ljayjay1's Journal, 15 Apr 16

You must log everything you eat. Accurately weigh your foods and log them. Initially coffee (caffeine) will increase your metabolic rate, but when you are used to it, it stops working. 

Don't be put off if your weight stays the same, one day to the next, It may even go up. Your body retains and releases water as it requires. That skews your weight, and gets you disheartened. 

I admit, this comment confuses me because Lynnejulie, going by your weigh-ins between 7th-16th of April, your logs say you have lost almost 2 kilos - if that is accurate, that is quite fast and certainly indicative of progress. Speaking to a rough average, it takes about 3500 calories to equal a pound of fat lost. So a deficit, daily, of about 500 calories would equal a pound a week. Even going by that, you are losing quickly. Metabolisms are suprisingly resilient, and do be wary of the loads of pseudoscience out there about how some are "fast" and others "slow - there's some variation from person to person, but not to the extremes that pop science would have people believe. Coffee may dehydrate you (and can subsequently cause bloat, or discomfort, etc.)...but it's not going to be the decisive factor in losing body fat. The amount of weight loss logged between April 7 and today is actually impressive, and with the weight that you are currently not being terribly high, even more so, because typically the smaller you are, the less you need, and higher deficits can be more difficult to sustain. 

First, I'd ask if you're drinking enough water. Recommendations are around 1.5-2 litres a day provided you're not on any medication that would be messed up by this. If you're dehydrated, your body hangs onto all the water it can in case there's no more coming. Second, your sugar intake is quite high. Can you wean yourself off the sugar you add to your coffee? I'm not suggesting it to get your calories down lower than you're already at but so you'd have some spare to increase your protein which looks low. This leads to Jocko's point. Are you really and truly logging everything you eat and drink? Your diary says "some of what I ate" - is that the case? It's hard being honest, weighing everything & logging it but it's the only way many of us are succeeding to lose. Don't be tempted to weigh "by eye" either. You'd be surprised how much under such estimates can be. I hope this helps. Maybe have a read of some other journals to see what other people find hard and what helps as you might find something that works for you better. Best of luck! 

Great point about "eyeballing" food that Phooka has made - a few pounds or euros spent on a little kitchen scale is your BEST FRIEND - it will teach you what 8 grams of butter looks like (surprisingly small), 100 grams of meat, 50 grams of bread, or salmon, etc. In time, it can be easier to estimate without it - helps for instance, when visiting others or out for a meal....but in the beginning, well I can only say it's one of the best purchases you can make.  

Absolutely, Rgg. I've two sets of scales, one really cheap, mechanical set that measures in 5g intervals up to 200g and one expensive digital set that measures in 1g intervals up to 5kg. Surprisingly, they both agree pretty much so I'm happy using either. The smaller ones sit on the counter for me to use every single time I prepare a meal. I also make sure I use a measure for drinks that contain a lot of calories, eg wine. I don't bother for black coffee as it's too much effort for an error of 1 Calorie or so but wine being my downfall, I measure religiously. It was a pain in the arse to start with but it's now second nature. I hope we're being helpful and not scaring you away 🙂