I knew I was good for something.......... lol
Some say "a calorie is a calorie"; I say "not all calories are equal"' some help (protein and complex carbs), some hinder (the wrong fats (or too many of the right ones) and simple carbs).
My supervisor at work eats candy bars on a regular basis (drooling)....... if I ate like he does, I'd weigh a ton......... the thing is, he works out WAY more than I do AND he doesn't have a thyroid issue holding him back. I was like that all of my life (before the whacky thyroid)...........
Great info Barb .. now I know why when I really cut back it's the calorie count eating the right foods to work, not the wrong ones.
C~
If you've calculated your requirements to be 2400 and are only eating 1400-1800, you aren't eating enough calories. If you don't take in enough calories, your body will hold onto existing fat, because it thinks there won't be enough food - this is called "starvation mode". Your body needs a certain number of calories/day just to function - that's to maintain heart rate, kidney, lung, digestive, brain and other organ functions.
To lose weight, you only need to cut calorie intake by 500. You can do this by either cutting 500 calories/day from your diet or using an extra 500 calories/day through exercise; OR the easiest way is to cut 250 calories/day and use an extra 250 calories/day. This would net you a loss of 1 pound/week. To lose 2 pounds/week, you would cut 500 calories/day and use (exercise) an extra 500 calories/day for a total of 1000. Cutting 500 calories/day would be safe for you, and would still leave you eating about 1900 calories/day
I don't mean to be unkind, but in addition, you might look at some different choices for food. There are better cereals for weight loss than Special K, and if you check the labels on your cereal bars, you'll probably find that they either have quite a bit of fat, or sugar. While nuts are very good for you, you have to be careful, because they are chock full of fat, and while it's the "good" kind, it's still possible to overdo, and some nuts have a lot more calories than others; again, read the labels.
I see very little protein in your diet, except for the milk, peanut butter and nuts. Don't you eat any meats, cheeses, etc? Lean meats, chicken and fish are excellent choices for dieting because the protein helps you fill up faster and it takes longer for the body to break down, so it keeps you feeling fuller longer.
I also don't see any veggies in your diet. Veggies are full of fiber (complex carbs), which, like protein, fills you up faster and keeps you feeling fuller longer. While fruits are nutritious, they tend to have a lot of sugar, with only small amounts of fiber. Even though the sugar in fruit is "natural", it's still sugar (simple carb) and is metabolized quickly, so if it's not used up right away, it will turn to fat.
There's no way to "spot lose" (such as only from belly or face), however, over all reduction should reduce those areas, as well.
I'd recommend that you try using a food diary to track your calories, protein, fiber, carbs, etc. to make sure you are getting adequate amounts. Med Help has an excellent food diary and it would be helpful for you to have everything in one place, where you can see it at glance, as opposed to relying on your memory to track calories; sometimes they add up a lot quicker than we think. Like that fat free peanut butter -- check the calorie and sugar contents; if fat is removed from a food, manufacturers tend to add more sugar for flavor; likewise if sugar is removed, fat is often added for flavor.
I have no idea. If you're being completely honest about what you're eating and the exercise that you're doing then certainly you should be losing weight.
Really doesn't give me and hope for slimming down in the next 3 and a half weeks for my holiday, I've always found it VERY difficult to lose weight too :(