I've been exercising consistently and eating around1800 calories/day since mid-January but have only lost 6lbs

Question

What am I doing wrong?

Answer 1

That's actually pretty good. If you can lose 1 to 2 lbs a week you will be doing it right. Don't worry so much about it because muscle weighs more than fat. You are probably losing more than you know.

Answer 2

Nothing wrong. 6lbs is really good, remember exercise never promises miracles it's very difficult for some people to lose weight. Although I think the recommended diet is supposed to be 1500 calories, but you must also take everything into account a diet of 1800 calories is fine but if you're eating a ton of fat and sugar you're not helping yourself. Look up the food pyramid! I think the little thing by your question was a girls profile, so i'm guessing you're a girl. The average height for american females is 5'4'' and the average weight is 135lbs, so don't try to fit into some rediculous model. Don't forget about body type either some people are just naturally built a certain way. Since I cant see you I don't know but my guess is you look pretty average and you're just trying to fit the standard mold, don't. Love who you are and how you look.

Answer 3

There's several things that can be going wrong. First of all, don't look at the scale. Are your clothes fitting better? Do you feel better? Those are the things you're looking for. Muscle will weigh more than fat, so try to look for those things rather than what the scale says. Second of all, look at the foods you're eating and how often you're eating. If you want to loose weight, you want to limit how much fat, salt, sugar, and oils you're getting. High salt can make you gain water weight. One of the main things that prevent people from losing weight is that they try to eat salads. However, they typically add on a bunch of salad dressing, which is LOADED with fat. Another thing is to stay away from any soft drinks. Just choose healthier foods, not less. For example, instead of eating fried chicken and french fries, try grilled chicken and some carrots. Also, if you're eating hamburgers, make sure that the meat is extra lean. Try doing a food journal and look at the foods you're eating. Then look and see what kind of foods they are. Compare them to the "go, slow, whoa" chart on this web site: http://kidshealth.org/kid/stay_healthy/food/go_slow_whoa.html
It's for "kids", but it breaks foods down into three categories, which can help you make better choices. If you're eating a lot of foods from the "whoa" or "slow" columns, that might be the reason. For exercising, make sure that you're doing a variety of exercises and keeping active throughout the day. You don't mention how much you do weigh... if you're close to what you should weigh, then it's not going to make a difference then.

No matter what, you should always talk with your doctor before trying to lose weight. (Which is the last piece of advice I will give you.) Good luck!

Answer 4

I lost 105 pounds in 6 months. Here is how I did it.
1. Every morning get up and walk for 45 minutes. You can start with less time, but you want to get up to 45 minutes, and it must be fast walk. You want your heart rate to go up. It must be in the morning, it kick starts your metabolism.
2. I cut out Red Meat, and fatty foods. Boneless skinnless chicken breast, baked, or grilled, rice and vegetables (steamed).
3. Eat half. Just eat half of what you normally eat. Put 1/2 on your plate, and put the rest away. Cook less. When you go to fast food, get salads only. Or grilled chicken. No fries, only diet soda. Or water.

It will work, once you get into a routine, you will get hooked on the results, and you will keep the routine. It has been over a year for me.

Also start counting your calories. Write them down. You would be amazed as to how much more aware you are of your caloric intake, if you actually write it down. We recently discovered a site that offers a great program that counts calories, as well as keeps track of everything. It allows multiple users, so everyone in the family can keep track. They offer a free 7 day trial, and so far I am very impressed with the product. Try the 7 days and see. It allows you to add the exercise that you do during the day, which increases the amount of calories you can take in. Very Cool!!
http://www.calorieking.com

A sight with some really cool diet calculators and interesting calorie counting calculators is here. Check it out.
http://www.caloriesperhour.com/



Check out my before and after pic at my yahoo 360 page
http://profiles.yahoo.com/gorillamyke

Stay motivated, and get up and walk every day. I seriously lost all my weight starting off my day on my walk.

Good LUCK!

Answer 5

I would say what you are doing wrong is eating the 1800 calories of fatty or high fat foods. You can also work out longer, if you dont go to the gym get a membership and go 5-6 days a week.

Answer 6

don't gage your accomplishments in trying to lose weight by standing on a scale. You are building muscle and burning fat....muscle weighs more than fat and will offset your loss on the scale. Try and decide if you feel better, stronger, more energetic, do you have more muscle tone, have you lost fat from certain areas of your body. These are true measurements of your progress. Stick with your routine of exercise and diet. In time you will have enough muscle that your body will eat its fat away feeding the new tissues as muscle requires a lot of nutrient to maintain thus increases your metabolism.

Answer 7

1800 is about 400 too much. And maybe you're not eating the right foods along with them like fibre and lean meat. And maybe the exercises you're doing are not enough.

Answer 8

Your exercise will make you lose fat, which you would expect in turn to help you shed off those pounds, but exercising also builds muscle, which weighs more than fat.

Answer 9

just remember, muscle is heavier than fat. don't take the scale results at face value