New to the forum - in desperate need of support! :/
 

Hi everyone!

It's nice that this forum exists. Social media can get super frustrating and sometimes a gal just needs to vent about her fitness journey.

I started working out around May 25th by lifting weights and doing strength training about four times a week, and have seen great results as far as muscle building goes. However, I've run into several issues that have me freaking out.

1) I haven't lost any weight. I actually feel like I've gained weight, if anything. My diet isn't super strict, but I don't drink soda or juices, I don't eat fast food and I've tried to always make the right decisions even with the worst options. My jeans are tighter than they were before :( My legs feel fantastic, but I want to lose the 20 pounds I've gained in the last four years and I was wondering if this is at all normal.

2) I love working out, but not losing weight is making me really sad. I see other people lose weight within the first two weeks by just doing zumba or something and I can't even drop a pound.

My eyes are watering as I'm typing this, that's how upset I've been about it. Granted, I don't need to lose a ton of weight, but even five pounds seems unattainable right now and I thought I was doing all the right things.

Can anyone relate? Can anyone offer any advice or words of encouragement?

I apologize for going off on a rant :/

It takes a lot of exercise to accomplish weight loss. You're doing the right being active. If your body could thank you for it, it would! Maybe just feeling fit and well is the thanks!

Watch your calorie intake. Measure (!) and log your food. Don't go over your calorie limit. You can make great food choices and yet eat too many calories.

Fitday can help by allowing you to set a weight goal and time frame and then giving you a daily calorie limit. Underestimate your level of activity - to be conservative.

You should also be weighing yourself so you have some number to go by. You can diet without weighing yourself but as you've noticed, you don't know where you are without a number. You know you feel fit and well, though - and that is great!

Good luck!

Thank you for your reply! :) Honestly, working out 4-5 times a week is SO much easier for me than counting calories! haha. I know I need to keep track of my eating. It's so difficult. If only I had enough money to pay someone to just tell me what to eat, sigh.

Did you struggle in the beginning as well? I really thought I'd drop weight immediately and then hit a plateau or something!

Like a lot of people on this message board, I've been counting calories for years!

You can actually see that weight loss does occur when you eat fewer calories - and that is really reinforcing and positive encouragement. The hardest part is just sticking with it - you get off track, you don't take diet seriously anymore, you get bored with the foods you're eating, etc.

If you read some of the posts of people on this message board, especially the challenges and the people who weigh themselves often, it's very positive. It takes time - and you can see that, too!

Hypnosis can help you!
 

I have found the new FREE Rachael Meddows Health & Fitness app to be VERY helpful in my journey to lose weight, stay motivated, and boost confidence. I have recommended her audiobooks to many of my family members and friends, and I have yet to have a complaint. I would highly recommend checking out her stuff.

Kathy is right...you really have to weigh, measure and count calories to get a steady loss. You would be surprised at how fast one extra bite of this and that can add up to an excess in calorie intake for the day. In the beginning it was very difficult for me to get in the habit of doing it. But now I know that I stay on track better when I stick to it. Keep up the exercise and keep making good food decisions.

As someone else said, it takes a lot of exercise to burn off calories. Most people think they're burning off more calories at the gym than they actually are.

The bottom line is, you need to create a calorie deficit in order to lose weight. Which means you need to burn more calories that you are taking in. The best way to do that is through BOTH, Exercise AND Diet. Personally, dieting alone or exercise alone never did it for me. I've got to put them both together to see results.

Another thing... I know counting calories can be a burden. But sometimes you have to go back to the basics. It's easy to take in more calories than you think. I use the FitDay food log every single day. I create my custom foods and even calculate entire meals of recipes that I've come across on the internet. That way, I have them for the next time and all I have to do is click on the meal I want to eat and apply it to my daily food journal.

Another thing I've been doing is cooking all my meals for the week on Sundays. I bag each individual meal in a single serving zip lock freezer bag and just take them out of the freezer as I need them. That way your calories are already counted for you.

I have a ton of weight to lose. I've been on this journey since March and have lost 70 pounds so far. But when you have less weight to lose like you do.... it is often times more stubborn to lose than someone like me who has a lot to lose.

Good luck to you. You can do it.