No weight loss--why?

[Misty_eyes 79]

I don't understand??? I am losing inches, top size 2xl down to large, pants 20 down to 14. Shoes 8 down to 7. Been working out 4-5 times/week zumba or insanity, running 2miles/day, eating 800-900 calories, drinking fluids and Protein, using MfP. Weigh loss 30lbs is the same since 1st month post-op? What am I doing wrong? Surgery Jan 16. Weight 200 and now still 170. I know I am smaller, and all my clothes are so big now, but why is the scale not moving??? Help! I exert a lot of effort in eating healthy and exercising, but am feelin really lost and disappointed now

[kimbernada 190]

It could just be that you are adding muscle to your body. Or have you tried a different scale? (What if your scale is broken?) Way back in time, I was hitting the gym really hard. I dropped several sizes in clothes but hadn't weighed myself. When I finally DID hop on the scale, it showed that I had only "lost" 10 pounds of fat.

You are obviously losing fat as your body is shrinking!! I'm thinking that you are just gaining muscle from all of the hard work that you are doing at the gym.

[katikati 127]

Your work outs sound intense and amazing. It seems like it's possible that you're building muscle at the same time that you're losing. Or, and I'm a newbie, so please defer to the opinions of more experienced VSGers and your surgeon/nutritionist, but with work outs that intense, I wonder if you need to up your calorie intake. It could be a combination of those things.

[Imabeskinny 31]

I am having the same problem and doing about the same as you. This week I am increasing my calories to 1000-1200 and drinking 70oz+ of Water. Hoping it helps (worked last time!)

[SpaceDust 585]

Don't get too hung up on the scale. I know it's "weight loss surgery" but why is it we want to lose weight, really? Some of the common reasons:

1. To be more healthy

2. To be more active

3. To look better

So, is it really about the weight? Not so much as we sometimes think. It's about the balance of body fat and muscle in our body, combined with the nutrition and exercise we're providing to our bodies to keep it healthy, in my opinion.

Therefore, if the scale isn't moving, but the inches are, I think everything is golden, and here are some reasons why:

1. Healthy: building more muscle improves your strength, endurance and metabolic rate, while dropping a much more important number - body fat %

2. Active: If you're dropping the inches and gaining muscle, activity becomes easier, and the more you do, the easier it becomes.

3. Looking better: Well, we KNOW that if your body is reshaping, losing inches, becoming better toned that we're most likely looking better, fitter, healthier.

I'm not saying that the scale isn't important at all - of COURSE we want to get weight off, it's easier on our joints, among other things. What I am saying is notice and give appropriate applause to the progress you're making. Eventually those pounds will start moving again because these other things are happening.

Now, that said, I think that you might find it worth trying bumping your calories upward as Imabeskinny said - more Protein, and if you aren't doing much in the way of carbs, maybe introduce some complex carbs back into your diet. I'd also suggest tracking your diet pretty closely for a couple of weeks just to make sure you get dialled in, even if you don't track all the time normally.

I have to applaud you for being able to get so much exercise in, and those Insanity routines are intense! Based on conversations with my trainer a couple of years ago, though, you might want to change up your exercise routine now and again to shake things up, too - it seems like you focus primarily on cardio. You might find it useful to do a little bit more strength training - get some resistance bands and learn a few exercises to use those effectively for working the major muscle groups. This will help give you longer lasting metabolism boosts. My trainer had told me that if your body gets too used to a certain set of activities, it tends to get more efficient at them. To get things moving again, you have to throw in new challenges periodically

[Misty_eyes 79]

I am having the same problem and doing about the same as you. This week I am increasing my calories to 1000-1200 and drinking 70oz+ of Water. Hoping it helps (worked last time!)

Hi! Will definitely try upping my Water and maybe my calories too. Will try to change things a bit to see if it makes a difference. Thanks!

[Misty_eyes 79]

Don't get too hung up on the scale. I know it's "weight loss surgery" but why is it we want to lose weight' date=' really? Some of the common reasons:

1. To be more healthy

2. To be more active

3. To look better

So, is it really about the weight? Not so much as we sometimes think. It's about the balance of body fat and muscle in our body, combined with the nutrition and exercise we're providing to our bodies to keep it healthy, in my opinion.

Therefore, if the scale isn't moving, but the inches are, I think everything is golden, and here are some reasons why:

1. Healthy: building more muscle improves your strength, endurance and metabolic rate, while dropping a much more important number - body fat %

2. Active: If you're dropping the inches and gaining muscle, activity becomes easier, and the more you do, the easier it becomes.

3. Looking better: Well, we KNOW that if your body is reshaping, losing inches, becoming better toned that we're most likely looking better, fitter, healthier.

I'm not saying that the scale isn't important at all - of COURSE we want to get weight off, it's easier on our joints, among other things. What I am saying is notice and give appropriate applause to the progress you're making. Eventually those pounds will start moving again because these other things are happening.

Now, that said, I think that you might find it worth trying bumping your calories upward as Imabeskinny said - more Protein, and if you aren't doing much in the way of carbs, maybe introduce some complex carbs back into your diet. I'd also suggest tracking your diet pretty closely for a couple of weeks just to make sure you get dialled in, even if you don't track all the time normally.

I have to applaud you for being able to get so much exercise in, and those Insanity routines are intense! Based on conversations with my trainer a couple of years ago, though, you might want to change up your exercise routine now and again to shake things up, too - it seems like you focus primarily on cardio. You might find it useful to do a little bit more strength training - get some resistance bands and learn a few exercises to use those effectively for working the major muscle groups. This will help give you longer lasting metabolism boosts. My trainer had told me that if your body gets too used to a certain set of activities, it tends to get more efficient at them. To get things moving again, you have to throw in new challenges periodically [/quote']

Hi there! Thanks for the encouragement! I could never do these exercises before but I actually enjoy them now. I am so motivated to lose weight and be healthier. I've had 2 recent deaths in my family from heart attack and I know I have bad genes, so I need to really try to make a difference. I will up my Protein and Water intake to see if it makes a difference, and yes it's not about the scale, but it would be nice to see it go down. Thanks for reminding me about my progress, it can be hard to do that seeing everyone's weight coming off. Will have to stay positive positive and remind myself about my non scale victories! Thanks!!!