How long was it before you plateaued?

lemur_lady

Im just interested in stories on how long it took before your weight loss started to plateau and how you broke through it? How long before you started seeing loss again?

Just preparing myself for if/when it happens

mperrott2205

Just over 2 months for me. I broke through it by just sticking at it.

oiseau17

I've lost 60 lbs without a plateau and I've just enter my healthy weight range. Things have certainly slowed down now to 0.5-1 lb/week though.

chillycsmith

BUMP! I lost about 10 pounds before I started plateauing, but that's only because I was at a normal weight when I started dieting. I am 5'7" and my starting weight was 140. I got down to 130 pounds pretty quickly, but after that it slowed down TREMENDOUSLY. It has taken me almost a month after weighing in at 130 to get down to 125.6. I think what has helped me was working out WAY harder and doing some very light toning, like crunches and squats.

seltzermint555

Before joining MFP, I had reached my peak weight in 2008 and started exercising regularly and got down to a more "normal for me" weight. Then in 2011 I changed my diet, too...but still plateaued for over a YEAR in the same 5 lb range.

Joining MFP was apparently the key to getting my weight loss going again, but after about the first month and an initial 7 lb loss, I plateaued for about 3 weeks because I got overexcited about my successful start and instead of sticking to my recommended 1500 cal I was eating barely 1200 cal per day, which really did not work for me at all.

Getting closer to 1400-1500 and adjusting up for serious exercise broke that plateau and now I'm finding my "plateaus" still come but they last only a week or so. Hopefully that will continue.

suibhne

I've hit short plateaus (1-2 weeks) a few times, and things have always moved again. I think it's important to recognize that a "plateau" probably isn't - you just need to broaden your measurement. Your weight might stabilize for awhile, but you could still be losing inches or increasing your fitness level. Make sure you're getting satisfaction from multiple aspects of this process, not just the number on the scale.

It's perfectly normal for your weight to look static for a week or two, sometimes even longer. That doesn't mean your health isn't improving.

Synapze

I was seeing great losses for the first 3 months, then it stopped dead.

That was 4 months ago.

During that time I bailed from MFP, completely disgruntled, and began gaining back the weight I had lost.

I think I was gone for 2-3 weeks.

Luckily for me, MFP sends those messages out saying "Synapze has been gone for_______, he might need help.....", and my MFP friends began sending me messages asking me to come back.

They bugged me so much I came back just to shut them up! :P lol.

Its taken me a few months now to get back into the swing of things, playing with my macros, finding a good intake I can stick to, exercise routine i like..but it looks like ive finally begun to figure everything out, and loosing again

I've had heaps of help from the people in my FL figuring all this out, and am extremely grateful.

Takes time. I've learned to just allow it to happen, and not try to rush it.

Ejourneys

I'm going to arbitrarily define "plateau" as 10 or more days without a loss. In that case:
My first plateau began on Day 77 and lasted for 11 days.
#2 began on Day 102 and lasted for 18 days.
#3 began on Day 144 and lasted for 10 days.
#4 began on Day 170 and lasted for 12 days.
#5 began on Day 184 and lasted for 11 days.
#6 began on Day 199 and lasted for 10 days.
#7 began on Day 250 and lasted for 24 days.
#8 began on Day 291 and has gone for 10 days and counting.

I just keep doing the right things. My new habits are a life practice and I have no deadlines. I figure I'll get there when I get there.

The Mayo Clinic has a good article on getting past a weight loss plateau:
https://www.mayoclinic.com/health/weight-loss-plateau/MY01152

changergirl

I lost around 18 kilos when I hit mine about 6 months in. After 2 month of gaining and losing the same 1-2 pounds, I think I'm just breaking through it. I continued to eat well and I was changing up my exercises during those two months but nothing changed. So I decided to have a weekend food break or as I called it "metabolism reset". I ate close to 3000 calories both days or close to double what I had been averaging. The following Monday I was up a kilo but since then (8 days) I've lost 2 kilos and hit a new low. Hopefully writing this doesn't jinx my plateau breakthrough! I've got about 5 kilos to go.

Garf255

I'm stuck at the moment!

I'm 5ft 10in and started at 194lb, with a target of 160lb.

I had a plateau at around 177lb but got over that one by sticking at it and having a couple of really good weeks exercising and eating well. But now I am just rolling around between 162lb and 167lb.

I'm exercising regularly, I'm eating pretty well but just can't seem to get over this one right now. I'll get there eventually, its just a matter of time and perseverance.

:-)

grimendale

It was about a year in and 90 lbs down. I plateaued for about six months and have only recently started having sucess again. I have had issues with work that made eating healthy difficult (I often get sent to very rural parts of the country for weeks or months at a time, which can make getting good vegetarian food difficult, particularly when I am in a hotel without a fridge). I started Insanitty five weeks ago to jump start fat loss again, and made sure to really focus on eating right and not bringing a lot of junk into the house. I haven't seen any weight loss (a couple pounds of gain, in fact) but the inches are coming off dramatically and my body fat is below 20% for the first time in my adult life, so I'm happy. Sometimes, the best way to break a plateau is just to shake things up. Try a different exercise routine, eat different foods, etc.

Cbefitforlife

I lost 15lbs since last summer, then 5 more from being on here. Need to lose 25 more. I had a baby 2 yrs. ago, and I gained lots of weight from pregnancy. I am at plateau for sure. Still keeping off the amount I lost, trying to get past it. I keep tweaking my exercise and diet once a month to see if there is changes. I think I know what to do now...just need to stay on track and move forward.

acpgee

I was about 4 months in and 12 kg down. I tried increasing exercise, decreasing calories. Finally broke through when I took a 3 week diet break, eating at TDEE for a while to get my metabolism back to normal speed. When I started eating at a deficit again, the scale started moving again, albeit slowly. I have now resolved to have a one or two week diet break every three months.

carrietehbear

I didn't hit a plateau until I reached my goal weight. I had weeks where I didn't lose much weight or any weight but I don't call those plateaus.

Railr0aderTony

Well I lost little over 100 pounds in a year then Plateaued, But I do not call it that because I am still losing inches and burning fat. I have not lost any weight but I am losing fat(there is a difference). This being said I have been the same weight for about 4 months but I keep on keeping on knowing I am doing the right things and taking measurements to show progress.

Just_Scott

I have several plateaus hit and passed. First one at 4 weeks, and then periodically over the last 3 months. Each time, I go back and look for a week which I logged regularly, workouts with some intensity and then repeat those weeks. Plateaus are common. How you break through is unique. Best advice is to keep going. Mix up routine and log food intake when you plateau--for me it is the food and not the workouts--best of luck.