Weddingbee boards

Hi everyone,

 I'm sorry that this is somewhat of a venting post, generally I don't like to write them, but this is really frustrating me and I could use some advice.

I am in my last year of law school (57 days until graduation!) and throughout the three years I have put on a lot of weight, like 30 pounds.  A lot of it had to do with the fact that I went from a schedule that allowed me to go to the gym after work (9am-6pm job), to a schedule that is not conducive to that at all (usually I'm at school from 8am until 10pm).  

Recently I bought my wedding gown and have renewed motivation to find time to get to the gym.  I realize that I can't go every day, but I've been going about 4-5 times a week for three weeks.  Last week I also started with a personal trainer, and have been seeing him for half an hour 3 times a week.  So I've been lifting light weights 3 times a week and doing cardio 4-5 times.  Plus I have really tried to change my eating habits.  I usually have oatmeal in the morning, salad or soup or chili for lunch, and the same for dinner.

Here's what's annoying.  i haven't seen ANY results.  I mean, I don't see more muscle, and I haven't lost any weight.  I know the pounds won't come flying off, but nothing...... 

I'm giving up hope and feeling really frustrated and upset about it.  Has anyone gone through, or are going through this too?

Oh man, I can definitely understand your frustration, especially when you've been working so hard! That's awesome that you've been working out so much.

I've heard that a general rule of thumb when it comes to weight loss is that it's 80% diet, 20% exercise. It might be worth taking a closer look at what you're eating to see if that's what's going on.

 You could either be eating too many calories, or, weirdly, not enough-- if you're excercising a lot and not eating enough your metabolism can slow waaay down.

Good luck! It sounds like you are really motivated.

For the first month of exercising, I saw nothing happening, too.  But I knew that working out was good for me so I kept at it.  By month 2, I was losing an average of 0.8 lbs a week.  The difference was so small to feel like it mattered...but the small amount of weight came off and STAYED off.  By month 4, I had dropped 7lbs (I'm not overweight so it was harder for me to lose weight - but I was at the higher end of my BMI).  I felt the difference in how my clothes fit.  So even though it was hard for me to see the difference (I couldn't even see any gain in muscle!), it was definitely happening.  People kept commenting on how good I looked.  Just keep at it...you will see the difference in a few weeks!

Thanks you sooo much for your comments and support! 

Let me answer the questions asked above, maybe the details will help clarify the situation a little:

My clothes are fitting a little better - I just noticed a shirt that was normally tight around the waist was a lot looser (so that felt really good).  My pants don't feel looser - but maybe that's because I'm running a lot more than I used to, so I might be gaining a lot of lower body muscle?

In terms of lettuce:toppings ratio on my salads, I usually have about 75% lettuce, some carrots, some red peppers, red onions, a few nuts and a little cheese.  As for dressing, I put a tablespoon, or two at the most, of balsamic vinagerrete- the Annie's kind that doesn't have added sugar. 

I don't actually have any cheese or sour cream or anything with my chili.  Just the beans and soy crumbles,  celery, onions and tomatoes.  And the soups I make are vegetable soup or tomato soup that only has a little bit of half and half (and that's only a little for a whole pot). 

I do cardio for about 45-60 whenever I go to the gym, running on the treadmill, I don't do the bike or the elliptical machine. And when I do lifting, I start off with a 10 minute run, then do the weights, then do a 35-45 minute cardio work out. 

What do you ladies think? Maybe I should start keeping a food journal and seeing what I actually consume? I never think those will help, but maybe it will?