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Nutrition Fat and Frustrated

ClayPainter

Level 2 Valued Member
Some thoughts and frustrations:
I am on a weight loss journey. So far I have brought my weight down from 270ish to last week 258.8 without tracking weight religiously but through exercise & tracking calories. I weighed myself this morning and am at 260... about 1 pound gained from last week.
I have been religiously tracking calories, not eyeballing, but weighing and measuring everything. My daily intake was targeted at 2200 calories with a an average of 2400 when you average in a 'cheat day.'

I am 40 (almost 41) and 6' tall.
I have been exercising about 4 days a week with S&S and a high volume swing day thrown in.


Using an online calorie calculator:
my basal metabolic rate should be about 2100 cal/day
If I am sedentary-ish, my maintain weight should be about 2550 cal/day
If exercise a little 1-3 days per week, my maintain number should be about 2900 cal/day

By these numbers I should be in a calorie deficit, and I am wondering why in the world I gained a 1+ last week?

Thoughts/possibilities:
1-I could be consistently miscalculating my calories...
2-My basal metabolic rate could be lower than others...
3-While I think I fit into the light exercise category, I could be more sedentary than I think...
4-It could just be an off week...
5-gaining muscle...

1-I don't think I am miscalculating calories and I try to error on the side of caution (slightly over estimating calories and rounding up when needed).
2-Maybe my metabolic rate is lower than others but I feel like this is sometimes an over-used excuse.
3-I do think that even though I exercise, my base movement is not high enough (step count etc).
4-Maybe it's an off week, but I'd rather not backtrack for another 1 to 2 weeks to find out.
5-Gaining muscle is another one of those things I feel like is over-said/used, pluse gaining a pound of muscle in a week... come on.

My current plan is to make sure my daily average for next week is down to 2000 cal/day and to increase my daily steps...

Bottom line. I'm fat and frustrated.
My healthiest adult time was about 14 years ago and I was about 210...

Not looking for answers per se, but I did want to externalize some of my frustrations and get thought and input.
Thanks.
 
It's ok to be frustrated and to acknowledge it. Just hang in there and do your thing anyway.

I am at the opposite side of the spectrum (struggling to put mass on), and I find that weight fluctuates greatly. So don't read too much into single or reading or sometimes even weekly averages. The body does not work in linear ways.

S&S is great, walking is great. Just keep doing it and be patient. At the least, you will be stronger and healthier because of it.
 
There are many approaches to diet and other than calories you have not indicated what approach you have decided to use. Personally, I favour a paleo approach (moderate-high protein, lower carb, healthy fats). One thing to note is that variation in dietary carbohydrate can result in a variation in weight due to water that stays inside the body bound up with glycogen. This is one of the reasons why people who swap to a lower carb diet often note big losses in weight in the first week or so (ie water loss occurs as part of micturition\urination due to reduced glycogen).

Stress can also retard weight loss and so if you have had some changes happen in the last little while, it is possible that it might be involved. Cortisol is one of the hormones involved.

It is also important to realise that the process of weight gain\loss is not linear but can vary a bit as they body adjusts itself. If you are eating healthy, following a program like S&S, doing some walking and making sure you recovery is good then you can have confidence that the body will adjust at its own rate. (NB Lack of recovery means stress from training or elsewhere is present in the background.)
 
1-I don't think I am miscalculating calories and I try to error on the side of caution (slightly over estimating calories and rounding up when needed).

Maybe you should calculate your calories not for what you are but what you want to be!?
2900 cal is way too much.
If you want to be like 176lbs you should eat accordingly.
Go under/around 2000 cal.
Cut softdrinks. Only water.
No food with added sugars (Fruit loops and the like..)
No milk shakes with sugar..
Sometimes heavy people don't count the amount of sugary drinks they consume. Water is all you need. Period.
Quality food. No junk food. You don't need cheat days. You've been cheating long enough. Fast instead once a week.
Without discipline in your diet you can't reduce weight.
Green vegetables, rice, salads
Maybe see a nutritionist.

And - it's normal that weight is waving. I'm going up and down 2-4 lbs in a day.. I don't mind.
Stop weighin - instead measure your size aroud the waist.
And move. Walk as much as possible. Cycle, start running eventually.. Check out David Goggins..;)
And take your time. Time will pass anyway. (You can be still big in three years or not) So try to progress not in weeks but in years. Just stick to your resolution and you'll succeed!
 
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I am certainly not known for my patience, but would still encourage some patience in your project.
Going too low on calories is not a sustainable plan if it causes too much physical and psychological misery. The body, including the fat mass, will seek homeostasis, so counting calories and estimating how many calories you burn, may not lead to as much success as desired from week to week. Over time, though, restraining yourself from junkfood will benefit your weight loss, and keeping up your good training routines will also leave your body no other choice than do adapt in the desired direction over time.
 
I am having some of your problems too. I am 36 now. And I have tried loosing weight when I was younger too. I noticed that the older you get, the harder it is to loose weight.

I used to weigh myself every day. I just stopped doing that because it was too annoying and I got frustrated when my weight went up.

What I am doing now is something called mindful dieting. I eat what I feel like. But I try to think about what I really want, what is good for me, what can nourish me and all that. I don't eat just to get a short-term high, I try to be kind to myself by eating something that brings longterm benefits. I want to loose weight, but I would also like to do it as comfortably as possible. So my goal is to do this until Friday in 1,5 weeks. Then I will go on the scale again and see if this method has worked. If not I have to see where I can cut down/eat more healthy.

Hope that helps.

PS: I have the same approach to training. I like to train at home and I like to train with kettlebells. I both like to be relatively in shape, and to be able to hike tall mountains (the results). In addition I like and enjoy the process of carrying kettlebells, swinging kettlebells and all that. I try to have the same approach to dieting. I try not do diet, but to eat and active and healthy lifestyle where my relationship to food is mature.
 
Some thoughts and frustrations:
I am on a weight loss journey. So far I have brought my weight down from 270ish to last week 258.8 without tracking weight religiously but through exercise & tracking calories. I weighed myself this morning and am at 260... about 1 pound gained from last week.
I have been religiously tracking calories, not eyeballing, but weighing and measuring everything. My daily intake was targeted at 2200 calories with a an average of 2400 when you average in a 'cheat day.'

I am 40 (almost 41) and 6' tall.
I have been exercising about 4 days a week with S&S and a high volume swing day thrown in.


Using an online calorie calculator:
my basal metabolic rate should be about 2100 cal/day
If I am sedentary-ish, my maintain weight should be about 2550 cal/day
If exercise a little 1-3 days per week, my maintain number should be about 2900 cal/day

By these numbers I should be in a calorie deficit, and I am wondering why in the world I gained a 1+ last week?

Thoughts/possibilities:
1-I could be consistently miscalculating my calories...
2-My basal metabolic rate could be lower than others...
3-While I think I fit into the light exercise category, I could be more sedentary than I think...
4-It could just be an off week...
5-gaining muscle...

1-I don't think I am miscalculating calories and I try to error on the side of caution (slightly over estimating calories and rounding up when needed).
2-Maybe my metabolic rate is lower than others but I feel like this is sometimes an over-used excuse.
3-I do think that even though I exercise, my base movement is not high enough (step count etc).
4-Maybe it's an off week, but I'd rather not backtrack for another 1 to 2 weeks to find out.
5-Gaining muscle is another one of those things I feel like is over-said/used, pluse gaining a pound of muscle in a week... come on.

My current plan is to make sure my daily average for next week is down to 2000 cal/day and to increase my daily steps...

Bottom line. I'm fat and frustrated.
My healthiest adult time was about 14 years ago and I was about 210...

Not looking for answers per se, but I did want to externalize some of my frustrations and get thought and input.
Thanks.
Hey Clay - understand the frustration! Keep in mind two things:

1. Your bodyweight will fluctuate, often even 2%! Just as an example earlier this week I “lost” 4lbs in two days and then in a day put 3lbs “back on.” This is normal and depends on a lot of things, including water weight (which can fluctuate based on how many carbs and sodium you ate the day before).

2. Weight loss is not always linear. The more you zoom in (daily, weekly, and even monthly) you will see fluctuations going up and down. What’s more important is that it trends down over the long term. Especially if you feel like you’re “doing everything right” it could be just one of these non-linear blips.

I understand the frustration, but be slow to change things. Start looking at other ways to assess success than just the scale to keep your morale up during periods of weight fluctuation. Understand that you are in this for the long term and temporary blips do not warrant radical changes.
 
I weighed myself this morning and am at 260... about 1 pound gained from last week.
Blip

Could be just a blip. +1 lb is nothing

This is most likely it.

my basal metabolic rate should be about 2100 cal/day

Calculating Metabolic Rate

All of the method and calculators used online are incredibly inaccurate; based on guessing.

There is a huge plus/minus factor with any type of guessing.

Rather than guessing, this is more effective ad zeroing in on...

Determining Metabolic Rate

A practical approach to determining Metabolic Rate is...

1) Three Day Recall

This is something you're doing. Measure the number of calories consumed in three days.

2) Divide by three to obtain your Daily Average Calorie Intake

If your weight remains the same on this number of calories, that is your Maintenance Level for your Daily Average Calorie Intake.

If your gaining weight, you are in a Calorie Surplus.

If you are losing weight, you are in a Calorie Deficit.

Decrease in Metabolic Rate

This essentially means in time your Metabolic Rate adapts to your new lower calorie intake. It becomes you New Metabolic Rate.

You then need to drop you calorie intake to get weight loss going again.

However, your body will then adjust to the New Lower Calorie Deficit.

A more effective method is base on this research...

MATADOR Diet

This method involves Rotating Calorie Intake, up and down approximately every two weeks.

Once weight loss stops, go into a Calorie Deficit, around 20% for approximately two week. That should jump start weight loss.

After that two week period, increase calories for approximately two weeks. Doing so, Increases You Metabolic Rate.

Some weight gain may occur but it should be minor, if caloric intake didn't increase that much.

After that two week Calorie Intake, drop back down to a Calorie Deficit.

This approach amount to taking two step forward and one step back.

Yo-Yo Dieting

Yo-Yo Dieting is a term that is used by individual who go on a low calorie diet and then go back to eating like they did prior to being on a weight loss diet, even eating more.

The MATADOR Diet amount to being a Yo-Yo Weight Loss Diet. Only the reverse occurs, weight is lost rather than gained.

Bodybuilders Bulk and Cut Dieting

The MATADOR Diet reinforce this method that Bodybuilder have used for decades.

However, one of the issues is that many Bodybuilder go overboard, consuming too many calorie in the Bulking Phase.

Dr John Ivy determined that when calorie intake increased beyond 20% of one's Average Daily Intake, greater fat increase occurred.

Bodybuilder also tend to cut their calorie too low in the Cutting Phase.

Dr. Layne Norton found the same to be true when with a dramatic decrease in the cutting phase; in this case greater muscle mass was lost.

Insulin Resistance

Another issue for overweight individual is is they tend to be Insulin Resistant. That means that their body's don't deal with glucose (carbohydrates) effectively.

If they consume too many carbohydrates their body will store them as body fat.

With that in mind, let look at one method that addressed that issue...

The Atkin's Diet

This is a very misunderstood diet.

It is not a Ketogenic Diet and many believe.

The diet starts off by eliminating carbohydrates down to the Ketogenic Diet recommended level.

However, after a few weeks, carbohydrates are slowly added back in. Each week is monitored.

If you weight remains the same, more carbohydrates can be added back in.

However, once weight gain occurs with the carbohydrate that are added back in, you reduce carbohydrates back down to where they were when you Body Weight was being maintained.

This approach allows an individual to determine what there Carbohydrate Sensitivity Level is.

In other word the number of carbohydrate they can consume on a daily basis and maintain their weight and the number the pushes their weigh higher.

Food Allergies

The Atkin's Diet approach concept is essentially the same as testing food individually to find out which one is causing the problem.

With Atkin's is amount to testing the number of carbohydrates to see the amount triggers the weight gain.
 
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Thanks everyone for their replies, advice and encouragement.
There are many approaches to diet and other than calories you have not indicated what approach you have decided to use.
My approach has been to eat 'clean' (stay away from processed foods) and stay below 2200 a day...
If I look at my macro split it has been about (emphasizing 'about') 20/40/40 (carbs/protein/fats).
Maybe you should calculate your calories not for what you are but what you want to be!?
2900 cal is way to much.
Absolutely - I've been hitting lower than that, and like you said 2000 or below is likely a good target.
Your comments about cheat days is well-received. Most of my cheat calories are alcohol on a weekend day, and that doesn't help, I'm sure.
Going too low on calories is not a sustainable plan if it causes too much physical and psychological misery. The body, including the fat mass, will seek homeostasis, so counting calories and estimating how many calories you burn, may not lead to as much success as desired from week to week. Over time, though, restraining yourself from junkfood will benefit your weight loss, and keeping up your good training routines will also leave your body no other choice than do adapt in the desired direction over time.
This is good advice, i.e., finding a sustainable deficit for sure.
1900-2000 seems like where I need to be at to not feel 'starving.'
Patience, for sure. Have you tried low carb approach?
I haven't gone on any strict no/low carb diet, but in general carbs are always the lowest on my macros.

I used to weigh myself every day. I just stopped doing that because it was too annoying and I got frustrated when my weight went up.

What I am doing now is something called mindful dieting. I eat what I feel like. But I try to think about what I really want, what is good for me, what can nourish me and all that. I don't eat just to get a short-term high, I try to be kind to myself by eating something that brings longterm benefits. I want to loose weight, but I would also like to do it as comfortably as possible. So my goal is to do this until Friday in 1,5 weeks. Then I will go on the scale again and see if this method has worked. If not I have to see where I can cut down/eat more healthy.

Hope that helps.
Thanks! Let me know how that goes! I personally don't succeed at that. If I don't track calories I need to slip into bad decisions, but hopefully over the long haul I can develop a good mindset like that.

Could be just a blip. +1 lb is nothing (you could go to the loo and pass that!)
Carry on doing what you are doing, it can take time.
If after 1 month you have gained 4lb (1 lb per week) then maybe look at it again.
I appreciate that. My plan is to not do anything drastic yet, but lower my calories a bit more and try to increase activity (walking, steps, etc).
Hey Clay - understand the frustration! Keep in mind two things:

1. Your bodyweight will fluctuate, often even 2%! Just as an example earlier this week I “lost” 4lbs in two days and then in a day put 3lbs “back on.” This is normal and depends on a lot of things, including water weight (which can fluctuate based on how many carbs and sodium you ate the day before).

2. Weight loss is not always linear. The more you zoom in (daily, weekly, and even monthly) you will see fluctuations going up and down. What’s more important is that it trends down over the long term. Especially if you feel like you’re “doing everything right” it could be just one of these non-linear blips.

I understand the frustration, but be slow to change things. Start looking at other ways to assess success than just the scale to keep your morale up during periods of weight fluctuation. Understand that you are in this for the long term and temporary blips do not warrant radical changes.
Good perspectives. Thanks for the big-picture view.
 
A simple question: does your diet contain any vegetable oils, such as these made from canola, corn, cottonseed, soy, sunflower, safflower (to name just the most popular)? Do you regularly eat out or order takeaway? Do you eat candy, chips and other sterotypically junk foods, even in small amounts?
 
A simple question: does your diet contain any vegetable oils, such as these made from canola, corn, cottonseed, soy, sunflower, safflower (to name just the most popular)? Do you regularly eat out or order takeaway? Do you eat candy, chips and other sterotypically junk foods, even in small amounts?
Good questions.
Oils - We cook with olive oil at home, exclusively. But I am sure that I have eaten something with vegetable oil in it.
We don't eat out or order takeaway, but I do eat in my company canteen (I stay away from stuff that I can't easily itemize).
Candy - I have had a couple pieces (and I mean pieces) in the last couple of weeks, and I account for those calories.
 
Some thoughts and frustrations:
I am on a weight loss journey. So far I have brought my weight down from 270ish to last week 258.8 without tracking weight religiously but through exercise & tracking calories. I weighed myself this morning and am at 260... about 1 pound gained from last week.
I have been religiously tracking calories, not eyeballing, but weighing and measuring everything. My daily intake was targeted at 2200 calories with a an average of 2400 when you average in a 'cheat day.'

I am 40 (almost 41) and 6' tall.
I have been exercising about 4 days a week with S&S and a high volume swing day thrown in.


Using an online calorie calculator:
my basal metabolic rate should be about 2100 cal/day
If I am sedentary-ish, my maintain weight should be about 2550 cal/day
If exercise a little 1-3 days per week, my maintain number should be about 2900 cal/day

By these numbers I should be in a calorie deficit, and I am wondering why in the world I gained a 1+ last week?

Thoughts/possibilities:
1-I could be consistently miscalculating my calories...
2-My basal metabolic rate could be lower than others...
3-While I think I fit into the light exercise category, I could be more sedentary than I think...
4-It could just be an off week...
5-gaining muscle...

1-I don't think I am miscalculating calories and I try to error on the side of caution (slightly over estimating calories and rounding up when needed).
2-Maybe my metabolic rate is lower than others but I feel like this is sometimes an over-used excuse.
3-I do think that even though I exercise, my base movement is not high enough (step count etc).
4-Maybe it's an off week, but I'd rather not backtrack for another 1 to 2 weeks to find out.
5-Gaining muscle is another one of those things I feel like is over-said/used, pluse gaining a pound of muscle in a week... come on.

My current plan is to make sure my daily average for next week is down to 2000 cal/day and to increase my daily steps...

Bottom line. I'm fat and frustrated.
My healthiest adult time was about 14 years ago and I was about 210...

Not looking for answers per se, but I did want to externalize some of my frustrations and get thought and input.
Thanks.
Nil Desperandum man. Never despair. You’re on the right path and consistency and perseverance trumps everything in this game. I would say to stop “bean counting”. Stay away from scales, as like someone here already said, a high carb day can put pounds and pounds on you. If you have the technique down maybe have a look at Geoff Neuperts stuff. Complexes especially. Just keep at it and no matter what’s going on so long as you keep slugging at it, it will always trump doing nothing.
 
Most of my cheat calories are alcohol on a weekend day, and that doesn't help, I'm sure.
Alcohol will surely hinder your progress. When you drink your body burns alcohol first, in effect stopping fat loss for a certain period.

If you do drink, limit both the frequency and quantity, while choosing the best drink options (wine, spirits).

I'd also suggest you try 1 fast per week. I found that 24h ones work very well. Either skipping breakfast and lunch (supper to supper) or going from lunch to lunch. Just make sure you get a good amount of protein in the meals you eat on those days. If you do try fasting, I've found that a pinch of salt in the water I drink while I fast makes it easier.
 
Good questions.
Oils - We cook with olive oil at home, exclusively. But I am sure that I have eaten something with vegetable oil in it.
We don't eat out or order takeaway, but I do eat in my company canteen (I stay away from stuff that I can't easily itemize).
Candy - I have had a couple pieces (and I mean pieces) in the last couple of weeks, and I account for those calories.
I've asked about candy, because unfortunately a lot of it has some added vegetable oil. I would also bet your company canteen saves money by adding these (even high end restaurants usually cook with the same toxic oil as cheap fast food places).

The problem with these toxic fats isn't only or even primarily their calorie content, but the metabolic disruption they cause. If you try to lose weight while continuing eating these it's a Sisyphean task; you literally need to fight your body every day to make any progress, if at all. No matter how little calories you eat, weight loss won't happen if your cells aren't able to burn your stored fat effectively, or if a large percentage of your adipose tissue is actually made of these same toxic fats. You can read more about this topic here.

From my experience: I used to be on a crash diet which consisted of two slices of bread, an apple an a small bowl of oatmeal each day. I failed to lose any weight while my body temperature dropped dramatically (I shivered uncontrollably in warm summer nights), I became weak and mentally lethargic. During my military training, I exerted myself to exhaustion (and then some) every day while eating very little. However, that "very little" consisted mostly of vegetable oil and carbs. At the end, my arms and legs looked like an anorexic's while my belly was even larger. So much for eating less and moving more.

After I've learned about the vegetable oil problem it was a completely different story. I lost about 15 inches off my waist in about nine months without any conscious calorie or macro tracking - just making sure to eat absolutely no veg oil.

One more aside - I suggest measuring your waist circumference rather than just weighing yourself. A small change in weight may be related to myriad factors - muscle mass, retained water, a large meal before. Thinner waist is always better.
 
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Nil Desperandum man. Never despair. You’re on the right path and consistency and perseverance trumps everything in this game.
Thanks - Consistency is something I'll need to build in order to accomplish the long term goals for sure.
Ya…unfortunately time and consistency are your real answers here. I started training seriously about 3 years or so ago and I've only just recently started to see the true physical/aesthetic results I’ve wanted.
Ha! This is both encouraging and discouraging. Thanks for the realistic big-picture though.
Alcohol will surely hinder your progress. When you drink your body burns alcohol first, in effect stopping fat loss for a certain period.

If you do drink, limit both the frequency and quantity, while choosing the best drink options (wine, spirits).

I'd also suggest you try 1 fast per week. I found that 24h ones work very well. Either skipping breakfast and lunch (supper to supper) or going from lunch to lunch. Just make sure you get a good amount of protein in the meals you eat on those days. If you do try fasting, I've found that a pinch of salt in the water I drink while I fast makes it easier.
Good suggestions. Much appreciated.
I've asked about candy, because unfortunately a lot of it has some added vegetable oil. I would also bet your company canteen saves money by adding these (even high end restaurants usually cook with the same toxic oil as cheap fast food places).

The problem with these toxic fats isn't only or even primarily their calorie content, but the metabolic disruption they cause.
...
One more aside - I suggest measuring your waist circumference rather than just weighing yourself. A small change in weight may be related to myriad factors - muscle mass, retained water, a large meal before. Thinner waist is always better.
Good information and personal experiences. Thanks.
I'll raise my awareness and dig into this as well.
 
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