Heavy lifting and TDEE-20 has stalled my weight loss

64GT
64GT Posts: 22 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I have done all the calculators and it seems like roughly 180 lbs is a good weight for me. I started 6 months ago at 222 and today I'm 205.

I ate 1600 cal/day per MFP for first 4 months and had steady loss with 3x/week mostly cardio exercise.

Now I've done 7 weeks Stronglifts 5x5 and approaching 100 on most of the lifts.

I did some reading about TDEE-20 and that comes up with more like 2050 cal/day for me, so I switched to that a few weeks back.

I feel good and strong. Waist is shrinking ever so slowly. Shoulders and arms and quads are growing perceptibly bigger and stronger... but my weight loss graph has gone flat. Not gaining or losing since going to TDEE-20.

But... it's making me crazy to see stagnation on the scale.

Any suggestions to change something, quit whining and go with it, or something different???
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Replies

  • krawl78
    krawl78 Posts: 115 Member
    Bump! I'm having the exact same issue! It's driving me insane.
  • bacitracin
    bacitracin Posts: 921 Member
    measure body fat percentage with some calipers. Screw the scale. It's useless when lifting; just make sure your pants don't get tighter and you're fine.
  • xMonroeMisfit
    xMonroeMisfit Posts: 411 Member


    I feel good and strong. Waist is shrinking ever so slowly. Shoulders and arms and quads are growing perceptibly bigger and stronger... but my weight loss graph has gone flat. Not gaining or losing since going to TDEE-20.



    What's the problem again?

    Sounds like its working great. Don't let a scale mask your accomplishments. Your body is reshaping. A scale will change 1,000 times a day.

    My scale has changed 4-5 lbs difference in a matter of minutes some times. My measurements don't.

    If it REALLY is that important to you - Eat at Maintenance for a week or 2.
  • So_Much_Fab
    So_Much_Fab Posts: 1,146 Member
    Measurements, measurements, measurements!

    If you're shrinking regardless of what the scale says, you're doing it right!
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,419 Member
    The solution is to stay off the scale. Ta Da :drinker:
  • 64GT
    64GT Posts: 22 Member


    I feel good and strong. Waist is shrinking ever so slowly. Shoulders and arms and quads are growing perceptibly bigger and stronger... but my weight loss graph has gone flat. Not gaining or losing since going to TDEE-20.



    What's the problem again?


    Sounds like its working great.


    Really? OK, I guess so.
    If 180 is a goal for me, I don't feel like I'll ever get there and that's what makes me feel like I have screwed up the formula.
  • mustgetmuscles1
    mustgetmuscles1 Posts: 3,346 Member
    Losing body fat and gaining muscles size? Throw the scale out the window. You are doing it right just keep going. Eventually the number on the scale will start moving once you exhaust the newbie gains of muscle and water retention from starting a weight lifting program. Not that that should matter though.
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,294 Member
    Most likely water retention and can have some small increase in weight due to increase bone density (but most likely water in your muscle due to the heavy lifting)
  • grdaze
    grdaze Posts: 195 Member
    from what I understand, heavy lifting will sculpt your body but it won't necessarily move the scale - you need cardio for that. If you want to see the scale move again, add cardio to your routine.
  • LeenaRuns
    LeenaRuns Posts: 1,309 Member


    I feel good and strong. Waist is shrinking ever so slowly. Shoulders and arms and quads are growing perceptibly bigger and stronger... but my weight loss graph has gone flat. Not gaining or losing since going to TDEE-20.



    What's the problem again?

    Sounds like its working great. Don't let a scale mask your accomplishments. Your body is reshaping. A scale will change 1,000 times a day.

    My scale has changed 4-5 lbs difference in a matter of minutes some times. My measurements don't.

    If it REALLY is that important to you - Eat at Maintenance for a week or 2.

    I agree. I've been doing 5x5 for about the same amount of time. Squats and DL over 100 lbs now. The scale's not changing, but I love it. It's all about how you look, not how much you weigh. BY VOLUME, muscle weights more than fat, so you can be tighter and smaller but the same weight.
  • links_slayer
    links_slayer Posts: 1,151 Member
    measure body fat percentage with some calipers. Screw the scale. It's useless when lifting; just make sure your pants don't get tighter and you're fine.

    ^^this
  • xMonroeMisfit
    xMonroeMisfit Posts: 411 Member


    I feel good and strong. Waist is shrinking ever so slowly. Shoulders and arms and quads are growing perceptibly bigger and stronger... but my weight loss graph has gone flat. Not gaining or losing since going to TDEE-20.



    What's the problem again?


    Sounds like its working great.


    Really? OK, I guess so.
    If 180 is a goal for me, I don't feel like I'll ever get there and that's what makes me feel like I have screwed up the formula.

    I have a goal weight also, and if I ever get there, GREAT, but I do know that at 142 lbs I looked flabby and no where near as lean and firm as I do now. I'll take the tight and smaller looking body that everyone can see over a number only my Doctor and I know ANY DAY.

    Make a Body Fat % goal. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE don't concentrate on a scale weight because that will definitely frustrate you and cause you to stop doing what you are doing now, which is working GREAT for you. Trust, you will thank me in the long run and soon enough be posting pictures on the success board.
  • rduhlir
    rduhlir Posts: 3,550 Member
    If you are losing inches then you ARE LOSING. It just isn't showing up on the scale, but on the tape measure.
  • Panthers89
    Panthers89 Posts: 153 Member
    My scale is not moving either, but as somebody told me recently, I look better now than I did last summer. If your measurements and stamina are improving, then it doesn't matter what the scale is telling you.

    Sure, I'd like to lose another 10-12 pounds, and I think that I will, but once I got in shape and started eating better, the weight loss definitely slowed down and has pretty much stagnated. However, I can tell that I'm moving some mass around, reshaping, almost eliminated my love handles that I've had since high school, and I look (not to mention feel) much better at this time compared to a year ago when I was 10 pounds lighter.

    I'm betting that you are frustrated about the scale (as I am), but it is a lifestyle change. I seem to need to change my calorie / TDEE / exercise adjustments every few months, and I'm still trying to eat more to get to TDEE - 15%. After a few years of watching and counting every calorie, I find that I'm not hungry enough to hit that number. Go figure, we lose weight and then can't eat enough to get to TDEE numbers - it's complete irony.
  • iAMsmiling
    iAMsmiling Posts: 2,394 Member
    I've been dealing with pretty much the same situation for quite some time. It's important to remember that you are transforming your body, not just loosing weight.
    I'm not losing weight, but I'm learning to be satisfied with "I feel great."

    (I regret not having taken some good measurements when I first got started...)
  • Fr3shStrt
    Fr3shStrt Posts: 349 Member
    I agree with what just about everybody is saying above - you're losing inches - that is awesome, don't worry so much about what the scale says.

    But... I also understand your concern... you still want the number to go down. It will, but you are now holding onto that awesome muscle and losing only the fat so you will lose "weight" slower - and that is totally OK.

    Finally, if you went from 1600 to 2000, your body needs to adjust. Give it at least 4 weeks before you start to really freak out.
  • eAddict
    eAddict Posts: 212 Member
    I, too, have been 'stuck' since November (nearly 7months) just CAN NOT get out of the weight range I am in. I also take measurements (havta post thme sometime I guess) and not much has changed. I would really like to break 200 with a goal of 185 or so.

    If anyone has a way to break a plateau please share!
  • ktliu
    ktliu Posts: 334 Member
    I was on a plateau for 3 weeks, it drove me nuts, and I just finally come off it last Monday. and the scale slid down 4 lbs in a week. So I guess will power wins. or the other thing, check your intake.
  • mamasmaltz3
    mamasmaltz3 Posts: 1,111 Member
    Throw away the scale and re-evaluate your goals. There are lots of men and women on here who do not fit into the "normal" BMI because they have more muscle. I have started a heavy weight routine and I am done with the scale. I plan on going by tape measurements and clothing size. When lifting heavy the scale and BMI charts become a very inaccurate measurement of progress.
  • TriShamelessly
    TriShamelessly Posts: 905 Member
    Press on! Start measuring, you'll see the difference there and in how your clothes fit.
  • StarChanger
    StarChanger Posts: 605 Member
    While I agree that measurable changes should be a sign of progress, some of us need to have BOTH (it's not "normal" for a 5'8" woman to weigh >200 lbs...). Stalling out is so demoralizing after a few weeks...especially if you haven't made much weight loss progress, and that's a big part of your goal. I'm in the same boat as he, but I'm only in my second month, so I'm not giving up, but I have signed myself up for the Tough Mudder in October and there is NO WAY I'll finish that thing at this weight. I need the pounds to come off so I can carry myself across those obstacles and 12 mile course. My / MFP calculations should have had me almost 20 lbs down by now. Instead, I'm 6...and holding. I've definitely change my mass around some (my lab coat buttoned all the way up today - even across the "girls" today) and I definitely AM a muscular woman (always have been), but GAWD this weight needs to drop!!!! ARGGGGG!
  • 64GT
    64GT Posts: 22 Member
    Thanks for all of the replies! I guess I'm not the only one who has found this sort of plateau. I think I know the scale is only one of a lot of ways to measure, but it is beckoning me every morning. Lately I have settled for flipping it off when it disappoints.
    For many years I have been in the gym through winter months and ignored it in the summer, gaining weight.

    I want to stick with it into the summer this time. Would be a first. Already, this is the longest without missing workout days that I can ever remember (about 6 months).

    A plateau is the perfect reason to throw in the towel, so am I ever glad all of you are there telling me what you have learned about this process.
  • Rambo529
    Rambo529 Posts: 170 Member
    stop watching the scale. You said you're body is reacting to the weightlifting, so pay more attention to the inches you're losing. My weight has stayed the same for awhile, but I'm losing inches and getting definition. The number the scale gives you is not really the only way to look at your progress, and often a poor standard.
  • iAMsmiling
    iAMsmiling Posts: 2,394 Member
    Also,
    If you're losing inches and getting stronger...YOU ARE NOT on a plateau.

    If you're committed to lifting heavy (good for you) then accept that this is how it works.
    If not, find some smart people here to help you redesign your program.
    This group, for instance... http://www.myfitnesspal.com/forums/show/10067-eat-train-progress-
  • mamasmaltz3
    mamasmaltz3 Posts: 1,111 Member
    Throw away the scale and re-evaluate your goals. There are lots of men and women on here who do not fit into the "normal" BMI because they have more muscle. I have started a heavy weight routine and I am done with the scale. I plan on going by tape measurements and clothing size. When lifting heavy the scale and BMI charts become a very inaccurate measurement of progress.
  • MariaChele85
    MariaChele85 Posts: 267 Member
    I had the same problem, I gained 10lbs in 4 weeks, but then my body started adjusted and i began to lose again. I did incorporate just a little bit more cardio into my routine, but my main focus was still heavy weights. I wear smaller clothes now than when i was doing all cardio.
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,294 Member
    from what I understand, heavy lifting will sculpt your body but it won't necessarily move the scale - you need cardio for that. If you want to see the scale move again, add cardio to your routine.

    Not quite. A caloric deficit will move the scale, assuming you are not retaining more water than when you previously weighed yourself. Cardio has nothing to do with it except that with cardio you can eat more and achieve a deficit than if you didn't do any cardio.

    Cardio is good for increasing endurance, as well as cardiovascular health, weight loss is mainly diet related (deficit) It is easy to each more extra cals than you burn than it is to burn those cals in the first place.
  • jaeone
    jaeone Posts: 649 Member
    measure body fat percentage with some calipers. Screw the scale. It's useless when lifting; just make sure your pants don't get tighter and you're fine.
    ^^ this!
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
    If you are building muscle (growing bigger) then you are likely not eating < TDEE. Remember the calculators only return the TDEE for the average person with the stats you entered. It may or may not be your TDEE.

    If it's true that muscle is built at a surplus and fat is lost at a deficit, which sounds like it fits your present diet?
  • 64GT
    64GT Posts: 22 Member
    Hard to say. I guess I'm just sort of in the ball park. By your description, if I was at a deficit, I couldn't continue on the 5x5 program because I would not be able to gain any more muscle and I would stall on weight lifting progression, which hasn't happened (yet).

    I will keep at 2050 for another couple weeks and see how it goes. I have to say I feel quite good and quite strong.

    :)

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