Have hit the brick wall - please help!

babzog

42yr old male, 5'11.5", initial weight 207lb. Day job involves me sitting on my butt. Goal is to get BF down to healthy range and weight to (would be nice) 175lb. There is a history of type 2 diabetes and heart issues in the family which is a big motivator for me to get this fat under control and the body healthy.

Have been running a calorie deficit of 750 cals / day and combining with 45 min of strength training and 20min of cardio (elliptical, heart rate in the 85% range, so about 142). Eating a typical bodybuilding ratio of 40/40/20 (carb/protein/fat). I'm eating my exercise calories so my net / day is about 1530 (I try to nail that daily - sometimes a few over or under but I try honestly to nail that number and am generally successful). I follow the diet Sun - Fri and allow Saturday for my reward day - I eat a good breakfast and then I have whatever I like after that. I often get a good bit of exercise on the weekends processing firewood (spring/fall), or other outdoor work as required.

About mind-October, I hit 198 lbs. Then I plateaued. Even gained a bit (to 201lb), then dropped back to 197lb. I've been stuck there for the last week or so. I'm unsure of what I should try to break that plateau - it's so frustrating. I want this jiggly goo gone but it's just stubbornly hanging around like a great pendulous pouch. Ever try to do a crunch with a roll in the way? It's really annoying!

So, I'm unsure of what I should do or how I should perhaps change things up. Should I drop the cardio? Decrease the calorie deficit? Change the nutrition ratio (ie: increase carb/decrease protein)? Some combination of the above?

I feel like "carbs are the enemy". I LOVE carbs and it's challenging to restrict them. I also feel as though any carbs I eat go straight to my belly. I know that's not exactly the case, but when I see some people eating whatever they like and not gain an ounce, it's hard not let those thoughts creep in. At the same time, I also find it challenging to get enough protein. I often find myself at the end of the day making an egg white scramble or having a bowl of greek yogurt with a scoop of protein powder to hit my target numbers.

Any thoughts, advice or coaching you might offer would be appreciated.

RideaYeti

I would not worry about 1 week. I got stuck at 213-214 for 2 months. What seemed to work for me was yo-yoing my calories for a while. 1 day I would be way over, next day right on, next day a little under, etc. That seemed to kick start the weight loss again for me, but your mileage my vary.

babzog

I would not worry about 1 week. I got stuck at 213-214 for 2 months. What seemed to work for me was yo-yoing my calories for a while. 1 day I would be way over, next day right on, next day a little under, etc. That seemed to kick start the weight loss again for me, but your mileage my vary.

Overall, it's plateaued since mid-October, about three weeks now.

nxd10

You are doing great. I stalled for 3 weeks in September and then dropped 3 pounds in a week. It's just a week, keep going. A pound or 3 day be water.

One more point though . . . look at two things in your log - salt and sugar. With a tendency towards heart disease and diabetes you're probably sensitive to both.

Salt will make you hold water.

Too high unprocessed carbs will make your insulin spike so you store fat and don't burn it. If you have a tendency towards insulin resistance, that gets worse.

Make sure your carbs are under 50% (40% is better, but I find it hard to do) and make sure your carbs are minimally processed so slow to digest. Beer, soda, sugar, white bread, bananas, dried fruit are all high glycemic. If you have folks in your family with diabetes, all the foods that they're supposed to avoid, you should minimize.

Graceious1

I would not worry about 1 week. I got stuck at 213-214 for 2 months. What seemed to work for me was yo-yoing my calories for a while. 1 day I would be way over, next day right on, next day a little under, etc. That seemed to kick start the weight loss again for me, but your mileage my vary.

Overall, it's plateaued since mid-October, about three weeks now.

The same happened to me and I upped and lowered calories too, then I lost a pound. I have found that doing strength work will definitely remove inches but as I say to other people during this process the scales will not be your friend, your clothes will.

BurtHuttz

I was going to suggest exactly what Yeti said - calorie zig-zagging. Worked for me to shake out of a plateau and it was a nice change of pace from hitting the same calories day after day.

cararickel

Look at your sugar intake. I have heard of folks jumpstarting after a plateau by severely restricting sugar & carbs for 3 days, then going back on their original diet. Myself, I find that when I'm plateauing it's often when I've been eating more fake sugar products than normal (aspartame, splenda, etc). For me, those products still interfere with my loss, zero calories or no.
Good luck and keep your positive outlook! If you're staying active you're still making your body better --stronger and leaner--despite what the scale says.

mdedmonds

Not sure why, but I have lost weight for about 8 months without much of a plateau. I think it might be because I have been very careful about the kinds of carbs I eat not just the amount. Most of my carbs come from vegetables and fruits (in that order) and very little from grains. Grains consist of oatmeal, quinoa, brown rice and sprouted wheat bread but sparingly.

I also mix up my exercise routine and introduce difference activities all the time.

Good luck and be proud of what you are doing already!

ash8184

Try not to worry too much about stalling for a week. If you want to try a few things:

1. calorie cycling like someone already mentioned. Have an "over" day followed by an "under" day and repeat.
2. get your heart rate up during exercise. Buy a HRM if you don't already have one and really push yourself as much as you can - that jump-started me after a couple of months of plateauing.
3. are you sensitive to any particular food group? I cut out dairy & gluten-y things and not only feel amazing, but started losing quickly. Sidebar: I had my first yogurt in 18 months last night and still feel great, so I'm going to try adding it back in and see what makes me feel not so good.
4. change up your work outs. I added in running and after a plateau, weight started falling off again.
5. add in more strength training. I know you're doing strength training now, but if you have the time/resources, try doing some more core work, like yoga, pilates, swimming... activities that build core strength without the same repetition of weights.

Good luck!

alijane9

If you are doing the strength training and eating your macros in that ratio have you checked what cals you should be eating to gain muscle (& lose weight) on Scooby? http://scoobysworkshop.com/accurate-calorie-calculator You may find you need to eat a few more calories in order to kick start your weight loss again.
As soon as I upped my calories when I started weight training, my body fat went from 29% to 22% in around 3 weeks and the weight is coming down too. Love eating all the food and my body is thanking me for it.

beckyboop712

Don't forget muscle mass weighs more than fat. If you really are doing 45 minutes of strength training, then you are building muscle. But that muscle will help you burn more calories later. And like nxd said, that weight you gained may be water weight...watch your salt intake for this reason and for cardiovascular health reasons (high blood pressure runs in my family so I have to watch that myself).