I'm trying not to get discouraged

Msaip

So I have not seen any weight loss for a little over three weeks now. I'm trying to muddle through it but i've only lost 20 lbs so far. Could I really be hitting a plateau so soon? i'm 5'6 and currently 197 lbs. I started out at 216. I can't figure out what I am doing wrong! I don't always eat my calories back all the way so most of the time im 100-200 calories under goal. I have been running for 30 minutes every other day and alternating with weights. Although I feel better and feel like i've lost weight the scale wont budge!

VixFit2011

Hang in there. Sometimes I think we worry too much about the scale although I know it's important. I've had times of plateaus then all of a sudden shown a 3 lb. loss. Don't give up!

mawhite717

you could be putting on muscle while losing weight, but since muscle weight more than fat its evening out. dont worry about what the scales say.... if your clothes are fitting better and you see a difference in your body you may be losing inches, which in my opinion is sometimes better than pounds. just dont give up and if you're feeling better and your clothes are fitting better keep up what you're doing )

hchaskins

That happens to me often, and then all of a sudden it will come off. Keep doing what you are doing, you will see the results sooner or later. Good luck!!!

Tennessee2019

What the scale says is NOT the most important thing. It is more how you feel about youself & if you like what you see when you look in the mirror.

sing1998

this is a common theme. it takes a long time to pack on the lbs and i bet there were many times you stuffed yourself and got away without gaining weight. same goes with losing. it takes time and those plateaus come anywhere along the way. i agree that paying attention to the scale can be self defeating. go with how you look, feel, the fit of your clothes and what the tape measure says. muscle weighs more than fat so you may be "solidifying".

Adudynski

I totally understand how you feel!!! I started at 189 and I am not going down and sometimes I even go up but I end up back down at 189.... I have lost 2 in ...but I have been doing this for maybe 3 weeks and I am frustrated too

Barrettmomof3

How long have you been doing this exercise routine? Maybe need to mix it up, instead of running, try the stair stepper or swimming. Also be sure to mix it up on the weights. I know that usually works for me.

Definitely don't give up. It will work!!

larisadixon

read my blog post, hopefully i can encourage you to keep going....
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/larisadixon/view/my-90-day-journey-thus-far-96408

jenbk2

How many calories are you eating? I was eating 1200- going no where. I increased my calories to 1500-1600 and started losing weight again.

LeelaLosing

Are you confident of the calories you are burning, meaning are you using a heart rate monitor? You might want to try cutting your calories back a bit further since the exercise database is an average, and at best, a guess. My metabolism burns a lot slower than their numbers so if ate all they say back consistently it wouldn't work for me. I also try to stagger my calories, some days I eat back more than others to keep my body guessing and give myself some leeway for treats and days i'm not so hungry or snacky. Keep playing with it and change it up, including your workout if you can. Add in some intervals (times where you work alot harder for 30 to 45 secs, or run much faster, and then do every 1.5 minutes, etc. Stick with it, you are doing great!

LeelaLosing

Are you confident of the calories you are burning, meaning are you using a heart rate monitor? You might want to try cutting your calories back a bit further since the exercise database is an average, and at best, a guess. My metabolism burns a lot slower than their numbers so if ate all they say back consistently it wouldn't work for me. I also try to stagger my calories, some days I eat back more than others to keep my body guessing and give myself some leeway for treats and days i'm not so hungry or snacky. Keep playing with it and change it up, including your workout if you can. Add in some intervals (times where you work alot harder for 30 to 45 secs, or run much faster, and then do every 1.5 minutes, etc. Stick with it, you are doing great!

mignalg

measure yourself. I am 5'6'' and I started my weight loss journey at about the weight you are at right now and was working my butt off and eating and the scale was just not reflecting all my work, so I decided to do my measurements and that is where I saw a huge difference. Also you may want to see how many calories you are eating, I was eating a very low calorie diet and working out a lot, and I was not losing as much weight as I thought I should, I increased my intake and that first week with higher intake I lost three pounds. Good luck and don't give up, I know it is hard, but don't give up and continuously re-evaluate things because your body is always changing and sometimes require personal changing as well.

olyrose

I was playing around with the goals section of MFP and when I changed my weight, the calorie goal changed too. Maybe go back through and reset it - you might need fewer calories now that you've lost weight.

Maybe it's time to change things up a bit too - like try a different workout routine, or play with your meals (size or frequency) a bit. Good luck!!

jaimejean478

I'm with you. I've been trying to loose LB's since the beginning of January, and have lost a total of 4 lbs so far and can't seem to break under the 200 mark. I feel extremely discouraged when people say "Oh, you might be gaining muscle!", well, I have over 50 lbs of FAT on my body that certainly isn't swapping itself out! My measurements aren't changing. The only thing I'm doing is avoiding the (delicious) bad foods that got me here in the first place and learning that I have a long road ahead if the changes I've made are only allowing me to maintain, and not lose. I rarely over-indulge to the point that I think "yeah, you deserve the scale reading you get". But, I continue to obsess over calories and exercise!

steph6467

I agree that you should try changing up your workout routine. Your body becomes more efficient at exercise (any motion, really) that it become used to. So what may have burned 200 calories initially now may only burn 150 calories. Those little changes add up. Also, really look at your diet. Are you eating processed foods? Are you eating enough veggies? How about your calorie counting.. are you estimating, measuring, or weighing your food? This is a fabulous video about how we underestimate what we're consuming: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JVjWPclrWVY

SaraTonin

You may need to change your goal to 1 pound instead of 2 pounds for a more realistic daily goal. Good luck with your plateau!! Keep at it and you will see results!