do you need more exercise if you are already conditioned?

mom23nuts

I have exercised all of my life in some form or another and am stuck at 173 and not that that is terrible but I want to go lower.

I have tried everything and my intensity is right up there. I tried switching up the exercise and adding more weights and reps adn sets and different classes and high intensity to my cardio.

I still stay at 173 while being vigilant and while having a blow out every once in a blue moon.

So is my body stuck here and liking 173 as a set point or do I have to put in more time at the gym like one trainer told me. She suggested 90 minutes a day since my body is no stranger to working out so I need to do more.

I really cannot see making this my full time job as I have 3 kids and a life and I know even though I may get thinner it will be an all out struggle to get there and let's face it, I am never going to be America's Next Bikini Model no matter if I spend 90minutes or 900 minutes a day at the gym.

What are your thoughts? I still love exercise and am not using my set point/plateau as a cop out because I am putting in tons of effort but it is not really coming through results wise...in the scale or the clothes or the tape measure.

khrys1

Have you tried the complete opposite and taken a day or two off of exercise a week? That might help. Also, try to eat more calories than you need once or twice every two weeks. I've done that, and it seems to "shock" my body into continuing to lose, as the body can get used to the same exercises/calories over time. Good luck!

abellante_0205

Maybe your body is done. Check your measurements... Sometimes it shows more in the measurements when you are VERY close to your goal weight even tho I don't know what your goal weight is. My weight goes up and down all the time, but I'm used to it. I've only lost about 30 lbs in the almost 3 years I have been doing this for... (almost 2 1/2 (will be 2 1/2 yrs August 8th). I am struggling to lose the remaining 12.9 lbs that I have left. I got down to 11.6 lbs left to lose at one point but I gained some weight back and now trying to get back down there again. Don't give up! If you need to, talk to your doctor or a trainer.

Black_Swan

After my experience I am eager to suggest less exercise and more food (healthy kind!)... but I am really no expert!

deesjourney2fit

I agree with the other posts. Maybe you need to cut back on the working out and have a couple of higher calorie days to get your body get with the program. haha But you could also be "done". Sometimes your body reaches a number and decides that it's done losing.

melaniecheeks

Weight loss is 80% diet and only 20% exercise.

That exercise is important in getting a good shape, but if you want to drop some pounds, its going to be down to what you eat.

mom23nuts

wow....done at 173 and a 36" waist....that is awful....I really thought I could be thinner but I am healthier and clothes look better and I could try execising less and eating a bit more but that seems like it would set off a whirl wind of chaos ...who knows, maybe I should just give it a try!

LauraMarie37

Have you tried the complete opposite and taken a day or two off of exercise a week? That might help. Also, try to eat more calories than you need once or twice every two weeks. I've done that, and it seems to "shock" my body into continuing to lose, as the body can get used to the same exercises/calories over time. Good luck!

I like this answer. Also, (I don't know if you are doing this already), eating back my exercise calories got me to lose weight again.

And I've heard that either low sleep or a lot of stress will cause your cortisol levels to increase, which will make your body retain fat more easily.

Finally, what are you set to lose each week (1 lb, 1.5 lbs, 2 lbs)? Maybe try toggling that up or down for two weeks and see if it changes anything.

stephanierae2804

I am no expert, though I was going through the same thing. I've been stuck at 155-159 for a few months now. I decided to take a few weeks off and eat my maintenance calories (for me, at 5'4" around 2000 with my running). The last two weeks I've been losing again - 4 pounds in 2 weeks! I think my body just needed a break from dieting after losing 70 pounds. And I was comfortable knowing that even if it didn't work, I wouldn't GAIN weight (heck, I was maintaining anyway and eating like 500 cal/day less!)

Avalonis

I agree with the other posts. Maybe you need to cut back on the working out and have a couple of higher calorie days to get your body get with the program. haha But you could also be "done". Sometimes your body reaches a number and decides that it's done losing.

Thats actually not true. Of anyone. Granted, a lot of people will have a much HARDER point once they get to near their goal, while others will be able to cruise to their goal.

However, it's simply not physically possible to maintain weight (long term) if you eat less than you burn. Thats not logical, there HAS to be a miscalculation somewhere. However, her metabolism could be slowed to the point where she isn't burning as much as she thinks. I would suspect that depending on how much the OP is eating, she may need to increase to let her body know its ok to keep losing.

There is a good article about plateaus here. It helped me and a bunch of my friends.
http://fitnesswithnatalie.blogspot.com/2011/05/most-dreaded-word-in-weight-loss.html

_Sally_

perhaps you may want to look into zig zagging (or cycling) your calories.

search the MFP postings... lots of threads out there that explain this.

good luck!

healthyJenn0915

This is exactly what happened to me after about 4 months of working out! I lost bout 20lbs, and then stayed at the same weight for the past 2 1/2 years! Until I started doing MFP. I was still working out 4 -6 times per week, and trying to watch what I ate for the most part, but no matter what I did I couldn't lose more than 1 -3lbs and then I would fluctuate and still be at the same weight! I almost gave up, and decided, that was the way I was meant to be, until I strated really tracking my calories on here! I started this the end of march this year, and am down 12lbs! Haven't really changed my workouts, just my portions of food. Hope this helps. My thoughts are that it may be your calories that has made you come to a plateau. Maybe you need to either eat more, or less. Just my thoughts! Good luck!

mom23nuts

tried the zig zag and read natalies post. still stuck...hell I even woke up early on vacation to exercise at the hotel's fitness room and get int he time.

JennLifts

i wouldnt say you have to exercise less. have you tried eating what it tells you? seems youre under a god bit of the time?

Woodman725

Weight loss is 80% diet and only 20% exercise.

That exercise is important in getting a good shape, but if you want to drop some pounds, its going to be down to what you eat.

YES! This. I agree with this. You may want to re-evaluate how many calories you're burning and how much food you're eating. If you are at too big of a deficit then that can counteract trying to lose weight. Keep working out, but I really think you need to check how much you're eating, you may need more, may need less.