One month plateau :(
Replies
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I'm going to say you are miscalculating calorie burns in/out then, because on those calories you would be losing weight.ashleyrae493 wrote: »
I adjusted my weight and my goals. MFP says I have about 1800 calories but I stay around 1000-1200 because that's just way too much!
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You said you are eating only 1000 calories. What did you reduce to?ashleyrae493 wrote: »Thank all of you for the advice/input. I have decreased my food intake and increased my activity. Before pregnancy and my back surgery I had lost 100 pounds but gained it all back after being out of commission/depressed. Like I said, I have lost 40 pounds over the past few months but I've come to a standstill.
I can easily input everything into this system but it's kind of like I'm doing it without a second thought. I try to stay far away from going into the "red" on any aspect because it's there for a reason! I really want a better understanding of how my body works, what it needs, and the best way to fuel myself. I think I'm going to start logging my food before I make it so I can have a better idea of what I'm getting...that will also allow me to plan better throughout the day. I need something like ''nutrition for dummies''!
I'm looking to lose about 80 more pounds but I'm wanting to make this a lifelong lifestyle change, not just a weight loss journey. I'm the type of person that wants to know how everything works. If I have the how's and why's it sticks with me. I just don't even know where to start since so many sources contradict each other.
I can see the inches coming off, I have 3 huge bags of clothes that don't fit any more and a friend of the family is in desperate need. I've spent the past two days cleaning out my closets so I don't have anything to go back to! I have gone from having three closets to one. That's a scary feeling but it's also exciting. I can't wait to lose a little more so I can start on a new wardrobe! I think the advice about getting measuring tape and focusing on that is a good idea. People look at me and see a huge difference and I don't see it at all. Of course, I never seen a difference when I lost the 100 pounds either. Maybe having the measurements might make me see it and be even more motivation.
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Well, if this true, then you are continuing to eat at a calorie deficit, and that's why you lost weight, not due to a "spike day/week".
I consistently eat around 600 calories a day, but even then I will still find myself hitting a plateau for a couple weeks. The spike days are usually 2,000 calories, 500 over my BMR, and then I resume my normal eating schedule. After a day or so, I'll start shedding weight again.
This is a very common thing.
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kuriheartsyou wrote: »Well, if this true, then you are continuing to eat at a calorie deficit, and that's why you lost weight, not due to a "spike day/week".
I consistently eat around 600 calories a day, but even then I will still find myself hitting a plateau for a couple weeks. The spike days are usually 2,000 calories, 500 over my BMR, and then I resume my normal eating schedule. After a day or so, I'll start shedding weight again.
This is a very common thing.
With your plan above, what is your average weekly calorie intake?
Eating any amount over your BMR will cause weight loss, but eating at TDEE or above will not.
What you describe is not a common thing. Lots of people do intermittent fasting, but it is structured and satisfies one's eating and energy habits. However, eating more food does not push one through a plateau-it's the overall calorie deficit that does this.0 -
Awesome! My kiddo will like doing that one too! Thanks!0
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Your doctor knows you are successfully losing weight by counting calories and he wants you to change how you eat? Is this because you went to him recently and said you were no longer losing? I'm surprised.
How many grams a day of protein does MFP have you set at? If you want to up it to 95 just do it. I would guess if you are using an 1800 calorie goal (even if you don't eat all the calories suggested by MFP) your protein goal is pretty close to 95 grams, if you let MFP set the macros for you. So, eat the 95 grams of protein and leave off some of the carbs or fats if you don't want to eat the full 1800 calories.
However, I'm sure there will be days when you want/need the full 1800 calories so you should eat them when you do.
I've been following MFP guidelines for most of 2014 (started seriously in February after "watching what I ate" last fall and joining MFP in January of 2014) and I can tell you that when I have weeks I don't lose I know, deep down, why. Usually its too much sodium. Once in a while too many calories without moving enough, although I rarely go over my daily goal by much.
You say you still have 80-ish pounds to lose, so your body should be more than willing to drop weight if you eat at a deficit. Only you know if you are accurately doing that every single day. The occasional day when you don't stay within your calorie goal can ruin a good deficit run if you eat way too much.
In almost 9 months I've stayed exactly the same weight for 2 1/2 weeks maximum. Now, I do "fluctuate" a bit throughout the week of course and I see it because I weigh daily, but as long as I eat at a deficit and log accurately to KNOW I'm eating at a deficit, I lose weight, regardless if its not exactly on schedule to the degree I think should happen. If I did not lose for a month I would know it was because I was eating more than I was expending.
You know those TV shows like Survivor where the contestants sometimes eat nothing but a cup of rice a day and very little else? They always lose weight. Never see a "plateau" ever, and they are definitely eating at a deficit.
Having said all this, TLDR, I don't see how you are maintaining on 1,000 or 1,100 calories a day. Just doesn't seem possible. Are you positive you know how much you are eating?
Yes I do. I measure out all of my food every day. I am a stay at home mom. I cook everything here so I measure everything out, I use the Recipe tool. After I'm done preparing my meal I measure out how many servings there are then I make our plates so I have a pretty good idea. Losing weight is my idea because I want to live a better life for my son and myself. I take my child outside at least once a day and I jog/walk with him using run keeper and c25k. I just took my measurements and I have lost 6 inches around my waist so I know something is working. I measure out my food and put it in MFP then I always refill my kid's plate off mine and I just leave the diary as is because I know these things can be a little off. There are a lot of things I want to learn because I have just recently started this journey and I don't have any support. My doctor said try something low carb and try to shoot for 95g protein to stay full. So it's not like I got a lot of info there that's why I'm starting here! I started losing weight after I moved in with my dad without even trying. When the weight loss started slowing down that's when I started tracking it, making better decisions, and I started moving more and more. I was feeling better and I could run a few blocks without losing my breath so James and I could make it to see the train go by. I think I'm going to get an electric scale like someone mentioned so I can be more accurate.0 -
Yes, lots of people have plateaus. Everybody's body is actually quite different and if you don't hit plateaus consider yourself lucky. For those of us who do, it is very frustrating. But just keep pushing through and eventually your perseverance will pay off. Keep tracking, keep working out and sooner or later you will lose again!
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I'm not saying people don't have plateaus, I'm saying that that it simply means a person is eating as many calories as they are burning. I think it's always a good thing to look at calories in/calories out when your weight stalls.Yes, lots of people have plateaus. Everybody's body is actually quite different and if you don't hit plateaus consider yourself lucky. For those of us who do, it is very frustrating. But just keep pushing through and eventually your perseverance will pay off. Keep tracking, keep working out and sooner or later you will lose again!0 -
ashleyrae493 wrote: »Your doctor knows you are successfully losing weight by counting calories and he wants you to change how you eat? Is this because you went to him recently and said you were no longer losing? I'm surprised.
How many grams a day of protein does MFP have you set at? If you want to up it to 95 just do it. I would guess if you are using an 1800 calorie goal (even if you don't eat all the calories suggested by MFP) your protein goal is pretty close to 95 grams, if you let MFP set the macros for you. So, eat the 95 grams of protein and leave off some of the carbs or fats if you don't want to eat the full 1800 calories.
However, I'm sure there will be days when you want/need the full 1800 calories so you should eat them when you do.
I've been following MFP guidelines for most of 2014 (started seriously in February after "watching what I ate" last fall and joining MFP in January of 2014) and I can tell you that when I have weeks I don't lose I know, deep down, why. Usually its too much sodium. Once in a while too many calories without moving enough, although I rarely go over my daily goal by much.
You say you still have 80-ish pounds to lose, so your body should be more than willing to drop weight if you eat at a deficit. Only you know if you are accurately doing that every single day. The occasional day when you don't stay within your calorie goal can ruin a good deficit run if you eat way too much.
In almost 9 months I've stayed exactly the same weight for 2 1/2 weeks maximum. Now, I do "fluctuate" a bit throughout the week of course and I see it because I weigh daily, but as long as I eat at a deficit and log accurately to KNOW I'm eating at a deficit, I lose weight, regardless if its not exactly on schedule to the degree I think should happen. If I did not lose for a month I would know it was because I was eating more than I was expending.
You know those TV shows like Survivor where the contestants sometimes eat nothing but a cup of rice a day and very little else? They always lose weight. Never see a "plateau" ever, and they are definitely eating at a deficit.
Having said all this, TLDR, I don't see how you are maintaining on 1,000 or 1,100 calories a day. Just doesn't seem possible. Are you positive you know how much you are eating?
Yes I do. I measure out all of my food every day. I am a stay at home mom. I cook everything here so I measure everything out, I use the Recipe tool. After I'm done preparing my meal I measure out how many servings there are then I make our plates so I have a pretty good idea. Losing weight is my idea because I want to live a better life for my son and myself. I take my child outside at least once a day and I jog/walk with him using run keeper and c25k. I just took my measurements and I have lost 6 inches around my waist so I know something is working. I measure out my food and put it in MFP then I always refill my kid's plate off mine and I just leave the diary as is because I know these things can be a little off. There are a lot of things I want to learn because I have just recently started this journey and I don't have any support. My doctor said try something low carb and try to shoot for 95g protein to stay full. So it's not like I got a lot of info there that's why I'm starting here! I started losing weight after I moved in with my dad without even trying. When the weight loss started slowing down that's when I started tracking it, making better decisions, and I started moving more and more. I was feeling better and I could run a few blocks without losing my breath so James and I could make it to see the train go by. I think I'm going to get an electric scale like someone mentioned so I can be more accurate.
See, you're working towards more accuracy. You can do this! 0 -
Yes, lots of people have plateaus. Everybody's body is actually quite different and if you don't hit plateaus consider yourself lucky. For those of us who do, it is very frustrating. But just keep pushing through and eventually your perseverance will pay off. Keep tracking, keep working out and sooner or later you will lose again!
Wrong answer. Lots of people eat at a maintenance level when they are convincing themselves they are not. No such thing as a plateau.0 -
ashleyrae493 wrote: »Your doctor knows you are successfully losing weight by counting calories and he wants you to change how you eat? Is this because you went to him recently and said you were no longer losing? I'm surprised.
How many grams a day of protein does MFP have you set at? If you want to up it to 95 just do it. I would guess if you are using an 1800 calorie goal (even if you don't eat all the calories suggested by MFP) your protein goal is pretty close to 95 grams, if you let MFP set the macros for you. So, eat the 95 grams of protein and leave off some of the carbs or fats if you don't want to eat the full 1800 calories.
However, I'm sure there will be days when you want/need the full 1800 calories so you should eat them when you do.
I've been following MFP guidelines for most of 2014 (started seriously in February after "watching what I ate" last fall and joining MFP in January of 2014) and I can tell you that when I have weeks I don't lose I know, deep down, why. Usually its too much sodium. Once in a while too many calories without moving enough, although I rarely go over my daily goal by much.
You say you still have 80-ish pounds to lose, so your body should be more than willing to drop weight if you eat at a deficit. Only you know if you are accurately doing that every single day. The occasional day when you don't stay within your calorie goal can ruin a good deficit run if you eat way too much.
In almost 9 months I've stayed exactly the same weight for 2 1/2 weeks maximum. Now, I do "fluctuate" a bit throughout the week of course and I see it because I weigh daily, but as long as I eat at a deficit and log accurately to KNOW I'm eating at a deficit, I lose weight, regardless if its not exactly on schedule to the degree I think should happen. If I did not lose for a month I would know it was because I was eating more than I was expending.
You know those TV shows like Survivor where the contestants sometimes eat nothing but a cup of rice a day and very little else? They always lose weight. Never see a "plateau" ever, and they are definitely eating at a deficit.
Having said all this, TLDR, I don't see how you are maintaining on 1,000 or 1,100 calories a day. Just doesn't seem possible. Are you positive you know how much you are eating?
Yes I do. I measure out all of my food every day. I am a stay at home mom. I cook everything here so I measure everything out, I use the Recipe tool. After I'm done preparing my meal I measure out how many servings there are then I make our plates so I have a pretty good idea. Losing weight is my idea because I want to live a better life for my son and myself. I take my child outside at least once a day and I jog/walk with him using run keeper and c25k. I just took my measurements and I have lost 6 inches around my waist so I know something is working. I measure out my food and put it in MFP then I always refill my kid's plate off mine and I just leave the diary as is because I know these things can be a little off. There are a lot of things I want to learn because I have just recently started this journey and I don't have any support. My doctor said try something low carb and try to shoot for 95g protein to stay full. So it's not like I got a lot of info there that's why I'm starting here! I started losing weight after I moved in with my dad without even trying. When the weight loss started slowing down that's when I started tracking it, making better decisions, and I started moving more and more. I was feeling better and I could run a few blocks without losing my breath so James and I could make it to see the train go by. I think I'm going to get an electric scale like someone mentioned so I can be more accurate.
Are you saying you've lost 6 inches off your waist since the last time you saw a weight loss? That is a lot!
An electronic scale will make a big difference, I'm sure. If you are guessing at your portion sizes and only measuring things that will fit in a cup or measuring spoon, you could be eating more than you think. It's pretty hard to guess how much meat weighs; same with fruit.
For example: Today I wanted to eat a 350-400 calorie lunch. I had some roasted pork loin with peppers leftover in the fridge and decided to eat it on 2, 6", 110 calorie flour tortillas. I scooped out what I thought was 2 ounces of the shredded pork onto a paper plate and microwaved it. Then I placed it on the food scale. 5 ounces!!! oops. That shredded meat can be dicey to guess. So I took off pieces of meat until there were 2 ounces left.
Imagine if I had not weighed that meat and ate the 5 ounces, thinking it was 2. Much of my daily deficit of 500 calories would be gone.
Same with the apple I ate for breakfast this morning. It looked kind of small but weighed 178 grams, no where near a small apple.
My point is, the easy, honest mistakes you can make in guessing the size of the portion you are eating can add up and before you know it you are not eating at a deficit.
When people get close to their goal weight, they usually try to lose only 1/2 pound a week, maximum. If you make a 250 calorie mistake then, it can be the difference between losing and maintaining, and over time even gaining.
If there is any way possible, buy yourself an electronic food scale. The one I bought at Walmart came with a booklet that has "codes" for lots of food items. This allows me to compare the calorie count of the foods I eat that are listed in the booklet, with those in the MFP database. I don't double check very often but its nice to have the option. The pork roast today happened to be something I checked. I about died when I saw that the meat I had placed on the scale was more than 500 calories! That made it easy for me to start taking meat off. Then when I logged in the MFP database I was able to match the entry and know it was correct.
I might be making it sound complicated and I don't mean to; just want to impress on you how helpful a food scale can be.
BTW, its super nice that you and your son can walk to see the trains now! Keep it up!!!
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