Can't lose those last few pounds

firewalking

Okay - so I set a goal of losing 20 pounds. Even though I am 46 years old, this was surprisingly easy to accomplish - for the first 16 pounds, that is.

I was a weight loss counselor for years, but it is very difficult for me to be objective when it comes to myself. Even though it was very difficult, I tried all the normal methods of breaking through a plateau including: increased caloric intake to 3500 calories for a week, and changed my workout routine drastically (still burning about 500 calories a day and returned to my 1200 calorie diet). I tried skipping cardio workouts to an every other day routine (but still weight-trained).

My trainer said that my sleep habits are horrible (they are) and that this could be the problem. Okay - so I started going to bed at 9:00 every night - only to wake up (and I mean, WIDE AWAKE) at 2:00 a.m. My gym is 24 hours, so I go for a light workout, come home and lay back down. This seems to work, but I was told that this is unacceptable because the sleep is interrupted.

Anyone who has broken through a stubborn plateau - PLEASE HELP - I am fresh out of ideas (even the Internet is out of new ideas). Thoughts?