This plateau is killing me!

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Replies

  • ltkasmala
    ltkasmala Posts: 109 Member
    Hi Sarah,

    I am 52 and have lost about 15 pounds since I started using this site regularly. I realize my situation is not exactly the same as yours (if you think being 30 something makes weight loss a challenge, wait until you are my age O_o)! but I, too, only recently got past a common plateau. I discovered, though I was keeping within my calorie limit each day, I had shifted from eating food foods to more snacks, though they were "good" snacks. Eating only snacks, though isn't so good. Thankfully I caught the issue by reviewing my foods per day. I am slowly starting to loose again! Go over your food journal and see if there are any patterns that have changed that could be a culprit!

    I understand one thing that can be occurring is your metabolism may need to be "re-set". Here is a link to one idea for doing this, but if you Google the topic, there are a number of other suggestions:

    http://www.livestrong.com/article/465299-diet-to-reset-your-metabolism/

    I have not tried this metabolism adjustment myself, but it may take a few weeks to implement and see results. Your body kind of has to be tricked into thinking it needs x amount of calories for a short time, then you can reduce it and the body will start to burn fat again, which will result in weight loss!

    I hope some of this helps!

    Lorraine
  • Superbritt2drescu
    Superbritt2drescu Posts: 273 Member
    Our bodies will work very hard to keep us from losing weight. This is known as the "set point" theory. In most cases, after we lose 10% of our total weight, our body goes into preserve mode. At the same time, your body also becomes used to your eating and exercise patterns. Despite even your greatest efforts, your body will do all it can to maintain and you will plateau.

    This totally happened to me. I stalled for months. I added more protein, switched up my workouts and upped my calories and dropped more after that. Try switching things around and see what works. Different strokes for different folks. As far as inside working out with the winter, what about trying one of the popular dvd's or a wii fit/xbox kinect?
  • bosslady69
    bosslady69 Posts: 11 Member
    I TOTALLY AGREE WITH THIS, TRICK YOUR BODY TO LOSE

    Hi Sarah! I'm from NH too... seacoast! feel free to add me for support. (I can give you some excellent NH outdoor exercise ideas! SNOW SHOE! Monster calorie burner!)

    I HEAR you. I had a similar journey. Started at 182 and hung in the 150s for what felt like FOREVER! I'm at my goal weight now but I thought I would never get here. What finally broke the line was taking a vacation with friends. We were very active, constantly walking and running and swimming in the ocean... and eating really well but only twice a day. Late breakfast, early dinner. I finally broke the barrier because I completely messed up my usual pattern.

    I find that alternating caloric intake from day to day (take your weekly calories and divided them up among the days, but unevenly... like 1200 one day and then 2000 the next, then down to 1500 etc.) can trick your body to lose, but you really need a change in the routine. Try switching exercise or elminating all sugar for a week to see if you can get your body to pay attention.
  • Huskeryogi
    Huskeryogi Posts: 578 Member
    Oh and I actually prefer jogging outside in the winter (as long as there's no snow) to jogging outside during the summer. They make great gear for jogging outside that is warm without being bulky.

    And I've never used these but a lot of people swear by them. These are YouTube bodyweight workouts you can do in small spaces.

    Just search
    Adam Steer
    Scott Sonnon
    Ryan Murdock
    Craig Ballantyne
  • 1holegrouper
    1holegrouper Posts: 323 Member
    Here are some of my ideas:

    1) make sure you are accurately measuring the food you put into the diary. Make sure you are not underestimating your calories and that your daily intake is just enough to lose about 1 to 1.5 pounds a week. This should be enough for steady progress but not so much that your body keeps fighting against you.

    2) Be completely honest in your food log. Not saying you are not but this was something I had to own up to. A late night binge should be recorded. Take your diary off public view if necessary. Accurate information is important (based on personal experience! lol)

    3) make sure your exercise routine is not too routine. Find ways to mix things up and have variety. Always shoot for intensity over time.

    4) Take a look at IF/Intermittent Fasting. It's not for everyone but it has worked for me. It does more than offer a scheme to reduce calories, it helps trigger the production of HGH (human growth hormone) which then allows for easier fat loss.

    5) Create a goal weight and put a date on it. Throw it out there with your friends and local support system. Accountability, indirect and direct can be a great motivator.

    6) Finally patience. This can take time and its not the same as initial weight loss.
  • hpsnickers1
    hpsnickers1 Posts: 2,783 Member
    You may want to consider changing out some of the foods you eat. I see people complaining about being stuck all the time and then see they are eating bad foods. I'm not saying you are but it's something to look into. A lot of people save calories so they can have fattening desserts and treats every day and wonder why they don't lose. They always blame it on starvation mode. lol. I always get slammed when I say stuff like that but I am going off what I see. Change out some of your foods and I be you see a difference.



    I'm in my early 40's....so yes it does become a little more difficult with age. I haven't had to lose weight in over 20 years. The main difference I see is just adding in more fresh foods and cutting out the processed stuff.

    Outdoor workouts are difficult where I live due to heat. People in different climates have to figure out what works for them. It may be buying home equipment, joining a gym or changing the time of day.

    I'm sure you will be fine and get it all worked out.

    Agree 100%. I spent the first 6 months here following a low-fat, low-calorie, healthy diet - exercise like crazy - and I did lose 10lbs (I was in the upper range of a healthy weight. 130+ and my goal was 10lbs since 120lbs was my lowest adult weight). In May 2011 I started Primal Blueprint as an experiment (I now call my lifestyle "functional paleo"; paleo is my "baseline" and I have tweaked it to suit my body and my needs - this is where any type of "diet" should end up - personalized to suit your body's needs). Turned out my body was craving real, whole foods and FAT!! I have dropped 12lbs below my lowest weight (with less exercise); I have a 26" waist for the first time in my life - and a pretty flat belly. I also figured out on my own, by investing in a blood sugar monitor, that I'm prediabetic. In fact my Fibromyalgia diagnosis - I believe - was actually Reactive Hypoglycemia (prediabetes). Had I kept following the Standard American Diet - even the healthiest version of it - I would have went right into full blown diabetes. (And you don't have to be diabetic for your blood sugars to be high enough to keep your body from being able to access your stored body fat).

    I don't log or track calories. I maintain around 110lbs (I'm 5'2" - I've seen 108lbs but my body wasn't happy - it let me know it needed a little more weight) by what I put in my mouth, not how much. Body composition is 80% diet. The other 20% is a combo of genetics and exercise. Primal Blueprint was the best thing I have ever done...for my body and my health. (I dropped 7lbs of water and fat the first 6 weeks on it). My guess is about 65%-70% of my daily calories come from fats - mostly animal fats. And I have to eat a lot to maintain.

    BUT N=1. Just keep plugging along - tweaking along the way - and you'll find your N=1.

    BE YOUR OWN SCIENTIST!!!!
  • KCramer12
    KCramer12 Posts: 153 Member
    It happens to us all. I couldnt get out of the 150s for months. Then finally got to the 140s and same thing it took ages to finally see a 1&3. U can do it. Try changing your cal intake, more protein, less sodium.. etc. Good luck! Feel free to add me.
  • jsj024519
    jsj024519 Posts: 400 Member
    I recommended increasing your calories. Your body may have adapted to your diet/exercise regimen and has refused to lose. I run 6 days a week for about 40 to 60 minutes a day while maintaining a 1700 calorie diet. I severely plateaued and could not lose. I began zig zagging my calories with a slight increase in calories. Since then I have drastically lost weight. Homeostasis is most likely to blame. You should consider viewing daniel's mfp roadmap 2.0

    I would like to also add: what works for me might not work for you. I am not saying my way is the right way. Adjust to what you think will best assist you with your weight loss.

    best of luck.
  • MommaRou56
    MommaRou56 Posts: 68 Member
    This is so pertinent to me today. I was going to post about the same thing. I have been hovering back and forth within a pound or so -- usually .4 or .6 of a lb. -- for about two weeks. It's driving me crazy! I do plan to start taking some cardio classes because I think they'll kick my butt harder and, hopefully, that will get me off of this. It wouldn't bother me so much except I'm right at a point where that last little bit will get me into ONEDERLAND, and it's just killing me! In fact, I have reached that goal on my scale at home and one at the doctor's office, but the one scale I use to actually chart my weight (at my office) will not budge below that point. I want to use the same scale to track my progress because that's the only way to be accurate, but UGH! I'm dying!
  • fitnsandyfun
    fitnsandyfun Posts: 33 Member
    Hi all, my name is Sarah. I'm sort of new to the site. I signed up quite a while ago but I never used it. I'm almost 34 years old, weigh 150 (started at 178), and can't seem to break out of the 150 zone. I have decided to change my diet and kick up my exercise routine, but wow this is really hard! I live in New Hampshire so I am also dreading the cold weather that is coming since I don't belong to a gym and my exercise is outside. Anyone having struggles with a plateau? Anyone noticing the difficulties in losing weight in your 30's versus your 20's? Just looking for support :)


    Hi, I know that after you eat really good and healthy for awhile your metabolism adjust to it. So try having one high calories day a week to shock your metabolism . :) I hit plateau for roughly 6 months until i tried that and it works :)

    add me :)
  • JennKoz529
    JennKoz529 Posts: 144 Member
    I am SO with you Sarah! My story is very similar to yours. I was a total of 184 at my highest and am now down to the 140s. At about 145 I started to plateau and UGH!!! it was so hard to continue. I actually quit for a while and gave up completely! But I saw the pounds start creeping back up and I didn't like that. So, I started watching again and began using MFP.

    I've also upped my cardio which really seems to have kickstarted the weightloss again. I am not one to run, or go to the gym (the closest gym for me is like 30 mins away anyway). What I've started doing is on demand workouts. It's something. And I try to take walks on my break when I can. I'm in PA so we have some nice weather yet. The winter is going to kill me because, like you, I hate the cold weather too! Good luck!!! And feel free to add me as a friend. I've found the more friends you have on here, the more support you have and the more motivated you feel!

    Ps. I'm 32 and WOW has my metabolism slowed down! I used to be able to eat and eat and not gain, but now I can hardly eat a thing and I feel like I've gained 20lbs (slight exaggeration!!!)
  • GOBIGGOHOME
    GOBIGGOHOME Posts: 30
    Hi Sara,

    Just want to say I think you are doing amazing. Maybe just maintaining your current weight and letting your body get use to being there for a while until your next attempt. You are amazing just by giving it your all. Good luck with your journey.
    Audrey
  • CM9178
    CM9178 Posts: 1,251 Member
    I took a peak at your diary.. it doesn't appear you are logging your food every day - that is the #1 thing you need to do. If you aren't keeping track of what is going into your body, chances are, you are probably either eating things you shouldn't, eating too much, or eating too little. On the days you did enter food, it looks like you aren't eating enough.

    With all that being said, I hit a plateau for 4 weeks and it was driving me insane. I tried everything - increasing my calories, decreasing my calories, working out more, eating back calories, not eating back calories, etc. NOTHING worked.
    Finally, I did some research and I discovered Zig Zagging calories - I'm actually very surprised that nobody has suggested this yet.

    Basically, zig zagging means that you have one very high calorie day, followed the next day by a low day (example 1200 calories), and through out the weeks your calories vary every day - so you are never eating the same amount of calories twice in a row, and there is a large difference from day to day. This "Tricks" your body into losing weight, because you aren't constantly eating the same amount of calories every day. The plan works it out so for the week, you still have your deficit, and it averages out to the amount of calories you should eat to lose weight, but because of the zig-zagging, this really works.

    TRUST ME - I tried everything and this was the only thing that worked for me. After being stuck in a plateau for 4 weeks, after the first week of zig zagging, I lost 2 lbs, which was huge, all things considered, and in the last 5 weeks since then, I've lost over 6 pounds!

    Check out this website - you just put in your stats and it will give you the plan for the week: http://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calculator.htm

    I really like it, because you can choose which day of the week you want to be your "high calorie" day, and customize it from there. So, for example, if you have an event to attend - that would be your high day. That way, you never feel like you are cheating, because you're not. And, since all of our lives are crazy, and some days we eat more than other days, some days we are hungrier than others, this plan makes a lot more sense than trying to eat the same amount of calories every single day.

    Good luck!
    *Edit* I see that since I started typing this response, some other people suggested this as well. You should really consider this option. It works.
  • CM9178
    CM9178 Posts: 1,251 Member

    Tracking calories weekly instead of daily. I try to average 1590 calories/day. So one day a week I'll eat 1000, two days I'll eat 1200, 2 days I'll have 1500, 1 day I'll have 1800, and 1 day I'll have 2900. Your body doesn't know what to expect. Plus I can enjoy my weekends a little more.

    This is exactly what I was referring to.
  • MommaRou56
    MommaRou56 Posts: 68 Member
    Check out this website - you just put in your stats and it will give you the plan for the week: http://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calculator.htm

    Okay so I went to that site, keyed in my stats, but I couldn't get the calculator to bring up anything. I must be missing a step. HELP! I'd like to look into this.
  • CM9178
    CM9178 Posts: 1,251 Member
    Check out this website - you just put in your stats and it will give you the plan for the week: http://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calculator.htm

    Okay so I went to that site, keyed in my stats, but I couldn't get the calculator to bring up anything. I must be missing a step. HELP! I'd like to look into this.
    Put in your stats and click calculate. You will then see your Maintenance, Fat Loss and Extreme Fat loss calories calculated for you.
    Below that it says "7 day calorie cycle". Click on that, and it will show you the zig zag calorie plan.

    If you aren't seeing that, then you are doing something wrong.

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