How did you cross your weight loss plateau?

BecomeBetterThanMyYesterMe

I seem to be stuck at 72Kg for few months now!

Thank you..

jsafeacct

instead of 3 meals switch to 5 small meals every day to help kick start the metabolism again. Stick to things like tuna, oatmeal, and green tea. I know it sounds like a depressing diet but It helped me clear through a plateau in about a week. Also try to take in about a gallon of water a day, I used to alternate between water and green tea cause it helps the metabolism get going and keeps you full. Good luck and let me know what you come up with, every one is different and what works for me might not work for you.

sweetpea03b

Just keep doing what you're doing. Weight loss isn't linear. If you're not already, maybe start weighing and measuring and really tighten down on your logging. Many times you will find things that you were under estimating. Also, if you are constantly doing the same exercises try switching it up or increase the intensity. Your body is a machine and it adapts so it doesn't have to work as hard. If you're always doing the same exercise at the same intensity, your body gets "good" at it and you burn less calories. Good luck... just hang in there!

kimny72

If you have been stuck for a few months, you are at maintenance. First place to look is your logging. If you don't have a food scale, get one. Weigh and log all your food for a few weeks and make sure you are really eating at the level you think you are. Also double check that the entries you are choosing in the database are accurate. If you are logging accurately, you need to re-evaluate your calorie goal. If you are willing to give your stats, or even open your diary, you can get more specific advice.

BecomeBetterThanMyYesterMe

Thanks everyone. Let me try changing a few things.. Keeping fingers crossed..

PhoenyxRose

I'm just now starting to get out of a plateau I've been in for the past couple of months by increasing my water intake and being extra careful about my calories (ie if I drink on the weekend and go over I'll go under 100 calories for the rest of the week until the average evens out). My thought on the water was that, since I'm chronically dehydrated, that my body just had enough for normal functions but not enough extra to break a lot of bonds in fat. So far I've lost 2lbs in a week and my mental clarity is sooooo much better and my fatigue is nearly gone. So if you don't drink a lot of water, trying upping it

radiosilents

I had a plateau that lasted 3 months. However during that time I maintained my 100 pound weight loss, so I started to view it as practice for maintenance. I ended up meeting with w dietitian, who reminded me of some basics (eating balanced meals, basically) and also suggested that I stop eating my exercise calories – that was putting me eating at maintenance level, and not losing level. Since then I was able to break the plateau by almost ten pounds. Then, last week I hit a big hormone surge, PMS, and cravings from hell. I gained some weight but on the way back down. Patience and persistence. Trust the process.

LaNasha88

I did egg fasting and it helped A LOT! I was stuck at the same weight forever and did this, then dropped pounds like crazy and continued to even after I went back to regular dieting (low carbs).

kgb6days

I was stuck for months and was eating 1200-1500 calories/day. I started fasting 2-3 days/week. Broke through my plateau in an amazing way. Now before you say 'no wonder, not eating 2-3 days', let me explain. IF model I followed was 500 calories total on the fast days and up to 1800 calories on the non-fast days. I kept those 1800 calories to clean eating (meats, veggies, no processed foods, lots of water). Weight went away. I was amazed. If you do the math you'll find I was eating the same amount of calories a week, just dividing them up differently. had a lot of trouble getting in lots of calories on the non fast days - it takes a lot of food eating clean to get to that many calories. Many days I didn't make it because it was more than I could eat. Check it out - there are several groups on here.

earlnabby

I just kept doing what I was doing. After 4 months of minimal losses, the weight started coming off like before.

AlciaMode

I got stuck about half way in. For months I could not get out of the 170s. I did not end up doing anything special. Just got a bit more honest about what and how much I was eating and eventually it started coming off again. Down to 154 now

BecomeBetterThanMyYesterMe

Thanks everyone! I thought to give Atkins diet - Phase 1 a go & drink loads of water. Hope it works. Keeping fingers crossed..

crb426

I like to think of the slow weight-loss times as my body getting used to its new size. Not saying I don't try to tighten things up in terms of logging and exercising, etc, but it helps me to not freak out over the slow times.

BecomeBetterThanMyYesterMe

crb426 wrote: »

I like to think of the slow weight-loss times as my body getting used to its new size. Not saying I don't try to tighten things up in terms of logging and exercising, etc, but it helps me to not freak out over the slow times.

Yeah.. That's what I have been convincing myself with.. a time for the body to catch up with the new size. I'm happy with the weight loss. But, you know how it feels when the scale does not move for many months.

twentytwelve12

I know the feeling. I've been stuck at a plateau for a couple of months. I've slowly broken it now though.

helenkaraven

i got stuck at plateau, so i changed up my exercise (from walking etc..... im not good at exercis lol) to swimming and had a weekend where i ate more! this seemed to kick my metabolism back in from its lower state and i immediately went back to losing approx 1.5 /2 lbs per week x

GaleHawkins

AlciaMode wrote: »

I got stuck about half way in. For months I could not get out of the 170s. I did not end up doing anything special. Just got a bit more honest about what and how much I was eating and eventually it started coming off again. Down to 154 now

This is so typical at the midpoint or can be at any point. It is an awesome time to prove we know how to maintain until the body wants to give up some more fat. One friend lost down to the last 5 pounds and got stuck at that point so she stopped trying. Six months later she weighed and had lost the last five pounds.

The body knows best sometimes and will not let us force a weight loss.

vixtris

If your weight loss is in a plateau for more than 4 weeks, I bet it is because you are actually maintaining. Your body doesnt't burn as many calories as it did when you were heavier. So, in order to break a plateau, you need to either eat less or move more. Be on point with your logging (use food scale especially), and a HRM is a great tool for getting a more accurate calorie burn when exercising. Also, be sure to keep hydrated to help wash out any water weight your body may be holding on to.

ninerbuff

jsafeacct wrote: »

instead of 3 meals switch to 5 small meals every day to help kick start the metabolism again. Stick to things like tuna, oatmeal, and green tea. I know it sounds like a depressing diet but It helped me clear through a plateau in about a week. Also try to take in about a gallon of water a day, I used to alternate between water and green tea cause it helps the metabolism get going and keeps you full. Good luck and let me know what you come up with, every one is different and what works for me might not work for you.

Not needed. Metabolism doesn't get "kickstarted" by eating more meals. The approach should be focusing on accuracy of intake first and increasing intensity of current physical activity.

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

ninerbuff

sweetpea03b wrote: »

Just keep doing what you're doing. Weight loss isn't linear. If you're not already, maybe start weighing and measuring and really tighten down on your logging. Many times you will find things that you were under estimating. Also, if you are constantly doing the same exercises try switching it up or increase the intensity. Your body is a machine and it adapts so it doesn't have to work as hard. If you're always doing the same exercise at the same intensity, your body gets "good" at it and you burn less calories. Good luck... just hang in there!

THIS.

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

ultrahoon

By accepting that it wasn't really a plateau, and that I just needed to tighten up my logging.

chrissiecastellano

Some of these tips are very helpful, thanks for sharing.

ereck44

Plateaued for 15 months. To break through, drink more WATER. Decrease your calorie intake by 100 calories, change up your activity and be patient. Even after I changed those things, it was still another 3 months before I started dropping weight again. OP, don't do another fad diet. Trust me! I have lost a total of 53 pounds and kept them off x 4 years.

BecomeBetterThanMyYesterMe

GaleHawkins wrote: »

AlciaMode wrote: »

I got stuck about half way in. For months I could not get out of the 170s. I did not end up doing anything special. Just got a bit more honest about what and how much I was eating and eventually it started coming off again. Down to 154 now

This is so typical at the midpoint or can be at any point. It is an awesome time to prove we know how to maintain until the body wants to give up some more fat. One friend lost down to the last 5 pounds and got stuck at that point so she stopped trying. Six months later she weighed and had lost the last five pounds.

The body knows best sometimes and will not let us force a weight loss.

Yeah, I guess body knows best. Thanks.

BecomeBetterThanMyYesterMe

I am on the 2nd week of Atkins diet & somehow the weight is reducing. I hope it's not just water weight.

Anyways, thanks everyone for replying.

medlaura

Great tips!

girlwithcurls2

PhoenyxRose wrote: »

. My thought on the water was that, since I'm chronically dehydrated, that my body just had enough for normal functions but not enough extra to break a lot of bonds in fat

Water breaks bonds in fat?