Weight loss plateau

d0llparts

The terrible period of time where you're still working hard, but can't keep losing weight for some reason. I've just started, and I'm losing quite rapidly, but I'm dreading that day in a month or two where I can't seem to keep losing weight. In advance, is there any way to break out of the plateau? Are there any things I should watch out for? I heard about having one or two binge days on occasion when met with the plateau where you eat a lot more than you already are, so it breaks your body out of starvation mode and boosts fat loss again. Will this work? Any tips, helpful suggestions, etc are greatly appreciated!

joannevinagray18

I know, I'm dreading this stage too! I got to within 12 pounds of my goal weight a few years ago, and it didn't matter what I tried - healthy as well as unhealthy options, I was stuck!

After a month of doing the same sort of exercises or same routines, change up the days, change up the resistance, change your rest periods just mix it up a bit should help but if you find it doesn't. Come off the diet completely for a week (within reason obviously don't just binge on chocolate and pizza all week) but allow yourself to have a week with little or no exercise, perhaps a little walking or very light hatha yoga and eat around 1500 - 2000 calories a day, then restart what you were doing, this will re set your metabolism somewhat as well as increasing what you get out of your workouts and, psychologically make it feel like you're working even harder.

Or what you could do for about a fortnight, light exercise maybe 4 hours a week, and cut out one food group completely for 4 days, then gradually re introduce it every other day and then go back to normal again. This way you're not forcing your body into starvation mode and you won't dramatically gain weight after, but you're shocking it in a way so it sort of resets? Similar to the Dukan but less extreme.

Hope this helps that's what I'm doing anyway.

christinaley

This actually happened to me over the summer. Even though I was eating normal, for a month or two, I wasn't losing anything! I tried zig zag calorie cycling and it worked. I lost 2 pounds! But the thought of increasing my calories and trying to keep up with all the food made me too anxious and I eventually went back to 1200 calories. Unfortunately, I wasn't eating as healthy as I should've been (considering it's Summer vaca). But once Summer was over, I was still losing weight afterwards. Increasing calories should definitely help or try exercising!

DanaDark

Make sure your goals are not too ambitious. If they are, it'll eventually lead to a plateau as your body becomes extremely worried about rapid fat loss.

Your goal should depend on how much you have to lose. You have 34 pounds left on your ticker. You should be losing between 0.5 pounds a week and 1.0 pounds a week. Eventually going for just 0.5.

Schmelvie

I'm in the middle of a plateau now. Have been stuck for about 2 months. I was consistently losing 1-2 pounds a week prior to that (July-November). What I've learned during the time it took me to get here: The end goal is no longer to lose weight. The end goal is to change my lifestyle. If I do that, the weight will take care of itself. But that doesn't mean I shouldn't try different things to get the scale moving, it just means don't give up.

What I've been doing is slowly increasing my calories over the last month or so. I lost all the weight early on easily, but was eating below my BMR (I didn't know any better). I'm sure my body got used to that level, and eventually started hanging on to the excess weight to protect itself. I'm trying to get myself at a level between BMR and TDEE. Once I stabilize there, if the plateau still doesn't break, I'll change something else. Either I'll change my workout routine, timing of meals, or something. Frankly, it's probably just going to take time. And that's fine with me, since I've realized time is what I have an abundance of, given the fact that I'm changing my lifestyle. All the good results will come eventually.

JesterMFP

I wouldn't worry too much, you might not have a plateau. I didn't. If you do, this blog has some good ideas: http://fitnesswithnatalie.blogspot.com/2011/05/most-dreaded-word-in-weight-loss.html

Also, diet breaks (not bingeing). http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/the-full-diet-break.html