How to break through a Plateau ....

I've hit a major Plateau and would like some suggestion in breaking through it.

For a year, I eat low carb foods and have successfully lost 50lbs. However, I cannot break through the last 15 pounds, I need to lose. It's been 2 months with little movement.

Suggestions?

Replies

ladipoet

FAT FAST! I suggest 2-3 days at the very minimum.

DittoDan

Water Fast, 36 hours.

I hope this helps,
Dan the Man from Michigan
Keto / Water Fasting / E.A.S.Y. Exercise Program
113 pounds down, 22 to go. 13 months on diet

jacquelynkay

Sorry, but what does that mean?

ladipoet wrote: »

FAT FAST! I suggest 2-3 days at the very minimum.

jacquelynkay

So, don't eat ....but, a lot of drink water?

DittoDan wrote: »

Water Fast, 36 hours.

I hope this helps,
Dan the Man from Michigan
Keto / Water Fasting / E.A.S.Y. Exercise Program
113 pounds down, 22 to go. 13 months on diet

DittoDan

jacquelynkay wrote: »

So, don't eat and drink water?

DittoDan wrote: »

Water Fast, 36 hours.

I hope this helps,
Dan the Man from Michigan
Keto / Water Fasting / E.A.S.Y. Exercise Program
113 pounds down, 22 to go. 13 months on diet

There's more to it than that, but essentially, that's it. It works best for people that are Ketogenic low carb, (under 40g carbs per day).

Here are some links you can look at:

11 Myths About Fasting and Meal Frequency
My Blog: Intermittent Water Fasting & Keto
Blog #9 Fasting, Diabetic ~ Glucose/Sugar Levels

I hope this helps,
Dan the Man from Michigan
Keto / Water Fasting / E.A.S.Y. Exercise Program
113 pounds down, 22 to go. 13 months on diet
It's Ketogenic or Bariatric Surgery! How I Found the Ketogenic Diet
Previous Discussions on the LCD & Keto Groups
Blog #10 Keto: Abbreviations, Acronyms & Terminology Used on the LCD & Keto Discussion Groups Updated
DittoDan's Keto Sub Groups Blog
Blog #13 DittoDan's Milestone's, First's And Good Changes Since Starting the Ketogenic Diet Updated
DittoDan's Keto Blogs

jacquelynkay

Thank you!

ladipoet

A fat fast is where you lower your calories to somewhere between 1000 to 1200 calories every day for the duration of the fast. 90% of your calories during those days come from healthy fat sources. It is generally recommended that if you do a fat fast you eat several small meals (4-5) through the course of the day every few hours (2-3). Each meal should be somewhere in the neighborhood of 200 to 250 calories.

ChoiceNotChance

I did a fat fast last week for 3 days- I lost absolutely nothing. I felt fine, not hungry, even was below 1000 calories. Didn't lose a thing. Try it, maybe you'll have success. I would do it again as another experiment.

Kitnthecat

I love fasting to break a stall. Sometimes I fast for 24 hours, with some fat added to my coffee,and eat one meal per day. Other fasts I regularly do are 36-48 hours long with just water, black coffee and tea. I started a longer fast last evening and want to reach 72 hours without calories. Not sure if I'll make it, but we'll see. I may add BPC for energy once per day, but will not eat.

I regularly eat one meal per day, with 1-2 short fasts or 1 longer fast every week. This kind of pattern has given me a faster rate of weight loss again, similar to when I first began keto in March.

DissLocated

I've found a 3 day fat fast helpful in shaking things up a bit every now and then. I don't do it regularly because I don't like it very much but it's a useful tool to bring out on occasion.

carlsoda

Are you tracking everything you eat? My first instinct would be to double check all your macros first just in case extra carbs are sneaking in. Maybe your daily calorie count is too high since you weight 50 lbs less

KnitOrMiss

Switch things up. Move your calories up a bit. Down a bit. Eat different foods. Eat your breakfast foods for dinner, etc. Add in exercise. Remove exercise. Increase your water. Add lemon slices.

Just do something to switch things up. When we get on a weight loss track for a while, eventually our metabolisms kind of hit a stride and slow. To jump start your metabolism into the loss mindset again, the best shock I've seen for it is actually to increase your calories by 500 a day for a week, or something. It wakes up to deal with all the food, then you can get back to losing.

Our metabolisms are geared to find kind of a level ground... And sometimes it needs a break...

Keto_T

I love/hate this article.

http://ketogains.com/2015/09/weight-loss-secrets-revealed/

nicintime

Keto_T wrote: »

I love/hate this article.

http://ketogains.com/2015/09/weight-loss-secrets-revealed/

Great article - thanks.

DittoDan 's water fasting is a great tool for breaking stalls as well,

But if you're close to goal weight give some thought to what maintenance will look like.

Stalls have derailed me in the past - as in a year long, 50 lb. gain derailment.

Don't let it happen.

Lillith32

Keto_T wrote: »

I love/hate this article.

http://ketogains.com/2015/09/weight-loss-secrets-revealed/

I'm all kinds of excited that ketogains.com is a thing. DarthLuigi and r/ketogains is awesome.

slimzandra

Congratulations on 50lbs gone! Well done.

One suggestion is MCT oil, helps jumps things for me.

One other point, is that I noticed on another thread you mentioned you dived into "2 biquits for dinner, 1/2 box of Hot Tamales and 1/2 box of whoppers!" Well.....That's not really a "plateau", that's just you being goofy. LOL.
(said in the kindest way..

A plateau is when I'm doing EVERYTHING right and still not losing. I have hit what I prefer to call a few "stalls", where I was going 2-3 weeks with nothing lost, but then I had to stop and be honest with myself. Was I recording everything? No. Was I sneaking in extra carbs? yea, I guess. Didn't I have two drinks Friday night? Yup..

FWiW, -You may be hitting a mental plateau, not just a physical plateau. I notice at certain "O" numbers, I tend to rest on my success in the rear view mirror instead of focusing ahead.

Give yourself a good pat on the back for a job well done. Then stop, reset, assess what worked the best for you in the past, and really go for it. Get yourself a skinny outfit and hang it on a door. It's nice to be kind to yourself while working towards a goal. Give yourself a short time line - 90 days and see where you end up. I'm betting you will be very close to where you want to be.

asyroyez

Maybe your body is more comfortable at the current weight than it would be any lower? There is the "expectations vs reality" going on too that probably a healthy body looks lightly (10-15lbs) bigger than what the media has us believe is the ideal.

There are diminishing returns after some point I believe, where you really have to push A LOT harder to lose just a few "last" pounds (last of what?) to get that toned/skinny/athletic/etc. look you've wanted.