Why is my goal so elusive?? Long rant!

I've been sitting here debating about posting this  because it seems all I've posted lately is about my goal weight and how elusive it has been.  Well, here I go again!!  I get weighed and measured once a month at my gym.  This month I've actually seen a 1/2 in*****rease in my waist and almost 1 pound gain.  Well, this is so playing head games with my mind and I'm sitting here freaking out.  I still have about 10-15 pounds to go before I reach my goal.  Now, I kjnow it is not all about the number but in all honesty, it is.  I have done very well with my weight and I know I look so much better but I'm not where I want to be.  I am journaling everything and am staying pretty consistent with my calories, protein and carbs.  I'm also excerising at least 5 days a week and some days I exercise twice.  My weight has remained the same (except for the little uptick) for almost 2 months.  My body measurements are all the same, except for the 1/2 in*****rease in waist.  I just don't get it!  If, according to the charts, my body needs at least 1200 calories just to do it's thing and I'm getting less then that then why am I not losing?  I journal everything!  

Here are my average daily counts:  1100 calories (again this is average - some days less, some slightly more), 70+ grams protein and about 70 grams carbs or less.  I do occassionally eat something sweet, like a cookie or a couple bites of chocolate but I am certainly not indulging in these things constantly and I journal everything that passes my lips.  

Ugh!  I just want to reach that goal and be done!  I'm 1 month away from my one year surgiversary and I just want to be at my goal. 

Thanks for listening. 

Have you considered that YOUR body is already at goal?  Now how do you "know" your body needs 1200 calories?  Maybe it just needs 1000.  Are you doing any weight bearing for your metabolism or ding just cardio?

Ms. Shell,

I do quite a bit of weight lifting and home and at the gym.  I attend a gym that is similar to curves so I do a combination of weight lifting and cardio.  I spend about 45 minutes there.  I also will do bands at home when I don't go to the gym or when I jog/walk the track. 

Hi, Heather,

Do you have one of those BodyBugg things that everyone is raving about that show how many calories you are using? Otherwise, you can't really know that your body will lose with 1100 calories, as MsShell said. One of our friends, who's out at about 4 years, has discovered that she can only eat 1,000 calories a day to maintain and needs to drop to 700 to lose anything and she exercises, and she's not tiny...so metabolism is a very individual thing.

It also may be that your body is "resting" for a bit and will start losing again...that did happen to me. I thought I was done and then went on to lose another 20 lbs. slowly over the 2nd year...but it might be worth investing in one of those gizmos to know for sure...

Lizanne

I know that for me my body is quite sensitive to carbs. 70 grams would be way too high for me, particularly if those carbs weren't just from green veggies. I tend to have to be super strict to lose, even at my higher weight. Perhaps you have to be super strict too?

How many weeks has it been since you have lost zero pounds? When did you gain the pound? Are you saying you only weigh once a month? I'm unclear on that.

My last cycle I gained TEN pounds of water weight and looked about 4 months pregnant. Also, personally I can never trust a waist measurement because my waist is squishy and I wouldn't be sure that I had the same exact same tension every single time.

One more thing, what is your BMI?

Hi Mandy,
It has been actually 2 months,  I just checked my ticker, since I've lost weight.  I weigh almost daily but go by my weight at the gym for an "official" weight. 

I don't have periods anymore but I do still have my ovaries so I'm sure I do have a cycle but just never know.  Right now my BMI is just within the normal range at 24.9. 

I read your post about the body bugg and that has me intrigued but again, how accurate can it be?  Maybe I'm just one of those people that in order to lose weight I need to really limit my calories.  Anyway, I am frustrated and just want to have this monkey off my back.  I feel like all I do is stress about my weight and I really want to reach goal and start settling in to maintenance. 

Thanks for your help.

Ok, I want to think on this for a bit. It is going to take a lot for me to recommend you decrease your calories with a clean conscience. The LAST thing you want to do is teach your body to exist on fewer calories. Trust me.

How long have you been working out? How long with weights? Why do you work out twice a day? How much time total spent exercising when you do twice a day?

Personally, the only benefit I think you will get by lowering your carbs is the initial drop in water weight. If you have been losing ok (up until a couple months ago) eating carbs, then it's not the carbs, it would be the calories. That said, if you do drop your calories, drop carbs first. DO NOT drop protein or fat. You are on the low side for protein already.

I posted about this a bit in my other post...about intermittent fasting. Initial studies show a better rate of fat loss with IF than with traditional eating protocols. Honestly, I would at the very least try this before lowering calories. Let me know if you want more info and I can C&P some info here for you. I am currently cutting using IF and I LOVE LOVE LOVE it.

As for the BodyMedia Fit/BodyBugg, I have yet to see how accurate it is when it comes to me since the device is still new to me, but so far what I've seen from MANY people (big huge long thread on my bodybuilding board) is that everrrrryone thinks they are an exception to normal metabolism rules, yet none of them have actually been an exception. If that makes any sense. :~)

What I can tell you is that when I was bulking, I was barely gaining (if at all) on 1,800 calories and that is my actual expenditure on rest days according to the device. I didn't really see much progress until I had some higher calorie days, 2,000+ cals. So, so far it seems accurate for me. (device readings: rest days around 1,800, workout days around 2,100) This is EXACTLY in line with what the Katch-McArdle formula gave me (1,981cal  average to be exact). You can google that if you have a relatively good idea of your body fat % to tell you what your maintenance *should* be. This is the most accurate formula there is (unless one is obese or does not know bf%).

And, just so you know, I totally understand how you feel and how frustrating it is. If you are like me, you've probably cried out of frustration. Or maybe I'm just emotional. :p

Hi Mandy, I would love more information on the IF info.  You can send me links or post here.  I only mentioned working out twice because there are days where I will work out in the morning then we'll do something as a family in the evening or I will do some cardio in the evening.  I have been using the curves like gym since Sept.  I generally do about 45 minutes slowly moving to an hour.  It alternates cardio with lifting.  There are days when I will focus mainly on the lifting so I'll spend more time doing that with the cardio thrown in and then there are days where I will do interval sprints on the treadmill - 90 seconds walking with 30 seconds all out running.  I do this about once a week.  I've also been going to the track and doing 2 1/2 miles of interval walk/jog workouts and hope to progress to more regular jogging.

I checked the Katch - McArdle formula and it says I need 1282 calories for BMR and based on how active I am (I put moderately active) I need 1988 calories.  Based on my gym calculations I have 32% body fat. 

Thanks for all your help!  I did read your weight lifting posting and was very intrigued.  I am mainly looking to tone up and build up muscle.   And yes, I have cried in complete frustration.  I hate to talk about it with my family and friends because they all think I look great and I've done really well but there is something about really wanting and needing to reach my goal.  I've never been able to do that before and I don't want to gyp myself of doing it now.

to lose weight i had to stay 600 to 700 calories, less than 40 g carbs and 70 g protein. it was not easy and even with that i was a slow loser. today i maintain at 1100 to 1200 calories and 40 to 70 g carbs and 70 g protein. seems pretty skimpy but its what my body does. some of us just can't lose weight on more than pretty low calories. i would try cutting back about 200  calories a day. not easy at this point but worth the effort if this is driving you nuts. hope you get there. I think you will. diane