plateau? help please!

krissy_pooo

hey everyone, I need advice! I was losing weight steadily for 3ish weeks (about 2lbs a week) and now the weight just stopped coming off. Is it possible that I've hit a plateau this early in the game? how do I know? if anyone can give me advice on what to do that would be so helpful! I don't want to get discouraged but going to the gym 6 days a week and not continuing to see results is very upsetting!

schpanks

Look beyond the scale! Don't measure your success or failure that way. Pay attention to the changes in your measurements and the way your clothes are fitting. It's still pretty early in the game for you to get discouraged yet. You may have lots of weeks where the scale doesn't move but things are rearranging in other ways.

thektturner

Might want to try this, if you have the discipline and/or time to map it out.

http://www.answerfitness.com/316/zig-zag-dieting-fitness-nerd/

AkBUTLER

Change up your workout routine, variation to what you eat, and the times you eat. Your body has most likely gotten use to a routine.

squitzwife

first of all. how long? I've heard that it isn't considered a plateau unless you've stayed the same for at least 3 weeks. otherwise it could be that you've gained muscle-heavier than fat-from hitting the gym so religiously (wtg!).

If this is the case then you need to consider a few things.
1) have you come down to your proper weight?
2) have you picked up a few bad habits such as
a) nibbling without counting
b) eating in a way that compromises your blood sugar levels
c) stopping doing what works because it worked! (probably not when it comes to exercise)
d) not eating enough? if you aren't getting near your calorie goal every day you may actually slow down your metabolism

Are you allergic to any foods? If my brother eats wheat he gains huge amounts of weight no matter what. He works in construction and burns calories like nobody's business. He purged wheat from his diet 3 weeks ago and has lost considerable weight.


You may want to book a doctor's appointment and have an annual physical. You may find you have, say, low thyroid function which inhibits you from loosing weight. You'd be able to stabilize your thyroid, or whatever, and you'd not only loose weight again, but prevent long term problems and damage.

It also may simply be that your body needs a break from loosing weight. If you don't take this break your body with probably start gaining weight in defense. Dietitians suggest that you maintain your current weight for 6 months and return to your diet. At this point your body should be ready to jump back into burning excess fat. To maintain current weight simply get MFP to calculate your proper calorie intake for steady weight. Whatever you do, don't go back to eating too much or poorly or whatever the issue was.

I hope these things are helpful.

cheshirequeen

definitely recommend changing the workout routine. i try to do a different dvd every couple of day so my body doesnt get used to it. also ive hit a plateau weight wise. but my clothes are getting bigger and my energy is getting stronger. good luck and dont measure success by a scale. itll drive you crazy:flowerforyou:

Pandorian

I've only seen a pound at a time or no change for the last couple weeks, scale alone that would be frustrating. But I'm using other numbers too, I hit 60 minutes on the treadmill, and my heart-rate during the cool-down was lower than I'd been seeing after only doing 30 minutes, which I had trouble finishing. Now up to 60 mins, pushing myself for more distance in that time now, something to change it up, just getting on the treadmill and doing the same workout day in and day out would bore me to tears.
Weigh-in day for this week is tomorrow morning for me so we'll see if the extra endurance has helped any, I know I feel better.

SO, don't use the scale alone, change up what you're eating, like I seem to see posts about people having oatmeal or eggs daily, I'd find that so boring in a hurry, toss a grilled cheese in there if its home-made bread or at least whole-wheat and an actual cheese not the processed food stuff they sell in single-serve wrapped portions.

noltes2

Last week I hit a plateau. I work at a wellness company and asked my personal trainer coworker for advice (who has a masters degree). I had been doing 5 days a week of cardio, and 3x a week of weights. She said it's not how long you do cardio for that matters it's how intense and varying your heart rate is the most important thing to mix up your workouts. Your body gets used to a workout after 3-4 weeks so it's crucial to keep your body guessing.

So on the eliptical/bike/treadmil do 1 minute of all out maximum exertion with high resistance. Than do 1 minute on level one at a steady pace. Keep this up for an HOUR! If your just starting out even a half hour is intense and beneficial. I did it for the first time tonight for an hourand I was sweating more than I ever had just doing 90 minutes of steady pace. I also didn't get bored as I had to keep watching the clock. I figure she has her masters degree so I trust her! Hopefully the scale budges this week

krissy_pooo

Last week I hit a plateau. I work at a wellness company and asked my personal trainer coworker for advice (who has a masters degree). I had been doing 5 days a week of cardio, and 3x a week of weights. She said it's not how long you do cardio for that matters it's how intense and varying your heart rate is the most important thing to mix up your workouts. Your body gets used to a workout after 3-4 weeks so it's crucial to keep your body guessing.

So on the eliptical/bike/treadmil do 1 minute of all out maximum exertion with high resistance. Than do 1 minute on level one at a steady pace. Keep this up for an HOUR! If your just starting out even a half hour is intense and beneficial. I did it for the first time tonight for an hourand I was sweating more than I ever had just doing 90 minutes of steady pace. I also didn't get bored as I had to keep watching the clock. I figure she has her masters degree so I trust her! Hopefully the scale budges this week

Ive also heard a lot about varying your heart rate.. i will try this for sure, thank you!!! And great posts everyone, I'll try to stop focusing so much on the scale and continue taking my measurements every couple of weeks!