Plateau - someone please explain!

_EndGame_

Right, so I have read quite a bit about people saying they hit a plateau, and that even though they stuck to their calories, didn't go over and did everything right, for whatever reason they put weight on that week, and I really don't understand why. Now, I weighed myself this morning, and my weight is the same as it was a week ago, but I have religiously stuck to my calorie allowance (sometimes 300 - 500 below) I'm drinking water (just shy of 8 glasses a day) and doing moderate exercise pretty much everyday, yet my weight stays the same!

So, my question is - Why? At what point does your body shed the next LBS? Is it really a case of one minute the weight is there, the next it's gone? How can it be gradual, if it's as some people say, they weigh themselves one day, they have gained 2LBS, they weigh themselves the next morning, they have lost 2 LBS, meaning 4LBS dropped overnight?!

Perhaps I sound really stupid asking this, as I know a lot of you know your stuff, but for me, this part of weight loss is a mystery!

drop_it_like_a_squat

As you'll read all over the forums - Weight loss isn't linear. I was stuck with my weight for 2 months, too.
Have you only weighed yourself or do you also take measurements.
You just have to keep going and don't let your weight define your progress.

jacksonpt

In your case, try increasing the intensity of your workouts.

On a side note... If you or anyone else is "doing everything right" but not losing weight, guess what... you're not doing everything right.

RoyBeck

Absolutely. I've not lost a great deal over the past 2 weeks (Nor am I expecting to btw) but a tshirt I bought a month ago fits a hell of a lot better than it first did. Still don't feel comfortable wearing it yet but getting there.

JesterMFP

Remember, your "weight" isn't just a measure of your fat. It's also a measure of your muscles, organs, bones, etc plus a whole lot of fluid. The levels of fluid in your body is constantly fluctuating. How much sodium you consume, how much carbohydrate you consume, changes in workout routines, hormonal changes... these can all affect the amount of fluid you have. You also have varying amount of food/waste in your system that adds to scale weight too. You may have lost some fat, but be retaining more water than you were last week.

Also, fat loss isn't linear. Check this out: http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/of-whooshes-and-squishy-fat.html

JesterMFP

but I have religiously stuck to my calorie allowance (sometimes 300 - 500 below)

Try not to look at it as an "allowance" but a goal. You're supposed to reach that number, or at least get close to it.

55in13

I am over simplifying and some may beat me up on specifics, but in a general sense this is what happens...

Day to day, your muscles get energy from glycogen, which is stored in a watery solution. That solution is not always exactly the same percent glycogen; some days you run high test, some days regular. Long term storage is fat. It does not provide the day to day, but has to get converted. When you eat, some is metabolized, some converts to glycogen and some fat. In this shifting around between energy storage buckets and having glycogen in different strength solutions, your weight can vary quite a bit. Then there is digestion. Sometimes you have more "in the pipeline" than other times.

Something else to realize is that this is an open internet forum. We don't see each other and we take each other's word (sort of) about what is going on. A significant chunk of people know exactly why they are experiencing a plateau. During the largest part of my loss this year, I had no plateaus and my progress was pretty steady. My recent weight has been pretty steady because I have been diddling with diet trying to come up with a good plan for slow loss that allows me to do toning while losing the last few pounds. It is not an unexplained plateau.

Francl27

It's not linear. I only lose every 3 weeks here. Plus you're supposed to eat at your goal (I'm guilty of that too, I don't eat enough most of the time, but I'm just full). If you don't eat enough, your metabolism slows down some and you can plateau.

Francl27

It's not linear. I only lose every 3 weeks here. Plus you're supposed to eat at your goal (I'm guilty of that too, I don't eat enough most of the time, but I'm just full). If you don't eat enough, your metabolism slows down some and you can plateau.

ncl1313

As you lose, your body's requirements will also change. You will need to either increase intensity of your workouts or reduce calories in order to continue losing. I am just coming off a 6-week plateau. Last week I re-ran my numbers and found out that I needed to drop 60 calories per day from my goal. It may seem insignificant, but it's still 420 calories per week less than I thought I should be eating. In addition, I ramped up my intensity, meaning that I am lifting heavier, I am walking faster and longer, etc. I was 2.4 pounds down at my weigh in this week. I'm sure a will lose for a few weeks and will plateau again and at that time I will re-assess again. It's been tough for me to get my head around the idea that this is an ever-changing process and just because something worked well for awhile doesn't mean it'll always stay that way.

ninerbuff

A plateau is no weight loss after 6 weeks or more of being consistent with diet and exercise. Anything less is a stall. It's normal since weight loss isn't linear.
Be concerned after 6 weeks.

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

55in13

A plateau is no weight loss after 6 weeks or more of being consistent with diet and exercise. Anything less is a stall.

Then I also never had a stall during the first 5+ months of this year while I was trying to lose at a pretty good clip...

StephieWillcox

A plateau is no weight loss after 6 weeks or more of being consistent with diet and exercise. Anything less is a stall.

Then I also never had a stall during the first 5+ months of this year while I was trying to lose at a pretty good clip...

I don't see it as being unusual for a man not to suffer from a stall? (I don't mean this in a "it's easy for men to lose" way, I just mean from a water retention point)

All my stalls occur at the same time of the month... water just gets crazy around then. I'll be up 5 - 6lbs for a few days, and then bounce around until eventually getting back down.

None of this is a real weightloss stall, just water, doing it's thing