requiring a little help!

factorygirl123
factorygirl123 Posts: 2
edited December 2024 in Food and Nutrition
Hello!
First time i am posting on here! i love myfitnesspal app and it has generally been a life saver in my weight loss!
However, i have come to a stand still and would love some help,

I am currently 19 years old, around 5'5 and am in a plateau where i range from about 143-140 lbs.
I have managed to lose about 35/40 lbs in the past year and a half or so & my goal weight will be around 120/125lb;
First i started using an elliptical trainer as often as i could manage a week (2-3 days?)
and really focusing on my calorie intake, and i started to see a relatively steady loss of weight.
For the past 2 or 3 months i have been on a diet of around 1200 calories a day, with the occasional day off every week or so.
I also started working out on my elliptical trainer for around 25/30 minutes 5/6 days a week, at speed 8, and started some pilates and strength training exercises.

My body has certainly got more toned. i know you don't always see a difference on the scales, especially when building muscle as it weighs more than fat, but i have been in the 140s for a couple months now and i just cannot seem to break through.

I read online about weight plateaus and some suggestions were to change what form of exercise i take, something which i am happy to do.
I was wondering however, has my body simply adjusted to my 1200 cal/day intake and that is now my maintenance level? (i hope not! i don't want to have to restrict to 1200 cal/day for the rest of my life!)
Would increasing my calorie intake & exercise intensity help break the plateau?
am i eating too little without realising? i never really feel starving or anything during the day, and on the days i do feel very hungry, i just have some more food (always healthy of course) even if it takes me slightly over my calorie goal.

I eat very healthy, my mother is a vegetarian so there is always plenty of fruits and vegetables in the house,
when i do have meat i make sure it is lean and cleanly cooked,
i am lactose intolerent so barely ever gorge on anything 'sweet' or 'fatty' mainly because i feel horribly ill if i do! (chocolate, crisps, cake, sweets & the like)

i have good motiviation but am beggining to get disheartened
Any clear answers on this matter would be greatly appreciated!
Thank-You so much!

Replies

  • diannethegeek
    diannethegeek Posts: 14,776 Member
    Plateaus are tricky things and you may have to play around to find what work for you. I can say that eevery plateau I've broken in my own journey has been caused by undereating.

    1200 does seem really low with your level of activity. You might try eating some of the exercise calories you earn for a while to see if it helps.
  • GrumpyAG
    GrumpyAG Posts: 41 Member
    Hey good work so far on the weight loss. Your body gets used to a routine and stops responding. Mix up your exercise...do something you wouldn't normally do it will shock your body!! Or even try interval training on the elliptical trainer...do a minute really fast and slow down to a resting pace for a minute and repeat about 10 times. Same with the food...if you eat the same sort of food all the time your body basically knows what it's getting. Your body sometimes needs a kickstart so shock it with different things and keep it guessing :)
  • Barberini
    Barberini Posts: 140 Member
    When you get close to your goal weight (last 10-15 pounds) it becomes harder to lose weight because your body already thinks it is healthy. The same thing happened to me as you are describing, I was eating at 1200-1400 and working out without eating back my exercise calories. By adding in those extra calories I was able to trick my body into getting rid of the last few pounds because it wasn't afraid I was going into a period of famine.
  • Barberini
    Barberini Posts: 140 Member
    Hey good work so far on the weight loss. Your body gets used to a routine and stops responding. Mix up your exercise...do something you wouldn't normally do it will shock your body!! Or even try interval training on the elliptical trainer...do a minute really fast and slow down to a resting pace for a minute and repeat about 10 times.

    This. Mixing up your training can do wonders, and adding more resistance work.
  • SeaChele77
    SeaChele77 Posts: 1,103 Member
    I agree with above - you are probably under eating. You are buring a lot and your body wants to keep what it has because its afraid you wont feed it anymore. Up your calories, with good/healthy calories - maybe up to 1500 for 3 weeks and see if that helps.
  • factorygirl123
    factorygirl123 Posts: 2
    wow, thank you all so much! This has really helped me, I will up my calorie intake and start experimenting with different forms of exercise,

    honestly, i can't thank-you enough, all of your responses have been so concise and logical!
    It's great to get feedback like this, i find there is only so much you can google without truly confusing yourself!
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