Stuck. Adaptive thermogenesis? Need advice
coccodrillo72
Posts: 94 Member
Hello,
I'm hoping to get some advice from you guys, since during the last month my weight loss seems to be stalling.
In the past whenever I read posts of people struggling with plateau I always thought the problem was, almost always, an inaccurate intake tracking, but now I'm not so sure anymore.
A bit of background: I started on MFP on April 15th, 2013. Initial weight: 155.9 kg, (343 lbs) 46.7% body fat (please note, all the body fat percentages are measured by a digital scale, so they are not accurate, but they give an idea of the general trend). Since then I lost regularly 1 kg (2.2 lbs) each week (so I lost a total of 35 kg or 77 lbs), with minimal fluctuations and no plateau. Until now.
Provide your stats (height/weight/age/bodyfat% if you know it/etc)
6ft 2 1⁄64 in, 40 years, male. Starting weight: 155.9 kg (343 lbs) 46.7% BF, current weight: 121.4 kg (267.1 lbs), 35% BF
What's your current gross intake of calories, on average?
I prefer the MFP method over the TDEE, so over the last couple of months 1800 net + exercise cals until a couple of weeks ago. Since then I tried to lower calories to 1600 + exercise cals to see if it helped. It worked for a week, this week again no change in weight.
What's your current average intake of protein, carbs, and fats, in grams? (GRAMS, not percent!)
It varies a bit, but more or less: 180 g carbs, 180-200 g proteins, 60-70g fat.
Do you use a food scale and measure everything?
Yes, I use a digital scale and I weight and log everything, and I mean everything, even a bite of bread. The only thing that I eyeball are vegetables (but I weight dressings). I'm methodical (my wife would use another word).
Do you track all of your intake, daily? (Everything?)
Yes. I eat always at home (I have a home office), I cook my meals, I weight the ingredients, I never go to fast food, I eat healthy foods. My diary is open but it's mostly in italian, so ask if you need more information. I personally added the foods I use with the correct macros and did not use some generic entries. I use intermittent fasting leangains style (feeding window between 12 and 8 pm).
Do you take cheat days or days off?
No, never have.
How much weight have you lost so far and over what time period?
35 kg (77 lbs) in 6 and 1/2 months.
Describe your activity (exercise and non exercise) and did you change that activity withing the last couple of months?
Strenght training 3 times a week (I started with the "big three routine", currently doing Stronglift 5x5). I work hard and my strenght has increased. I walk at a fast pace for 50 minutes the other 3 days, sundays are rest days. I changed my strenght routine on September 16th, but the stalemate started more than 3 weeks after that.
How long have you been stalled and if it is not a complete stall please be very specific as to how much you have lost over the stalled period.
A month, but it's not a complete stall. First week: no loss. Second week I *gained* 1 kg, so I lowered net caloric intake (from 1800 to 1600) -> the following week I lost 1 kg, but the last week, with 1600 net calories daily, no loss whatsoever again. I always weight myself in the same conditions: after my weekly rest day, in the morning before breakfast, after... hem bodily functions and so on.
Do you have thyroid issues/risks or PCOS?
No
A note on exercise caloric expenditure: I know that many times MFP or running apps (like Runtastic, that I use) tend to overestimate calories so, considering that I eat back my exercise calories, I did a bit of research and I found what I think is the most accurate data available (The study "Energy expenditure comparison between walking and running in average fitness individuals" http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22446673 ) and I compared these data with the Runtastic proposed values: they coincide, so I really don't think I'm overestimating exercise calories.
I've read everything I found about adaptive thermogenesis but I don't think it could be the cause, or at least not the only cause: first of all it seems to have an impact of 15% in the worst case (so the reduction should have restored the 2.2lbs weekly loss); secondly this stall was very abrupt.
I'm sorry if the post is long, and thank you for any advice you could give me.
I'm hoping to get some advice from you guys, since during the last month my weight loss seems to be stalling.
In the past whenever I read posts of people struggling with plateau I always thought the problem was, almost always, an inaccurate intake tracking, but now I'm not so sure anymore.
A bit of background: I started on MFP on April 15th, 2013. Initial weight: 155.9 kg, (343 lbs) 46.7% body fat (please note, all the body fat percentages are measured by a digital scale, so they are not accurate, but they give an idea of the general trend). Since then I lost regularly 1 kg (2.2 lbs) each week (so I lost a total of 35 kg or 77 lbs), with minimal fluctuations and no plateau. Until now.
Provide your stats (height/weight/age/bodyfat% if you know it/etc)
6ft 2 1⁄64 in, 40 years, male. Starting weight: 155.9 kg (343 lbs) 46.7% BF, current weight: 121.4 kg (267.1 lbs), 35% BF
What's your current gross intake of calories, on average?
I prefer the MFP method over the TDEE, so over the last couple of months 1800 net + exercise cals until a couple of weeks ago. Since then I tried to lower calories to 1600 + exercise cals to see if it helped. It worked for a week, this week again no change in weight.
What's your current average intake of protein, carbs, and fats, in grams? (GRAMS, not percent!)
It varies a bit, but more or less: 180 g carbs, 180-200 g proteins, 60-70g fat.
Do you use a food scale and measure everything?
Yes, I use a digital scale and I weight and log everything, and I mean everything, even a bite of bread. The only thing that I eyeball are vegetables (but I weight dressings). I'm methodical (my wife would use another word).
Do you track all of your intake, daily? (Everything?)
Yes. I eat always at home (I have a home office), I cook my meals, I weight the ingredients, I never go to fast food, I eat healthy foods. My diary is open but it's mostly in italian, so ask if you need more information. I personally added the foods I use with the correct macros and did not use some generic entries. I use intermittent fasting leangains style (feeding window between 12 and 8 pm).
Do you take cheat days or days off?
No, never have.
How much weight have you lost so far and over what time period?
35 kg (77 lbs) in 6 and 1/2 months.
Describe your activity (exercise and non exercise) and did you change that activity withing the last couple of months?
Strenght training 3 times a week (I started with the "big three routine", currently doing Stronglift 5x5). I work hard and my strenght has increased. I walk at a fast pace for 50 minutes the other 3 days, sundays are rest days. I changed my strenght routine on September 16th, but the stalemate started more than 3 weeks after that.
How long have you been stalled and if it is not a complete stall please be very specific as to how much you have lost over the stalled period.
A month, but it's not a complete stall. First week: no loss. Second week I *gained* 1 kg, so I lowered net caloric intake (from 1800 to 1600) -> the following week I lost 1 kg, but the last week, with 1600 net calories daily, no loss whatsoever again. I always weight myself in the same conditions: after my weekly rest day, in the morning before breakfast, after... hem bodily functions and so on.
Do you have thyroid issues/risks or PCOS?
No
A note on exercise caloric expenditure: I know that many times MFP or running apps (like Runtastic, that I use) tend to overestimate calories so, considering that I eat back my exercise calories, I did a bit of research and I found what I think is the most accurate data available (The study "Energy expenditure comparison between walking and running in average fitness individuals" http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22446673 ) and I compared these data with the Runtastic proposed values: they coincide, so I really don't think I'm overestimating exercise calories.
I've read everything I found about adaptive thermogenesis but I don't think it could be the cause, or at least not the only cause: first of all it seems to have an impact of 15% in the worst case (so the reduction should have restored the 2.2lbs weekly loss); secondly this stall was very abrupt.
I'm sorry if the post is long, and thank you for any advice you could give me.
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Replies
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Tagging.
For reference for Sara and I when we discuss:
Average gross intake Sept 4-Nov3:
2053.540984 178.1967213 69.78688525 173.39344260 -
What lifting routine were you doing before September 16th?0
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I used this one http://rippedbody.jp/the-big-3-routine/ that is: 3 days a week, squat, bench press and deadlift, 3 series, 10 reps each, for all three exercises.0
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A side note: I'm not getting enough sleep. In the last three years I slept an avarage of 4 to 5 hours max per night.
I know that sleep deprivation is correlated with weight gain and other health problems, but it's not a choice: I have a kid with severe sleep trouble: we tried (and are still trying) everything to resolve the issue but until the problem goes away I just have to suck it up and carry on.0 -
We'd like to see you adjust your intake as follows:
Calories (this is GROSS intake and not net intake. In other words, continue your exercise program and just make sure you average your intake out to the following):
~1950 calories
155 carbohydrate
70 fat
175 protein
Follow this for two weeks and if you would like further adjustment, send us a follow-up PM.0 -
Thank you for your time and advice.
Your intake suggestion is actually quite similar to what I was doing (it translates to 1630 net cals on cardio days and 1770 net cals on weight training days, with my current level of exercise) but I see you lowered carbs a bit and upped fats. I'll try that for a couple of weeks and see how it goes.
I have to add that in the past week I tried to lower even more the net intake and got to an average of 1550 net daily, added a couple of runs and was extra careful with the tracking. The result was 1,2 kg loss (2.6 lbs), so I guess I'm not stuck, but I really don't feel this intake is sustainable in the long run: too much hunger and unusual leg soreness.0 -
Thank you for your time and advice.
Your intake suggestion is actually quite similar to what I was doing (it translates to 1630 net cals on cardio days and 1770 net cals on weight training days, with my current level of exercise) but I see you lowered carbs a bit and upped fats. I'll try that for a couple of weeks and see how it goes.
I ran an average before suggesting the above totals, and I show this as a slight decrease in calories and carbohydrates. I'd suggest you start there, and lets see what the results are over the course of the next couple of weeks.0
