Early stagnation in weight/fat loss

tangohitman

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/143598/samplefoodday_1.png
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/143598/samplefoodday_2.png

Please note that I don't report everything in order, so having a meal at a weird time may not be entered correctly. But my meals never vary from the two images I posted. I always to try to keep the carbs/cals/sugar above 0 and have consumed more protein on some days.

I'm a little over a month post lower back surgery so I must keep exercising to very minimum and avoid heavy weights. I was only given permission by surgeon to exercise just a week ago. My workouts consist of light weights of shoulder presses, barbel curls, benching and cardio on an elliptical.

Prior to my surgery, I weighed 166lbs-168lbs, 5'6 (I'm a "skinny-fat" type person). I am now 157lbs but have been around 157lbs-160lbs for about a week now.

I know my current flaws are eating late at night (probably hour before I sleep) and not getting enough sleep. But could these two factors solely be responsible for my quick plateau?

Thanks for any information or advice you may have!

sadrithmora

It's not really a plateau if it has only been a week, but did your doc recommend having such a low calorie diet? It's not good for everyone. Eating late doesn't prevent weight loss either, but it might cause sleep problems, which in turn may lead to slower loss than you expect.

Faye_Anderson

One week is not a plateau, a 26 yr old male should not be eating so few calories, do you weigh and log everything you eat and drink? I'm amazed you can do any exercise on so few calories

itsbasschick

maybe you should consider having more protein with breakfast and lunch - a cup of non-fat milk or half a protein drink each meal. that would make you even with me on calories, but i'm a 5' 3" woman who's losing weight on that, and when i exercise i eat more. did you mention your height? i don't see it in your original post.

not only do you need protein to avoid muscle loss, but more protein would probably help you heal faster from surgery.

btw, like others have said, it's too soon to be a plateau.

tmjdunn

When i first started i kind of stalled out around a month as well. There was about a one month period where I was gaining and losing the same three pounds. What worked for me was upping my calories, getting more protein, and changing up my workout a bit. Maybe try moving your weightloss goal ( I was at 1 lb per week and now am at .5) and see what that gives you for calories.

tangohitman

Thanks everyone for their replies!

I'm 5'6, didn't mention that in the original post.

If I move from 2lbs/week to .5lbs/week, it gives me about 2,000cals.

My surgeon did not recommend any diet plan but I figured since I would not b exercising much, I could have a lower calorie count.

I also log everything I eat, but not drinks. I do not drink anything besides water and tea. No carbonated drinks whatsoever

cwolfman13

Ummmm....a week isn't a plateau. Weight loss isn't a linear function...it's all over the place. You have to look at trends, not the numbers from day to day or even week to week. Weight control in general is about trends.

You also probably should eat more...I'm a 5'10" pushing 40 so kinda oldish guy. I lost a pound per week on average (as a general trend) pretty easily netting 1,850 calories...with exercise, on average I was consuming anywhere from 2100 - 2300 calories gross usually.

You are a male, not a 90 year old 5' tall woman...you need more calories.

tangohitman

Ummmm....a week isn't a plateau. Weight loss isn't a linear function...it's all over the place. You have to look at trends, not the numbers from day to day or even week to week. Weight control in general is about trends.

You also probably should eat more...I'm a 5'10" pushing 40 so kinda oldish guy. I lost a pound per week on average (as a general trend) pretty easily netting 1,850 calories...with exercise, on average I was consuming anywhere from 2100 - 2300 calories gross usually.

You are a male, not a 90 year old 5' tall woman...you need more calories.

Forgive me for my ignorance but adding more calories with limited exercise would only cause weight gain right?

cwolfman13

Ummmm....a week isn't a plateau. Weight loss isn't a linear function...it's all over the place. You have to look at trends, not the numbers from day to day or even week to week. Weight control in general is about trends.

You also probably should eat more...I'm a 5'10" pushing 40 so kinda oldish guy. I lost a pound per week on average (as a general trend) pretty easily netting 1,850 calories...with exercise, on average I was consuming anywhere from 2100 - 2300 calories gross usually.

You are a male, not a 90 year old 5' tall woman...you need more calories.

Forgive me for my ignorance but adding more calories with limited exercise would only cause weight gain right?

No, not necessarily...you burn calories 24/7. The average guy burns around 1800 calories just being alive...meaning if they were in a coma and did nothing and were tube fed 1800 calories they would maintain their weight.

Before I did any exercise whatsoever I was eating 1,850 calories and losing about 1.5 Lbs per week...after a couple of months that became about a pound per week as a general trend. After I lost my first 20 Lbs or so I started exercising (wished I would have started earlier) at which point I just ate those calories back as per the MFP method...thus grossing the higher number of calories while still netting 1,850 which is my "sedentary" calorie intake.

Having huge energy deficits for quick weight loss sounds great and all...but ultimately it will jack with your hormones and mess with your metabolism which is why many people have such a difficult time losing on paltry calorie goals. You can't be in a hurry...you have to have patience.

All that said, you haven't provided any stats for yourself so I'm just making guesses based upon statistical averages of the average male.

tangohitman

Ummmm....a week isn't a plateau. Weight loss isn't a linear function...it's all over the place. You have to look at trends, not the numbers from day to day or even week to week. Weight control in general is about trends.

You also probably should eat more...I'm a 5'10" pushing 40 so kinda oldish guy. I lost a pound per week on average (as a general trend) pretty easily netting 1,850 calories...with exercise, on average I was consuming anywhere from 2100 - 2300 calories gross usually.

You are a male, not a 90 year old 5' tall woman...you need more calories.

Forgive me for my ignorance but adding more calories with limited exercise would only cause weight gain right?

No, not necessarily...you burn calories 24/7. The average guy burns around 1800 calories just being alive...meaning if they were in a coma and did nothing and were tube fed 1800 calories they would maintain their weight.

Before I did any exercise whatsoever I was eating 1,850 calories and losing about 1.5 Lbs per week...after a couple of months that became about a pound per week as a general trend. After I lost my first 20 Lbs or so I started exercising (wished I would have started earlier) at which point I just ate those calories back as per the MFP method...thus grossing the higher number of calories while still netting 1,850 which is my "sedentary" calorie intake.

Having huge energy deficits for quick weight loss sounds great and all...but ultimately it will jack with your hormones and mess with your metabolism which is why many people have such a difficult time losing on paltry calorie goals. You can't be in a hurry...you have to have patience.

All that said, you haven't provided any stats for yourself so I'm just making guesses based upon statistical averages of the average male.

Thanks for your replies, I appreciate it a lot!

I've made an update: https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/143598/samplefoodday_3.png

HanamiDango

Two good reads. They really help. Good luck and hope you heal well.

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/975025-in-place-of-a-road-map-short-n-sweet http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1080242-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants

Faye_Anderson

I've made an update: https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/143598/samplefoodday_3.png

That looks better than it did but it's still not accurate, you can't measure chicken and potatoes in cups

tangohitman

I've made an update: https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/143598/samplefoodday_3.png

That looks better than it did but it's still not accurate, you can't measure chicken and potatoes in cups

how exactly do you measure in grams if the site or entry does not give you the option?

supnicole

You should be eating more protein. If you're in a calorie deficit, you should be eating AT LEAST 1g of protein per pound of lean body mass (calculators all over the internet). If you don't increase your protein, I can almost guarantee you that you will continue to be "skinny fat" even as the scale goes down because your body won't get enough protein to preserve the muscle that you do have.