no weight loss after 3 months! what am I doing wrong?
 

I have been working with a trainer 3x/week since beginning of Jan/11. Lots of strength and metabolic training (no separate cardio b/c he said not to).

When I started with the trainer I began cutting back on food but then he showed me Fitday in mid-Feb and I was hooked. I have kept calories between 1500 to 1800 for the most part (seemed reasonable for a 1-1.25/week weight loss). He has me keeping protein around 30% and carbs around 25% - leaves about 45% for fat which seemed high but he says not to worry b/c it comes from good fat and it's most important to keep protein high/carbs low. Hasn't been too hard and I don't feel too deprived.

I only weigh myself once/month so that I don't get depressed or obsessed with the scale. After 3 months there is no change! After the first 2 months I told myself that it was going to a slow process/maybe muscle gain/etc. but it has been 3 months now and I'm a bit worried. Sure my muscle definition has improved and clothes fit better (maybe 1/2 size to 1 size down) but REALLY? No pounds lost?

Does anyone have a suggestion? I wonder if I need some different nutrition advice...I'm not going to give up on this weight loss but I really need a positive motivator!

thanks so much

If you're losing inches and getting muscle growth then that's a sign that you are losing bad weight and gaining good weight.

As odd as it may seem, so long as you keep getting fitter, stronger and thinner then what the scales say doesn't actually matter that much.

You might want to take measurements, that always helps to motivate me when I can't get the scale to drop any. I hate to say this, but 3x a week would not help me to lose weight, I have to be at it 5-6 hours/week or there is no change. The trainer clearly has you on some sort of muscle building routine, which will not make much difference in the scale. I think you probably need to make it clear to the trainer that you want to get in shape and lose weight, which would most certainly add some cardio to your routine, and possibly a lower caloric intake (IDK because you didn't give any details about your current height/weight, gender). Cardio burns calories lots of them, weight lifting doesn't burn nearly as many, but being more muscular helps your body to burn calories more efficiently. Over the long haul, it's a toss up.

I think maybe you might consider experimenting with changing things up a bit. Not everyone's body is the same. I agree with almeeker; putting cardio in is a good way to burn calories, but definitely use it in addition to, not instead of, the weight work. Also, everyone does differently on different carb, fat, and protein mixes. If you're stuck, this could also be something you could try changing. Just because your trainer says one thing doesn't mean it is the answer for you personally. Just as an example, one poster, Deanna, has had tremendous success with a very low fat diet. Others do best with low carb; still others, in the middle. For years I was on the low-fat bandwagon and wondered why I never lost as much as I wanted to. This time I tried to have more of a balance of good fats, getting it to about 25%, and it worked like a charm. It's all about figuring out your own body and unfortunately there's no quick way to do that. Good luck and hang in there; your answers will come to you.

Are you measuring your food? That is a key part of counting what your caloric intake is. It's worth having a good scale just for that, and an arsenal of measuring cups and spoons, etc.

I made do for years with an old WW scale. Wasn't that crazy about measuring. I was at a thrift shop and saw a nice scale with a capacious tray for measuring. I bought it and find it much, much easier to use. I think the big tray made the difference. Weigh everything, measure everything. At the very least, it slows down 'mindless eating'!

Last year I started actively trying to lose weight. I ran 5 mi on a treadmill the days I didn't work and 3 miles on a treadmill the days I did work and reduced my caloric intake. I had a body fat analysis done before I stared. While working out the scale number was going down so I felt pretty good about life.

Two months later I did a follow up body fat test and HALF the weight I lost was muscle mass! Half!

Though I know that you are disappointed the the numbers aren't going in the direction you want them to, trust me on this, you are far better off with the numbers staying the same and NOT losing muscle. Muscle is the gift that keeps on giving. If you are are seeing more definition and your clothes are fitting better then that means you are bolstering your calorie burn at rest. This is awesome!

Don't lose sight of the forest for the trees.

I'm going to put my 2 cents worth in. I think that is way to much fat in a daily diet. Good, bad, indifferent, fat is fat. I agree that we all need fat to lose fat, but I would try getting no more than 30%. I'd also add cardio!!! In order for weight loss, you need the 3 key ingredients: nutirtion, weight training, and cardio. I personally do my cardio after weight training, and it's an interval training of approximately 20 minutes. On a treadmill, it's the easiest on manual setting 5 minutes warm up, jack it up either on the incline or speed, or both, for 1 minute, back down to warm up level for 1 min. Repeat for a total of 20 min. then cool down for 5.

Give it a try, it definately can't hurt, it can also be done on any cardio machine. Good luck & don't give up.
Oh, I think that a 1 time weekly weigh in is better than the once a month. That's way to much time to realize that something isn't working, obviously!

A big thank you to everyone for your input and encouragement! I'm going to start implementing some changes - I guess the main goal is not to quit!

Ask your self that are you regular with your diet plan and exercise if yes then improve your diet plan and expand your exercise time ...
I hope this would work for you.

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