What am I doing wrong?
 

I'm baffled. I'm doing everything right and still I do not see the scale drop. I'm 5'4", 140 lbs, and am a size 4/6. I would like to be 125 lbs. I've been there before, so I know it's possible. I'm working out 6 days a week (35 minutes of cardio and 25 minutes of weights). I'm eating 1000 calories a day. This should calculate into 2.8 lbs lost per week, but nothing is happening. I am noticing toning changes to my body, but it's extremely frustrating to see zero changes on the scale. Any advice?

I don't think you are eating enough. 1000 calories per day is not even enough to sustain you. Your body is going into starvation mode and your metabolism is slowing to keep you make up for it.

I'll bet you are exhausted.

It's been how much time since you've started??? More cardio, at least 45 min should do fine...

It's not unusal to hit a plateau for a few weeks. It would be difficult give you ideas because we do not know your health or age.

Maybe cut down the salt intake, look at the % of vits in your diet. Ask your doctor to check your health for other weight retention probs(thyroid) or meds. Just keep trying.

My metabolism has changed as I got older. I had two surgeries this year and a knee injury. I not realizing that the medications from the surgery might have affected my digestion.

I am trying healthy herbal detox products and cleasers to get my digestive system clear of all the medications. Weight gain with medications are a big barrier for many people.

What types of foods are you eating?

Peace,

Jo

I'm by far not an expert, as I'm only just starting to work out myself.

I agree with what someone else said, 1000 calories per day may not be enough, in which case your body will go into starvation mode and burn muscle instead of fat. There's some good advice here, particularly dealing with adding variety to your workout.

Eliminate that Weight Plateau and Start Making Progress!

Just keep working out, eating right, and comparing your calorie intake to your calorie usage (should not be higher than 1000 calorie deficit from what I'm told). Just knowing that you are following a healthy lifestyle and doing right for your body is more important than jumping on the scale for reassurance.

It sounds like you're doing great! http://www.fitday.com/fitness/forums...ons/icon14.gif You just need some minor tweaks to balance out your nutrition.

I have heard eating too little can be bad?
 

Maybe you need to eat a little more. Your body may be starving? Try eating 1400 calories a day instead. Also if you weighed 125 when you were in your teens or twenties and now your in your late twenties or thirties maybe your new ideal weight is where you are at now. Sometimes it is almost impossible and not a good idea to get back to an earlier than 23 year old, weight.

For me, I am 5'1" and weigh 150 lbs. My ideal weight is 135. At 20 I weighed 98 but I cannot go back to that weight and do not want to. My bone structure was different then. I have a woman's frame and a woman's weight to go with it. At 135 I have no flab. At 150 I have a little too much flab for my taste and not enough flexibility.

If you increase your calories to 1,200 per day, you will see results. If you eat less than 1,200 calories per day, your body goes into starvation mode and it will hold onto the fat, not burn it. Thus your metabolism slows down. Eat 1,200 to 1,400 calories a day and you will notice a difference! Also, if you are lifting weights, you may be burning fat and building muscle, which means your pants size will decrease but your weight may stay the same. Good luck!

What am I doing wrong
 

You are not eating enough. For this to work you need to take in more calories.

Hanben

If you are seeing tone changes, it might be you are gaining muscle and losing fat, but since muscle is denser your total mass isn't changing.

"Starvation mode" may or may not be a true condition, depending on who you talk too, but I do agree that you should try increasing your calorie intake to 1200/day to see if that helps. You might always want to try zigzagging (1000 one day, 1400 the next, averaging out to 8400 a week). If you aren't doing cardio, or aren't doing MUCH cardio, you might want to increase that part of your workout to increase your metabolism.

Or, if you ARE doing a lot of cardio, try adding in some weight training...

Basically, change things up and see what happens.

I think it may be that you are not getting enough calories for your body, also you said your are noticing more definition so it may be that you are losing weight but gaining muscle and your weight has stayed the same...

I agree with the others. Increase your intake up to 1200 to 1400 calories a day. Your metabolism could be slowing down due to the small amount of calories you're taking in. It does sound like you're increasing in muscle mass and muscle does weigh more than fat. That is the reason a lot of fitness gurus tell us to mark our progress using our body's measurements instead of the scale.

You could try changing your workout up and increasing your calories at the same time. Try doing a different type of cardio. For instance, if your running on the tread mill, try kickboxing or HIIT instead. Something with a little more intensity. Or you can continue on the treadmill and increase the incline and speed. You may also consider going a little bit heavier on your weights. I'm 5'2 and 162 and I work out 6 days a week cardio HIIT/plyometrics and 2 days weight training and I consume a minimum of 1250, max 1500. Have you done your BMR and accounted for the exercise that you are doing? Once you do your BMR and add in the calories you burn for your level of exercise, you will have an idea of the amount of calories you need to consume to lose the weight you want. If you listen to your body it will tell you what it needs. Hope this helps.

Thanks
 

Thanks for your advice. I'm 32 years old. Basically, my weight has crept up since the age of 27 and the birth of my first child. I will try eating 1200 -1400calories a day and adding more cardio. 10-15 lbs should be a breeze to lose, but I guess my body really likes the weight that I am at.
Thanks again!

I think every one is right in saying that you need to up your calorie intake to at least 1,200 per day but bear in mind, because you are doing weight training you are gaining muscle which weighs more than fat! It is normal at the start of a resistance or weight training regimen that you gain or stay the same weight, keep at it and the numbers will start to go down!

You need to eat no less than 1200 calories or your body will go into starvation mode. To lose one pound a week, you need to burn at least 3500 calories in the week. The other posts are right, you need to do cardio for at least 45 minutes at 65% of your heartrate for at least 30 minutes of it.

Read EAT To Live.

eat more and you will lose more. might take your body a week or 2 to adjust to getting the calories it needs to burn off the fat/extra weight. my girlfriend did the same thing: 5 days/week cardio burning 700 cal @ gym and the rest of the day while only eating ~1100 cal/ day. that doesnt work at all :D