Plateaus -Breaking with extra calories, but how many extra?

2

Replies

  • Marilyn0924
    Marilyn0924 Posts: 797 Member
    SLLRunner wrote: »
    Tilly1285 wrote: »
    Hi Everyone -

    As the topic says, how many are too many to be used to break a plateau? What is a good rule of thumb if in fact eating extra calories is the correct way to beat a plateau?

    Thanks for your input . . .
    Tilly

    Plateau is another way of saying you are eating at maintenance. If you not losing weight, you don't increase your calorie intake, you try to find the errors in your intake or you lower your calorie goal.

    You only increase your calorie goal if you are losing but want to lose at a slower rate, but you still have to stay in a deficit.

    So if someone is eating 1200 cal/day and exercising, but not losing they are at maintenance?

    They are most likely not logging accurately.
  • BWBTrish
    BWBTrish Posts: 2,817 Member
    SLLRunner wrote: »
    Tilly1285 wrote: »
    Hi Everyone -

    As the topic says, how many are too many to be used to break a plateau? What is a good rule of thumb if in fact eating extra calories is the correct way to beat a plateau?

    Thanks for your input . . .
    Tilly

    Plateau is another way of saying you are eating at maintenance. If you not losing weight, you don't increase your calorie intake, you try to find the errors in your intake or you lower your calorie goal.

    You only increase your calorie goal if you are losing but want to lose at a slower rate, but you still have to stay in a deficit.

    So if someone is eating 1200 cal/day and exercising, but not losing they are at maintenance?

    They are most likely not logging accurately.

    yeps most of them indeed

  • tabl_23
    tabl_23 Posts: 46 Member
    Tilly1285 wrote: »
    Hi Everyone -

    As the topic says, how many are too many to be used to break a plateau? What is a good rule of thumb if in fact eating extra calories is the correct way to beat a plateau?

    Thanks for your input . . .
    Tilly

    Okay....I JUST got off the phone with my personal trainer regarding this same question. Like you, I have plateaued....for 4+ months. I was consuming between 1000 and 1300 calories a day and not eating my excercise calories. Now I'm sure that everybody has different advice but I am going to choose to take my personal trainers. Here is what she told me to do:

    Increase calories. Based on MY activity I SHOULD be eating around 2,000 calories a day (to lose weight). I consume around 1200. She suggested an increase of 800 calories. But NOT ALL AT ONCE. she says I should increase by 250 calorie increments. Stick to that amount for 3 or 4 days....if the scale stays the same....increase by another 250 calories for 3 or 4 days. Keep doing this until the scale GOES UP and you GAIN weight (only weighing yourself every 3 or 4 days). When your weight starts to increase it means that you have found your calorie intake needed for you to GAIN weight. She predicts that my calorie intake will be around 2000+ before I gain any weight. THEN, you DECREASE your calories by 250....do that until you plateau for at least a week. If you plateau....decrease your calories again (by 250). She says sticking to a low calorie (1200 a day) for almost a year has been detrimental to my metabolism. Slow increments of calories will even my metabolism out.

    She says when our bodies are used to consuming 3000+ calories (before we begin our lifestyle change)....the worse thing we can do is cut it completely. Every person that starts a weight loss journey should start slow and decrease their calories by 500 calorie increments. Thus keeping our metabolism in check. And giving each person an idea of THEIR OWN calorie needs (as each person is different)

    However, I am obsessed with logging and weighing EVERYTHING I eat. And I excercise 60 minutes a day. Cardio and weight training on top of an already active lifestyle. Knowing this....she has given me this advice. You can choose to take it or leave it....but I have plateaued for months and I figure.....what's the harm in trying?!!?
  • BWBTrish
    BWBTrish Posts: 2,817 Member
    tabl_23 wrote: »
    Tilly1285 wrote: »
    Hi Everyone -

    As the topic says, how many are too many to be used to break a plateau? What is a good rule of thumb if in fact eating extra calories is the correct way to beat a plateau?

    Thanks for your input . . .
    Tilly

    Okay....I JUST got off the phone with my personal trainer regarding this same question. Like you, I have plateaued....for 4+ months. I was consuming between 1000 and 1300 calories a day and not eating my excercise calories. Now I'm sure that everybody has different advice but I am going to choose to take my personal trainers. Here is what she told me to do:

    Increase calories. Based on MY activity I SHOULD be eating around 2,000 calories a day (to lose weight). I consume around 1200. She suggested an increase of 800 calories. But NOT ALL AT ONCE. she says I should increase by 250 calorie increments. Stick to that amount for 3 or 4 days....if the scale stays the same....increase by another 250 calories for 3 or 4 days. Keep doing this until the scale GOES UP and you GAIN weight (only weighing yourself every 3 or 4 days). When your weight starts to increase it means that you have found your calorie intake needed for you to GAIN weight. She predicts that my calorie intake will be around 2000+ before I gain any weight. THEN, you DECREASE your calories by 250....do that until you plateau for at least a week. If you plateau....decrease your calories again (by 250). She says sticking to a low calorie (1200 a day) for almost a year has been detrimental to my metabolism. Slow increments of calories will even my metabolism out.

    She says when our bodies are used to consuming 3000+ calories (before we begin our lifestyle change)....the worse thing we can do is cut it completely. Every person that starts a weight loss journey should start slow and decrease their calories by 500 calorie increments. Thus keeping our metabolism in check. And giving each person an idea of THEIR OWN calorie needs (as each person is different)

    However, I am obsessed with logging and weighing EVERYTHING I eat. And I excercise 60 minutes a day. Cardio and weight training on top of an already active lifestyle. Knowing this....she has given me this advice. You can choose to take it or leave it....but I have plateaued for months and I figure.....what's the harm in trying?!!?

    to be fair i see a lot of cups spoons and serving sizes in your diary @tabl_23 So not accurate at all!
    bread 2 slices can be easily over 50 calories off..some grams here some grams there etc etc

    Really that is not weighing everything at all!

  • BWBTrish
    BWBTrish Posts: 2,817 Member
    Good example btw the Sara Lee bread for 90 calories 2 slices

    I weigh mine and it is never ever 90 calories always a bit under or above.... says enough isnt it?
  • mantium999
    mantium999 Posts: 1,490 Member
    tabl_23 wrote: »
    Tilly1285 wrote: »
    Hi Everyone -

    As the topic says, how many are too many to be used to break a plateau? What is a good rule of thumb if in fact eating extra calories is the correct way to beat a plateau?

    Thanks for your input . . .
    Tilly

    Okay....I JUST got off the phone with my personal trainer regarding this same question. Like you, I have plateaued....for 4+ months. I was consuming between 1000 and 1300 calories a day and not eating my excercise calories. Now I'm sure that everybody has different advice but I am going to choose to take my personal trainers. Here is what she told me to do:

    Increase calories. Based on MY activity I SHOULD be eating around 2,000 calories a day (to lose weight). I consume around 1200. She suggested an increase of 800 calories. But NOT ALL AT ONCE. she says I should increase by 250 calorie increments. Stick to that amount for 3 or 4 days....if the scale stays the same....increase by another 250 calories for 3 or 4 days. Keep doing this until the scale GOES UP and you GAIN weight (only weighing yourself every 3 or 4 days). When your weight starts to increase it means that you have found your calorie intake needed for you to GAIN weight. She predicts that my calorie intake will be around 2000+ before I gain any weight. THEN, you DECREASE your calories by 250....do that until you plateau for at least a week. If you plateau....decrease your calories again (by 250). She says sticking to a low calorie (1200 a day) for almost a year has been detrimental to my metabolism. Slow increments of calories will even my metabolism out.

    She says when our bodies are used to consuming 3000+ calories (before we begin our lifestyle change)....the worse thing we can do is cut it completely. Every person that starts a weight loss journey should start slow and decrease their calories by 500 calorie increments. Thus keeping our metabolism in check. And giving each person an idea of THEIR OWN calorie needs (as each person is different)

    However, I am obsessed with logging and weighing EVERYTHING I eat. And I excercise 60 minutes a day. Cardio and weight training on top of an already active lifestyle. Knowing this....she has given me this advice. You can choose to take it or leave it....but I have plateaued for months and I figure.....what's the harm in trying?!!?

    3-4 days is not enough time to assess if a calorie adjustment is doing anything.

    500 calorie increments is absolutely not a slow decreasing progression. 2 drops and you have reduced calories by 1000. And right above that you mention 250 increments. Inconsistent info leads to questionable advice.
  • tabl_23
    tabl_23 Posts: 46 Member
    BWBTrish wrote: »
    SLLRunner wrote: »
    Tilly1285 wrote: »
    Hi Everyone -

    As the topic says, how many are too many to be used to break a plateau? What is a good rule of thumb if in fact eating extra calories is the correct way to beat a plateau?

    Thanks for your input . . .
    Tilly

    Plateau is another way of saying you are eating at maintenance. If you not losing weight, you don't increase your calorie intake, you try to find the errors in your intake or you lower your calorie goal.

    You only increase your calorie goal if you are losing but want to lose at a slower rate, but you still have to stay in a deficit.

    So if someone is eating 1200 cal/day and exercising, but not losing they are at maintenance?

    Yes because when you asked them...most of the time 99.99% they dont weigh their food and they only guess they eat 1200 calories
    While they eat much more.

    Or dont log everything at all.

    Or have all kinds of wrong entry's

    I agree that 9 times out of 10 it is a logging issue. But nobody here can determine whether or not you are logging accurately....and MFP doesn't help in that area. I posted the other day asking about my plateau...and people were down right RUDE. I posted that I WEIGH everything. Basically people were calling me a liar because my diary posts measurements (cups, ect). But when you scan an item in MFP it automatically uses the measurements. It doesn't give the option....or I don't know how...to change it to the weighted version. So my diary says "cups"....but I go by the grams next to the measurement and WEIGH it before eating. So I DO weigh everything. If I say I weigh everything....I weigh everything...period.

    Long story short....but for "seasoned" lifestyle change people (as I consider myself to be as even though I have only been on MFP for 30 days I have been on my journey for nearly a year).....I KNOW how to log. I KNOW how to weigh....I have made every mistake and have taken steps to correct those mistakes...with still no results.

    This groups should really be more supportive. Granted some comments I got were really helpful....but a lot were rude and accusatory...
  • tabl_23
    tabl_23 Posts: 46 Member
    BWBTrish wrote: »
    tabl_23 wrote: »
    Tilly1285 wrote: »
    Hi Everyone -

    As the topic says, how many are too many to be used to break a plateau? What is a good rule of thumb if in fact eating extra calories is the correct way to beat a plateau?

    Thanks for your input . . .
    Tilly

    Okay....I JUST got off the phone with my personal trainer regarding this same question. Like you, I have plateaued....for 4+ months. I was consuming between 1000 and 1300 calories a day and not eating my excercise calories. Now I'm sure that everybody has different advice but I am going to choose to take my personal trainers. Here is what she told me to do:

    Increase calories. Based on MY activity I SHOULD be eating around 2,000 calories a day (to lose weight). I consume around 1200. She suggested an increase of 800 calories. But NOT ALL AT ONCE. she says I should increase by 250 calorie increments. Stick to that amount for 3 or 4 days....if the scale stays the same....increase by another 250 calories for 3 or 4 days. Keep doing this until the scale GOES UP and you GAIN weight (only weighing yourself every 3 or 4 days). When your weight starts to increase it means that you have found your calorie intake needed for you to GAIN weight. She predicts that my calorie intake will be around 2000+ before I gain any weight. THEN, you DECREASE your calories by 250....do that until you plateau for at least a week. If you plateau....decrease your calories again (by 250). She says sticking to a low calorie (1200 a day) for almost a year has been detrimental to my metabolism. Slow increments of calories will even my metabolism out.

    She says when our bodies are used to consuming 3000+ calories (before we begin our lifestyle change)....the worse thing we can do is cut it completely. Every person that starts a weight loss journey should start slow and decrease their calories by 500 calorie increments. Thus keeping our metabolism in check. And giving each person an idea of THEIR OWN calorie needs (as each person is different)

    However, I am obsessed with logging and weighing EVERYTHING I eat. And I excercise 60 minutes a day. Cardio and weight training on top of an already active lifestyle. Knowing this....she has given me this advice. You can choose to take it or leave it....but I have plateaued for months and I figure.....what's the harm in trying?!!?

    to be fair i see a lot of cups spoons and serving sizes in your diary @tabl_23 So not accurate at all!
    bread 2 slices can be easily over 50 calories off..some grams here some grams there etc etc

    Really that is not weighing everything at all!

    Yes....see my post further down about weighing my food..
  • I_Will_End_You
    I_Will_End_You Posts: 4,397 Member
    You don't break a "plateau" with more calories.

    Eating less calories than you burn = weight loss
    Eating the same amount of calories you burn = maintaining
    Eating more calories than you burn = weight gain.

    You are maintaining right now, so eating MORE calories would result in gain, not loss. There is a lot of crap floating around out there that eating more will make you lose weight. It's untrue. It would be awesome if it was, but it is not.
  • Unknown
    edited August 2015
    This content has been removed.
  • BWBTrish
    BWBTrish Posts: 2,817 Member
    edited August 2015
    tabl_23 wrote: »
    BWBTrish wrote: »
    tabl_23 wrote: »
    Tilly1285 wrote: »
    Hi Everyone -

    As the topic says, how many are too many to be used to break a plateau? What is a good rule of thumb if in fact eating extra calories is the correct way to beat a plateau?

    Thanks for your input . . .
    Tilly

    Okay....I JUST got off the phone with my personal trainer regarding this same question. Like you, I have plateaued....for 4+ months. I was consuming between 1000 and 1300 calories a day and not eating my excercise calories. Now I'm sure that everybody has different advice but I am going to choose to take my personal trainers. Here is what she told me to do:

    Increase calories. Based on MY activity I SHOULD be eating around 2,000 calories a day (to lose weight). I consume around 1200. She suggested an increase of 800 calories. But NOT ALL AT ONCE. she says I should increase by 250 calorie increments. Stick to that amount for 3 or 4 days....if the scale stays the same....increase by another 250 calories for 3 or 4 days. Keep doing this until the scale GOES UP and you GAIN weight (only weighing yourself every 3 or 4 days). When your weight starts to increase it means that you have found your calorie intake needed for you to GAIN weight. She predicts that my calorie intake will be around 2000+ before I gain any weight. THEN, you DECREASE your calories by 250....do that until you plateau for at least a week. If you plateau....decrease your calories again (by 250). She says sticking to a low calorie (1200 a day) for almost a year has been detrimental to my metabolism. Slow increments of calories will even my metabolism out.

    She says when our bodies are used to consuming 3000+ calories (before we begin our lifestyle change)....the worse thing we can do is cut it completely. Every person that starts a weight loss journey should start slow and decrease their calories by 500 calorie increments. Thus keeping our metabolism in check. And giving each person an idea of THEIR OWN calorie needs (as each person is different)

    However, I am obsessed with logging and weighing EVERYTHING I eat. And I excercise 60 minutes a day. Cardio and weight training on top of an already active lifestyle. Knowing this....she has given me this advice. You can choose to take it or leave it....but I have plateaued for months and I figure.....what's the harm in trying?!!?

    to be fair i see a lot of cups spoons and serving sizes in your diary @tabl_23 So not accurate at all!
    bread 2 slices can be easily over 50 calories off..some grams here some grams there etc etc

    Really that is not weighing everything at all!

    Yes....see my post further down about weighing my food..

    like i said Your Sara Lee is always 90 calories...mine dont So that indicates you go by servings as well...as a seasoned user as you say...you know that the servings sizes you use..can be very off.
    And some grams here some grams there adds up.

    you have other entry's like that
    half a cup of cottage cheese..always 90 calories...so you never weigh less or more grams....always exactly half a cup?
    Kellog chips same always exactly 60 calories for 12.5...no way that that is always the same weight.

    Really?

  • jkal1979
    jkal1979 Posts: 1,896 Member
    tabl_23 wrote: »
    BWBTrish wrote: »
    SLLRunner wrote: »
    Tilly1285 wrote: »
    Hi Everyone -

    As the topic says, how many are too many to be used to break a plateau? What is a good rule of thumb if in fact eating extra calories is the correct way to beat a plateau?

    Thanks for your input . . .
    Tilly

    Plateau is another way of saying you are eating at maintenance. If you not losing weight, you don't increase your calorie intake, you try to find the errors in your intake or you lower your calorie goal.

    You only increase your calorie goal if you are losing but want to lose at a slower rate, but you still have to stay in a deficit.

    So if someone is eating 1200 cal/day and exercising, but not losing they are at maintenance?

    Yes because when you asked them...most of the time 99.99% they dont weigh their food and they only guess they eat 1200 calories
    While they eat much more.

    Or dont log everything at all.

    Or have all kinds of wrong entry's

    I agree that 9 times out of 10 it is a logging issue. But nobody here can determine whether or not you are logging accurately....and MFP doesn't help in that area. I posted the other day asking about my plateau...and people were down right RUDE. I posted that I WEIGH everything. Basically people were calling me a liar because my diary posts measurements (cups, ect). But when you scan an item in MFP it automatically uses the measurements. It doesn't give the option....or I don't know how...to change it to the weighted version. So my diary says "cups"....but I go by the grams next to the measurement and WEIGH it before eating. So I DO weigh everything. If I say I weigh everything....I weigh everything...period.

    Long story short....but for "seasoned" lifestyle change people (as I consider myself to be as even though I have only been on MFP for 30 days I have been on my journey for nearly a year).....I KNOW how to log. I KNOW how to weigh....I have made every mistake and have taken steps to correct those mistakes...with still no results.

    This groups should really be more supportive. Granted some comments I got were really helpful....but a lot were rude and accusatory...

    If you tap the serving size a menu should appear and give you serving size options.
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    BWBTrish wrote: »
    tabl_23 wrote: »
    BWBTrish wrote: »
    tabl_23 wrote: »
    Tilly1285 wrote: »
    Hi Everyone -

    As the topic says, how many are too many to be used to break a plateau? What is a good rule of thumb if in fact eating extra calories is the correct way to beat a plateau?

    Thanks for your input . . .
    Tilly

    Okay....I JUST got off the phone with my personal trainer regarding this same question. Like you, I have plateaued....for 4+ months. I was consuming between 1000 and 1300 calories a day and not eating my excercise calories. Now I'm sure that everybody has different advice but I am going to choose to take my personal trainers. Here is what she told me to do:

    Increase calories. Based on MY activity I SHOULD be eating around 2,000 calories a day (to lose weight). I consume around 1200. She suggested an increase of 800 calories. But NOT ALL AT ONCE. she says I should increase by 250 calorie increments. Stick to that amount for 3 or 4 days....if the scale stays the same....increase by another 250 calories for 3 or 4 days. Keep doing this until the scale GOES UP and you GAIN weight (only weighing yourself every 3 or 4 days). When your weight starts to increase it means that you have found your calorie intake needed for you to GAIN weight. She predicts that my calorie intake will be around 2000+ before I gain any weight. THEN, you DECREASE your calories by 250....do that until you plateau for at least a week. If you plateau....decrease your calories again (by 250). She says sticking to a low calorie (1200 a day) for almost a year has been detrimental to my metabolism. Slow increments of calories will even my metabolism out.

    She says when our bodies are used to consuming 3000+ calories (before we begin our lifestyle change)....the worse thing we can do is cut it completely. Every person that starts a weight loss journey should start slow and decrease their calories by 500 calorie increments. Thus keeping our metabolism in check. And giving each person an idea of THEIR OWN calorie needs (as each person is different)

    However, I am obsessed with logging and weighing EVERYTHING I eat. And I excercise 60 minutes a day. Cardio and weight training on top of an already active lifestyle. Knowing this....she has given me this advice. You can choose to take it or leave it....but I have plateaued for months and I figure.....what's the harm in trying?!!?

    to be fair i see a lot of cups spoons and serving sizes in your diary @tabl_23 So not accurate at all!
    bread 2 slices can be easily over 50 calories off..some grams here some grams there etc etc

    Really that is not weighing everything at all!

    Yes....see my post further down about weighing my food..

    like i said Your Sara Lee is always 90 calories...mine dont So that indicates you go by servings as well...as a seasoned user as you say...you know that the servings sizes you use..can be very off.
    And some grams here some grams there adds up.

    you have other entry's like that
    half a cup of cottage cheese..always 90 calories...so you never weigh less or more grams....always exactly half a cup?

    Really?

    She may be weighing out an exact serving as listed on the container. I often do this -- like when I have tortilla chips, it may say "12 chips," but I've weighed out 28 grams (which is what the bag lists for a 12 chip serving).
  • tabl_23
    tabl_23 Posts: 46 Member
    mantium999 wrote: »
    tabl_23 wrote: »
    Tilly1285 wrote: »
    Hi Everyone -

    As the topic says, how many are too many to be used to break a plateau? What is a good rule of thumb if in fact eating extra calories is the correct way to beat a plateau?

    Thanks for your input . . .
    Tilly

    Okay....I JUST got off the phone with my personal trainer regarding this same question. Like you, I have plateaued....for 4+ months. I was consuming between 1000 and 1300 calories a day and not eating my excercise calories. Now I'm sure that everybody has different advice but I am going to choose to take my personal trainers. Here is what she told me to do:

    Increase calories. Based on MY activity I SHOULD be eating around 2,000 calories a day (to lose weight). I consume around 1200. She suggested an increase of 800 calories. But NOT ALL AT ONCE. she says I should increase by 250 calorie increments. Stick to that amount for 3 or 4 days....if the scale stays the same....increase by another 250 calories for 3 or 4 days. Keep doing this until the scale GOES UP and you GAIN weight (only weighing yourself every 3 or 4 days). When your weight starts to increase it means that you have found your calorie intake needed for you to GAIN weight. She predicts that my calorie intake will be around 2000+ before I gain any weight. THEN, you DECREASE your calories by 250....do that until you plateau for at least a week. If you plateau....decrease your calories again (by 250). She says sticking to a low calorie (1200 a day) for almost a year has been detrimental to my metabolism. Slow increments of calories will even my metabolism out.

    She says when our bodies are used to consuming 3000+ calories (before we begin our lifestyle change)....the worse thing we can do is cut it completely. Every person that starts a weight loss journey should start slow and decrease their calories by 500 calorie increments. Thus keeping our metabolism in check. And giving each person an idea of THEIR OWN calorie needs (as each person is different)

    However, I am obsessed with logging and weighing EVERYTHING I eat. And I excercise 60 minutes a day. Cardio and weight training on top of an already active lifestyle. Knowing this....she has given me this advice. You can choose to take it or leave it....but I have plateaued for months and I figure.....what's the harm in trying?!!?

    3-4 days is not enough time to assess if a calorie adjustment is doing anything.

    500 calorie increments is absolutely not a slow decreasing progression. 2 drops and you have reduced calories by 1000. And right above that you mention 250 increments. Inconsistent info leads to questionable advice.

    My trainer says that when people start a weight loss journey they should decrease by 500 calories. Since I have already decreased to the lowest amount she suggested starting with 250

    Agree or not...this is what I am talking about with rude people. This person is asking for advice. Weight loss is different for every single person. What works for one may not work for others. This SHOULD BE a place to offer advice without being attacked. We should take people at face value. And don't "assume" what we don't know... Sometimes giving a person a plethora of advice gives them options of the next step that works best for them. That is simply what I was doing.
    BWBTrish wrote: »
    tabl_23 wrote: »
    BWBTrish wrote: »
    tabl_23 wrote: »
    Tilly1285 wrote: »
    Hi Everyone -

    As the topic says, how many are too many to be used to break a plateau? What is a good rule of thumb if in fact eating extra calories is the correct way to beat a plateau?

    Thanks for your input . . .
    Tilly

    Okay....I JUST got off the phone with my personal trainer regarding this same question. Like you, I have plateaued....for 4+ months. I was consuming between 1000 and 1300 calories a day and not eating my excercise calories. Now I'm sure that everybody has different advice but I am going to choose to take my personal trainers. Here is what she told me to do:

    Increase calories. Based on MY activity I SHOULD be eating around 2,000 calories a day (to lose weight). I consume around 1200. She suggested an increase of 800 calories. But NOT ALL AT ONCE. she says I should increase by 250 calorie increments. Stick to that amount for 3 or 4 days....if the scale stays the same....increase by another 250 calories for 3 or 4 days. Keep doing this until the scale GOES UP and you GAIN weight (only weighing yourself every 3 or 4 days). When your weight starts to increase it means that you have found your calorie intake needed for you to GAIN weight. She predicts that my calorie intake will be around 2000+ before I gain any weight. THEN, you DECREASE your calories by 250....do that until you plateau for at least a week. If you plateau....decrease your calories again (by 250). She says sticking to a low calorie (1200 a day) for almost a year has been detrimental to my metabolism. Slow increments of calories will even my metabolism out.

    She says when our bodies are used to consuming 3000+ calories (before we begin our lifestyle change)....the worse thing we can do is cut it completely. Every person that starts a weight loss journey should start slow and decrease their calories by 500 calorie increments. Thus keeping our metabolism in check. And giving each person an idea of THEIR OWN calorie needs (as each person is different)

    However, I am obsessed with logging and weighing EVERYTHING I eat. And I excercise 60 minutes a day. Cardio and weight training on top of an already active lifestyle. Knowing this....she has given me this advice. You can choose to take it or leave it....but I have plateaued for months and I figure.....what's the harm in trying?!!?

    to be fair i see a lot of cups spoons and serving sizes in your diary @tabl_23 So not accurate at all!
    bread 2 slices can be easily over 50 calories off..some grams here some grams there etc etc

    Really that is not weighing everything at all!

    Yes....see my post further down about weighing my food..

    like i said Your Sara Lee is always 90 calories...mine dont So that indicates you go by servings as well...as a seasoned user as you say...you know that the servings sizes you use..can be very off.
    And some grams here some grams there adds up.

    you have other entry's like that
    half a cup of cottage cheese..always 90 calories...so you never weigh less or more grams....always exactly half a cup?
    Kellog chips same always exactly 60 calories for 12.5...no way that that is always the same weight.

    Really?

    Never said I was a "seasoned user"....I've only been using MFP for 30 days.

    I said I was seasoned in weighing things....meaning I do weigh everything. For example: one serving size of Sarah Lee is 90 calories for 2 slices (45 grams). Now YOU please tell me if I am doing this wrong....cause Lord knows you Know EVERYTHING.

    I place my plate on my scale. I tare my scale. I place 2 peices of bread on my plate. Scale tells me weight....if it ISN'T 45 grams....if tear off a small peice until it weighs exactly 45 grams. SO when it is logged as 1 Serving (2 peices....45 grams)...that is EXACTLY what I'm eating.
  • tabl_23
    tabl_23 Posts: 46 Member
    BWBTrish wrote: »
    tabl_23 wrote: »
    BWBTrish wrote: »
    tabl_23 wrote: »
    Tilly1285 wrote: »
    Hi Everyone -

    As the topic says, how many are too many to be used to break a plateau? What is a good rule of thumb if in fact eating extra calories is the correct way to beat a plateau?

    Thanks for your input . . .
    Tilly

    Okay....I JUST got off the phone with my personal trainer regarding this same question. Like you, I have plateaued....for 4+ months. I was consuming between 1000 and 1300 calories a day and not eating my excercise calories. Now I'm sure that everybody has different advice but I am going to choose to take my personal trainers. Here is what she told me to do:

    Increase calories. Based on MY activity I SHOULD be eating around 2,000 calories a day (to lose weight). I consume around 1200. She suggested an increase of 800 calories. But NOT ALL AT ONCE. she says I should increase by 250 calorie increments. Stick to that amount for 3 or 4 days....if the scale stays the same....increase by another 250 calories for 3 or 4 days. Keep doing this until the scale GOES UP and you GAIN weight (only weighing yourself every 3 or 4 days). When your weight starts to increase it means that you have found your calorie intake needed for you to GAIN weight. She predicts that my calorie intake will be around 2000+ before I gain any weight. THEN, you DECREASE your calories by 250....do that until you plateau for at least a week. If you plateau....decrease your calories again (by 250). She says sticking to a low calorie (1200 a day) for almost a year has been detrimental to my metabolism. Slow increments of calories will even my metabolism out.

    She says when our bodies are used to consuming 3000+ calories (before we begin our lifestyle change)....the worse thing we can do is cut it completely. Every person that starts a weight loss journey should start slow and decrease their calories by 500 calorie increments. Thus keeping our metabolism in check. And giving each person an idea of THEIR OWN calorie needs (as each person is different)

    However, I am obsessed with logging and weighing EVERYTHING I eat. And I excercise 60 minutes a day. Cardio and weight training on top of an already active lifestyle. Knowing this....she has given me this advice. You can choose to take it or leave it....but I have plateaued for months and I figure.....what's the harm in trying?!!?

    to be fair i see a lot of cups spoons and serving sizes in your diary @tabl_23 So not accurate at all!
    bread 2 slices can be easily over 50 calories off..some grams here some grams there etc etc

    Really that is not weighing everything at all!

    Yes....see my post further down about weighing my food..

    like i said Your Sara Lee is always 90 calories...mine dont So that indicates you go by servings as well...as a seasoned user as you say...you know that the servings sizes you use..can be very off.
    And some grams here some grams there adds up.

    you have other entry's like that
    half a cup of cottage cheese..always 90 calories...so you never weigh less or more grams....always exactly half a cup?

    Really?

    She may be weighing out an exact serving as listed on the container. I often do this -- like when I have tortilla chips, it may say "12 chips," but I've weighed out 28 grams (which is what the bag lists for a 12 chip serving).

    This is EXACTLY what I do....thank you. :)
  • DeguelloTex
    DeguelloTex Posts: 6,652 Member
    edited August 2015
    tabl_23 wrote: »
    mantium999 wrote: »
    tabl_23 wrote: »
    Tilly1285 wrote: »
    Hi Everyone -

    As the topic says, how many are too many to be used to break a plateau? What is a good rule of thumb if in fact eating extra calories is the correct way to beat a plateau?

    Thanks for your input . . .
    Tilly

    Okay....I JUST got off the phone with my personal trainer regarding this same question. Like you, I have plateaued....for 4+ months. I was consuming between 1000 and 1300 calories a day and not eating my excercise calories. Now I'm sure that everybody has different advice but I am going to choose to take my personal trainers. Here is what she told me to do:

    Increase calories. Based on MY activity I SHOULD be eating around 2,000 calories a day (to lose weight). I consume around 1200. She suggested an increase of 800 calories. But NOT ALL AT ONCE. she says I should increase by 250 calorie increments. Stick to that amount for 3 or 4 days....if the scale stays the same....increase by another 250 calories for 3 or 4 days. Keep doing this until the scale GOES UP and you GAIN weight (only weighing yourself every 3 or 4 days). When your weight starts to increase it means that you have found your calorie intake needed for you to GAIN weight. She predicts that my calorie intake will be around 2000+ before I gain any weight. THEN, you DECREASE your calories by 250....do that until you plateau for at least a week. If you plateau....decrease your calories again (by 250). She says sticking to a low calorie (1200 a day) for almost a year has been detrimental to my metabolism. Slow increments of calories will even my metabolism out.

    She says when our bodies are used to consuming 3000+ calories (before we begin our lifestyle change)....the worse thing we can do is cut it completely. Every person that starts a weight loss journey should start slow and decrease their calories by 500 calorie increments. Thus keeping our metabolism in check. And giving each person an idea of THEIR OWN calorie needs (as each person is different)

    However, I am obsessed with logging and weighing EVERYTHING I eat. And I excercise 60 minutes a day. Cardio and weight training on top of an already active lifestyle. Knowing this....she has given me this advice. You can choose to take it or leave it....but I have plateaued for months and I figure.....what's the harm in trying?!!?

    3-4 days is not enough time to assess if a calorie adjustment is doing anything.

    500 calorie increments is absolutely not a slow decreasing progression. 2 drops and you have reduced calories by 1000. And right above that you mention 250 increments. Inconsistent info leads to questionable advice.

    My trainer says that when people start a weight loss journey they should decrease by 500 calories. Since I have already decreased to the lowest amount she suggested starting with 250

    Agree or not...this is what I am talking about with rude people. This person is asking for advice. Weight loss is different for every single person. What works for one may not work for others. This SHOULD BE a place to offer advice without being attacked. We should take people at face value. And don't "assume" what we don't know... Sometimes giving a person a plethora of advice gives them options of the next step that works best for them. That is simply what I was doing.
    BWBTrish wrote: »
    tabl_23 wrote: »
    BWBTrish wrote: »
    tabl_23 wrote: »
    Tilly1285 wrote: »
    Hi Everyone -

    As the topic says, how many are too many to be used to break a plateau? What is a good rule of thumb if in fact eating extra calories is the correct way to beat a plateau?

    Thanks for your input . . .
    Tilly

    Okay....I JUST got off the phone with my personal trainer regarding this same question. Like you, I have plateaued....for 4+ months. I was consuming between 1000 and 1300 calories a day and not eating my excercise calories. Now I'm sure that everybody has different advice but I am going to choose to take my personal trainers. Here is what she told me to do:

    Increase calories. Based on MY activity I SHOULD be eating around 2,000 calories a day (to lose weight). I consume around 1200. She suggested an increase of 800 calories. But NOT ALL AT ONCE. she says I should increase by 250 calorie increments. Stick to that amount for 3 or 4 days....if the scale stays the same....increase by another 250 calories for 3 or 4 days. Keep doing this until the scale GOES UP and you GAIN weight (only weighing yourself every 3 or 4 days). When your weight starts to increase it means that you have found your calorie intake needed for you to GAIN weight. She predicts that my calorie intake will be around 2000+ before I gain any weight. THEN, you DECREASE your calories by 250....do that until you plateau for at least a week. If you plateau....decrease your calories again (by 250). She says sticking to a low calorie (1200 a day) for almost a year has been detrimental to my metabolism. Slow increments of calories will even my metabolism out.

    She says when our bodies are used to consuming 3000+ calories (before we begin our lifestyle change)....the worse thing we can do is cut it completely. Every person that starts a weight loss journey should start slow and decrease their calories by 500 calorie increments. Thus keeping our metabolism in check. And giving each person an idea of THEIR OWN calorie needs (as each person is different)

    However, I am obsessed with logging and weighing EVERYTHING I eat. And I excercise 60 minutes a day. Cardio and weight training on top of an already active lifestyle. Knowing this....she has given me this advice. You can choose to take it or leave it....but I have plateaued for months and I figure.....what's the harm in trying?!!?

    to be fair i see a lot of cups spoons and serving sizes in your diary @tabl_23 So not accurate at all!
    bread 2 slices can be easily over 50 calories off..some grams here some grams there etc etc

    Really that is not weighing everything at all!

    Yes....see my post further down about weighing my food..

    like i said Your Sara Lee is always 90 calories...mine dont So that indicates you go by servings as well...as a seasoned user as you say...you know that the servings sizes you use..can be very off.
    And some grams here some grams there adds up.

    you have other entry's like that
    half a cup of cottage cheese..always 90 calories...so you never weigh less or more grams....always exactly half a cup?
    Kellog chips same always exactly 60 calories for 12.5...no way that that is always the same weight.

    Really?

    Never said I was a "seasoned user"....I've only been using MFP for 30 days.

    I said I was seasoned in weighing things....meaning I do weigh everything. For example: one serving size of Sarah Lee is 90 calories for 2 slices (45 grams). Now YOU please tell me if I am doing this wrong....cause Lord knows you Know EVERYTHING.

    I place my plate on my scale. I tare my scale. I place 2 peices of bread on my plate. Scale tells me weight....if it ISN'T 45 grams....if tear off a small peice until it weighs exactly 45 grams. SO when it is logged as 1 Serving (2 peices....45 grams)...that is EXACTLY what I'm eating.
    Disagreement is not an attack.

    Your passive aggressive jab at someone's knowing everything? That's kind of what an attack looks like. You should brush up on the difference.
  • BWBTrish
    BWBTrish Posts: 2,817 Member
    when i weigh two slices of Sara lee one day it is 43 grams next day the slices are 50 gram etc etc
    Which means the sleices of bread are never 90 calories always...it varies

    Same for crisps it is never 28 grams every day...and yes you can cut a bit of your bread to make it 45 gram and dont eat that lol

    But for me when i weigh a serving of prepacked food like the bread the crisps etc it has never the same weight as the label says always a bit more or less... which also means more or less calories.

    So when you do your half cup of cottage cheese you weigh it and take the too much grams out so it is really 60 calories?
  • tabl_23
    tabl_23 Posts: 46 Member
    BWBTrish wrote: »
    tabl_23 wrote: »
    BWBTrish wrote: »
    tabl_23 wrote: »
    Tilly1285 wrote: »
    Hi Everyone -

    As the topic says, how many are too many to be used to break a plateau? What is a good rule of thumb if in fact eating extra calories is the correct way to beat a plateau?

    Thanks for your input . . .
    Tilly

    Okay....I JUST got off the phone with my personal trainer regarding this same question. Like you, I have plateaued....for 4+ months. I was consuming between 1000 and 1300 calories a day and not eating my excercise calories. Now I'm sure that everybody has different advice but I am going to choose to take my personal trainers. Here is what she told me to do:

    Increase calories. Based on MY activity I SHOULD be eating around 2,000 calories a day (to lose weight). I consume around 1200. She suggested an increase of 800 calories. But NOT ALL AT ONCE. she says I should increase by 250 calorie increments. Stick to that amount for 3 or 4 days....if the scale stays the same....increase by another 250 calories for 3 or 4 days. Keep doing this until the scale GOES UP and you GAIN weight (only weighing yourself every 3 or 4 days). When your weight starts to increase it means that you have found your calorie intake needed for you to GAIN weight. She predicts that my calorie intake will be around 2000+ before I gain any weight. THEN, you DECREASE your calories by 250....do that until you plateau for at least a week. If you plateau....decrease your calories again (by 250). She says sticking to a low calorie (1200 a day) for almost a year has been detrimental to my metabolism. Slow increments of calories will even my metabolism out.

    She says when our bodies are used to consuming 3000+ calories (before we begin our lifestyle change)....the worse thing we can do is cut it completely. Every person that starts a weight loss journey should start slow and decrease their calories by 500 calorie increments. Thus keeping our metabolism in check. And giving each person an idea of THEIR OWN calorie needs (as each person is different)

    However, I am obsessed with logging and weighing EVERYTHING I eat. And I excercise 60 minutes a day. Cardio and weight training on top of an already active lifestyle. Knowing this....she has given me this advice. You can choose to take it or leave it....but I have plateaued for months and I figure.....what's the harm in trying?!!?

    to be fair i see a lot of cups spoons and serving sizes in your diary @tabl_23 So not accurate at all!
    bread 2 slices can be easily over 50 calories off..some grams here some grams there etc etc

    Really that is not weighing everything at all!

    Yes....see my post further down about weighing my food..

    like i said Your Sara Lee is always 90 calories...mine dont So that indicates you go by servings as well...as a seasoned user as you say...you know that the servings sizes you use..can be very off.
    And some grams here some grams there adds up.

    you have other entry's like that
    half a cup of cottage cheese..always 90 calories...so you never weigh less or more grams....always exactly half a cup?
    Kellog chips same always exactly 60 calories for 12.5...no way that that is always the same weight.

    Really?

    It is the same weight....since I weigh the freaking chips myself....every time. Actually a full serving is 30 grams. I only eat half a serving. So I weigh out 15 grams of chips. I'm not a grazer....I don't grab handfuls of food. I start with an empty plate and tare out between every food. I eat exact serving sizes....sorry if that confuses a "seasoned user" like yourself.
  • DeguelloTex
    DeguelloTex Posts: 6,652 Member
    tabl_23 wrote: »
    BWBTrish wrote: »
    tabl_23 wrote: »
    BWBTrish wrote: »
    tabl_23 wrote: »
    Tilly1285 wrote: »
    Hi Everyone -

    As the topic says, how many are too many to be used to break a plateau? What is a good rule of thumb if in fact eating extra calories is the correct way to beat a plateau?

    Thanks for your input . . .
    Tilly

    Okay....I JUST got off the phone with my personal trainer regarding this same question. Like you, I have plateaued....for 4+ months. I was consuming between 1000 and 1300 calories a day and not eating my excercise calories. Now I'm sure that everybody has different advice but I am going to choose to take my personal trainers. Here is what she told me to do:

    Increase calories. Based on MY activity I SHOULD be eating around 2,000 calories a day (to lose weight). I consume around 1200. She suggested an increase of 800 calories. But NOT ALL AT ONCE. she says I should increase by 250 calorie increments. Stick to that amount for 3 or 4 days....if the scale stays the same....increase by another 250 calories for 3 or 4 days. Keep doing this until the scale GOES UP and you GAIN weight (only weighing yourself every 3 or 4 days). When your weight starts to increase it means that you have found your calorie intake needed for you to GAIN weight. She predicts that my calorie intake will be around 2000+ before I gain any weight. THEN, you DECREASE your calories by 250....do that until you plateau for at least a week. If you plateau....decrease your calories again (by 250). She says sticking to a low calorie (1200 a day) for almost a year has been detrimental to my metabolism. Slow increments of calories will even my metabolism out.

    She says when our bodies are used to consuming 3000+ calories (before we begin our lifestyle change)....the worse thing we can do is cut it completely. Every person that starts a weight loss journey should start slow and decrease their calories by 500 calorie increments. Thus keeping our metabolism in check. And giving each person an idea of THEIR OWN calorie needs (as each person is different)

    However, I am obsessed with logging and weighing EVERYTHING I eat. And I excercise 60 minutes a day. Cardio and weight training on top of an already active lifestyle. Knowing this....she has given me this advice. You can choose to take it or leave it....but I have plateaued for months and I figure.....what's the harm in trying?!!?

    to be fair i see a lot of cups spoons and serving sizes in your diary @tabl_23 So not accurate at all!
    bread 2 slices can be easily over 50 calories off..some grams here some grams there etc etc

    Really that is not weighing everything at all!

    Yes....see my post further down about weighing my food..

    like i said Your Sara Lee is always 90 calories...mine dont So that indicates you go by servings as well...as a seasoned user as you say...you know that the servings sizes you use..can be very off.
    And some grams here some grams there adds up.

    you have other entry's like that
    half a cup of cottage cheese..always 90 calories...so you never weigh less or more grams....always exactly half a cup?
    Kellog chips same always exactly 60 calories for 12.5...no way that that is always the same weight.

    Really?

    It is the same weight....since I weigh the freaking chips myself....every time. Actually a full serving is 30 grams. I only eat half a serving. So I weigh out 15 grams of chips. I'm not a grazer....I don't grab handfuls of food. I start with an empty plate and tare out between every food. I eat exact serving sizes....sorry if that confuses a "seasoned user" like yourself.
    Do you break the chips or are they just really, really small? When I get chips, I go for 42 grams. It's rare that I can get exactly 42 grams, let alone do it every time, because they aren't uniform weights.

  • BWBTrish
    BWBTrish Posts: 2,817 Member
    well it is strange that you always eat the exact same amount of calories for the same foods it indicates that people dont weigh but indeed use cups spoons and serving sizes

    And the fact remains that you only gain or not lose weight when you eat to much.
    How ever you toss and turn it.

    Eating more is never the solution.
  • omma_to_3
    omma_to_3 Posts: 3,265 Member
    BWBTrish wrote: »
    when i weigh two slices of Sara lee one day it is 43 grams next day the slices are 50 gram etc etc
    Which means the sleices of bread are never 90 calories always...it varies

    Same for crisps it is never 28 grams every day...and yes you can cut a bit of your bread to make it 45 gram and dont eat that lol

    But for me when i weigh a serving of prepacked food like the bread the crisps etc it has never the same weight as the label says always a bit more or less... which also means more or less calories.

    So when you do your half cup of cottage cheese you weigh it and take the too much grams out so it is really 60 calories?

    How much off are your slices of bread? I weighed mine enough to know that my 2 slices were never off by more than 5%. For 35 calorie per slice bread, that's only 1.75 calories per slice that I'm off. So no, I don't weight my bread anymore.

    Yes, you should weigh your food (and they really can be off a LOT), but don't assume that people log their food how they measured it. I don't always do that either. I make sure the log ends up the appropriate number of calories based on what I weighed, but I don't care if the entry says cups or grams LOL.

  • BWBTrish
    BWBTrish Posts: 2,817 Member
    tabl_23 wrote: »
    BWBTrish wrote: »
    tabl_23 wrote: »
    BWBTrish wrote: »
    tabl_23 wrote: »
    Tilly1285 wrote: »
    Hi Everyone -

    As the topic says, how many are too many to be used to break a plateau? What is a good rule of thumb if in fact eating extra calories is the correct way to beat a plateau?

    Thanks for your input . . .
    Tilly

    Okay....I JUST got off the phone with my personal trainer regarding this same question. Like you, I have plateaued....for 4+ months. I was consuming between 1000 and 1300 calories a day and not eating my excercise calories. Now I'm sure that everybody has different advice but I am going to choose to take my personal trainers. Here is what she told me to do:

    Increase calories. Based on MY activity I SHOULD be eating around 2,000 calories a day (to lose weight). I consume around 1200. She suggested an increase of 800 calories. But NOT ALL AT ONCE. she says I should increase by 250 calorie increments. Stick to that amount for 3 or 4 days....if the scale stays the same....increase by another 250 calories for 3 or 4 days. Keep doing this until the scale GOES UP and you GAIN weight (only weighing yourself every 3 or 4 days). When your weight starts to increase it means that you have found your calorie intake needed for you to GAIN weight. She predicts that my calorie intake will be around 2000+ before I gain any weight. THEN, you DECREASE your calories by 250....do that until you plateau for at least a week. If you plateau....decrease your calories again (by 250). She says sticking to a low calorie (1200 a day) for almost a year has been detrimental to my metabolism. Slow increments of calories will even my metabolism out.

    She says when our bodies are used to consuming 3000+ calories (before we begin our lifestyle change)....the worse thing we can do is cut it completely. Every person that starts a weight loss journey should start slow and decrease their calories by 500 calorie increments. Thus keeping our metabolism in check. And giving each person an idea of THEIR OWN calorie needs (as each person is different)

    However, I am obsessed with logging and weighing EVERYTHING I eat. And I excercise 60 minutes a day. Cardio and weight training on top of an already active lifestyle. Knowing this....she has given me this advice. You can choose to take it or leave it....but I have plateaued for months and I figure.....what's the harm in trying?!!?

    to be fair i see a lot of cups spoons and serving sizes in your diary @tabl_23 So not accurate at all!
    bread 2 slices can be easily over 50 calories off..some grams here some grams there etc etc

    Really that is not weighing everything at all!

    Yes....see my post further down about weighing my food..

    like i said Your Sara Lee is always 90 calories...mine dont So that indicates you go by servings as well...as a seasoned user as you say...you know that the servings sizes you use..can be very off.
    And some grams here some grams there adds up.

    you have other entry's like that
    half a cup of cottage cheese..always 90 calories...so you never weigh less or more grams....always exactly half a cup?
    Kellog chips same always exactly 60 calories for 12.5...no way that that is always the same weight.

    Really?

    It is the same weight....since I weigh the freaking chips myself....every time. Actually a full serving is 30 grams. I only eat half a serving. So I weigh out 15 grams of chips. I'm not a grazer....I don't grab handfuls of food. I start with an empty plate and tare out between every food. I eat exact serving sizes....sorry if that confuses a "seasoned user" like yourself.
    Do you break the chips or are they just really, really small? When I get chips, I go for 42 grams. It's rare that I can get exactly 42 grams, let alone do it every time, because they aren't uniform weights.

    thats what i said lol i never get exactly the same always...some days yes others dont... and it doesnt matter with less dense foods
    but count it all up specially when you use a lot the same densed foods..it adds up very quickly to a couple of hundred calories

    But be my gues peeps eat more and lose weight.... i am not that special i have to log accurate and keep my deficit to lose weight
    No special treatment for me unfortunatly.
  • mantium999
    mantium999 Posts: 1,490 Member
    tabl_23 wrote: »
    mantium999 wrote: »
    tabl_23 wrote: »
    Tilly1285 wrote: »
    Hi Everyone -

    As the topic says, how many are too many to be used to break a plateau? What is a good rule of thumb if in fact eating extra calories is the correct way to beat a plateau?

    Thanks for your input . . .
    Tilly

    Okay....I JUST got off the phone with my personal trainer regarding this same question. Like you, I have plateaued....for 4+ months. I was consuming between 1000 and 1300 calories a day and not eating my excercise calories. Now I'm sure that everybody has different advice but I am going to choose to take my personal trainers. Here is what she told me to do:

    Increase calories. Based on MY activity I SHOULD be eating around 2,000 calories a day (to lose weight). I consume around 1200. She suggested an increase of 800 calories. But NOT ALL AT ONCE. she says I should increase by 250 calorie increments. Stick to that amount for 3 or 4 days....if the scale stays the same....increase by another 250 calories for 3 or 4 days. Keep doing this until the scale GOES UP and you GAIN weight (only weighing yourself every 3 or 4 days). When your weight starts to increase it means that you have found your calorie intake needed for you to GAIN weight. She predicts that my calorie intake will be around 2000+ before I gain any weight. THEN, you DECREASE your calories by 250....do that until you plateau for at least a week. If you plateau....decrease your calories again (by 250). She says sticking to a low calorie (1200 a day) for almost a year has been detrimental to my metabolism. Slow increments of calories will even my metabolism out.

    She says when our bodies are used to consuming 3000+ calories (before we begin our lifestyle change)....the worse thing we can do is cut it completely. Every person that starts a weight loss journey should start slow and decrease their calories by 500 calorie increments. Thus keeping our metabolism in check. And giving each person an idea of THEIR OWN calorie needs (as each person is different)

    However, I am obsessed with logging and weighing EVERYTHING I eat. And I excercise 60 minutes a day. Cardio and weight training on top of an already active lifestyle. Knowing this....she has given me this advice. You can choose to take it or leave it....but I have plateaued for months and I figure.....what's the harm in trying?!!?

    3-4 days is not enough time to assess if a calorie adjustment is doing anything.

    500 calorie increments is absolutely not a slow decreasing progression. 2 drops and you have reduced calories by 1000. And right above that you mention 250 increments. Inconsistent info leads to questionable advice.

    My trainer says that when people start a weight loss journey they should decrease by 500 calories. Since I have already decreased to the lowest amount she suggested starting with 250

    Agree or not...this is what I am talking about with rude people. This person is asking for advice. Weight loss is different for every single person. What works for one may not work for others. This SHOULD BE a place to offer advice without being attacked. We should take people at face value. And don't "assume" what we don't know... Sometimes giving a person a plethora of advice gives them options of the next step that works best for them. That is simply what I was doing.
    BWBTrish wrote: »
    tabl_23 wrote: »
    BWBTrish wrote: »
    tabl_23 wrote: »
    Tilly1285 wrote: »
    Hi Everyone -

    As the topic says, how many are too many to be used to break a plateau? What is a good rule of thumb if in fact eating extra calories is the correct way to beat a plateau?

    Thanks for your input . . .
    Tilly

    Okay....I JUST got off the phone with my personal trainer regarding this same question. Like you, I have plateaued....for 4+ months. I was consuming between 1000 and 1300 calories a day and not eating my excercise calories. Now I'm sure that everybody has different advice but I am going to choose to take my personal trainers. Here is what she told me to do:

    Increase calories. Based on MY activity I SHOULD be eating around 2,000 calories a day (to lose weight). I consume around 1200. She suggested an increase of 800 calories. But NOT ALL AT ONCE. she says I should increase by 250 calorie increments. Stick to that amount for 3 or 4 days....if the scale stays the same....increase by another 250 calories for 3 or 4 days. Keep doing this until the scale GOES UP and you GAIN weight (only weighing yourself every 3 or 4 days). When your weight starts to increase it means that you have found your calorie intake needed for you to GAIN weight. She predicts that my calorie intake will be around 2000+ before I gain any weight. THEN, you DECREASE your calories by 250....do that until you plateau for at least a week. If you plateau....decrease your calories again (by 250). She says sticking to a low calorie (1200 a day) for almost a year has been detrimental to my metabolism. Slow increments of calories will even my metabolism out.

    She says when our bodies are used to consuming 3000+ calories (before we begin our lifestyle change)....the worse thing we can do is cut it completely. Every person that starts a weight loss journey should start slow and decrease their calories by 500 calorie increments. Thus keeping our metabolism in check. And giving each person an idea of THEIR OWN calorie needs (as each person is different)

    However, I am obsessed with logging and weighing EVERYTHING I eat. And I excercise 60 minutes a day. Cardio and weight training on top of an already active lifestyle. Knowing this....she has given me this advice. You can choose to take it or leave it....but I have plateaued for months and I figure.....what's the harm in trying?!!?

    to be fair i see a lot of cups spoons and serving sizes in your diary @tabl_23 So not accurate at all!
    bread 2 slices can be easily over 50 calories off..some grams here some grams there etc etc

    Really that is not weighing everything at all!

    Yes....see my post further down about weighing my food..

    like i said Your Sara Lee is always 90 calories...mine dont So that indicates you go by servings as well...as a seasoned user as you say...you know that the servings sizes you use..can be very off.
    And some grams here some grams there adds up.

    you have other entry's like that
    half a cup of cottage cheese..always 90 calories...so you never weigh less or more grams....always exactly half a cup?
    Kellog chips same always exactly 60 calories for 12.5...no way that that is always the same weight.

    Really?

    Never said I was a "seasoned user"....I've only been using MFP for 30 days.

    I said I was seasoned in weighing things....meaning I do weigh everything. For example: one serving size of Sarah Lee is 90 calories for 2 slices (45 grams). Now YOU please tell me if I am doing this wrong....cause Lord knows you Know EVERYTHING.

    I place my plate on my scale. I tare my scale. I place 2 peices of bread on my plate. Scale tells me weight....if it ISN'T 45 grams....if tear off a small peice until it weighs exactly 45 grams. SO when it is logged as 1 Serving (2 peices....45 grams)...that is EXACTLY what I'm eating.

    Noting your inconsistencies is not rude, you were not very clear in describing the different calorie adjustments. That could very well confuse a new person. I stand by my assessment that 3-4 days is an insufficient amount of time to reassess calorie adjustments. An incremental decrease should not be a flat number (500, 250, 100, etc.), it should be an incremental decrease based on estimated caloric needs. So your trainer saying people just starting out should drop by 500 is not particularly valuable. A 5'3" woman 30 pounds overweight will need to drop calories by a different value than a 5'10" woman looking to drop the same weight. Which supports your specific remark that weight loss is different for everyone. If you are correctly reiterating your trainer's advice, I question your trainer's nutritional knowledge (which is consistent with point that most trainers have very minimal nutritional knowledge).
  • BWBTrish
    BWBTrish Posts: 2,817 Member
    omma_to_3 wrote: »
    BWBTrish wrote: »
    when i weigh two slices of Sara lee one day it is 43 grams next day the slices are 50 gram etc etc
    Which means the sleices of bread are never 90 calories always...it varies

    Same for crisps it is never 28 grams every day...and yes you can cut a bit of your bread to make it 45 gram and dont eat that lol

    But for me when i weigh a serving of prepacked food like the bread the crisps etc it has never the same weight as the label says always a bit more or less... which also means more or less calories.

    So when you do your half cup of cottage cheese you weigh it and take the too much grams out so it is really 60 calories?

    How much off are your slices of bread? I weighed mine enough to know that my 2 slices were never off by more than 5%. For 35 calorie per slice bread, that's only 1.75 calories per slice that I'm off. So no, I don't weight my bread anymore.

    Yes, you should weigh your food (and they really can be off a LOT), but don't assume that people log their food how they measured it. I don't always do that either. I make sure the log ends up the appropriate number of calories based on what I weighed, but I don't care if the entry says cups or grams LOL.

    the point is some calories off here some there
    lets say with some error logging 100 a day
    is 700 a week
    2800 a month so 5 weeks 3500 isnt that a whole pound you threw away for just those couple of calories that are not important?

  • BWBTrish
    BWBTrish Posts: 2,817 Member
    With a smaller deficit it is important....
  • jkal1979
    jkal1979 Posts: 1,896 Member
    edited August 2015
    BWBTrish wrote: »
    well it is strange that you always eat the exact same amount of calories for the same foods it indicates that people dont weigh but indeed use cups spoons and serving sizes

    And the fact remains that you only gain or not lose weight when you eat to much.
    How ever you toss and turn it.

    Eating more is never the solution.

    She has said that she weighs it out to what the serving size is in grams but logs it cups/spoons because she doesn't know how to change it to grams. Maybe instead of trying to say she really isn't weighing, you could have let her know how she can find the weight in an entry. Not everyone is aware of how to do this.
  • BWBTrish
    BWBTrish Posts: 2,817 Member
    edited August 2015
    I am talking to Table_23 who is on a plateau too and says to eat more calories.
    jkal1979 wrote: »
    BWBTrish wrote: »
    well it is strange that you always eat the exact same amount of calories for the same foods it indicates that people dont weigh but indeed use cups spoons and serving sizes

    And the fact remains that you only gain or not lose weight when you eat to much.
    How ever you toss and turn it.

    Eating more is never the solution.

    She has said that she weighs it out to what the serving size is in grams but logs it cups/spoons because she doesn't know how to change it to grams. Maybe instead of trying to say she really isn't weighing, you could have let her know how she can find the weight in an entry. Not everyone is aware of how to do this.

  • jkal1979
    jkal1979 Posts: 1,896 Member
    BWBTrish wrote: »
    I am talking to Table_23 who is on a plateau too and says to eat more calories.
    jkal1979 wrote: »
    BWBTrish wrote: »
    well it is strange that you always eat the exact same amount of calories for the same foods it indicates that people dont weigh but indeed use cups spoons and serving sizes

    And the fact remains that you only gain or not lose weight when you eat to much.
    How ever you toss and turn it.

    Eating more is never the solution.

    She has said that she weighs it out to what the serving size is in grams but logs it cups/spoons because she doesn't know how to change it to grams. Maybe instead of trying to say she really isn't weighing, you could have let her know how she can find the weight in an entry. Not everyone is aware of how to do this.

    That is who I am referring to. In her original post on this thread she said that she weighs it but logs it as a cup/spoon/whatever because she doesn't know how to figure out where the grams/ounces option is. I didn't say anything about her advice on eating more calories, just the part where you keep questioning her logging methods.
  • Annie_01
    Annie_01 Posts: 3,096 Member
    tabl_23 wrote: »
    BWBTrish wrote: »
    tabl_23 wrote: »
    BWBTrish wrote: »
    tabl_23 wrote: »
    Tilly1285 wrote: »
    Hi Everyone -

    As the topic says, how many are too many to be used to break a plateau? What is a good rule of thumb if in fact eating extra calories is the correct way to beat a plateau?

    Thanks for your input . . .
    Tilly

    Okay....I JUST got off the phone with my personal trainer regarding this same question. Like you, I have plateaued....for 4+ months. I was consuming between 1000 and 1300 calories a day and not eating my excercise calories. Now I'm sure that everybody has different advice but I am going to choose to take my personal trainers. Here is what she told me to do:

    Increase calories. Based on MY activity I SHOULD be eating around 2,000 calories a day (to lose weight). I consume around 1200. She suggested an increase of 800 calories. But NOT ALL AT ONCE. she says I should increase by 250 calorie increments. Stick to that amount for 3 or 4 days....if the scale stays the same....increase by another 250 calories for 3 or 4 days. Keep doing this until the scale GOES UP and you GAIN weight (only weighing yourself every 3 or 4 days). When your weight starts to increase it means that you have found your calorie intake needed for you to GAIN weight. She predicts that my calorie intake will be around 2000+ before I gain any weight. THEN, you DECREASE your calories by 250....do that until you plateau for at least a week. If you plateau....decrease your calories again (by 250). She says sticking to a low calorie (1200 a day) for almost a year has been detrimental to my metabolism. Slow increments of calories will even my metabolism out.

    She says when our bodies are used to consuming 3000+ calories (before we begin our lifestyle change)....the worse thing we can do is cut it completely. Every person that starts a weight loss journey should start slow and decrease their calories by 500 calorie increments. Thus keeping our metabolism in check. And giving each person an idea of THEIR OWN calorie needs (as each person is different)

    However, I am obsessed with logging and weighing EVERYTHING I eat. And I excercise 60 minutes a day. Cardio and weight training on top of an already active lifestyle. Knowing this....she has given me this advice. You can choose to take it or leave it....but I have plateaued for months and I figure.....what's the harm in trying?!!?

    to be fair i see a lot of cups spoons and serving sizes in your diary @tabl_23 So not accurate at all!
    bread 2 slices can be easily over 50 calories off..some grams here some grams there etc etc

    Really that is not weighing everything at all!

    Yes....see my post further down about weighing my food..

    like i said Your Sara Lee is always 90 calories...mine dont So that indicates you go by servings as well...as a seasoned user as you say...you know that the servings sizes you use..can be very off.
    And some grams here some grams there adds up.

    you have other entry's like that
    half a cup of cottage cheese..always 90 calories...so you never weigh less or more grams....always exactly half a cup?
    Kellog chips same always exactly 60 calories for 12.5...no way that that is always the same weight.

    Really?

    It is the same weight....since I weigh the freaking chips myself....every time. Actually a full serving is 30 grams. I only eat half a serving. So I weigh out 15 grams of chips. I'm not a grazer....I don't grab handfuls of food. I start with an empty plate and tare out between every food. I eat exact serving sizes....sorry if that confuses a "seasoned user" like yourself.
    Do you break the chips or are they just really, really small? When I get chips, I go for 42 grams. It's rare that I can get exactly 42 grams, let alone do it every time, because they aren't uniform weights.

    This chips that I eat a serving is 30g. I will often stop at 28-29g and log it as a serving...1-2g under.

    So on my log it appears as if every time I have eaten exactly 30g.

  • BWBTrish
    BWBTrish Posts: 2,817 Member
    i dont guestening it at all.... the plateau tells it all
    Your body never lies..it counts for you....everything

    So when you dont lose weight you are not burning more than you take in.

    and sorry but when i see a diary of somebody who says i am at a plateau not losing weight or gaining and they have always....i mean always the same amounts of calories for the same foods....than yes i think this has to be off. Because my weighing is never ever the same...gram more here gram more there so my yogurt, apple sauce or serving of cottage cheese or my bread is always a bit under or over the amount the label says.

    But like i said this is it lol eat more

    Just try it. np
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