Am I helping my plateau?
taylorfriedchicken
Posts: 47 Member
Hey guys! I recently read somewhere on here that when you hit a plateau, an attempt to fake out your metabolism is to just have one day where you eat anything you want and then after that you eat healthy/clean for a week or 2. Well, coming from a girl who is set at 1200 but rarely eats all 1200 (nor does she eat the 300-500 calories she burns per day), I decided to eat almost 1500 calories today which is about 37 over my goal for the day (including both regular calories and exercise calories). So, my question is, with my specifics as far as my usual calorie intake, am I eating enough to help this plateau thing bc I find myself eating anything and everything in sight because I know I need to get more calories in. Speaking of, I just polished off my box of chocolate cheerios (yummmmm).
WIth my mindless eating aside, do I need to eat more or am I okay because it is 7:00 PST and I am going to work in about 15 minutes and if there is one part of my diet that I follow on a regular basis is that I DO NOT eat after 9pm.
Thank you!
WIth my mindless eating aside, do I need to eat more or am I okay because it is 7:00 PST and I am going to work in about 15 minutes and if there is one part of my diet that I follow on a regular basis is that I DO NOT eat after 9pm.
Thank you!
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Replies
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I'm not sure about "faking" out your metabolism but I did just get over my first month long plateau. After trying everything under the sun I just took a tip from another MFP member to drink more water. Well, it worked but I had to double if not triple my water consumption for the day.So far I'm sticking with it. Are you getting enough water?0
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Well, I think I am. I have a water bottle that fills about 2.5 cups every time I fill it up. I drink about 3 to 3 1/2 per day plus I drink about 2 cups of green tea so I sort of count that as well. Is that not enough? I honestly drink when I am thirsty and with meals and everything (since water and tea are the only liquids I drink by themselves (not including milk in cereal and soup broths)). Last time I tried to drink a lot more water, I found myself forcing it down when I wasn't thirsty and it did not make my tummy happy whatsoever. Hmmmm0
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There are some really well-informed people on this site and hopefully they will chime in on your post. If you search the threads I'm sure there is a wealth of information about people's experience with plateaus (or is it plateaux?) There are a few theories on mixing up your calorie intake to boost weight loss again, but I can't imagine that just eating whatever to get a higher calorie count is a great idea.
I hit a plateau this month which was really frustrating, but then I figured I would just practice maintenance, since that will be the ultimate goal. It worked for me. And some weight loss programs believe plateaus are an important part of the process and allow the metabolism to reset itself.0 -
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/9614-newbies-please-read-me?hl=newbies
Somewhere in that topic or the linked ones from it, it says you SHOULD eat the calories you burn off. If you don't, you put your body into "starvation mode". Although you are not actually starving, your body isn't getting the calories it needs and it starts burning up your muscles instead of fat. Or something like that, I don't remember exactly... but it should be in that topic.
Drinking water is obviously a good thing... I never get the recommended 8 glasses a day, but I find that when I drink around 6, I don't eat quite as much snacky stuff. It's hard for me to stick with, for some reason.0 -
i've lost 35 pounds total and I hit a plateau a couple times myself. I also read somewhere that if you eat extra calories randomly that this may help "trick" your metabolism into burning more. I tried it and it worked for me. What I do is every 9-10 days, I try to eat about 400-500 more calories that day extra. I do try to keep them as healthy as possible, so I feel like i really have to eat alot. What helped me get the extra calories in on those day was almonds. they are high in cal and good fats so i ate 2-3 servings of them through out the day on top of what I normally ate. I also increased my protien as much as I could. After I did this, a couple days later I would do a "last chance" workout. Instead of an hour, I would do 2 hours. I really don't know what my rhyme or reason is regarding this, and I don't know if it would work for you, but it did help me past the plateau. the way I look at it, any little thing someone else trys that works for them, might help me as well so I'm always open to suggestions too!!!! Good luck!0
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Here's my experience...as I got closer to goal, I had to increase my calories. 1200 was just not enough. And it helped me to lose weight. At first I was on 1200 and was losing 2 lbs. a week consistently. Then I hit a point (10-15 til goal I think) and I found myself hungrier all the time and not losing. After asking some ppl on here, I decided to increase my cals, and I am still losing. Granted, I only lose about 0.5 pounds per week, but that is just fine with me!
A lot of people on here are fans of the "staggering cals method." Others say eat many more cals one day a week to keep your system in check. I wouldn't say eat whatever you want for an entire day...that could easily get out of hand and you could gain. You could try a day where you just eat more cals, but make sure they're good calories. Sure, you could go out and eat a big cheeseburger and fries, but who's to say that actually works? Everyone is different, so you will just have to find out what works for you. If it's a burger, or if it's an extra piece of grilled chicken, it's up to your body. Don't give up and keep at it...something else you could think about is increasing exercise. Just try some different things out! :flowerforyou:0 -
So basically, you are saying that you ate around 300 MORE calories today than you usually do? I would THINK (no science to back this thought up! Fair warning!) that this should do it. Will it work? Only time will tell.
You've had discussions in other topics about the other things (calories, etc) in your post, so I won't bother you with rehashing those. Take this plateau as a learning experience. Try out different things (with a couple weeks between each new thing) to see what your body likes (drops lbs with) and doesn't like (gains or maintains lbs with). Sounds like you're trying out something new. Just remember to make those extra calories your eating "healthy" calories (Hello, Pot? This is Kettle? You're black.:blushing: ) I don't always do a great job with that advice myself, but I try!
Post back in 4 or 5 days and let us know if it's working for you! Good luck on finding what works!0 -
Here's my experience...as I got closer to goal, I had to increase my calories. 1200 was just not enough. And it helped me to lose weight. At first I was on 1200 and was losing 2 lbs. a week consistently. Then I hit a point (10-15 til goal I think) and I found myself hungrier all the time and not losing. After asking some ppl on here, I decided to increase my cals, and I am still losing. Granted, I only lose about 0.5 pounds per week, but that is just fine with me!
A lot of people on here are fans of the "staggering cals method." Others say eat many more cals one day a week to keep your system in check. I wouldn't say eat whatever you want for an entire day...that could easily get out of hand and you could gain. You could try a day where you just eat more cals, but make sure they're good calories. Sure, you could go out and eat a big cheeseburger and fries, but who's to say that actually works? Everyone is different, so you will just have to find out what works for you. If it's a burger, or if it's an extra piece of grilled chicken, it's up to your body. Don't give up and keep at it...something else you could think about is increasing exercise. Just try some different things out! :flowerforyou:
Ahh trust me I am now exercising 2x more than I did at the beginning of my diet, especially this week. One day alone I burned a little more than 1,100 calories by exercise. And yet the scale doesn't budge or goes down by .2 or even worse goes up (yikes!). I've been testing my body lately with detox fasts (24 hours) and other methods but my body is just staying still. I gotta say, I def. see the definition in my legs and arms and everything and ppl say "don't worry about the scale" but I do especially bc I put my weight on my resume and it is a daily necessity to know what my weight is.
Thank you for your wisdom and to everyone else as well! I will def. keep you guys posted in 4-5 days especially because I will be home by then for spring break (oooo a true test... can I back down from my mother's hardy italian cooking... hmmm only time will tell!).0 -
p.s. has anyone else tried the sacred heart soup diet for a week?
I'm thinking about possibly doing it in about 2 weeks or so but I am unsure whether it would work for me or not since I am only 17lbs from my goal (it def. is not an "only" for me but it is far less than what I have already lost).0 -
Bump (good luck, interested in seeing how it works for you and love all the tips i can get)0
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Oh, and one last thing to all the MFP's who have mentioned previous posts and what not about the subject matter, trust me I go through the whole database with my concerns and questions before I write a topic and couldn't find anything on my specific case so... yea.0
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Bump (good luck, interested in seeing how it works for you and love all the tips i can get)
Thank you! I'll def. keep you guys informed (hopefully good things!!)0 -
Here's my experience...as I got closer to goal, I had to increase my calories. 1200 was just not enough. And it helped me to lose weight. At first I was on 1200 and was losing 2 lbs. a week consistently. Then I hit a point (10-15 til goal I think) and I found myself hungrier all the time and not losing. After asking some ppl on here, I decided to increase my cals, and I am still losing. Granted, I only lose about 0.5 pounds per week, but that is just fine with me!
Exactly what Courtney says, you need to eat more.
You said that you were not eating 1200 calories and not eating your exercise calories. That can cause a plateau.
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/3047-700-calories-a-day-and-not-losing
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/10589-for-those-confused-or-questioning-eating-your-exercise-calo0 -
Thanks for this advice. I'm in the same situation as the original poster so I will try what you have recommended. Thanks0
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Here's my experience...as I got closer to goal, I had to increase my calories. 1200 was just not enough. And it helped me to lose weight. At first I was on 1200 and was losing 2 lbs. a week consistently. Then I hit a point (10-15 til goal I think) and I found myself hungrier all the time and not losing. After asking some ppl on here, I decided to increase my cals, and I am still losing. Granted, I only lose about 0.5 pounds per week, but that is just fine with me!
A lot of people on here are fans of the "staggering cals method." Others say eat many more cals one day a week to keep your system in check. I wouldn't say eat whatever you want for an entire day...that could easily get out of hand and you could gain. You could try a day where you just eat more cals, but make sure they're good calories. Sure, you could go out and eat a big cheeseburger and fries, but who's to say that actually works? Everyone is different, so you will just have to find out what works for you. If it's a burger, or if it's an extra piece of grilled chicken, it's up to your body. Don't give up and keep at it...something else you could think about is increasing exercise. Just try some different things out! :flowerforyou:
Ahh trust me I am now exercising 2x more than I did at the beginning of my diet, especially this week. One day alone I burned a little more than 1,100 calories by exercise. And yet the scale doesn't budge or goes down by .2 or even worse goes up (yikes!). I've been testing my body lately with detox fasts (24 hours) and other methods but my body is just staying still. I gotta say, I def. see the definition in my legs and arms and everything and ppl say "don't worry about the scale" but I do especially bc I put my weight on my resume and it is a daily necessity to know what my weight is.
Thank you for your wisdom and to everyone else as well! I will def. keep you guys posted in 4-5 days especially because I will be home by then for spring break (oooo a true test... can I back down from my mother's hardy italian cooking... hmmm only time will tell!).
O.O you're consuming 1500 a day (and thats up from normal) and you're exercising 1100 off? Girl your body is holding on to whatever food you're giving it for dear LIFE! Its like omg omg I can't even function on what she's giving me so I had better store whatever I can, when I can get it.
You need to eat a MINIMUM of 1200 calories a day if you were NOT exercising so 1200 base to start, and then at LEAST half your exercise calories if not more! I would take 4-5 days and eat 1500+half exercise. Im not kidding. I got over a 3 week plateau by increasing my intake from 1500/day to 2000/day for about 5 days. I increased my water during that time as well...
bottom line is that when you're starving your body, it can't do what it needs to do and it holds on to every tiny bit it can to power you. Eat more = lose more in your case!
Good luck!0 -
Bodybuilders suggest a "refeed" in cases like yours (or theirs where they are planning to compete). That is a day at least once a week where you eat at or a few hundred calories above maintenance. Usually these are high carb meals (but clean, ie: no processed carbs). They suggest sticking to your diet normally until afternoon, then eating 1-2 carefully planned extra-carby meals (ie: cereal or pasta or rice). The purpose of this is twofold - a) to keep you from gorging yourself on junk all day and b) to be in bed sleeping by the time your blood sugar goes nuts from the carbs (which will cause cravings).
Something to consider...
Also...eat more...LOTS more...on a daily basis. I know, it sounds dumb to tell people to eat more to lose, but it does work.0 -
what do you suggested she eats bc i think i have the same problem. i eat a cup of cottage chesse you think i should do 2 cups w/ granola0
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Well, coming from a girl who is set at 1200 but rarely eats all 1200 (nor does she eat the 300-500 calories she burns per day), I decided to eat almost 1500 calories today which is about 37 over my goal for the day (including both regular calories and exercise calories).
You should be eating AT LEAST 1,200 per day, and most if not all of your exercise calories back. If you aren't following this, then I'm not surprised that you're not losing!0 -
Well, coming from a girl who is set at 1200 but rarely eats all 1200 (nor does she eat the 300-500 calories she burns per day), I decided to eat almost 1500 calories today which is about 37 over my goal for the day (including both regular calories and exercise calories).
You should be eating AT LEAST 1,200 per day, and most if not all of your exercise calories back. If you aren't following this, then I'm not surprised that you're not losing!
Well, people know from my previous posts that my original diet before starting MFP was to eat about 800 calories a day and work out about 3 times a week for 20 min each. I happened to lose a lot of weight doing this (20 lbs to be exact) but I began to get hungrier and finally wanted to listen to MFP and eat the 1200 suggested but didn't want to gain weight by going up and this is why I sometimes stay a little below 1200. However, yesterday I ate a 1476 and today I plan on eating about the same.
I'll try this for 5 days but I am unsure about what to eat to get those extra calories because I find myself going to carbs because they are filling and high in calories
Any ideas on getting in those extra calories?0 -
Well, coming from a girl who is set at 1200 but rarely eats all 1200 (nor does she eat the 300-500 calories she burns per day), I decided to eat almost 1500 calories today which is about 37 over my goal for the day (including both regular calories and exercise calories).
You should be eating AT LEAST 1,200 per day, and most if not all of your exercise calories back. If you aren't following this, then I'm not surprised that you're not losing!
i pretty much just asked the same thing hopefully we get some response.
Well, people know from my previous posts that my original diet before starting MFP was to eat about 800 calories a day and work out about 3 times a week for 20 min each. I happened to lose a lot of weight doing this (20 lbs to be exact) but I began to get hungrier and finally wanted to listen to MFP and eat the 1200 suggested but didn't want to gain weight by going up and this is why I sometimes stay a little below 1200. However, yesterday I ate a 1476 and today I plan on eating about the same.
I'll try this for 5 days but I am unsure about what to eat to get those extra calories because I find myself going to carbs because they are filling and high in calories
Any ideas on getting in those extra calories?0 -
If you're trying to eat low carb but get your calories in, try: eggs, nuts, peanut butter, cheese.0
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Worked for me (completely by accident) a couple weeks ago - was on a plateau since about November & then went a bit crazy while out of town with friends & saw my first real loss in months the week we came home. GL!Hey guys! I recently read somewhere on here that when you hit a plateau, an attempt to fake out your metabolism is to just have one day where you eat anything you want and then after that you eat healthy/clean for a week or 2. Well, coming from a girl who is set at 1200 but rarely eats all 1200 (nor does she eat the 300-500 calories she burns per day), I decided to eat almost 1500 calories today which is about 37 over my goal for the day (including both regular calories and exercise calories). So, my question is, with my specifics as far as my usual calorie intake, am I eating enough to help this plateau thing bc I find myself eating anything and everything in sight because I know I need to get more calories in. Speaking of, I just polished off my box of chocolate cheerios (yummmmm).
WIth my mindless eating aside, do I need to eat more or am I okay because it is 7:00 PST and I am going to work in about 15 minutes and if there is one part of my diet that I follow on a regular basis is that I DO NOT eat after 9pm.
Thank you!0 -
O.O you're consuming 1500 a day (and thats up from normal) and you're exercising 1100 off? Girl your body is holding on to whatever food you're giving it for dear LIFE! Its like omg omg I can't even function on what she's giving me so I had better store whatever I can, when I can get it.
You need to eat a MINIMUM of 1200 calories a day if you were NOT exercising so 1200 base to start, and then at LEAST half your exercise calories if not more! I would take 4-5 days and eat 1500+half exercise. Im not kidding. I got over a 3 week plateau by increasing my intake from 1500/day to 2000/day for about 5 days. I increased my water during that time as well...
bottom line is that when you're starving your body, it can't do what it needs to do and it holds on to every tiny bit it can to power you. Eat more = lose more in your case!
Good luck!
I agree with all of this
I tried eating 1200 cals a day and it wasnt enough. I was losing, but VERRRY closely. I upped my intake to my BMR (1450 cals), and instantly saw weight loss, more energy, and no more feeling sof deprivation. If your body is used to 800 cals, and then you increased to 1200 and saw results, then there is evidence that you werent giving your body enough fuel. Your body.etabolism was hanging onto every ounce/pound/morsel just to keep you moving/functioning/breathing.
I wont link you to all the posts that discuss this exact topic, since you already searched and didnt find what you wanted....but the info is out there. In my unprofessional, been-there-done-that opinion, you just arent eating enough.
If you want something carb-y, but filling, try rice cakes with peanut butter. Or how about edamame (frozen sectiomn at walmart...less than $2...amazing). Or make a thick smoothy with banana and frozen fruits?
Good Luck!0 -
Ok, so if I up my calories to my BMR, what does my exercise schedule look like? FYI, I rarely burn 1100 calories a day from exercise (I just so happened to consume a whole lot of chocolate cheerios and felt bad about myself and just wanted to stay in the gym). In the beginning of my diet, I did about 20 min cardio per day but that was with a 800 calorie diet. Now I do about 60-70 min. Is that enough or should I do more?
Also, do other MFP's suggest I eat my calories via BMR?0 -
I just broke a plateau 3 weeks ago. I was very obese so I was able to get away with eating only 1200 calories a day (and no exercise calories) for a while. (the first 53 pounds to be exact). Well I stalled out with no loss for 3 weeks (actually, I kept losing and regaining the same couple of pounds) and I knew then I had to start eating more. I increased my calorie intake slowly from 1200 to eating about 50% of my exercise calories. This leaves me eating 1375-1450 calories most days. On top of that I "shocked" my metabolism. But you're not going to do that by eating a couple hundred calories more than usual. You need to eat BIG. At least eat your maintenance calories that day. I do it by having a big meal of something I've been craving -- mexican food, chinese food, etc. Then the next day I'm back to my routine. I've seen a loss within a week of shocking my metabolism EVERY single time I've done it (4 or 5 over the last 6 months). I shocked my metabolism REALLY well last weekend :laugh: with mexican food Friday night and Chinese food Sunday afternoon. Guess what -- I've still lost 2 pounds this week.
Bottom line -- you're starving yourself. Seriously. That's why you've plateaued and until you wrap your head around the fact that you have to EAT to lose weight (especially to be healthy while losing weight), I'm betting it's not going to happen for you.0 -
Also, do other MFP's suggest I eat my calories via BMR?
I would agree with it.
I would also agree with eating some of your exercise calories in addition to eating your base BMR calories. If you're pretty close to your goal (and looks like you are), your body is going to fight you the rest of the way (in the form of not wanting to lose any more weight). Most people can't handle large calorie deficits so close to their goal, so you want to keep it pretty small. No more than a 500 calorie deficit each day, I'd think. I mean, that's going to vary from person to person, but it's where I'd start.
Also, please be aware that when you start eating more it's very possible you're going to gain a pound or 2 at first. DON'T FREAK OUT. Give it at LEAST a month before you expect any weight loss. Okay? :flowerforyou: if you see a loss before then, great. But if not, don't stress over it.0 -
Here's my experience...as I got closer to goal, I had to increase my calories. 1200 was just not enough. And it helped me to lose weight. At first I was on 1200 and was losing 2 lbs. a week consistently. Then I hit a point (10-15 til goal I think) and I found myself hungrier all the time and not losing. After asking some ppl on here, I decided to increase my cals, and I am still losing. Granted, I only lose about 0.5 pounds per week, but that is just fine with me!
Exactly what Courtney says, you need to eat more.
You said that you were not eating 1200 calories and not eating your exercise calories. That can cause a plateau.
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/3047-700-calories-a-day-and-not-losing
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/10589-for-those-confused-or-questioning-eating-your-exercise-calo
I second this.0 -
Here's my experience...as I got closer to goal, I had to increase my calories. 1200 was just not enough. And it helped me to lose weight. At first I was on 1200 and was losing 2 lbs. a week consistently. Then I hit a point (10-15 til goal I think) and I found myself hungrier all the time and not losing. After asking some ppl on here, I decided to increase my cals, and I am still losing. Granted, I only lose about 0.5 pounds per week, but that is just fine with me!
Exactly what Courtney says, you need to eat more.
You said that you were not eating 1200 calories and not eating your exercise calories. That can cause a plateau.
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/3047-700-calories-a-day-and-not-losing
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/10589-for-those-confused-or-questioning-eating-your-exercise-calo
I second this. Or fifth it...0 -
I also forgot to mention that you should eat at LEAST 50% of your exercise calories. I find it really hard to do, but defintiely notice bigger weight loss when i eat GOOD calories to consume my exercise cals.
I dont mean this the way it is going to sound, so please dont take offense. But 20 minutes of cardio should be your warm-up if you want to lose weight. In my experience, the more physically fit I become, the harder it is for me to get my heart rate up into the target "fat burning" range. Now that I have been consistantly working out at LEAST 5 days a week, it takes me quite of bit of effort to get into my target range. It isnt necessarily the number of minutes you exercise, but the intensity of the workout. I could spend an hour doing a high intensity cardio DVD and burn 600+ calories...or I could do a strength-training DVD for 60 minutes and "only" burn 300 cals.The second DVD builds muscle, which will help me burn fat faster in the future, but the actual 60 minutes spent lifting those weights doesnt burn the same number of calories for my 60 minute cardio DVD.
So its not the number of minutes...its the intensity. Get your heart rate up and keep it up as long as your comfortable.
In my opinion, this close to your goal, you are going to need ot make some changes before youll see changes on the scale.0
This discussion has been closed.
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