How do you conquer a plateau?

aprilcv00

I know they happen but how do you get past them? How long does it take?

FindingCindy721

Every body's body is different. The best way I know is to REALLY SHAKE THINGS UP! Eat differently for a few days...maybe low carb if that's not what you usually do, just different from your normal routine and change your exercise routine as well! Best of luck with it...don't let it discourage you and you will prevail!!!

mysticlizard

Hi April, I found this post in my in box this morning. I hope it helps!

http://blog.myfitnesspal.com/5-unusual-reasons-youre-not-losing-weight/?utm_source=mfp&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=weekly20150119&mkt_tok=3RkMMJWWfF9wsRokuq3MZKXonjHpfsX76O4tWKK3hIkz2EFye+LIHETpodcMTsJnPa+TFAwTG5toziV8R7DBLM153N8QXRTg

FindingCindy721

Mysticlizard~ I am interested in better answers so I tried your link...it didn't work

mysticlizard

I went back to the original email from MFP this morning and retried the link and I too am getting the message that the link is broken. Out of the five, the one I remember is stress. The article said the body produces more fat when you are stressed. I often joke stress is just a normal operational condition in my life of controlled chaos.

WOW!!! My oldest son just called me from WY. I AM GOING TO BE A GRANDMA!!!!! They have been married for 10 years and have been trying for the last five. I need to go find his baby clothes I saved for them.

FindingCindy721

Mysticlizard~ CONGRATS! That is soooo AWESOME! Being Grandma is the BEST! When are they due? How far are they from you? This is soooo exiting!!! My Grandson is 2... I got to watch him be born and it was AMAZING!
PS~ I have that life too! Stress is as normal as eating and breathing to me most days!

mysticlizard

Cindy- They are due in Aug. We are in MN so they are about 12-13 hours from us. We are so excited!!!

The link to the article is working again.

aprilcv00

Congrats!! I didnt know there were any replies here.. and Stress.. Absolutely No way to avoid it. I went to the Dr. yesterday for the first time in a long time to ask her what to do and she looked through my fitness pal food diary and all she told me was to eliminate the juice and exercise more. I have 39.5 days to try and lose 20 lbs.. I know its not going to happen but I want to get as close as I can to avoid the embarassment. Its so hard to be motivated to exercise when there are no gyms nearby and it's so freezing cold that it takes my breath away. How do you exercise at home besides benching and curling your kids? Any fitness dvds that you recommend that don't require dancing?

ms_smartypants

April I love Leslie Sansone walking dvd's there is many that range from 1 mile to 5 miles ...They are great ...you can get them at walmart or look online ... I workout at home I love it

FindingCindy721

April~ Have you ever tried kettle bells? I LOVE them and since I belong to planet fitness now and they don't have classes, I bought a couple for at home. I also found a couple videos for them as well.
There are a lot of GREAT videos on you tube also! They even have chair workouts, which I actually checked out and WOW...you can truly work out from a sitting position! Someone here recommended them and since I work nights, sometimes I am so exhausted that a dance or kettle bell work out just seems too overwhelming to think about. But I know I will be infuriated at myself for not working out at all, so I looked them up and tried a couple out and WOW! I love them as back ups!

aprilcv00

Thanks ladies. I will check them out. I need to get some weight activity going!

aaliceinw

Congratulations mysticlizard! I can imagine how overthemooon you are! I just became grandma for the first time on the 30 th December! Blessings indeed!

April I hope you do find the thing that works for you amongst everything that the other ladies have proposed. Good luck!

Noodle797

April, I have a Wii & Wii fit, I actually like a lot of the fitness programs, but the games are great too. I have almost all of the Just Dance games & it barely feels like a workout because you're having so much fun. It terrifies my cats, they run & hide when i play them! Lol!

mysticlizard

My teenager daughters do Wii Fit with me, we have a ball. I have two left feet , so I watch them do the Just dance discs. Maybe when I get a little more coordinated .

FindingCindy721

We had the wii and switched to xbox 360 with the kinect ...love the dance games!!! It's nice to not have to worry about the controllers!

Femmigirlz

Congrats liz on your Grand baby. Babies are too cute n precious.

Femmigirlz

I lost 60 lbs one time and gained it all back. That's not happening again but I just wanted to say I once had a 6 week plateau and didn't lose anything. I got on the scale and had dropped 11 pounds. It was so odd how the body decided it was time to finally let it go. Strange how our bodies have held onto the weight at certain times in our process and maybe we stayed at that weight for a long period of time so the body doesn't want to give it up easily but at some point it has to let it go

aaliceinw

You Guys make me want to get the wii out again. The boxing game was where I worked out the most and even started getting toned biceps and triceps. But I would end up knocking myself out or breaking a leg. We have polished parquet floors here, and just walking on them can be quite dangerous at times

mysticlizard

I love the Wii. Boxing is fun, my favorite is the advanced step aerobics, it makes me feel graceful. For the strength training and yoga the girls and I named or trainer Rob.

We have 1/2 inch or 3/4 inch rubber mats we use in the garage like these
http://www.amazon.com/Stalwart-75-6402-Ultimate-Flooring-16-Square/dp/B001M8MWI2/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1424547985&sr=8-2&keywords=rubber+floor+tiles

I wonder if something like this would help on your floors while you work out. They come in colors too. We have red, yellow, and blue as well as gray in the garage. I find them from time to time in the thrift store here.

barlovo

Hi April, I'm just coming off a 14-month plateau - that's why I joined MFP in December and I seem to be losing again but it is a little early to tell. There are a couple things I can suggest:

1) Don't freak out about plateaus. We will have to maintain our weight loss all our lives. Plateaus are dress rehearsals for lifetime maintenance. Appreciate the practice it is giving you.

2) Weight loss is actually stressful for the body. Your body may be taking a break before it is ready to release weight again. Eat really high-nutrient foods, make sure you're getting enough fat, protein and fiber.

3) Focus on non-scale victories. During 2014, I gave up sugar and other sweeteners, and started weight training as part of my physical therapy program. Both were amazing healthy steps for me, even though they did not lead to weight loss.

4) Do you "eat" your exercise calories? I am not confident that MFP exercise calorie estimates are accurate for me. Everyone's metabolism is different. If I tracked my exercise on MFP and ate back my calories, I would be gaining weight right now.

5) Are you measuring and logging everything, really? We all sneak and round down from time to time. Take a week where you are really really careful. Try weighing everything instead of measuring with cups. You might notice areas where you have been eating more than you've been logging.

barlovo

MysticLizard - congrats on your grandchild-to-be!
-

mysticlizard

Thanks barlovo, we are really excited

Femmigirlz

I made it a rule for myself to never eat my exercise calories. Whatever it says on here I log half of the exercise as I don't feel it's accurate.

FindingCindy721

Barlove~ Thanks for all your advise! It's very helpful to those of us just starting out!

Karen~ I agree about not feeling like some of the numbers here are not really accurate but overall I still feel like this site is a great learning experience and most of all for me...the support is UNBEATABLE! You ladies are so amazing and I truly appreciate each one of you!!!

Liz~ I can't wait to see pics of that lil cutie! Being a Grandma is the BEST! I now truly understand the saying...SPOIL 'EM AND SEND 'EM HOME!!! LOL My lil guy comes and stays over at least once a week! This is my lil Monkey

barlovo

Cindy - your grandson is the cutest! Those baby blue eyes are amazing. How great that you get to see him each week.

FindingCindy721

I am truly BLESSED...he is my little love!!!

mysticlizard

Cindy - What a handsome little boy! He is going to be a heartbreaker!

Femmigirlz

OH what a cute lil guy. He looks like he could be a baby model.

FindingCindy721

Thanks everyone! He really i a little QT and a source of great joy for me! He is a true motivation to want to keep the energy to keep up with him!

FindingCindy721

Found this blog and thought you may like to read it!
http://blog.myfitnesspal.com/10-tips-to-overcome-a-weight-loss-plateau/

Femmigirlz

Great blog ideas to over coming a plateau, read it. Sometimes eating up to maintenance will shake things up as well, then a few days later do a fast. Makes the body wonder and drops weight.