Plateau and fast approaching wedding!

leanneb2010_x

I've been at a plateau for 3 weeks. I've upped my exercise but to no success. I get married in 4 weeks and still need to fit into my dress a bit better. Any other option than just riding this plateau out?

diannethegeek

1. If it's been less than 3 weeks or so, don't sweat it! Normal fluctuations happen and unfortunately sometimes we stall for a week or two even when we're doing everything right. Give your body some time to catch up with the changes you're making.

2. If you aren't already, be sure that you're logging everything. Sometimes people forget about things like veggies, drinks, cooking oils, and condiments. For some people these can add up to enough to halt your weight loss progress.

3. Consider buying a food scale if you don't already have one. They're about $10-$20 dollars in the US and easily found at places like Amazon, Target, and Walmart. Measuring cups and spoons are great, but they do come with some degree of inaccuracy. A food scale will be more accurate, and for some people it makes a big difference.

4. Logging accurately also means choosing accurate entries in the database. There are a lot of user-entered entries that are off. Double-check that you're using good entries and/or using the recipe builder instead of someone else's homemade entries.

5. Recalculate your goals if you haven't lately. As you lose weight your body requires fewer calories to run. Be sure you update your goals every ten pounds or so.

6. If you're eating back your exercise calories and you're relying on gym machine readouts or MFP's estimates, it might be best to eat back just 50-75% of those. Certain activities tend to be overestimated. If you're using an HRM or activity tracker, it might be a good idea to look into their accuracy and be sure that yours is calibrated properly.

7. If you're taking any cheat days that go over your calorie limits, it might be best to cut them out for a few weeks and see what happens. Some people go way over their calorie needs without realizing it when they don't track.

8. If you weigh yourself frequently, consider using a program like trendweight to even out the fluctuations. You could be losing weight but just don't see it because of the daily ups and downs.

9. Some people just burn fewer calories than the calculators predict. If you continue to have problems after 4-6 weeks, then it might be worth a trip to the doctor or a registered dietitian who can give you more specific advice.

Raptor2763

1. lemon water - works wonders
2. no salt, msg or nitrates/nitrites (I never could get those straight) - leads to fluid retention
3. get adequate amounts of sleep; that's when the body repairs itself. break it down too much and you offset the positive effects of exercise

MissusMoon

Raptor2763 wrote: »

1. lemon water - works wonders
2. no salt, msg or nitrates/nitrites (I never could get those straight) - leads to fluid retention
3. get adequate amounts of sleep; that's when the body repairs itself. break it down too much and you offset the positive effects of exercise

2 and 3 are good advice.

MissusMoon

leanneb2010_x wrote: »

I've been at a plateau for 3 weeks. I've upped my exercise but to no success. I get married in 4 weeks and still need to fit into my dress a bit better. Any other option than just riding this plateau out?

Tighten up your logging. Make sure you're weighing everything in grams on a food scale. Don't let anything pass your lips without being counted. Drink lots of water.

leanneb2010_x

Thank you all. Most of them I'm doing already apart from maybe watching the salt. My cals are at bare minimum and I wouldn't drop them any lower. They're currently at 1200. I weigh everything. I think I was just used to seeing the weight drop off quick but the closer I'm getting to my goal it's dragging out. I will push through and 100% watch salt.

MissusMoon

leanneb2010_x wrote: »

Thank you all. Most of them I'm doing already apart from maybe watching the salt. My cals are at bare minimum and I wouldn't drop them any lower. They're currently at 1200. I weigh everything. I think I was just used to seeing the weight drop off quick but the closer I'm getting to my goal it's dragging out. I will push through and 100% watch salt.

If you don't have a lot to lose, it comes off much slower. If your dress isn't fitting perfectly you may want to consider having it altered soon.

leanneb2010_x

Oh no it's okay it goes on. I just best not sit down for the whole day... It's a lace back and I wanted a bit more off so I can lace it a little tighter but I'll survive. Really frustrating working out harder than I ever have before to not see the scales shifting. Thank you all for advice though.