then i will get the other 2250 deficit between Thursday and Saturday. This will leave Wednesday to eat without a deficit which will let me eat a little more than normal while still not going completely overboard.

I am also paying more attention to my fat and carb grams. I think I've been going over them on a fairly consistent basis so I need to get that reigned in.

So, this fairly long blog is to say that I'm trying to get it right. We'll see how it goes.

Comment Now!

Rebecca C.

11/19/2014 10:47AM

Beth, after reading your comment I have started tracking my sodium. I'm also starting to track my sugar. I hadn't really been keeping track of where I get my calories from as far as how many come from carbs, how many from sugar, etc. and i think I need to.

Rebecca C.

11/18/2014 1:25AM

Thanks Beth! That helps a lot.

KnitterBeth likes this comment.

KnitterBeth

Don't hesitate to keep me posted on your progress. I'm rooting for you!! :)

KnitterBeth

11/17/2014 12:27PM

If you're interested in any more suggestions, I can share what's been working for me.
1. The calories deficit explained above.
2. Cardio, cardio, cardio. I aim for 12K steps/day and hit 20K often. Most of them are done inside as I'm doing other chores - folding laundry, going through junk drawers, etc. I try to keep my pace around 4 - 4.5 MPH.
3. Strength training. I have 3-, 5-, and 7-lb dumbbells that I use for an assortment of upper body moves - bicep curls, hammer curls, overhead extensions, etc. And I do that while I'm marching in place! :)
4. Water. 64+ oz per day
5. Sleep. 6 to 7 hours per day minimum
6. Sodium. This is one of the hardest because there is too much sodium in EVERYTHING! I ate 2 oz of tortilla chips on the other day and was up almost a pound for 2 days. Argh! I eat to little processed food that it hits hard when I do eat it.

The other big thing is eating very little processed food and mostly fruits, veggies, and lean protein. :) Good luck!!

KnitterBeth

11/17/2014 12:23PM

Good luck, Rebecca! I completely understand how hard the journey is and the frustrations along the way.

I think you have a solid plan for moving forward. I try to have a deficit of 300- 700 calories/day. I eat very well (about 1300 - 1600 calories most days), and I've had consistent losses over the past 6 months or so.