Major Plateu Advice

Lifelink

Been stuck at the same weight and measurements for nearly a month and I'm close to the goal I need to be so I can leave for Army training. Any advice, especially from the been-there-done-that's, would be very helpful. I've put too much time and effort to just stop now. This needs to happen!

Francl27

Well one month isn't a plateau. But I'd just make sure you weigh all your food to make sure you're not eating too much, and that you're not overestimating your exercise calories either... Otherwise keep doing what you're doing.

HollisGrant

Well one month isn't a plateau. But I'd just make sure you weigh all your food to make sure you're not eating too much, and that you're not overestimating your exercise calories either... Otherwise keep doing what you're doing.

^^ This. You might be eating more than you think or burning less than you think. I don't eat all my exercise calories back, only if I'm hungry, because I don't own a HRM and am not sure what I'm really burning.

Check your measurements. Are you exercising and building muscle?

Drink water. Check the sodium in your food. Change your food or exercise. Do something different. I went back to drinking a shake for breakfast for a week and it seemed to jump start me again.

Editing to add the obvious: if everything checks out, eat a little less.

Also, slow periods aren't all bad, They give your skin/body a chance to catch up with the weight loss.

foodiscomplicated

Getting past a weight-loss plateau
Just because your weight loss has stalled, don't revert back to your old bad habits. These tips can help you restart your weight-loss plan.
By Mayo Clinic staff

You've worked hard to improve your diet and exercise habits, and you've been rewarded by seeing the number on the scale continue to drop. But then for no reason you can identify, the scale doesn't budge — even though you're still eating a healthy, low-calorie diet and exercising regularly. You've hit a weight-loss plateau.

Before you get too discouraged, you should know that it's normal for weight loss to slow and even stall. By understanding what causes a weight-loss plateau, you can decide how to respond and avoid backsliding on your healthy-eating and exercise habits.
What is a weight-loss plateau?

A weight-loss plateau occurs when you no longer lose weight despite continuing with your exercise and healthy-eating habits. Being stuck at a weight-loss plateau eventually happens to everyone who is trying to lose weight.

Although hitting a plateau is common, most people are surprised when it happens to them, for they believed that if they just maintained a reduced-calorie diet, they would continue to lose weight. The frustrating reality is that even well-planned weight-loss efforts often become stalled.
What causes a weight-loss plateau?

The progression from initial weight loss to a weight-loss plateau follows a typical pattern. During the first few weeks of losing weight, a rapid drop is normal. In part this is because when calories from food are reduced, the body gets needed energy by releasing its stores of glycogen, a type of carbohydrate found in the muscles and liver. Glycogen holds on to water, so when glycogen is burned for energy, it also releases water, resulting in substantial weight loss that's mostly water.

A plateau occurs because your metabolism — the process of burning calories for energy — slows as you lose muscle. You burn fewer calories than you did at your heavier weight even doing the same activities. Your weight-loss efforts result in a new equilibrium with your now slower metabolism.

At this new equilibrium, calories eaten equals calories expended. This means that to lose more weight, you need to increase activity or decrease the calories you eat. Using the same approach that worked initially may maintain your weight loss, but it won't lead to more weight loss.

How can you overcome a weight-loss plateau?

If you're at a plateau, you may have lost all of the weight you will, given the number of calories you're eating each day and the time you spend exercising. At this point, you need to ask yourself if you're satisfied with your current weight or if you want to lose more, in which case you'll need to adjust your weight-loss program.

If you're committed to losing more weight, try these tips for getting past the plateau:

Reassess your habits. Look back at your food and activity records. Make sure you haven't loosened the rules, letting yourself get by with larger portions or less exercise.
Cut more calories. Reduce your daily calorie intake by 200 calories — provided this doesn't put you below 1,200 calories. Fewer than 1,200 calories a day may not be enough to keep you from feeling hungry all of the time, which increases your risk of overeating. In addition, this reduced calorie intake should be sustainable. If not, you'll regain the weight you've lost and more.
Rev up your workout. Increase the amount of time you exercise by an additional 15 to 30 minutes. You might also try increasing the intensity of your exercise, if you feel that's possible. Additional exercise will cause you to burn more calories. Consider adding resistance or muscle-building exercises. Increasing your muscle mass will help you burn more calories.
Pack more activity into your day. Think outside the gym. Increase your general physical activity throughout the day by walking more and using your car less, or try doing more yardwork or vigorous spring cleaning.

Don't let a weight-loss plateau lead to an avalanche

If your efforts to get past a weight-loss plateau aren't working, talk with your doctor or a dietitian about other tactics you can try. You may also want to revisit your weight-loss goal. Maybe the weight you're striving for is unrealistic for you. If you've improved your diet and increased your exercise, you've already improved your health even without further weight loss. For those who are overweight or obese, even modest weight loss improves chronic health conditions related to being overweight.

Whatever you do, don't revert back to your old eating and exercise habits. That may cause you to regain the weight that you've already lost.

xxcooneyxx

Losing weight towards the end of your journey is like slogging through peanut-butter. It takes FOREVER. I just broke my 3-month long plateau this week by losing 2 lbs. TWO. I mean hell, when I started my journey I was so big, I could drop five pounds in a week, no problem. It's a lot harder now. On days I wasn't feeling well or was really busy (back when I was really big) I could eat like 700 calories and be fine. (By the way I would NEVER recommend that, it just happened once in a blue moon because I was stressed or really busy or sick, it was never intentional)

Now at 5'5" and 138 lbs (with a large body frame) If I eat under 1200 calories, I feel weak and sick the next day. I just don't have the fat stores to pad my fall. I also don't have the very high BMR I did when I was 270, that made it easy to eat 1,000 calories under maintenance. Now I'll be doing well if I can eat 500 under a day. If I ate 1,000 calories under a day (which equates to 2 pounds loss a week) I would only be eating 700 calories a day (assuming I didn't exercise, which I usually do) and that would just kill me.

ALSO, to be honest with you, I don't hate myself anymore, and I consider that a good thing. Before, when I really wanted an extra slice of toast before bed, I could walk by a mirror, and get so upset that the toast was easy to resist. Now, if I'm really hungry before bed and I want a piece of toast, if I look in the mirror, I'm more likely to say "Well, you look pretty alright, go ahead and eat the toast." So that also makes my progress slower.

Every day my relationship with food is becoming more normal. I now naturally want healthy food most of the time. If I do eat some junk food, I usually don't want more after I've had one serving. I now want to naturally eat a big breakfast, and by the end of the day, I don't want a heavy dinner anymore. My body fat % is pretty much in, what I consider to be, my "golden range" and my BMI is in a healthy range, so the last 8 lbs I'm trying to lose are vanity pounds anyway. They will come off eventually. I've changed my entire lifestyle, so even though at this point it's PAINFULLY slow, I will eventually get to 130. I don't have to kill myself to get there fast. I'm not hurting my health anymore by being 8 lbs away from my goal. I'm already healthy. So what if it takes me a year to lose the last 8 lbs? It's a marathon not a race. Trust me, as someone who has struggled with eating disorders, it bothered me a great deal how much my loss has slowed down, but every day I remind myself of all I have written here, and it gets a little more easy to accept each day.

Also, as someone who's significant other is in the army, trust me boot camp/basic training is going to take that weight off you REALLY quick, so I wouldn't worry to much about it. Just keep doing the right thing and make good choices. You'll get there before you know it.

Francl27

Also make sure you updated your goals to adjust to your weight loss.

Lifelink

Jan. 2013: 279 lbs
Apr. 2013: 264 lbs
Oct 2013: 212 lbs
Present Day: 212 lbs

A month long of no weight or measurement change in a positive or negative manner, I believe, constitutes a plateau. ;]

I also readjust my calorie goals every time MFP asks me if I want to. Matter of fact, once I hit 212 lbs, I had it updated.

All I need to do rid of 2 more inches off my waist so I can be cleared for reenlistment. My weight loss "journey" doesn't end, and won't end, because it is now a preferably chosen lifestyle. I'm just looking for something that can get an effect quick so I can get the jump-start I need to get my papers finished, as I'm sure my training will definitely make me lose the rest of the weight once I get in.

I've heard some say I should fast. I've heard to eat more calories. I've heard to eat less. Drink more water. Don't drink water, drink gatorade.

I need legit advice from someone preferably from a sports background that follows strict weight class-type grounds.

TL;DR = I've lost 67 lbs and am now stuck. I need to lose a few more pounds so I can reenlist in the Army. Sports weight-class advice is needed.