A 6 month plateau?!?!

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Replies

  • dansls1
    dansls1 Posts: 309 Member
    A quick look at your diary and you are not tracking sodium, but I bet you are way over on most days even though you are good on calories. You also are not recording water you drink. I'd up the water and start tracking sodium IMHO.
  • echandle12
    echandle12 Posts: 82
    I broke my 4 month plateau with weight training. Keep your body guessing, muscle helps to burn more calories.
  • TeresaWash
    TeresaWash Posts: 283
    I went almost 5 months without a weight change. My dietician suggested taking a "Body Pump" (strenght training) class. Started losing again that week!

    Good Luck
  • crzyone
    crzyone Posts: 872 Member
    Been there since October...it's frustrating and so I start to give up and eat over, then start over again, and can't get the scales down past a certain point and have to lose the one or two I gained while "giving up." It's been frustrating but I'm starting over fresh this week and going to try different things (exercises, not giving up, etc) to try to get past it. Oh, AND I'm giving up the scales for a bit, just going to go on how the clothes feel for awhile, since that seems to be all that I've been seeing success in lately anyway.

    Good luck to all of those who are with me on this dreaded plateua!!!
  • vjrose
    vjrose Posts: 809 Member
    If you don't have any models to serve as a pattern of healthy eating check out the diary of some ot the posters who posted regarding Fruits, veggies and water. I too agree, that the quality of the calorie is pretty much more important than how many calories. You can eat low cal and if it is all empty calories you aren't providing the right fuel for your body to burn the fat.
  • mrsamy1
    mrsamy1 Posts: 10
    I'm no expert, and I don't eat the most healthy foods, but I just looked at your food diary for the past few months, and I'm not seeing much in the way of fruits or veggies, and seeing quite a bit of starchy carbs that are very high in sodium, loads of fast foods and meals out, and loads of meals that just say quick added calories. I think that could be a big part of the problem if you've been eating like that for the past 6 months. It's very possible that on the quick added ones you've underestimated just how many calories you've really eaten. If eating like this has kept you at a plateau for 6 months, I would really suggest trying to give your meals a complete overhaul and add fresh fruit and veggies, lean meat, and stay away from the highly processed, high sodium meals. Try it for a couple of weeks and see if it makes a difference.

    This is right on... looking at your food diary, there are little to no fruits, veggies, etc. Our bodies are not designed to process artificial stuff, preservatives, high levels of processed carbs/sugars, etc so sure you might be "technically" under your calorie goal but you are not feeding your body. I am not trying to be critical - trust me - I was there. I've totally overhauled my menu to not consist of, what I affectionately call "single ingredient foods" and my life has changed. Some days I go over my calories but because I'm feeding my body correctly I am losing, have more energy than ever before and even my skin, hair, etc is better. Give it a try! I am happy to share my menu with you as well. Good luck :)
  • shammxo
    shammxo Posts: 1,432 Member
    This is where I am, too. Not sure whether to eat more... Eat less...

    I go between wanting to see the number on the scale go down (I only *really* weigh myself once a month) and just wanting to look good.

    Good luck!
  • britcurl
    britcurl Posts: 110 Member
    At first I was going to say eat more....BUT, after looking at your diary I am going to say...change the foods you are eating! I see tons or pasta and rice. No good! Add some fruits and vegi's and lean meats. Limit your carbs (pasta, rice, white potatos). I can so see why you are in a plateau! Change your foods and I guarantee you will lose!
  • wickedcricket
    wickedcricket Posts: 1,246 Member
    yep what they said. mine wasn't 6 mos - about 2-1/2 and honestly don't know if it's over yet but you gotta take a break. Increase your exercise INTENSITY- not duration, intensity. Increase calories 100 at a time. Try playing with micro-nutrients ... more/less protein etc.
    If this was easy, anybody could do it
  • MinnieInMaine
    MinnieInMaine Posts: 6,400 Member
    First, congrats on your progress so far!!

    I'm all about non-deprivation and everything in moderation but I have to agree with those that are saying you're eating a bit too much fast food and processed foods. Even if your life is super busy, you can plan and prepare meals without a ton of time or effort. Take a little time on your day off to figure out what you can pack for lunches and snacks and make sure there are some fruits and veggies in there. Maybe even make up a couple casseroles or soups on those days so you can pack leftovers - there are plenty of easy, quick AND healthy meal options out there.

    And definitely add sodium to your food diary as a lot of high sodium days can stall out your weight loss. I had a bad weekend of eating and was up almost 5 pounds just from water retention!

    Think about switching up your workouts a bit too. If you've done the same thing for a while, your body may have adjusted to it thinking this is just part of the normal routine. You have to keep your body guessing so it will react the way you want it to. Or, if you haven't been very active, maybe now is the time to start doing something.
  • Reinventing_Me
    Reinventing_Me Posts: 1,053 Member
    bump. I've been plateaued since March and look forward to reading the advice from others.
  • doggiesnot
    doggiesnot Posts: 334 Member
    Try this book: "Choose to Lose: The 7-day carb cycle solution" by Chris Powell.

    Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Choose-Lose-7-Day-Cycle-Solution/dp/1401324452/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1338989490&sr=8-1

    I have not personally read it yet, or followed his eating plan. But supposedly he has studied nutrition and come up with a pattern of eating that breaks the plateau barrier.

    Good luck!
  • AnnaVegngal86
    AnnaVegngal86 Posts: 23
    I completely agree! I go between being "ok" with the number on the scale, to wanting my ugw, which is approx 9 lbs away, on a good day, it's 7 lbs away. gahhh gkgkalkgalkg;akg so frustrating!

    when I eat more, depending on what it is, if its alot of carbs or high in sodium, obviously i gain..but if i cook my meals, eat what i want but in smaller portions i generally either stay the same or lose a few lbs. We'll see, lately, I've been eating less because I am stressed about my testing and am just too tired to really put effort into what i am eating.

    anyone have any suggestions for a lean muscle building vegan beastress?

    <3
  • peteb79
    peteb79 Posts: 386
    I lost 50lbs and then was stuck in the mid 240's for 6 months.. finally broke through this week and saw 239!
  • jfrog123
    jfrog123 Posts: 432 Member
    bump
  • mrsvatitagain
    mrsvatitagain Posts: 275 Member
    Right there with you but if I am honest its my eating. Check your diary, could be what you are eating, maybe underestimating, chanign up to frequent because of being obsessed with the scale. Why dont measure yourself too as you may be loosing inches each month and missing the opportunity to celebrate those NSV.
  • foxbat2828
    foxbat2828 Posts: 391 Member
    I've been in one for about a month and a half right now. From what I understand, a couple of things to try include switching up your exercise regimen and going to maintenance level on calories, i.e., going to the level of calories to maintain your CURRENT weight, for a couple of weeks. Not sure if it works or not, but I've started doing both a couple of days ago and so I'll get to see if it does or not. So far, in the couple of days of doing it, my weight hasn't increased and I'm having a blast with the extra calories ... having an extra 400-500 calories a day makes tracking/planning a little easier.
  • secretsof2113
    secretsof2113 Posts: 17
    Thank you guys for the suggestions so far! I'm considering busting out the 17 day diet again to see if maybe that will boost me for a while.

    As far as my drinks go? I'm strictly a water drinker. I never record it because I tend to drink so much of it. I'll start recording it also just for peace of mind.

    I'll have to start mixing things up a bit to see if that eases me over this darn thing.
  • entropy83
    entropy83 Posts: 172 Member
    Well, I will stop whining about my two month plateau :embarassed: I am going to say this and others may freak out on me but I am doing a colon cleanse and focusing on water right now. I am taking psyllium husks 1 tbsp morning and night with crap load of water. I also am doing a barley grass drink to get some extra enzymes in the body and support my liver in detoxing. That's right I said I am drinking a green food drink to detox which people constantly mock but whateva.:devil:. I am also working on getting the junk out of my diet because in reality it is crappy with sporadic healthy choices. I have tried upping the calories and still holding. I have to admit that I can't keep eating fried stuff even within the range and be really surprised I'm not losing:grumble: . I have metabolic issues and severe food allergies so the cleaner diet is not optional even though I've been trying to hop on the calories in and calories out bandwagon. Everyone does not have the same system. Good luck:smile:

    Are you doing this with the assistance of your doctor? If not, bad idea, and please do not preach this as an option to others. What you are doing is dangerous and careless if unassisted and I know you were expecting to hear that. This is just going to worsen your metabolic issues...

    Psyllium is just a form of fiber like metamucil, there are no stimulants of any sort involved. Barley grass is just a powdered green food drink similar to wheat grass. I wasn't expecting to hear negative feedback. I actually was just referring how people often mock "cleansing." I don't think you familiar with the products I am referring to if you think fiber and powdered vegetable juice require a physician's assistance. I think your advice is unwarranted and hastily given.

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