50lbs down; 25 to go and Plateaued

krazgrl

Hey everyone. I won't make this too long of an intro. I started really trying to lose weight last September when I piqued at 225lbs (I'm 5'7"). I lost 50lbs between then and early January. Since then, I've been fluctuating around 168-172 and it's been driving me insane (my goal is 150).

I find that I am not as motivated as I was before. I really think that the holidays threw me off my game and it's been an uphill battle ever since.

I'm just looking to reach out to others to find some connections here to help me get motivated again and to help me find new ideas/recipes.

steven10801

Good job
Now take a deep breath and put on your game face and get back to it to avoid the rollercoaster of weight loss. No ups and downs just do it and keep heading down
Good luck

danny8985

You are doing great don't let that wall stop you from moving forwards with your health and fitness i've been at that wall before once you put a bit more effort in and focus nothing will stop you

oocdc2

I'm right there with you: I lost 70 lbs, I was hoping for 15 more, and my body has been in a holding pattern for a few weeks now. (I'm *just* at the BMI for normal weight: it's like my body read the chart and said, "Nope, we're good now, screw off!") I keep reminding myself I have the rest of my life to work this off.

Now that there's more daylight in my area, I'm hoping early morning walk/runs will help. Good luck to you!

krazgrl

oocdc2 wrote: »

I'm right there with you: I lost 70 lbs, I was hoping for 15 more, and my body has been in a holding pattern for a few weeks now. (I'm *just* at the BMI for normal weight: it's like my body read the chart and said, "Nope, we're good now, screw off!") I keep reminding myself I have the rest of my life to work this off.

Now that there's more daylight in my area, I'm hoping early morning walk/runs will help. Good luck to you!

Thanks! Sounds like you've had a great journey so far too! Amazing how our bodies find that old zone and just want to quit.

I wish I could get in work outs before work. I tried going to the gym at 3am before, but it's brutal. I'm up at 4:40am and work 6:30am - 5:00pm. I'm home by 6pm if I'm lucky with CA traffic. Then it's dinner and bed. Thankfully I walk on my breaks and I bring resistance bands with me to work and do strength training at my cubicle. lol

selina884

wow, well done so far.

Deckhand562

krazgrl wrote: »

Hey everyone. I won't make this too long of an intro. I started really trying to lose weight last September when I piqued at 225lbs (I'm 5'7"). I lost 50lbs between then and early January. Since then, I've been fluctuating around 168-172 and it's been driving me insane (my goal is 150).

I find that I am not as motivated as I was before. I really think that the holidays threw me off my game and it's been an uphill battle ever since.

I'm just looking to reach out to others to find some connections here to help me get motivated again and to help me find new ideas/recipes.

First off, go you! You've done awesome and it's still early!
Second, best motivation for me is my music; I listen to the same cardio playlist every time I work out, whether I'm running or at the gym. I turn that playlist on about an hour before I leave work to go workout and it never fails me!
Third, Holidays are just that, days. Don't look at a holiday in food dread, look at it for what it is...a day. Yes, we may stretch out our Christmas and Mardi Gras into weeks, but the foods we put into our mouths have to be dealt with DAILY. Carry around a picture of you at your highest weight and your goal weight (I have one pic from me at 265 lbs and I have a pic of a fabulous bikini I plan to be in this summer!).
Hope all of this helps. Good luck and feel free to add some friends!

krazgrl

Deckhand562 wrote: »

First off, go you! You've done awesome and it's still early!
Second, best motivation for me is my music; I listen to the same cardio playlist every time I work out, whether I'm running or at the gym. I turn that playlist on about an hour before I leave work to go workout and it never fails me!
Third, Holidays are just that, days. Don't look at a holiday in food dread, look at it for what it is...a day. Yes, we may stretch out our Christmas and Mardi Gras into weeks, but the foods we put into our mouths have to be dealt with DAILY. Carry around a picture of you at your highest weight and your goal weight (I have one pic from me at 265 lbs and I have a pic of a fabulous bikini I plan to be in this summer!).
Hope all of this helps. Good luck and feel free to add some friends!

Funny you mention the picture. I just came across one of me from this month last year. I cringe every time I see it. Maybe I should put it as the background on my phone. lmao

The two things that have really helped me lose so far have been that I did a "Biggest Loser" comp at work last year (Sept - Dec) and won it and I ask myself these two very important questions before indulging on food:

1. Have I had it before? If yes, I don't necessarily need it now. If no: 2. Can I get it again? If yes, I don't necessarily need it now. If no AND it's special (like an Iron Chef cooking a 10-course meal) eat it all and don't look back.

lol

jordyngiulio

I am in the exact same situation! I have lost about 65 pounds since hitting 240 (5'8") but have now been sitting around 175 for quite a while. You would think that after all of the hard work it took to lose the initial weight, it would be easy to keep going as we've already come so far and are now so close. But I feel like now that I'm pretty happy and much more comfortable in my skin, there isn't that same nagging feeling to keep going as there was before.

I recently had to have a real conversation with myself about my goals. I have been eating on track, being much more active and feeling great but I was allowing myself to get discouraged if I didn't see the scale move like it used to, even if there were noticeable improvements in my body composition.

Ultimately, I made the decision to start incorporating strength training and to take a break from the scale. If I'm happy, strong and healthy perhaps my focus is better used somewhere else. I weighed in at the beginning of the month and am now just focusing on CICO and physical activity and am going to try not to weigh myself until the end of the month.

hangee123

I'm in a similar situation as well! I've lose 53lbs so far since reaching my peak of 194lbs (5'2"). Now I'm 141lbs (GW 120-125lbs) and struggling to lose now! Still at the gym a fair bit, finished C25K, and now on the 10K, and still trying to keep that cheeky snacking low... But I feel like I'm losing motivation. I feel much more healthy, happy and confident, so more often than I should, I find myself saying "oh, you deserve that... you've worked really hard and you'll burn it off"... which is fine for maintenance, except if I'm burning off the enormous bag of chocolate I had in the afternoon I'm not burning the 20lbs I have in reserve! It's frustrating.

Feel free to add me for additional accountability.

krazgrl

jordyngiulio wrote: »

I am in the exact same situation! I have lost about 65 pounds since hitting 240 (5'8") but have now been sitting around 175 for quite a while. You would think that after all of the hard work it took to lose the initial weight, it would be easy to keep going as we've already come so far and are now so close. But I feel like now that I'm pretty happy and much more comfortable in my skin, there isn't that same nagging feeling to keep going as there was before.

I recently had to have a real conversation with myself about my goals. I have been eating on track, being much more active and feeling great but I was allowing myself to get discouraged if I didn't see the scale move like it used to, even if there were noticeable improvements in my body composition.

Ultimately, I made the decision to start incorporating strength training and to take a break from the scale. If I'm happy, strong and healthy perhaps my focus is better used somewhere else. I weighed in at the beginning of the month and am now just focusing on CICO and physical activity and am going to try not to weigh myself until the end of the month.

I think that people telling you how you're disappearing and that you "couldn't possibly have a 20+ more to lose" is actually a bit discouraging. The positive feedback is great for my confidence, but it really was reaching my low that help me get motivated. The more I like what I see the in mirror, the less focused I have become. It seems so backward!!

I also have enjoyed buying some new clothes to get me through this phase where a lot of my old clothes just drown me and no longer fit. I'm not buying much because I'm telling myself that these won't fit for too long either.

I still weigh in daily, it's become a routine and how I stay on MFP daily. It also helps me to realize how a simple splurge may impact results. I was so strict on myself at the beginning and still didn't feel deprived. Not sure what happened because now I "splurge" a little more and feel more deprived. lmao

hangee123 wrote: »

I'm in a similar situation as well! I've lose 53lbs so far since reaching my peak of 194lbs (5'2"). Now I'm 141lbs (GW 120-125lbs) and struggling to lose now! Still at the gym a fair bit, finished C25K, and now on the 10K, and still trying to keep that cheeky snacking low... But I feel like I'm losing motivation. I feel much more healthy, happy and confident, so more often than I should, I find myself saying "oh, you deserve that... you've worked really hard and you'll burn it off"... which is fine for maintenance, except if I'm burning off the enormous bag of chocolate I had in the afternoon I'm not burning the 20lbs I have in reserve! It's frustrating.

Feel free to add me for additional accountability.

Added! I need to add the gym more into my routine but I HATE going to the gym. I did splurge in a good way over the weekend... My fiancé and I decided to purchase a bowflex max trainer m7. It'll take about 4-6 weeks to arrive, but I'm hoping that will help tone and get us both motivated to work out on a regular basis since it doesn't require a drive to get somewhere to do the same thing. Our days are short enough as it is with our work schedules and commutes. We also signed up for a 5K in May. I have a preexisting knee injury from my high school soccer days and had back surgery in 2010 (fusion), so I don't run much due to the impact. I'm hoping to jog it and not walk too much. We'll see how that goes. One goal at a time!

Kirstie155

Deckhand562 wrote: »

krazgrl wrote: »

Hey everyone. I won't make this too long of an intro. I started really trying to lose weight last September when I piqued at 225lbs (I'm 5'7"). I lost 50lbs between then and early January. Since then, I've been fluctuating around 168-172 and it's been driving me insane (my goal is 150).

I find that I am not as motivated as I was before. I really think that the holidays threw me off my game and it's been an uphill battle ever since.

I'm just looking to reach out to others to find some connections here to help me get motivated again and to help me find new ideas/recipes.

First off, go you! You've done awesome and it's still early!
Second, best motivation for me is my music; I listen to the same cardio playlist every time I work out, whether I'm running or at the gym. I turn that playlist on about an hour before I leave work to go workout and it never fails me!
Third, Holidays are just that, days. Don't look at a holiday in food dread, look at it for what it is...a day. Yes, we may stretch out our Christmas and Mardi Gras into weeks, but the foods we put into our mouths have to be dealt with DAILY. Carry around a picture of you at your highest weight and your goal weight (I have one pic from me at 265 lbs and I have a pic of a fabulous bikini I plan to be in this summer!).
Hope all of this helps. Good luck and feel free to add some friends!

This sounds like a fabulous idea, I will have to try this. ETA: I always have the best intentions when I leave work and start my hour commute to work out when I get home, but often (especially in the cold, dark winter months) I find that motivation is long gone by the time I get home. I think this music idea will help, thanks!

OP, I am in the same boat, but have lost 70lbs and have 25-30 left. I know how you feel, and dont have any advise-I came here to soak up the answers! Good luck!

krazgrl

I've been listening to a more energizing playlist while at work (usually don't listen to anything) and I find myself more motivated to move them and after. Thanks Deckhand562!