Why do you want to lose weight? 165 is totally healthy for a 6ft tall woman!

You may not be eating enough.

I was told if you have no more than 20lbs to lose you shouldnt let the calories fall below 12*Body Weight. So for you that would be 1980 or about 2000. That means that you will need to eat ATLEAST this amount every. More on days you lift weights and do cardio.

I honestly believe the whole problem is you simply not eating enough.

So 2000 on off days, 2300 or more on lifting days and so on.

Check out this website. There is a wealth of info there.

http://www.hotnfit.com/fat_loss/diet.htm

BTW: what kind of "lifting" do you do? Are you lifting HEAVY ???

I am only 5' 3 1/2" and 110 lbs.—and 35, not 25—and I eat a TON more than you do. I also work out all the time and have a lot of muscle; but if you are 6' and working out as much as you say you do? I'm going to guess you aren't eating enough.

The other possibility is of course that your body is happy where it is. You are certainly in a healthy weight range, and if you work out that much, you are fit as well.

Do you take your measurements? Has your body composition itself changed over the past four years? It's very difficult to build muscle when at a calorie deficit, but I would imagine your body has changed given how much time has passed.

But if you eat right and are always hungry? That's another sign you aren't eating enough.

Yes, something I forgot to mention...

I have also heard the concept that maybe I'm not eating enough. Man, I wish that was it because I LOVE food and I am always hungry. But when I eat 2000-2200 calories a day, I gain weight like crazy. I've gained 7 lbs in a week by simply adding more calories and keeping my workout routine the same. It's crazy.

To answer some other questions you all asked...

What kind of lifting to do I do? - well, I follow the body for life lifting routine. Upper body one day, lower body the next and the 3rd day off. If you aren't familiar with the program, each muscle group is 2 different (and rotating) lift style. You start with a lower weight and 12 reps, add weight for 10 reps, add more for 8, add even more for 6 and then go back down in weight and do 12 reps again. Then you go to a different lift style and do 12 reps on a lower weight. I by no means lift a lot. Trust me. I feel very weak for a 6 foot tall woman. When working with dumbbells the highest weights I use are two 35 lb. When working with a barbell highest weight is 25 plus the bar. I'm able to lift much higher weights on lower body for two reason's really, I'm an athlete (adult competitive volleyball player-building up legs is very important for that) and I've also had a stronger lower body.

How has my body composition changes over the past four years? - well that's a difficult one to answer because 1.5 years ago I had lipo on my mid section. I know...a lot of your probably thing it's the easy way out but it's really not. I didn't do it to lose weight (as no one should!)...I did it because my entire family has this blocky shape and I just didn't feel very feminine with it. So I had lipo in my U/L abs, flanks and back. So I lost 15 or something inches from that (surprisingly, I didn't go down in pants size...but my size 8 pants do look much better on me now).  SO body composition/measurements is hard to use as a tool of measurement. Before lipo I was 33% body fat and now I'm 24%.

And yes, I am ALWAYS hungry. Food is just...SOOOOO GOOD. I still haven't been able to train myself to look at food as a necessity rather than a "want".

So...with that said, any other suggestions? I wish I could eat more and that would solve it. But for some reason it doesn't. And yes, I have had my thyroid tested...several times.

Thanks Everyone!

mister (im assuming you are a mister) go to bodybuilding.com for that info, people here probably cant help you with that... and go to the forum and check out the articles, have around 6 small meals a day... not the usual 3 so you wont get hungry and have energy

It is quite possible that you gain when eating what you actually should because you slowed your metabolism by eating too little for so very long. You probably didn't really gain 7 pounds in a week: I imagine some of that was water weight and would have disappeared soon enough. But you could very well gain something at first due to the metabolic concern.

As far as training yourself that you don't need so much food... eh. That works if you really ARE eating too much. But when I tried to cut my calories to 1,500 I was eating right, and throughout the day, just like you, and I did that for months. I ate protein and fiber in the morning, too. I did everything you are supposed to do to curb your hunger and it didn't work—because my body really was hungry. I was eating too little to give it the fuel that it needed.

I feel that, if you do everything you are supposed to to keep hunger at bay, you give your body significant time to adjust to less food, and you are still hungry, then the issue is one of too little intake, not a lack of willpower or any such thing like that.

If you feel weak, that is another sign you aren't eating enough. That is, if you feel physically weak, and not just "weak" in the sense that you personally believe you should be able to lift more. I am familiar with the program you're doing: my best friend uses it, and I have tried it before. It seems to me you should be able to lift more than you can, but then, I can't really judge because I've been lifting for so long. But if you started in 2002 and are really pushing yourself.... It takes food to build muscle.

Have you told any of these dieticians and doctors you have seen how much you eat and of what your daily activity consists? And if you have, did none of them suggest you eat more? I'm no expert, certainly.

i work out 6 days a week (really intense) and i dont over train because of my split

davidthefat - Nope, not a mister. My first post clearly says I'm a woman :) And I've mentioned...I do eat 6 small meals a day.

petite_powerhouse: I've also thought that...I've slowed my metabolism by eating too little for so long. I guessed a lot of the 7lbs was water weight but it's scary when you gain 7 lbs (regardless of what kind of weight it is) in a week. So I go back to eating fewer calories. Also, I said I felt weak...not in a "I'm going to faint I can't do this" weak. More like...I'm just not a strong person. When I was younger, my 5 foot tall best friend could lift more than me (though...she was a crazy serious gymnast and those girls are strong). I have told the dieticians and doctors exactly what I eat. I bring in my food journal and they say the usual..."well this doesn't make sense because you are eating all the right things and the right amounts". ONE dietician said what someone else said in one of the comments above..."your body is happy at it's current weight". Well I'm not! I just want to lose 15 lbs.

I wonder how long it would take my body to adjust it's metabolism. Should I just stick with eating more calories for a month or so and see what happens? I'm a little nervous doing that because I am getting married in August and I wouldn't want to gain 20 lbs or something due to the caloric increase before then.  hmmm maybe AFTER the wedding.

You should try the higher calories for a couple of months. Up your intake slowly...say add 250 every other day until you reach the correct intake. Then you need to keep it there. You will gain weight initially, but once your body trusts you, it will let go of the weight. My suggestion is to take measurements weekly and ignore the scale for a while.

I pluged your stats into here

You only have 10 lbs to lose and your body is probably at the weight it wants to maintain, so you're going to be working an uphill battle. When you don't have much to lose, you need to eat more and exercise more, and don't let your body get used to your exercise. The min cals this site says you should eat is 1667 (burning around 2500). That's a deficit of 825. Your deficit should be closer to the 300-500 range, looking for a lb loss every week or 2. Try eating 2000 cals/day for a month. A full month. If you keep gaining for the full month, you already know that you can lose it again. My guess is you might gain the first week and a half, and then it will start coming off and you will be abck where you started and losing, or at least maintaining at a higher number of cals, so you're not always hungry

ok, as someone who has almost identical stats to you, same age, 1/2" shorter, female, small frame, i'm currently 161.

First of all recognize that 165 is a very healthy weight for our height, and that your body has changed from when you were a skinny active teenager, you've probably gained some slightly bigger hips etc. and that's natural development between teens and our age, so don't expect to be able to have the same body you had as a teen, it's just not realistic and will only frustrate you. I can understand wanting to lose a few more pounds.

I think eating more would definitely help you in the long run, just remember that the results won't be instant. Maintenance at sedentary for us is 18-1900. And you work out a lot, so at least on those days eating more is important. Eating more smaller meals during the day helps me too. I usually have 5-7 small meals a day, and I feel more full that way.