You're not "plateauing"
Replies
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Russellb97 wrote: »The tile is BS and cruel. Sure maybe a total "can't lose weight plateau" is unlikely but a diet induced metabolic slowdown is very likely and an issue. 6 weeks for definition then fine but even a 2,3,4 and 5 week stall sucks!
This is a sore spot for me because I've plateau'd many times and had eternally fit trainers not so subtlety accuse me of "not being honest with myself/lying". It would just twist the knife of the guilt in my back. Now after losing over 100lbs and learning the truth through my experience. I would love to go back and say to their smug faces to F'Off because I wasn't "lying to myself" and having a 6-pack doesn't mean you have any clue about what it's like to lose weight when overweight.
For the record I've never had a 7,000 calorie bite of dessert.
Are you selling something, because it sounds like you are about to offer us a product. "Metabolic slowdown" is one of those buzzwordy commercially statements that sounds sciency but doesn't actually mean anything. If you lose weight you become smaller, if you are smaller you are moving less weight around, if you move less weight around then you burn fewer calories doing so so you have to adjust your intake downward to compensate for that. That should be common sense, we don't need a fancy buzz term for it that implies that your metabolic processes are somehow changing...because they are not.18 -
Anytime you diet, there will be a metabolic slowdown. To what degree will depend on aggressive it is. But it's usually not so significant for the average person losing weight. I'm not doubting you likely slowed and stalled a lot, because that's been experience I've had with many of my other clients who've been obese. Above I did mention one that had an issue with insulin dosage and got back on track, and that's lead me to other reasons that AREN'T just issues of diet and plateaus are REAL for those individuals.Russellb97 wrote: »The tile is BS and cruel. Sure maybe a total "can't lose weight plateau" is unlikely but a diet induced metabolic slowdown is very likely and an issue. 6 weeks for definition then fine but even a 2,3,4 and 5 week stall sucks!
This is a sore spot for me because I've plateau'd many times and had eternally fit trainers not so subtlety accuse me of "not being honest with myself/lying". It would just twist the knife of the guilt in my back. Now after losing over 100lbs and learning the truth through my experience. I would love to go back and say to their smug faces to F'Off because I wasn't "lying to myself" and having a 6-pack doesn't mean you have any clue about what it's like to lose weight when overweight.
For the record I've never had a 7,000 calorie bite of dessert.
The thread was created for the general population who claim many times they've "plateaued" for 2 weeks, 2 months, 2 years, etc. and we're only talking people trying to lose less than 40lbs. After reexamination, the majority of them will confess they haven't been diligent or on point.
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
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yeah I plateaued once for 6 months, I weighed everything,made sure entries were correct(cross referencing) and everything. I even stopped eating back most of my calories I burned at one point,and even lowered my calories,nothing happened. even went so far as to eat at maintenance for awhile. nothing. then one day I lost a few lbs, that was a few months ago. now Im more active and eating the same and eating less than MFP gives me, and not losing anything, but I have whats called familial hypercholesterolemia and its considered a metabolic disorder, shouldnt calories in vs calories out still work? if so its not.Im burning even more calories,getting more steps in and not retaining water as the scale seems stuck on the same number, I even lowered my calories a little more.Im on a special diet but that should have nothing to do with it. but my blood work comes back normal(no thyroid issues,no hormone issues, my insulin resistance levels are normal)0
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Weight in lean body mass has an affect on BMR not bodyfat. Technically if I lost 100lbs of bodyfat my BMR should have had a very little reduction.
Didn't mean to offend Ninerbuff, this is sore spot because it sounds a lot like what I've heard before.
Aaron I am here to share my experience and help anyone who asks free of charge.2 -
I've only seen it once. And come to find out it was because my client didn't get his insulin injections adjusted during his weight loss. Once the dosage was corrected, he started losing weight again.Aaron_K123 wrote: »Honestly with that definition is there even such a thing as a plateau? Because what you are describing is basically maintenance at that point isn't it? If you are consistant with your diet and after a while after a long time of weight loss there becomes an extended period where you are doing the same thing but no longer losing weight....you are at maintenance yeah?
What is an example of a legitimate plateau? Like an example where someone doing exactly the same things as they have done throughout there weight loss that should have them continue their weightloss but their weightloss stalls for 6 weeks plus. Does that even happen?
Or are you subtly suggesting that there is no such thing as a plateau.
Because of his health, we couldn't do much to increase his exercise and we were at the minimum intake for his weight (he was obese). And he stuck with it diligently (according to him) and weight didn't move for 6 weeks after a 60lbs loss. I saw him once a week to work with him mostly on rehab and flexibility.
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
This seems like just another example of maintenance. Your client just didn't know his predicted burn was reduced because his insulin wasn't adjusted. Or are you saying he was burning more calories than he was consuming but still not losing because incorrect insulin intake? I don't think this is what you are implying but I just want to be clear.0 -
Russellb97 wrote: »Weight in lean body mass has an affect on BMR not bodyfat. Technically if I lost 100lbs of bodyfat my BMR should have had a very little reduction.
Didn't mean to offend Ninerbuff, this is sore spot because it sounds a lot like what I've heard before.
Aaron I am here to share my experience and help anyone who asks free of charge.
Cool, didn't mean offense with my post but after I read it back to myself it sounded more hostile than I meant it. I bet on the details we probably all agree.
That said I feel that typically when you lose that much bodyfat you are going to end up losing lean mass as well, and regardless of the lean mass loss you still are going to be physically carrying around 100 less pounds which has got to impact how many calories you require to physically move around. I do wonder if all "metabolic slowdown" is is your body requiring less calories due to weight loss and as such you need to adjust downwards. I mean I've only lost 11 pounds so far and I've had to drop my caloric intake by about 150 a day to stay steady in my loss. I don't really believe that is because my biochemical processes have altered, its just that I am now lighter so when I walk 5 miles I am carrying around 11 less pounds than I used to be while doing so.5 -
Aaron_K123 wrote: »That said I feel that typically when you lose that much bodyfat you are going to end up losing lean mass as well, and regardless of the lean mass loss you still are going to be physically carrying around 100 less pounds which has got to impact how many calories you require to physically move around. I do wonder if all "metabolic slowdown" is is your body requiring less calories due to weight loss and as such you need to adjust downwards. I mean I've only lost 11 pounds so far and I've had to drop my caloric intake by about 150 a day to stay steady in my loss. I don't really believe that is because my biochemical processes have altered, its just that I am now lighter so when I walk 5 miles I am carrying around 11 less pounds than I used to be while doing so.
Oldies but goodies:
An overview:
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/EvgeniZyntx/view/not-starving-but-metabolic-adaptation-and-weight-loss-567546
The actual MFP thread:
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1077746-starvation-mode-adaptive-thermogenesis-and-weight-loss
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I have 36 day cycles when not on BC. Before I had my kid I had a period every 41 days like clockwork. Felt great, no issues, but it's just really variable. I assume she means for people like me whose bodies are so absurdly over-fertile it feels the need to lengthen the hell out of the "get pregnant" window. I carry a ton of water weight outside my period, then during my 7 days of torture, lose all of it.2 -
CoffeeNCardio wrote: »
I have 36 day cycles when not on BC. Before I had my kid I had a period every 41 days like clockwork. Felt great, no issues, but it's just really variable. I assume she means for people like me whose bodies are so absurdly over-fertile it feels the need to lengthen the hell out of the "get pregnant" window. I carry a ton of water weight outside my period, then during my 7 days of torture, lose all of it.
Makes sense. Thanks.1 -
Bump!0
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Aaron_K123 wrote: »That said I feel that typically when you lose that much bodyfat you are going to end up losing lean mass as well, and regardless of the lean mass loss you still are going to be physically carrying around 100 less pounds which has got to impact how many calories you require to physically move around. I do wonder if all "metabolic slowdown" is is your body requiring less calories due to weight loss and as such you need to adjust downwards.
I think this is a big part of it. I was concerned that the calculators overstated calories when I was obese, because it is lean mass that matters, and so I looked at estimates with the calculator that takes BF% into account (I didn't know actual BF). I found, however, that my losses were greater than even MFP (using the non BF formula) predicted, which I think is because (1) I wasn't sedentary (I live in a city and get at least 10,000 steps in normal life, which I just assumed was normal and my desk job still made me sedentary), and (2) my extra weight compounded the effect of that daily activity.
Now that I'm a normal weight I lose/maintain pretty much as the calculator predicts, which I don't think is a metabolic slowdown of any significance (hard to tell, since I'm more active in other ways), but that my activity burns fewer calories (at my current size, I sometimes think depressingly few, but of course it's worth it).0 -
It was the insulin. He never adjusted for it after his first 30lbs loss because he kept losing weight till about 60lbs in. Once the insulin dosage was dropped, he started losing again immediately.ncboiler89 wrote: »
I've only seen it once. And come to find out it was because my client didn't get his insulin injections adjusted during his weight loss. Once the dosage was corrected, he started losing weight again.Aaron_K123 wrote: »Honestly with that definition is there even such a thing as a plateau? Because what you are describing is basically maintenance at that point isn't it? If you are consistant with your diet and after a while after a long time of weight loss there becomes an extended period where you are doing the same thing but no longer losing weight....you are at maintenance yeah?
What is an example of a legitimate plateau? Like an example where someone doing exactly the same things as they have done throughout there weight loss that should have them continue their weightloss but their weightloss stalls for 6 weeks plus. Does that even happen?
Or are you subtly suggesting that there is no such thing as a plateau.
Because of his health, we couldn't do much to increase his exercise and we were at the minimum intake for his weight (he was obese). And he stuck with it diligently (according to him) and weight didn't move for 6 weeks after a 60lbs loss. I saw him once a week to work with him mostly on rehab and flexibility.
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
This seems like just another example of maintenance. Your client just didn't know his predicted burn was reduced because his insulin wasn't adjusted. Or are you saying he was burning more calories than he was consuming but still not losing because incorrect insulin intake? I don't think this is what you are implying but I just want to be clear.
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
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I think the way we use the words "plateau" (if it is real at all) is basically unintentional or unexpected maintenance. A lot of people though claim "plateau" when they haven't lost weight for 2 weeks which of course could be any number of other random factors.2
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Just my two cents worth and I have never been 6 weeks with no movement but the odd 2 or three week stalled times I have found it seems as though my body is remodeling. That's when my face fills in again a little and my hips shrink a tiny bit. So in my mind a stall can actually be a good thing even though very frustrating at the scale. This is when you need to measure yourself.3
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It's not uncommon to stall one week, then lose the next, then stall again, etc. especially the closer one gets to goal (usually within the last 10-15lbs). A few weeks stall is usually an indication that the body is moving more to homeostasis and that some slight adjustments need to be made. For many clients, all I do is increase their intensity in their physical fitness program a bit, whether that be increasing resistance, duration, reducing rest time, or changing their whole program to a program that's just a bit more challenging.cheryldumais wrote: »Just my two cents worth and I have never been 6 weeks with no movement but the odd 2 or three week stalled times I have found it seems as though my body is remodeling. That's when my face fills in again a little and my hips shrink a tiny bit. So in my mind a stall can actually be a good thing even though very frustrating at the scale. This is when you need to measure yourself.
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
1 -
It's not uncommon to stall one week, then lose the next, then stall again, etc. especially the closer one gets to goal (usually within the last 10-15lbs). A few weeks stall is usually an indication that the body is moving more to homeostasis and that some slight adjustments need to be made. For many clients, all I do is increase their intensity in their physical fitness program a bit, whether that be increasing resistance, duration, reducing rest time, or changing their whole program to a program that's just a bit more challenging.cheryldumais wrote: »Just my two cents worth and I have never been 6 weeks with no movement but the odd 2 or three week stalled times I have found it seems as though my body is remodeling. That's when my face fills in again a little and my hips shrink a tiny bit. So in my mind a stall can actually be a good thing even though very frustrating at the scale. This is when you need to measure yourself.
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
I agree but I think the action depends on the goal. If your goal is short-term like losing weight for an event then yeah, you need to up the ante. If the goal is permanent then you'd being going down a frustrating path because you'd just be in the same situation a few more weeks down the road. Even worse, with your new homeostasis point you'd need to continue the same level of exercise and eating or you'd start gaining weight back.
Instead I recommend taking a short break, like a day or two and up to a week depending on the stall and length dieting overall. This will get your body burning again and rejuvenate your mindset. Don't worry about the scale and don't even think about diets. Eat what you want and don't go to the gym. Just take a total break and focus on what makes you happy. Think of it like a car being stuck in snow, you can't just accelerate out of it. You need to go back and fourth, back and fourth and soon you are out and moving forward again.
If you want permanent success please look at the big picture and not try to lose as much as possible and as fast as possible because we know what happens when we do that. You may get it now but you won't have it tomorrow.
Stalling is normal and it sucks, it sucks even more when you're busting butt and eating "diet food". Believe me though, it isn't as "sucky" when you're free to eat what you want and can rest your body.
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Alatariel75 wrote: »I'm on a plateau. It's a plateau that contains a veritable buffet of nachos, fast food, booze, salt and NGAF.
But yes, good post. And if you've been "eating healthy" for 3 weeks and haven't lost this week - you're NOT on a plateau.
What about eating clean?0 -
It was the insulin. He never adjusted for it after his first 30lbs loss because he kept losing weight till about 60lbs in. Once the insulin dosage was dropped, he started losing again immediately.ncboiler89 wrote: »
I've only seen it once. And come to find out it was because my client didn't get his insulin injections adjusted during his weight loss. Once the dosage was corrected, he started losing weight again.Aaron_K123 wrote: »Honestly with that definition is there even such a thing as a plateau? Because what you are describing is basically maintenance at that point isn't it? If you are consistant with your diet and after a while after a long time of weight loss there becomes an extended period where you are doing the same thing but no longer losing weight....you are at maintenance yeah?
What is an example of a legitimate plateau? Like an example where someone doing exactly the same things as they have done throughout there weight loss that should have them continue their weightloss but their weightloss stalls for 6 weeks plus. Does that even happen?
Or are you subtly suggesting that there is no such thing as a plateau.
Because of his health, we couldn't do much to increase his exercise and we were at the minimum intake for his weight (he was obese). And he stuck with it diligently (according to him) and weight didn't move for 6 weeks after a 60lbs loss. I saw him once a week to work with him mostly on rehab and flexibility.
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
This seems like just another example of maintenance. Your client just didn't know his predicted burn was reduced because his insulin wasn't adjusted. Or are you saying he was burning more calories than he was consuming but still not losing because incorrect insulin intake? I don't think this is what you are implying but I just want to be clear.
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
I think this goes to highlight that if you TRULY are in a plateau (and not in denial), then you probably should go see a doctor!4 -
Awesome post @ninerbuff0
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In my personal experience, too-high a deficit can cause me to slow my non-exercise activity, which leads to a weight loss stall because the CO part of CICO is reduced even if my intentional exercise periods remain the same. So I am one of those folks who sometimes needs to consume more calories to lose weight - it's not a special-snowflake issue but rather more CO through non-exercise activity that more than covers the additional calories in.3
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