Weight loss plateau

lovesnature4688

Hi everyone. I lost 123 pounds over 11 years ago and my start weight was 267 . I’m finally down to 140 and my ultimate goal is 130 .
I can’t seem to get these pounds off , no matter what I do . I lift weights 4x a week and I do an hour of cardio daily.

I eat very clean and have something sweet , once a week . Has anyone got past this plateau…or has my body called it quits ?


Thank you,
April

tomcustombuilder

The last few pounds are difficult. You have to ask yourself if lowering calories further is worth it. Once the weight is off you'll need to realize that those calories will more than likely be your new normal and are you good with that?

AnnPT77

Congratulations on that amazing loss: You rock!

But you mentioned everything but your calorie count? Are you logging your food, counting calories?

If you've been at a steady weight for a long time - at least a month or two or more - it implies you've been eating your current maintenance calorie level on average. If you want to lose more weight, the answer is averaging a little less food (in calorie terms), or adding more activity (daily life stuff or exercise, doesn't matter which).

Things like lifting weights and cardio are great for a body, but don't in themselves cause weight loss. I did things like that routinely for a dozen years and stayed overweight to class 1 obese, because while they burn some calories, it isn't a massive number - easy to eat enough more that there's no calorie deficit, unfortunately.

Same deal with eating clean: That's great for nutrition and health, but it only results in weight loss at the right calorie level. (I was a mostly whole foods vegetarian, thin to fat to obese and back to thin again).

I'm not trying to be snarky here, just frank and honest.

If you're not food logging and calorie counting, there are other ways to cut eating a bit or add movement, of course. But if you aren't logging, then logging carefully for a month might offer you some insights.

You can lose those 10 more pounds, I'm quite convinced. There can be a point where a happy life (enjoyable eating and activities) may tell us our happy maintenance weight is a little above where we've wanted it to be, but it should always be possible to lose more if that's the higher priority goal.

Best wishes!

csplatt

If it was me, I would eat at maintenance for a few months and practice staying the same size before jumping back in.

csplatt

csplatt wrote: »

If it was me, I would eat at maintenance for a few months and practice staying the same size before jumping back in.

I say this because it has helped me tremendously. I got to 128 then moved from 1350 calories to 1500 calories. This is just about 100 calories under what I thought my maintenance was. I ate at this level for a month and enjoyed being able to eat more. Then checked my weight again. I actually kept losing, so I am enjoying eating more and realizing that I can eat more than I thought. In another few weeks, I'll add more calories to try and find my true maintenance.

LoganBennett715

I have just replaced my dinner with salads and boiled vegetables and chicken and it has worked for me.

cmriverside

The last 15 pounds for me took about nine months. I lost 80 pounds total over a period of about a year and a half.

I was pretty hungry a lot of the time during those last 15 pounds, and I lost around a half pound per month.

I gave up alcohol, prepared 20 out of 21 meals per week myself and rarely ate out and I used a food scale and ate as much whole food as possible. I also exercised five days a week for an hour.

It was a slog.

I feel your frustration! Hang on, keep goin', it'll happen. :flowerforyou: