Stuck

jennifermarie1981

hi there.
I started my journey in December 2014 at 186 pounds. I got to 144 in July but for the past 4 weeks I am between 147 and 150.
My goal was 140

I work out 5-6 days a week. I've quit drinking alcohol with the exception of one or two if we go to dinner which is maybe 1 time a week

I have no idea how to get out of the rut

I changed my workouts, calories are 1400 a day. I drink a lot of water and 3 cups of green tea a day. Any suggestions.

JenMc14

You're at that last, super slow bit. Maybe cut to 1300 calories one or two days a week, not workout days, and see if that helps. You probably don't want to go much lower than that on a regular basis, just because it's no fun. Also, accuracy in calorie counting becomes super important at this point. If you don't have a food scale, get one, and weigh everything.

janejellyroll

Have you eliminated a logging issue (you're using a scale, not using generic database entries, etc)?

ThatLadyFromMN

What kind of exercises are you doing and how long?

MrsCaitlinBeltran

Oh man, do I know the struggle of a weight rut! It can be super discouraging--which sucks. I would recommend cutting back on your workouts if you're only eating around 1400 cals. If you want to workout 5-6 days a week, then cut back a little on the intensity and maybe add some extra protein (extra 50-100 cals). Every person's body is different, but try to keep everything as balanced as you can. For example, don't push your body extremely hard and then have a huge caloric deficit--balance is very important. I really hope you find something that works for you! By the way, you've done an incredible job already

vadimknobel

recomp work on building muscle without trying to lose weight

jennifermarie1981

Hi everyone, and thanks for taking the time to respond.
Yes, I have been weighing out my foods and measuring since January-
Exercises include-
Treadmill- I like to run, not super fast i set it to 5.5-6.0 and will run for 20-45 minutes a day- Since that is redundant, I recent switched it up and will do the treadmill for 20 to 25 minutes then the elliptical or stair stepper for 15-20 minutes.
Full body- I used to do the strength machines with my boyfriend- leg day-- back day-- etc- I swapped over and downloaded PopSugar and started a full body workout with weights, doing that two or three times a week. maybe the machines were working better?

Does everyone eat their calories back? I was told by someone not to and I really do not see any difference other than I am a lot more hungry.

Also, my scale is normal I didn't really want a fancy 200 dollar scale- I looked up some body fat scales on line- does anyone use these (the digital one seemed interesting.and has good reviews)

ibnfaqir

Try having a refeed day where you eat 500-1000 calories above 1400. Or eat at maintenance for 3-5 days. Your hormones maybe out of sync, strategic overeating may reset your system. It worked for me.

malibu927

BF% scales are useless. You can eat back some of your calories...not all, unless you're certain on how much you're burning.

As someone already said, with so little to lose you have to be precise in your logging. Can you open up your diary?

jennifermarie1981

Hi all. Just an update. I changed my goal to a half a pound a week. I feel this is more obtainable and less frustrating if I don't do it. I've also thought of just weighing myself on Friday mornings. Versus daily. So far I feel a lot better and stronger at the gym. Maybe I was not eating enough.

vadimknobel

jennifermarie1981 wrote: »

Hi all. Just an update. I changed my goal to a half a pound a week. I feel this is more obtainable and less frustrating if I don't do it. I've also thought of just weighing myself on Friday mornings. Versus daily. So far I feel a lot better and stronger at the gym. Maybe I was not eating enough.

thanks for the update

EmmaFitzwilliam

I was stalled for 10 weeks. Eventually I decided to both stop being quite so optimistic about the number of calories burned on my walks, and to eat back fewer exercise calories. But generally speaking: drink enough water. Get enough sleep. Eat enough protein. Eat enough fat. Don't stress about it.

charlieandcarol

Do you do intervals for your treadmill work out rather than steady state running? It might help???

becalee26

What if you ate maintenance for a week or so and then go back to the deficit? Just an idea, not sure it works.

120poundstogo

Anyone who hovers at the same weight for an indefinite amount of time?

jennifermarie1981

Hey there. Looking back - doing intervals is when I lost a bulk of my weight. So while doing a steady run is more fun for me. I'm going to do intervals every other day. I started a few days ago to run for 30 and do intervals the last 10 or 15 minutes or so.
I work from home except when k work my second job which is serving, so when working at home. I've been trying to jump on the treadmill for a speedwalk session then eating lunch - instead of sitting on the couch the whole time.