For more than a week now my weight has been fluctuating about a pound. That’s the only real movement I’ve seen on the scale over the last 9 days.
That’s a really long streak for me not to see any real weight loss, especially when I’m eating this well – and this simple. No bars or shakes, no recipes or products, just “real food” and very simple meals.
It’s not water weight. I’m not bloated. I feel good, and I FEEL leaner.
I was sure I would see a drop on the scales this morning after I looked at my body in the mirror this morning. But nope – nothing. I stepped off, stepped back on again, stepped off and tried one more time. Nothing. 🙄
Now what?! This happens. It’s happened to me before. It’s likely happened to you too. So what do you? The most common response is to just throw in the towel and take a day off and “eat whatever.” What does it matter if this is not working anyway?! Right? Eh NO, been there – and gained back what little I HAD lost. 😛 I get the mindset though, because it was the first thing I thought & felt this morning too, lol.
My scales are challenging me. My body is being stubborn. I can be just as stubborn. I am going to take ON this challenge, and challenge it back!
I’ve lost 3.4 pounds so far, since April 4th.
Today is Day 13 of the “Get Lean For Summer!” 90 Day Low Carb Challenge.
It’s not too late to join us if you haven’t already. 😉
I am committed!
This is the most committed I’ve ever felt. Spring is here, and Summer is just around the corner. I refuse to give in and be “plump” this summer! I’m pleased with my progress so far, and my resolve.
I have NOT been working out this week, so that’s on me. I aim to get back to my workouts, and make it a HABIT. That should at least help with toning and shaping my body, even if the scales aren’t moving.
Day 12: Friday’s Low Carb Meals
I was off schedule yesterday. I mentioned in my last update that I slept most of Thursday evening, so I was up all night when I woke up after that. I got up at 9:30pm, stayed up until 4:30am, got up for an hour and then slept three more.
It made for a long “Friday”. 😛
I only had one meal while I was up in the wee hours Thursday night / Friday morning. It was my usual “low carb cereal” – 1/4 cup Daisy brand cottage cheese, 3/4 cup pecans & 4 small strawberries. It was 6 net carbs and 88% healthy fats.
It’s pretty much a perfect LCHF meal. 🙂
I didn’t feel like eating again until around noon on Friday. I was famished by then! I went out and got a quick delicious lunch from Captain D’s Seafood Restaurant. It’s a little fast food type place.
I ordered the “grilled fish & shrimp” (it’s whitefish) with an extra shrimp skewer, and double green beans for the two sides (“no rice, no bread please”). The meal is 7 net carbs, which is all in the 2 green bean sides.
When I got hungry again I scrambled up two large eggs with a slice of colby jack cheese. Super quick & easy meal. 🙂
Eggs are about half a carb each, so you count 1 carb for two eggs.
My evening snack was a slice of colby jack cheese with a serving of almonds. I also had two pieces of sugar free candy earlier in the evening (1 net carb for 2 pieces when you subtract the sugar alcohols).
And I just realized I forgot to log it, but I had 1/2 cup of Chicken Broth before I went to bed last night. I find chicken broth is great for curbing cravings, and it’s a nice hot savory drink I really enjoy!
Here’s My MyFitnessPal Diary for Friday:
Here’s how & what I track, and how I get Net Carbs in MyFitnessPal.
Calories: 1795
Net Carbs: 25
Total Carbs: 44
Protein: 62 Grams
Macro Ratios: 87% Fat, 9% Protein
Water: 48 ounces
I don’t feel like I ate very much yesterday considering how LONG the day was for me, but I didn’t have much of an appetite. 25 net carbs and less than 1800 calories is not bad for a day that lasted more than 24 hours, lol.
I am not giving up, and I am NOT giving in. I am going to stick to meat & greens today, get in a good workout, and keep on keeping on. Watch me beat this. 😉
How did your week go?
Leave a comment below, and let’s do this together!!
Best,
Lynn Terry,
aka @LowCarbTraveler
p.s. You can subscribe by email below to get my Daily Food Diaries throughout the Low Carb Challenge sent straight to your inbox. That way you’ll never miss great (easy!) low carb meal ideas. 😉
Sandi Paulk says
I have days like that also Lynn, ( stressed with a driveway project ~ ugh ) I am like you just keep on keeping on its all worth it in the end . Hope your day is better today π
Lynn Terry says
Thank you, Sandi! I’ve had some stress this week too, and being off schedule to boot – both affect my scales (stress & sleep quality) so I’m just going to ride it out. π
Karen says
Oh! Yes! Chicken Broth. I need to start having that more when I feel the *need* for something but I know it’s not true hunger.
Lynn Terry says
Chicken Broth is like magic. π Even just 1/2 cup of hot steamy savory broth really hits the spot – even when I have a sweet craving. Go figure! lol
Naomi says
So here’s my thing…I’ve not only been low carbing but I’ve been working out (nothing crazy just 20 mins cardio) since September…not only am I not losing but I’ve gained 10+ lbs. I’ve discussed this with my accountability partner and she thinks I maybe having too much protein but I’m not…my protein intake has not only not increased it may have even decreased so I don’t know what to do at this point it’s so frustrating. (Also what’s your fitness pal username I’d love to friend you)
Lynn Terry says
Hi Naomi,
How are you tracking? I ask to see if you’re getting at least 70% of your daily calories in healthy fats? Upping mine to closer to 80% helped me start losing again.
The first thing I cut is: nuts, bars, shakes, any processed foods & complex recipes. Going down to super simple real foods and 3 ingredients per plate really seems to help.
Check these 4 points: http://www.travelinglowcarb.com/5093/not-losing-weight-eating-low-carb/
My MFP account is set to private but I publish all of my food diaries here, so you can subscribe by email and you’ll get them straight to your inbox. π Keep me posted on anything you discover or try! Happy to help…
Lynn Terry says
p.s. Swap your 20 minutes of cardio for 20 minutes of weights or strength training. π Try that for the next month!
Jennifer says
Way to stay focused!!!! As you know, I’ve kind of been going through the same thing, but with the added stress of a deadline. Well, today my scale moved again! Nothing major, just a couple points down, but hey! I’ll take it!!! Yesterday, I pulled out my photos from last year when I started my low carb journey. To kick things off, I entered a Body Transformation Challenge at our Jiu Jitsu gym. It was a 7 week challenge and I was determined to win. Especially since I had to pay money to join it! Anyways, I remember being so excited at the end of the 7 weeks w/ my transformation. I had lost 10 lbs in 7 weeks and I was started to see some of that belly fat go away. That challenge ended in July, and since then I’ve struggled to really lose much more. Up until recently, I’d only lost and kept off another couple extra pounds, but I compared the After photo for the challenge to a progress photo from last week and wow the difference is AMAZING!!!! I may not have lost a lot of pounds, but I’ve definitely lost a lot of fat! My pudgy belly is no longer pudgy, but defined with almost a six pack!!! So moral of the story is, never ever give up even when the scale isn’t budging, or if it’s doing the rollercoaster. That’s the story of my life this past year, but I have continued with my low carb journey and the results definitely show π
Lynn Terry says
That is the absolute best comparison – to refer back to photos and SEE the change in your body! That was the thing that kept me feeling strong this morning. I could see a definite difference in the mirror, just not on the scales.
And you’re right – the results definitely show. And if you throw in the towel, THOSE results show too. π There’s no way I’m throwing away all the hard work I’ve put in the last couple of weeks. NO way. π *cheers*
Laura says
I keep my macros under the limit, I know we don’t count calories, but I’m often below 1200 or @ 1300 as for the carbs most days has been 15 to 20, the scale hasn’t moved for weeks, I’m sick of it, I did one day of fasting it helped a bit 1 lb, I feel like my metabolism might be damaged. Perhaps I have to eat a lot more strict without any salt, no butter, ( the nuts are out) I’ve cut dairy mostly, no artificial sweeteners except once a day, and only drink tea no coffee and no hwc no sfs, I just don’t get it but I find this unfair, I think to succeed I’m going to have to do some serious fasting and dieting, I restarted this woe on February 22 and I’ve only lost about 7 lbs, I think that’s ridiculous, I’m so disappointed!
Lynn Terry says
Hi Laura! I feel your frustration. I went through that awhile back – a few months ago I think – and increased my carbs to 25-30/day, as well as my calories, and started losing again. That sounded nuts even to me (!) but sometimes you have to play with the numbers a bit.
Question: How close are you to your goal weight? I ask because the last 30 pounds (and especially 10-20!) are the MOST challenging…
Deb says
Lynn, I have never commented here before and I want to tread lightly because I know it’s a controversial subject in LC world, but honestly I have been VLC (under 30 gms and often under 20 grams) over 6 years now, with an all time high non-pregnant weight of 230 lbs (5’9″) and have maintained a fairly steady weight of 145 lbs all that time of being LC. I say ‘fairly steady’ because I am living testimony to the fact that I unfortunately (and many others I know as well) have absolutely got to count/control calories or I will drift up to the 170’s pretty easily.
I have never carried the experiment further than than before buckling down with the calories again. At 59 years of age, and as someone who puts in at least 10,000 steps and usually more like 15,000 steps, many of these climbing up our mountains on my daily hikes, my baseline calories for not gaining on a day with no exercise is 1600. I give myself back 100 calories per mile walked, and 10,000 steps is about 5 miles so every 2,000 steps is 100 calories. Thus on a 5 mile day I can eat 2100 and not gain. I do 100 reps of various body parts daily at least, but never count that against calories and I am quite lean and fit. My weight never flickers if I follow this formula.
Even if I go to nearly zero carbs on a fat fast or egg fast, and I eat more calories than that I will gain weight. I wish it wasn’t so, but it just is. It strikes me that your calorie count is way to high to lose fat. I’m not trying to be judgmental at all, but I am a firm believer in the LCHF way of life, for many benefits that go beyond weight control. Both myself and my husband have health markers that astound our doctors. We feel great, have great mental clarity and nobody believes our ages.
I think that if people get the idea that they can eat whatever they want regardless of calories, it’s a huge disservice to this eating regimen as they will eventually give up and go back to their SAD life. Keeping carbs low allows us to be in control of our hunger, not the other way around, and allows us to stay within our calorie budgets far more easily than something like Weight Watchers… and confers so many health and anti-aging benefits, that giving up because ‘that diet doesn’t work for me’ is sad indeed!
OK, off my soapbox now, but hopefully my/our experience will be heedful to you and your readers. Deb
Laura says
Thank you Deb!!! Wow as I read your article i felt you were speaking to me! I think it’s the answer to my question/ issue and concern! I can’t tell you how much and how many times I cringe when I see people post endless recipes loaded with bad stuff, which end up being major stallers, dishes loaded with cheeses, sauce, hwc, and loaded with tons of calories! It never ends, I used to make some of the recipes only to get stalled and feel horribly bloated, even gain back, when I thought I was doing everything right, turns out I was doing everything wrong, I guess I still am with almost no exercise, I’m not sure how to begin exercising I don’t like hiking alone and where I live gyms are awful and crazy expensive! Thanks for shedding some light!
Deb says
Laura,
I hate hiking alone too! Luckily my husband goes with me much of the time or my daughter, but I still end up trudging my hour or so a day alone quite often. My solution? Books on tape! There are some free services or you can subscribe to Audible and just download them onto your smart phone and listen with ear-phones. It’s inexpensive and you would not believe the way it makes time fly.
I’m so busy running a business that I really look forward to that time now, because I’m at an interesting place in the book. I’m a big music person, but listening to Podcasts (Another usually free resource.. I highly recommend downloading some of Jimmy Moore’s podcasts with all the most respected Low Carb experts in the world. A truly wonderful reinforcement and motivator!
Deb
Justine says
Deb,
In this groups defense this isn’t a low carb/low calorie 90 day challenge. Some of the members on here are trying the LCHF WOE for the very first time so bombarding people with “hey watch your carbs but you have to also watch your calories” is what makes people discouraged and they quit. Lynn has never told any of us that we can eat whatever we want. She has given us endless supply of very easy and satisfying LCHF meals. At the beginning of this challenge everyone was given a link to all of the acceptable foods that are allowed. Most of us have a major problem controlling our carbohydrate intake so right now that is our main focus. Of course she doesn’t want us on a crazy high caloric diet and has never suggested that.
Deb says
Justine, I’m pretty new to this group..I subscribed because I’m so busy right now and was looking for some tips for simplification of my lifestyle which generally includes a whole lot of cooking, but as much as I love it, it so time consuming. I was not intending to critique Lynn at all by what I said.. Honestly I’m not sure what she tells readers about all that. And you are absolutely correct. If someone is brand new to this type of eating, counting calories as well as carbs could very well be un-doable and overwhelming.
I was responding to Lynn’s frustrating lack of progress as I had looked at her diet diaries. Someone new to this almost invariably eats way less calories than they did before, simply because their body is kind of in shock about the lack of carbs and often they instinctively mostly stick with the portions they’re used to and just drop out the carbs. As we get more familiar with the food lists and start doing things like making fat bombs and subscribing to the wishful thinking that if they eat more fat ect, the weight will magically move..that’s when it’s time to see if you need to tweak your number one macro.. Calories.
Even Gary Taubes and Peter Attila agree that calories are the final predictor of whether or not fat loss occurs, when all is said and done.. but low carb IS vitally important for many of us who cannot control calories when eating a standard mixed diet filled with HFC and flour.
Also, I see that I said ‘heedful’ which sounds pompous, when I meant to type ‘helpful’. Wishing everyone the best! Deb
Lynn Terry says
Thank you for your detailed reply, Deb! π While I don’t count calories, I do note them – just because they’re there. After reading your reply I went back to the last two times I was losing super well (8.8 pounds in 5 days, 6.4 in 7 days, etc) and examined those food journals. They were all around 1600-1800 calorie days for the most part. And I was exercising about as much as I am now (not enough, lol).
I’m game to do some playing around with my numbers, but I also know I’ve had some stress & tummy issues this week – along with allergy meds & advil. And I’m at that stubborn weight (hovering above 150 pounds) where my body tends to go in a hold on me. π
Thanks again – loved hearing what’s working for you! π
gigi says
Hi Lyn
I am having a better day today. I had your LC cereal this AM
Lunch was a grilled chicken (bunless) club from Hardees. I made a shredded lettuce salad with Avacado on the side with LC ranch dressing. Yummy lunch. I bought a second Chicken club for dinner later
You have given me some great ideas on how to eat on the Go…..or in my case it’s called too lazy to cook for one person
I did manage to drop 4 oz today. Lol. Hey,
i will take any loss gladly.
I have been craving a soft serve icecream cone so badly or a light ice cream from another place. It’s ‘light’ but NOT sugar free
Last night i whipped up some coconut cream with strawberries and froze it. It was not so good.
I know i should not give in to cravings but i
Wonder if i should just give in and get my ice cream cause i keep trying to find things to replace it and it’s not working. π
I will try the chicken broth tonight
Btw….the SF icecream that you buy in the store is loaded with sugar alcohols and maltodextrin. It hurts my tummy too bad and maltodextrin, a product used in a lot of SF priducts has almost the same glycemic effect of sugar. These manufacturers of SF products. Are often misleading. Yes, it is labled technically correct; as it does not contain sugar, but it contains other forms of sugar. You really got to read these labels carefully.
I am going to try intermittent fasting. I think it works well. I hate giving up my breakfast but i guess i could postpone it till noon one day
These setpoints our bodies have are difficult to get past
For example. It was such a long time since i was under 200 that the scales kept jumping up and down from day to day. Till finally it stayed under 200. But it took some time.
I try not to get discouraged by the scale but i guess it is human nature
I am not giving up either. I hace come too far now to throw in the towel
Your blog is very encouraging and to see that you are battling with the same issues as we do, really helps a lot.
My sister in law once asked her Dr. What to do to lose weight. His advice was to “STARVE’ we laughed about that iften but there is some truth to this. A one- meal fast or even a one day fast a week might help jumpstart our weight loss.
I HAVE to have my coffee though. π
Lynn Terry says
Hi Gigi – congrats on the loss! Did you try the chicken broth, and did that help with the cravings? π I have never tried Intermittent Fasting, or not intentionally at least – lol. I should look that up to see exactly what is involved, as I hear it mentioned often. I do love to eat though. π
Michele M. says
I’m in a stall, too, this week. I’m hitting my workouts, staying below 20 carbs, but I’m thinking my fat has been too low this week (that’s the macro I really struggle with reaching) so I’m upping my fat intake for the next few days to see what happens. I’m going to FL in two weeks so I’d really like to drop a few more lbs before then!
Lynn Terry says
That should help for sure, Michele. π Good luck with your goal!! And if you’re in week 2 or 3, it’s normal to see a “hold” while your body adjusts to the initial weight loss of starting – or starting back.
Laura says
Yeah my fat gas been in the low 60’s
Justine says
Day 1 of the “weekend craving of doom” has started. My meals yesterday were:
B: bpc (again was way too full off of my coffee to have anything else)
L: 2 Oscar Meyer smoked sausages, 1oz colby jack cheese, bbq pork rinds
D: wendys double stack (just meat, cheese, pickle), jr bacon cheeseburger (just meat, cheese, bacon, lettuce)
S: 1 whole peanut butter bar, Diet dr pepper can
My net carbs were 10, my fat was 82% and I drank 70oz of water. Still no exercise yet but that’ll all change soon. I’m really hoping I make it through the weekend with no mistakes. *toes crossed*
Lynn Terry says
How’d it go, Justine – did you survive the weekend cravings?! π I did, which really surprised me. I had a few moments of (mental) weakness, but powered through it! That’s such a GREAT feeling.
Sarah says
You are going to do it!
Lynn Terry says
Thank you for the encouragement, Sarah!! π π *cheers*
Jeannette Childers says
Saturdays are my official weight in day as I belong to TOPS (Take Pounds Off Sensibly – a non-profit support group.) Two weeks ago I was down over 3 lbs. Last week I was up .6 and this week up .2. I’m at that diabolical 153-155 ish weight again where my body just says no. Like you, I’m determined to stay the course on this 90 Day Challenge (I failed miserably at doing so on the last one). If I can just break into the 140s, this flip, flop may end. Good luck!
Lynn Terry says
Thank you Jeannette – good luck to you too! π I’m determined and committed as well. It’s challenging me for sure, but I am challenging it back! π Here’s to breaking past that crazy set point and reaching our goals! *cheers*
Laura says
OMG! I disn’t mean to put that on there, I meant my fat intake has been close to 60% so I might need more
Laura says
Deb,
Thank you so much for your suggestions on this and exercise! I will look for those channels and do the book thing, it’s what I’m truly into!
I really appreciate you took the time to share this!