Can I lose more after hitting a plateau?

skinny_baby
skinny_baby Posts: 29 Member
in Motivation and Support
I lost 20 pounds in 3 months. It was amazing. But I have been sitting on the same weight for the last two weeks. Please tell me what I have to change. Today I am burning about 520 calories daily. In the second month I once burned 1250 calories. Then about 800 calories. Now because I hate spending too much time in the gym, am burning about 520 calories daily doing cardio (rowing machine, elliptical, and treadmill) five days a week. And I do strength training M, W, F that I started few weeks ago. I eat pretty much the same thing everyday. Please tell me what I have to change to lose more pounds. My goal is to be 139 pounds in the next 6 weeks. So that is losing about 15 pounds. I am today 153.4 pounds. Please give me tips on how I can accomplish this further weight loss.

Below is my diet of 1200 calories daily:
Breakfast: Original oatmeal with a cup of tea made with nonfat milk
Snack: Premier protein shake 160 calories 30 grams of protein
Lunch: Muti-grain whole grain jelly and peanut butter sandwich with cup of tea made with nonfat milk
Snack: Apple
Dinner: Chapatis (tortillas) with sabji (vegetables) or daal (soup)

BTW: I am a vegetarian for meal suggestions.

Replies

  • darrensurrey
    darrensurrey Posts: 3,942 Member
    Tip 1: make your diary public.
    Tip 2: eat more than 3 calories a day.

    You'll get better responses when we can see your food diary.

    PS What kind of exercise are you doing?
  • SenshiV
    SenshiV Posts: 131 Member
    I am sure there are more experts in this are around, but I just hit your case a few weeks ago. Started exercising more, 5 days a week, before strength training, doing cardio and/or treadmill, and no loss. I think, your problem is you need to eat more. This has been going around for a while take a look:

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/654536-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12

    I am switching to TDEE, this doesn't not mean it's a promise this will work for you or that this is specifically your problem, but I finally went down a new pound after several months, and after a week of trying this.

    I was afraid of thinking about eat more, but I'm giving it a try.

    Hope it helps, or that some other people around that have been there do.

    Good luck!
  • faireplay
    faireplay Posts: 126
    What the above poster said and also, two weeks is NOT a plateau.
  • tigersword
    tigersword Posts: 8,059 Member
    Two weeks? Two weeks is normal, weight loss is not linear, it's an average. A plateau is AT LEAST 6 weeks of no loss or change in measurements, all while maintaining the exact same diet and activity regimen. Two weeks isn't anything.
  • darrensurrey
    darrensurrey Posts: 3,942 Member
    afraid

    What is it with so many people being afraid? If you put on 1lb trying something will your head explode? Just research to make sure nobody is pulling your leg then experiment. I've tried various ideas - low carb, intermittent fasting, training before breakfast, eating at TDEE. At absolutely no point in my time have I ever felt afraid.

    And from Thursday, I'm doing 2 weeks of diet break eating above TDEE. OMFG!
  • TazzytheMotivator
    TazzytheMotivator Posts: 646 Member
    Try zig zaging your calorie intake , meaning one week eat 1200-1300 calories a day , the second week try adding 200-300 more calories a day for 7 days, the 3rd week try try eating 200-300 calories a day more for 7 days. Repeat the cycle again. You trick your body into thinking you are going to feed it. Right away our bodies knows that we are trying to eat more healthy , so when we watch or cut back on calories it tiggers a response hey my master is trying to lose weight i need to hold on to this extra fat , just in case you get a little crazy. lol
    Drink a leastt 6-8 glasses of water
    Watch you sodium intake
    Fill out your food diary everyday faithfully.
    Incorporate ground flax or fennel seeds in your diet (look up on the webb it many uses, and to see if this is right for you)
    Take your body inches, at times you may have lost inches before you lose the weight, let your clothes be the judge.
    BE PATIENT > Remember you didn't gain this weight overnight and you will not lose it overnight. BE Realistic with your goals and expectation. Believe me you can and you will succeed at this.:flowerforyou:

    exercise.png
  • darrensurrey
    darrensurrey Posts: 3,942 Member
    Try zig zaging your calorie intake , meaning one week eat 1200-1300 calories a day , the second week try adding 200-300 more calories a day for 7 days, the 3rd week try try eating 200-300 calories a day more for 7 days. Repeat the cycle again. You trick your body into thinking you are going to feed it. Right away our bodies knows that we are trying to eat more healthy , so when we watch or cut back on calories it tiggers a response hey my master is trying to lose weight i need to hold on to this extra fat , just in case you get a little crazy. lol

    It's a funny one but it's a bit like a game where you challenge the opponent to blink first. What happens is the body slows down its metabolism and the weight loss drags. That's where the staring match begins. And normally what happens is the body wins and you blink and simultaneously stuff your face with a massive cake and give up. We call this staring game "yoyo dieting".

    Eating at a mild deficit and doing intense exercise avoids this (plateaus) but even if you didn't bother with exercise, eating at a mild deficit or lifting heavy weights (*puts on anti-flame suit*) if you are patient enough (and let's face it, 99% of people are not) you will lose weight. I've eaten soup for 2 months (bowel operation) and lost 2 stones. I've seen overweight people with cancer lose masses of weight (think skeletal) after enduring 2 months of chemo. If you don't eat, you will lose weight (and eventually die). But unless you have something preventing you from eating (ie an illness), you will always lose The Staring Game.

    Obviously, I recommend you eat healthy, wholesome, clean foods, lift heavy weights, do intense cardio and eat with a mild daily calorie deficit.
  • BodyFreak
    BodyFreak Posts: 68
    Open up your dairy so i can see your protein/fat/carb intake. A lot of people who stop losing weight usually don't re adjust there macro nutrients and end up not losing anymore or take to little calories and put there body into starvation mode. Looks like your doing enough physical activity so its most luckily in your diet

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