No weight loss...why is this happening?



cyclechick00

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Nov 12, 2007
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Hi, I'm new here. I've been cycling for about 5 yrs. and recently, I've gained close to 40lbs. over the past year and a half. I haven't changed my diet (I try not to eat dairy, sugar and red meat) and I run at the gym for an hour plus do a 45 min. weight routine. I cycle 10-20mi./2-3 days per week. I just put my bike on the trainer for the winter. I'm ready to throw in the towel, because no matter what I do I either maintain my current weight or gain. I used to weigh 95lbs, now I'm 126 and 5'1". I really find it hindering my cycling performance, not to mention I look awful. I had my thyroid tested and all the routine blood work is negative. What can I do to reverse this, am I doing something wrong or leaving something out?
 
1. You are eating more than you realize. You need to log EVERYTHING you eat during the day. EVERYTHING! This is the only way to keep track of all the calories you are taking in.
2. Your muscle mass has probably increased.

I too have eating issues. Notice I said EATING issues and not weight control issues. The simple semantics here allows me to place the responsibility for not losing weight squarely on my shoulders as gaining/losing weight is a simple matter of calories taken in (eating which is my responisibility) being more/less than calories expended (exercise or metabolism). If I eat more calories than I metabolize, I will gain weight; if I eat less calories than I metabolize, I will lose weight.

I realize I am simplifying things quite a bit, but IMO there is no need to make weight loss any more complicated, confusing, and/or difficult. Just keep an honest log of EVERYTHING you eat and you will realize where you need to cut back...
 
Tony has some good advice.

Log your diet and exercise on Fitday if you are US/Candian or Calorie King if you are Australian/New Zealand.

From the small amount of info you have provided, another possibility is that you may have an inbalance between what you eat.
 
thanks for the advice. i registered at fitday. it's really frustrating, i know I'm not pro or anything but I do do 2-3 centuries per year and last year i was too embarrassed to do any of them. my big thing too is winter training. i hate indoor spinning and i can't seem to find a routine that works for me, so eventhough i get on, i give up rather quickly. i'm going to try circuit training on the trainer - usually i just spin and burn out. what about the Zone anyone? I ate religiously by that plan a couple of years ago and it really worked for me. I'm just not a big meat eater, so now it's getting harder and harder to add the protein.
 
Understanding your consumption is the first step to correcting it. Don't forget to include your sleep on Fitday. There are vegetarian bodybuilders and they manage to get the huge protein intake they require, so being low on meat consumption doesn't mean you need to miss out on your protein requirements.

You must live somewhere cold like Canada or UK. Here in Sydney we can ride all year ;)
 
Don't forget that your body type may make it more difficult to lose weight: it is not as simple as calories in and out, no matter what the gurus say. Some of us are genetically programmed to store fat, others to burn it. Take a look at this article in the UK newspaper the Observer, a well respected journal. http://observer.guardian.co.uk/magazine/story/0,,2198862,00.html

I've found that I never lose weight through vigorous exercise, as it makes me hungrier and I compensate for the calories burned. I've only ever lost weight by reducing the intensity of exercise so that my appetite is reduced and I can cut back on intake and slowly lose a few pounds, at most 1 or 2 a week.
 
Ok at 5' 1" and a weight of 95lbs, your BMI was 17.9 which puts you in the underweight category. At 126lbs your BMI is 23.8 which puts you in the normal range for your height. (I realise BMI has its limitations but as a rough rule of thumb, it works reasonably well)

When you say you look awful - what exactly do you mean? Also, how old are you?
 
matagi said:
Ok at 5' 1" and a weight of 95lbs, your BMI was 17.9 which puts you in the underweight category. At 126lbs your BMI is 23.8 which puts you in the normal range for your height. (I realise BMI has its limitations but as a rough rule of thumb, it works reasonably well)

When you say you look awful - what exactly do you mean? Also, how old are you?


I'm 29, I know I'm in the normal range but I'm used to being a lot leaner. I have a belly that won't seem to go away. I refuse to believe my metabolism has slowed that significantly in two years. And for a short person, that's on the heavy end of normal BMI. I can't say it's because I'm getting older because when I was in high school and college I was actually heavy and sedentary, probably around 140 lbs. It's when I got into shape that I thinned out. Maybe my routine is just getting stale.
 
I will add that it is also important to consider the combinations of foods that you eat as well as the quanity.
Also when you eat.
A rapid metabolism calls for more food and increased appetite.
You may also be cursed by genetics and tend to store weight where you don't want to store it.
The bad news is that it will get harder as you age. When I was 29 I couldn't gain to save my life.
I have now conquered anorexia. As a matter of fact I kicked it's butt and utterly destroyed it.
 
Fitday has been a worthwhile tool for me. I am not 100% sure how accurate it is, but it provides an excellent starting point for charting calorie intake/expenditure as mentioned.

Last Christmas I was 244 pounds. I started charting my eating with Fitday and try to maintain 1800-2200 calories daily with a healthy ratio of carbs, protein and fat. On Saturday I weighed in at 202, I am 6' in height. I am working toward a goal of 185 for next summer.

One thing I do notice, if I increase my exercise or riding significantly, I also tend to gain a few pounds before eventually going back down. Could be increased muscle mass, but by charting my eating with Fitday, I also find that I increase calorie intake during those periods, but not enough to add weight.

I have become pretty compulsive about getting on the scale each morning. I find this motivates me to stay away from cookies and other high calorie foods. My body has gotten to the point that I am losing only 1-2 pounds a month on average. Some months I don't lose any weight even though my calorie intake is less than my expenditure.

The amazing thing I learned over the past year is that I have to eat to lose weight. I can not ever be hungry as that promotes binge and over eating. I now eat every three hours, EVERY DAY!

I am now in my early 50's and probably in better shape physically and mentally than anytime in the past 25 years! I ride on average 50-100 miles a week depending on my schedule.

Good luck and stay with it.
 
9202 said:
Fitday has been a worthwhile tool for me. I am not 100% sure how accurate it is, but it provides an excellent starting point for charting calorie intake/expenditure as mentioned.

Last Christmas I was 244 pounds. I started charting my eating with Fitday and try to maintain 1800-2200 calories daily with a healthy ratio of carbs, protein and fat. On Saturday I weighed in at 202, I am 6' in height. I am working toward a goal of 185 for next summer.

THANKS EVERYBODY FOR YOUR INPUT! What do you think is a good ratio? I try to stay with the 40-30-30 plan (40 protein). Should I change that around?
 
cyclechick00 said:
9202 said:
Fitday has been a worthwhile tool for me. I am not 100% sure how accurate it is, but it provides an excellent starting point for charting calorie intake/expenditure as mentioned.

Last Christmas I was 244 pounds. I started charting my eating with Fitday and try to maintain 1800-2200 calories daily with a healthy ratio of carbs, protein and fat. On Saturday I weighed in at 202, I am 6' in height. I am working toward a goal of 185 for next summer.

THANKS EVERYBODY FOR YOUR INPUT! What do you think is a good ratio? I try to stay with the 40-30-30 plan (40 protein). Should I change that around?
seems good, ok
 
Something doesn't add up with the original post. If, as you stated, your diet hasn't changed, then a 40lb weight gain is bordering on impossible. Unless you came off some illness/surgury, this kind of weight gain is unlikely.

What you need to look at is before vs after. Assuming the gain was fairly constant, it means you have gained around half a pound per week. That means your calorie surplus is fairly extreme. People that lead sedentary lifestyles and eat junk food would expect that sort of weight gain.

Get a second opinion with the blood works. Thyroid gland is the obvious check but there are other tests for unexpected weight gain. Certain medications cause weight gain too. Check with your doctor if you are taking any. Fluid retention is the other possibility, but you have stated that you have a "belly". Fluid retention is usually linked to swollen legs, ankles and face.

If you eliminate all the medical possibilities (including pregnancy), it is likely that your body is normalising at 126lbs. Like someone else said, your current weight puts you in the healthy weight range. 95lbs is considered underweight for your height. Look at what you were doing to get to 95lbs ( eating problems, excessive excercise) and ask yourself honestly why you dropped to that weight. In my experience with weight management, I have found that people who experience significant weight fluctuations (140lbs to 95lbs and back to 126lbs is a serious fluctuation) have almost always had psychological issues as a root cause. Consult your doctor and be honest with him/her and be honest with yourself.
 
cyclechick00 said:
Hi, I'm new here. I've been cycling for about 5 yrs. and recently, I've gained close to 40lbs. over the past year and a half. I haven't changed my diet (I try not to eat dairy, sugar and red meat) and I run at the gym for an hour plus do a 45 min. weight routine. I cycle 10-20mi./2-3 days per week. I just put my bike on the trainer for the winter. I'm ready to throw in the towel, because no matter what I do I either maintain my current weight or gain. I used to weigh 95lbs, now I'm 126 and 5'1". I really find it hindering my cycling performance, not to mention I look awful. I had my thyroid tested and all the routine blood work is negative. What can I do to reverse this, am I doing something wrong or leaving something out?
I don't know if this is still an issue but I lost weight unintentionally just by changing my diet. Try cutting out bread and pasta aim for gluten-free products. Eat veg, fruit, pulses as main part of diet and don't eat carbs and proteins together. Also, wine/alcohol reduction will make a massive difference if you are used to a tipple. Don't snack between meals. Hope this helps.
 
QikSmurf said:
Something doesn't add up with the original post. If, as you stated, your diet hasn't changed, then a 40lb weight gain is bordering on impossible. Unless you came off some illness/surgury, this kind of weight gain is unlikely.

Yeah, you're right there. I didn't consider that. About a year ago, I was on five anti depressants. My doc diagnosed me as bi polar. I didn't have a history of being bi polar nor did I feel like I was. I just had a stressful job I needed to get out of. Needless to say, I was on the drugs for 6 mos. That's when I gained the weight and I've never been able to lose it since. I did get another job and replaced the meds with a healthier lifestyle with exercise, but the flab still remains.

It's just that being that thin once is bothering me because I felt so good and my performance was so high. It may have not been the healthiest choice, but I just keep comparing everything to that one point in my life because everything was going so well.
 
I have a few tips that really helped me with some not too majoy weight loss.

First of all is track everythign you eat. Everything, i mean every single thing. No you cant skip things becuase you don't want them to count. I dont know if i can hammer this home hard enough becuase it is one of the biggest ways people who are really working hard dont get results.

With that said, leave some room in your calories per day to cheat. We usually call that "descretionary calories". Maybe leave 200 calories hanging that you can snack whenever you didn't get full from your meal or are hungry between meals.

Onto meals; eat a meal every 3 hours. They will obviously be smal meals. Eat breakfast, every day. A day you dont eat breakfast is a day your resting metabolism plummets and you almost garunteed won't lose any weight. Even if you dont have an apetite in the morning you must eat. This is preferably one of your larger meals.

As for meal size it is going to be small so you need to find a way to feel full. #1 tip for me is lots and lots of fiber. Fiber is a carb that your body cant get an calories out of. It makes you feel full but cant turn into fat. Eat LOTS of whole grains and fiber. If you are biking a lot you want to eat lots of carbs but many people like bodybuilders eat a high fat diet. Bodybuilders are one part of the population who are constantly going on weight loss plans and have a lot of experience. Fat makes you feel full but they also try to lose weight without doing cardio like biking. So if your biking you might want 40% carbs and 30-30 split with the rest.