why is myfitnesspal telling me I will gain weight when I keep losing

whenever I enter my eating diary I am advised by the website I will gain weight. In fact I have continued to lose, over 12 kg (26lb??) in past 2+ years?? My exercise has fluctuated through this time and has no effect on rates of loss. I just spent 1 month on bed rest after joint replacements and I continued to lose body fat. I think I know the answer. I have completely cut out carbs (<50g/day max). I eat as much of everything else as I want, particularly going for high fat foods eg full cream lattes, fatty meat, lots of cheese and nuts, eggs++. I never count calories -starving yourself to lose weight is unsustainable. Myfitnesspal unfortunately is stuck on calorie counting as an indicator of dietary needs so keeps telling me I will gain weight. I do love its food data base for calculating my macronutrient intake. My message - if in doubt eat less carbs and more fat!! Switch off your insulin to reduce your hunger and to stop storing fat.

Replies

unknown

rabbitjb wrote: »

"I never count calories"

Hence you're not logging accurately

Hence the mathematical formula spits out a response based on what you enter

For me, and for millions like me, low carb is not the answer because the rebound and eventual weight gain absolutely sucks

You may enjoy the keto group

Well, so far, 27.4kg down. I do very low carb. I upped my carbs once and only gained 800 grams back. Not really much of a disaster. I eat more now than I did before low carb and still lose the same (MFP says I'll only lose 500g a week and I usually manage 1500g or so). I don't see a rebound. Why should there be? Do you say the same thing to every person who is cutting down kcal to lose weight? It's a change, and there could be a rebound, no?

unknown

minties82 wrote: »

rabbitjb wrote: »

"I never count calories"

Hence you're not logging accurately

Hence the mathematical formula spits out a response based on what you enter

For me, and for millions like me, low carb is not the answer because the rebound and eventual weight gain absolutely sucks

You may enjoy the keto group

Well, so far, 27.4kg down. I do very low carb. I upped my carbs once and only gained 800 grams back. Not really much of a disaster. I eat more now than I did before low carb and still lose the same (MFP says I'll only lose 500g a week and I usually manage 1500g or so). I don't see a rebound. Why should there be? Do you say the same thing to every person who is cutting down kcal to lose weight? It's a change, and there could be a rebound, no?

IMHO it is far harder to stick to a diet where you exclude an entire, and intensely pervasive, food group for life, as soon as you eat carbohydrates your water weight will jump back up massively as your glycogen stores are replenished.

But if it works for you, for life, that's great .. you've found your way - look forward to seeing you post a year into maintenance

People who count calories and don't label foods as good / bad can simply increase the numbers of calories they consume to hit maintenance ... so they are establishing their ongoing lifestyle during their weight loss.

I know some low-carbers can do the same - great for them - I couldn't, tried it twice and the weight rebound absolutely sucked for me.

As this is a calorie counting site, that can be adapted to suit other dieting styles I have no guilt in recommending a wide and varied diet and calorie control

unknown

You'd think there'd be an open diary so we could all see this miracle of modern science.

Sorry for the early morning sarcasm, I have a migraine.

Congrats for your weight loss and finding a way of losing that works for you, OP.

The truth??

You might not be counting calories, but you are still eating less of them than your body burns. You don't have to count them to do that. If you've found a way to eat that naturally satiates you before you while creating a deficit? GREAT.

But make no mistake... that's what you're doing.

FTR... by some people's reckoning, I low carb. 35% of my calories come from carbs. I still count calories and I enjoy things like potatoes, ice cream and cookies. 38 pounds down. At a rate of 5 pounds a month.

unknown

I always lost more than MFP predicted too. Reasonably sure it was due to underreporting activity (not on purpose). But maybe I should claim it was the potatoes.

Also, so far I've managed to count calories without starving myself, if starving myself is supposed to be some unpleasant experience or involve feeling hungry.

Now, if starving yourself is, instead, supposed to mean eating less than you burn so your body burns fat stores instead, I'm reasonably sure EVERYONE who loses weight does this.

unknown

mamapeach910 wrote: »

You'd think there'd be an open diary so we could all see this miracle of modern science.

Sorry for the early morning sarcasm, I have a migraine.

Heh, that was my first thought too, and I feel fine!

unknown

Ugh, Atkins is not healthy. My father in law just undertook this Atkins thing in hopes of losing weight to please his physician, but I cant imagine what his bloodwork will look like. As far as OP's "starving" stance, you don't need to. 1250-1600 calories doesn't seem like much, but it adds up if you make the right choices, and even moreso with exercise and the ability to add those calories in. Either way, GL.

unknown

If you are losing more than the app says you should (or if you are losing less than the app says you should), then:

a.) you have not set it up properly

or

b.) you are not logging properly

*shrug*

unknown

In to find out how being on bed rest for a month and eating low carb invalidates the laws of physics...

unknown

This person only posted 1 post in their life.. and they say they don't track calories. I don't believe them

unknown

Kruggeri wrote: »

In to find out how being on bed rest for a month and eating low carb invalidates the laws of physics...

I believe sausages magically cause weight loss. It's science!

unknown

rosemhr wrote: »

whenever I enter my eating diary I am advised by the website I will gain weight. In fact I have continued to lose, over 12 kg (26lb??) in past 2+ years?? My exercise has fluctuated through this time and has no effect on rates of loss. I just spent 1 month on bed rest after joint replacements and I continued to lose body fat. I think I know the answer. I have completely cut out carbs (<50g/day max). I eat as much of everything else as I want, particularly going for high fat foods eg full cream lattes, fatty meat, lots of cheese and nuts, eggs++. I never count calories -starving yourself to lose weight is unsustainable. Myfitnesspal unfortunately is stuck on calorie counting as an indicator of dietary needs so keeps telling me I will gain weight. I do love its food data base for calculating my macronutrient intake. My message - if in doubt eat less carbs and more fat!! Switch off your insulin to reduce your hunger and to stop storing fat.

You are not counting calories, so whatever you're entering into MFP to get it to say, "You'll gain weight!" is inaccurate. If you are losing weight consistently over time, you are in a calorie deficit.

I count calories. I'm in a 250 calorie deficit each day, which is .5 lb loss/week. Weeks that I stick to it, MFP tells me I will lose weight and I do. I am not starving myself. Some weeks I decide that I want to eat at maintenance, so I do.

"less carbs more fat" can have some dietary benefits. However, a diet low in saturated fats and high in whole grains is linked to better health outcomes, especially related to heart health.

Whole-grain consumption and risk of coronary heart disease: results from the Nurses' Health Study http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/70/3/412.short
Whole-grain intake may reduce the risk of ischemic heart disease death in postmenopausal women: the Iowa Women's Health Study http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/68/2/248.short

In terms of overall health, the top rated diet for 2015 according to US News was the DASH diet (#1 in best diet overall, #3 in best heart-healthy diet, #1 in best diabetes diet, #1 in best diets for healthy eating). The DASH diet is high fruit/veg, whole grain, lean protein, and low-fat dairy, low in high fat and red meat. I don't follow DASH, but clearly "high fat" is not the answer for all health indicators.

I eat carbs and I've lost 68 lbs in 14 months and I've never starved myself.

unknown

lemurcat12 wrote: »

Kruggeri wrote: »

In to find out how being on bed rest for a month and eating low carb invalidates the laws of physics...

I believe sausages magically cause weight loss. It's science!

I'm definitely in for magical sausages!

unknown

rosemhr wrote: »

Myfitnesspal unfortunately is stuck on calorie counting as an indicator of dietary needs

you do know that MFP is a CALORIE COUNTING WEBSITE, right??????