Plateau! Any ideas?

DawnieB1977
DawnieB1977 Posts: 4,248 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
For the first time in 18 months I seem to have hit a plateau!

I've been losing weight since July 2011 when my 2nd baby was 8 weeks old, and I've had a personal trainer who i've seen either once or twice a week since then. He takes my measurements every month and they've always gone down. In that time I've lost 10 inches off my hips, 10 off my waist, 10 off each thigh (well, possibly a little more actually) and also lost from my chest, arms etc but I can't recall how much.

Anyway, this month my waist and arms have stayed the same, and I only lost 0.5cm off my chest, 0.5cm off my hips but 2.5cm off each thigh. So while the loss hasn't stalled completely, it's not as good as it usually is.

My weight has stayed pretty much the same for the past 6 weeks too, but my PT says that's probably due to working out more with weights.

I usually workout 5 times a week - 1 or 2 PT sessions (if only 1 then i go to the gym on my own), spinning, zumba and aerobics. I also walk a lot with my kids, plus I work part time as a teacher so I'm on my feet a lot at work.

My PT says I probably need to look at my diet. He knows I eat pretty well, but says maybe I need to add more carbs because of the weight training, and maybe eat smaller more frequent meals. I'm usually pretty good but I did eat some biscuits the other day in the office. He says I should totally avoid doing that and maybe have a cheat meal once a week instead. He also said I should cut down on caffeine.

I'm only about 10lbs away from my goal weight now.

Any thoughts? Anyone willing to take a look at a couple of weeks of my diary?

Replies

  • DawnieB1977
    DawnieB1977 Posts: 4,248 Member
    Bump. Anyone?
  • LivingtheLeanDream
    LivingtheLeanDream Posts: 13,345 Member
    Hi Dawnie,
    Hope you get good feed back...can I ask what are your current measurements?
    Do you really need to lose another 10lbs?
    what's your BMI like now?
    You might be slim enough now already is what I'm getting at :)
    As you get nearer to goal your loss will slow dramatically as will your measurements.

    You've been doing the right things anyway, you have achieved great success! And you do look fab :)

    I hope someone can give you some ideas which will help.

    A mfp friend once told me you can't say your on a plateau unless your weight hasn't changed in 3 weeks, after that things need mixing up...eat more cals...change your exercise routine and get things shifting again :)

    Ruth xo
  • DawnieB1977
    DawnieB1977 Posts: 4,248 Member
    Maybe I don't eat enough, I never quite hit my suggested calories, but I am paranoid that if I do I won't lose! MFP suggests 1610 for me and i generally have around 1400, although sometimes less, sometimes 1500.

    I'm 5'6 and my measurements are 38-30-40, and I weigh 163lbs and am aiming for 150. My BMI is 26 so technically I am overweight. Everyone thinks I look like I weigh less than I do though, and even my PT said that anyone looking at me would not think I had a weight problem.

    He was joking about 'what waist?' when we were talking about losing from there. But I know I could lose another couple of inches.

    My belly is my problem area really. My youngest child is 20 months and I still have a bit of that mummy tummy!
  • LivingtheLeanDream
    LivingtheLeanDream Posts: 13,345 Member
    A lot of us know about mummy tummys lol mine is going slowly but surely, for years I just thought I was stuck with it lol..I was lazy!

    Ok so now I understand more about your shape, you have a wee bit of a way to go, your probably aiming for a slightly smaller waist? Around 28 or so and your hips down to around 37/38? Depending on your natural shape of course ...apple/pear/hour glass etc does have to be taken into consideration but You will get there! You really are working hard and it will happen.

    has your shape altered much since having babies?

    I think the target weight you've set yourself sounds about right :)

    Ps from your pics you look much slimmer than your stats :-D hows that for a NSV eh lol

    The main thing is that you love your body and make the best of what you were given :)

    Xo
  • LivingtheLeanDream
    LivingtheLeanDream Posts: 13,345 Member
    Pps have you checked your BMR lately? You might need to eat more :)
  • DawnieB1977
    DawnieB1977 Posts: 4,248 Member
    A lot of us know about mummy tummys lol mine is going slowly but surely, for years I just thought I was stuck with it lol..I was lazy!

    Ok so now I understand more about your shape, you have a wee bit of a way to go, your probably aiming for a slightly smaller waist? Around 28 or so and your hips down to around 37/38? Depending on your natural shape of course ...apple/pear/hour glass etc does have to be taken into consideration but You will get there! You really are working hard and it will happen.

    has your shape altered much since having babies?

    I think the target weight you've set yourself sounds about right :)

    Ps from your pics you look much slimmer than your stats :-D hows that for a NSV eh lol

    The main thing is that you love your body and make the best of what you were given :)

    Xo

    Thank you! Yes, everyone thinks I look slimmer than I am! I'm an hourglass shape so I guess I go in and out in the right places. I think i'd be happy with 36-28-38, smaller than that and i'd be too small for my frame I think. I'm pretty much the same size as I was 10 years ago, only then I was 147lbs.

    I do a lot of weights and strength training and have quite good muscles, so that would explain why I weigh more now i think. Back in my 20s I didn't eat enough and I did purely cardio.

    I'm actually slimmer than before I had my 1st baby, except I have that mummy tummy that I didn't have then! I'll have to find some photos to show you!
  • whenday
    whenday Posts: 64 Member
    Re-check your BMR, TDEE and such. I have heard that if you eat at your TDEE for a week or two and then eat at a deficit again it might get you out of a plateau. But really it just seems since you started lifted you are gaining muscle. You really need to double check your BMR and TDEE and adjust for all the exercise you are doing. You're going to need nutrients to build those muscles.
  • LivingtheLeanDream
    LivingtheLeanDream Posts: 13,345 Member
    Yeah you find that exercise does make you weigh more but its good to be toned and fit :)

    I have only lost 10 lbs since I started on here last may, my measurements then were 38-31-40..now I am 38 -28 -36.75..I should be happy..well I am and I'm not lol..the scale is still not at where I want it lol (my bust just does not reduce!)

    The odd thing is my measurements now are the same as when I was in my 20 s yet then I was over a stone lighter ....go figure lol

    We just need to keep at it :)

    Would love to see pics
  • DawnieB1977
    DawnieB1977 Posts: 4,248 Member
    Ok, a few pics...

    This is from 2002, not sure what my weight was but i'd lost loads at this point although I think it was just before I started going to the gym a lot:

    2002_147.jpg
    picture hosting

    This is from Summer 2003 when I was around 147lbs. I was doing lots of cardio but no weights. I'd like to be this size again but more toned:
    Vegas.jpg
    host images

    This is a wedding photo (08/08/08):

    mfp_3.jpg
    online photo storage

    This is from my honeymoon in 2008. I am smaller now, but I didn't have the mummy tummy then!:

    honeymoon.jpg
    image sharing

    This is from June 2011, after my 2nd baby. I was massive, about 220lbs!:
    worst_pic.jpg
    free image hosting

    And this is Fri evening:

    SAM_0435.jpg
    upload pic
  • DawnieB1977
    DawnieB1977 Posts: 4,248 Member
    I'm meeting with my PT on Fri to go over my food diary to see what he thinks.

    Maybe I should eat more? I am scared to!!
  • LivingtheLeanDream
    LivingtheLeanDream Posts: 13,345 Member
    Great pics, can't you see how far you've come!
    Your shape now is probably the best ever! You do look slim, honestly you do :)
  • DawnieB1977
    DawnieB1977 Posts: 4,248 Member
    Just bumping this again to see if anyone else has any ideas?
  • DanaDark
    DanaDark Posts: 2,187 Member
    You do not have much left to lose!

    So, you should re-calculate both your BMR and your TDEE (do not include exercise, only normal day to day activity). From there, choose a number between your BMR and TDEE. Most likely something like TDEE - 250 cals. When you have less to lose, you simply have to lose it slower.

    Your protein level should be increased quite a bit. Looks like you have it left at 15%, it should be around 30% for anyone that exercises.

    You are not logging water. On a normal day you should have 8 cups (8 ounces) of water. On exercise days, even more than that.

    If your deficit has been too large for too long, it may mean you need to spend 1 or 2 weeks at maintenance, with 1 or 2 days of surplus, to help the body bring down excessively high cortisol levels.

    To prevent cortisol levels from becoming a problem, some people use "cheat meals" once a week, or even a "cheat day". I suggest a cheat day every 2 weeks where you go TDEE+250 calories for that day.
  • DawnieB1977
    DawnieB1977 Posts: 4,248 Member
    You do not have much left to lose!

    So, you should re-calculate both your BMR and your TDEE (do not include exercise, only normal day to day activity). From there, choose a number between your BMR and TDEE. Most likely something like TDEE - 250 cals. When you have less to lose, you simply have to lose it slower.

    Your protein level should be increased quite a bit. Looks like you have it left at 15%, it should be around 30% for anyone that exercises.

    You are not logging water. On a normal day you should have 8 cups (8 ounces) of water. On exercise days, even more than that.

    If your deficit has been too large for too long, it may mean you need to spend 1 or 2 weeks at maintenance, with 1 or 2 days of surplus, to help the body bring down excessively high cortisol levels.

    To prevent cortisol levels from becoming a problem, some people use "cheat meals" once a week, or even a "cheat day". I suggest a cheat day every 2 weeks where you go TDEE+250 calories for that day.

    Thank you. I do drink water, I just don't log it.

    I didn't know you could change the protein, but I usually go over the recommended amount anyway as i think it's quite low. That's the one number I don't mind being in the red!

    My personal trainer suggested a cheat meal once a week. He said maybe one day a week just have a dessert or something and that'll keep me going in the week too.

    I've been doing this for 18 months now (although only the past 6 months on MFP) so maybe my body needs a kick up the ar*e and a change of eating somehow. Perhaps the cheat meal will solve this!
  • Minnesota_Nice
    Minnesota_Nice Posts: 414 Member
    eat a pan of brownies... it usually helps me :)
  • ILiftHeavyAcrylics
    ILiftHeavyAcrylics Posts: 27,732 Member
    You do not have much left to lose!

    So, you should re-calculate both your BMR and your TDEE (do not include exercise, only normal day to day activity). From there, choose a number between your BMR and TDEE. Most likely something like TDEE - 250 cals. When you have less to lose, you simply have to lose it slower.

    Your protein level should be increased quite a bit. Looks like you have it left at 15%, it should be around 30% for anyone that exercises.

    You are not logging water. On a normal day you should have 8 cups (8 ounces) of water. On exercise days, even more than that.

    If your deficit has been too large for too long, it may mean you need to spend 1 or 2 weeks at maintenance, with 1 or 2 days of surplus, to help the body bring down excessively high cortisol levels.

    To prevent cortisol levels from becoming a problem, some people use "cheat meals" once a week, or even a "cheat day". I suggest a cheat day every 2 weeks where you go TDEE+250 calories for that day.

    I agree with this. Your deficit is too steep at the moment considering how little you have left to lose. Also you are still making progress, so you're not plateaued. If you do plateau I second the idea of a full diet break. I did that before tackling my last 10 lbs and it really helped.
  • DawnieB1977
    DawnieB1977 Posts: 4,248 Member
    eat a pan of brownies... it usually helps me :)

    Love this! I might try that at the weekend, kind of goes with the cheat meal idea :smile:
  • PikaKnight
    PikaKnight Posts: 34,971 Member
    Maybe you need to recalculate your TDEE?

    If you want, check out this link by MFPer Heliotsdan - It'll give you a detailed walkthrough (with pictures even) on finding your TDEE and calculating what you should be eating.
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/654536-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12

    Or for a different version to figure out your TDEE, as well as some great advice...check out:
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/833500-what-do-i-do-common-sense-cliff-notes


    Also, if you are worried about the calorie intake, I also suggest you read this thread that has numerous people who met their goals and are maintaining. Some for years and they also provide their calorie intake and how often they work out.
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/816542-let-s-hear-it-for-maintainenance


    For more information about fitness and nutrition, I highly suggest checking out and joining this group: (Read all the stickies. It's great information to know.)
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/10118-eat-train-progress


    For info about your macros (proteins/fats/carbs) - check out this link. It will give you the formula to figure out your #s and also how to custom change them in MFP:
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/819055-setting-your-calorie-and-macro-targets
  • wahmx3
    wahmx3 Posts: 646 Member
    You are doing awesome! But the closer you get to your goal, the more you need to eat, closer to your TDEE. It is also more important to eat really clean, fewer treats and processed food (if you eat these now). Have you switched up your exercise lately? Try a different cardio, new strength training exercises etc. Change what you do every month or so....although since you are working with a pt, they obviously know much more than me. Have your BMR recalculated and definitely eat above it, much closer to maintenance and expect to lose only about .5 of a pound a week.
  • DawnieB1977
    DawnieB1977 Posts: 4,248 Member
    You are doing awesome! But the closer you get to your goal, the more you need to eat, closer to your TDEE. It is also more important to eat really clean, fewer treats and processed food (if you eat these now). Have you switched up your exercise lately? Try a different cardio, new strength training exercises etc. Change what you do every month or so....although since you are working with a pt, they obviously know much more than me. Have your BMR recalculated and definitely eat above it, much closer to maintenance and expect to lose only about .5 of a pound a week.

    I rarely eat processed food. I never go to fast food places or anything, and I don't do microwave meals, and never have. I've always been very healthy food-wise. My biggest problem in the past was not eating enough.

    I don't often have treats, but i did have a couple of biscuits (think you refer to them as cookies in the US) on Thurs and Fri at work as I was so tired and stupidly hadn't brought in enough food.

    I changed my exercise routine in Sept and started doing spinning, aerobics and zumba instead of just gym all the time. My PT obviously changes what I do according to what I need. He seems happy with my exercise. I'd love to add something else like swimming but with 2 young kids and a shift working husband I just don't have the time really.

    Joylia - I will check out those threads, thank you.

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