Weight Loss Plateau

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srgpenguin
srgpenguin Posts: 3
in Motivation and Support
Hello All - I need some advice on breaking through my weight loss plateau. I have lost over 119 pounds since I started - and losing it fairly steadily until recently. I increased my workouts at the gym to 5 days a week and did not change my eating habits (around 1200 calories a day) - but it seems that I have hit a wall. I know that I may be building more muscle - and trimming - and all that great stuff... but I have another 60 pounds to lose and I am getting really discouraged. Any tips for breaking through a plateau??? Thanx!

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  • violinkeri
    violinkeri Posts: 212
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    How long has it been since you lost? 1-2 weeks is not a plateau, and weight loss is not linear. with all that working out you do, your body may be holding on to things to heal and then after a few weeks it may start falling off again.

    Are you eating enough? 1200 is not usually enough for anyone except super petite ladies. It works at first but bottoms out very quickly. Calculate your BMR and make sure you are eating absolutely no less than that, and eat your exercise calories!

    As you get closer and closer to a healthy weight, the scale moves slower and slower. But you are on the right track with the slimming idea--try taking your measurements for a few weeks instead of weighing, and see if you are really stalled or if your shape is changing instead of your scale.
  • srgpenguin
    srgpenguin Posts: 3
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    Thank you for all the great tips. You are right - I am probably not really on a plateau - but it is frustrating to be continuing to do the same thing and lose either very little - or gain a little. I have lost though - so I guess I just have to get used to losing a lot less even though I feel like I am putting in the work and "deserve" a better number on the scale. :smile:
  • sisrja210
    sisrja210 Posts: 6
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    Hang in there the more wight you lose the harder it is to get the pounds off. Congrats in how far you have gotten so far!
  • Willowana
    Willowana Posts: 493 Member
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    If it makes you feel any better, I plateau if you look at me crooked. One thing that I've been doing is switching up my calories between 1300 and 1600. My doctor told me last Friday that he fully agreed with that. He said being inconsistent with calories keeps your body guessing, so it won't get accustomed to any one method. So, my inconsistency has been a blessing in disguise! But more importantly, my doc warned me that I WILL plateau at some point no matter how great my methods. He told me to be prepared for that, and to just keep pushing through it. Eventually, it will have to break as long as there is a deficit.

    And of course, the closer to goal you get, the harder it does get. You still have 60 lbs. to go, so I don't think this will last too long. It's usually within the last 20lbs. people start having major problems.

    I think sometimes a plateau is just our bodies way of "buffering" ...Maybe your body is just downloading "srgpenguin 2.0". (Worst fat nerd joke. Ever.)

    In any case, just keep up your efforts, and you will get there. Congrats on the major accomplishment! You are doing fantastic! :flowerforyou:
  • rach503
    rach503 Posts: 86 Member
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    I noticed after hard workouts I would feel extra "poofy" for a few days and would retain water - making the scale move up or stay the same for up to a week or 2. This article really helped me get some mental clarity on one possibility as to why we hold onto water: http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/of-whooshes-and-squishy-fat.html
  • courtneywiens
    courtneywiens Posts: 148 Member
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    i plateau for weeks at a time sometime, but then can lose 5-6 pounds in a week. a lot of things factor in like water weight from alcohol or sodium, your hormones, fluid intake, etc. i also had to raise my calories and do stronger lifting and it helped. good luck!
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,139 Member
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    if you increased your workouts to 5x a week you may need to bump up to 1400 or something..

    what kind of workouts are you doing?
  • kaypat09
    kaypat09 Posts: 130 Member
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    After losing 139lbs (for a lot of which, I ate around 1200-1400 calories), I now eat ~1800 calories on a typical day and I'm still losing. Eat more, especially if you're working out more!
  • DavPul
    DavPul Posts: 61,406 Member
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    diet break
  • tameko2
    tameko2 Posts: 31,634 Member
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    http://fitnesswithnatalie.blogspot.com/2011/05/most-dreaded-word-in-weight-loss.html
  • srgpenguin
    srgpenguin Posts: 3
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    Wow! Thanx everyone for the great tips - srgpenguin 2.0 on the way! :) I vary my workout from 45 minutes to 60 minutes a day - longer days I do a circuit training along with treadmill and bike. On shorter days I do treadmill and bike. I think I like the idea of increasing my calories - but... and I know it sounds crazy... I am SCARED to do that! LOL I will definitely try that though and just push through. Thanx again for all the help and support!
  • ILiftHeavyAcrylics
    ILiftHeavyAcrylics Posts: 27,732 Member
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    Wow! Thanx everyone for the great tips - srgpenguin 2.0 on the way! :) I vary my workout from 45 minutes to 60 minutes a day - longer days I do a circuit training along with treadmill and bike. On shorter days I do treadmill and bike. I think I like the idea of increasing my calories - but... and I know it sounds crazy... I am SCARED to do that! LOL I will definitely try that though and just push through. Thanx again for all the help and support!

    It's normal to be a little apprehensive about upping calories, but that's something you'll have to push through eventually anyway. I'm with DavPul-- you've lost a lot of weight (congrats on that!) and it's probably as good a time as any to bump up to maintenance for a couple of weeks. It'll help regulate your hormones, and it gives you a mental break. I've done it twice and it definitely makes losing easier when you go back to a deficit.
  • nicolahobbs167
    nicolahobbs167 Posts: 1 Member
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    Hello!

    I am at massive plateau too...I am working on slowly losing weight and making my diet and exercise habits a lifestyle rather than just, 'another diet'.

    What I have lean't so far is that you're body probably has a lot more muscle now, and muscle requires more energy in order to function properly. Which means adding in more calories into your day. I know adding calories sounds scary but how can your body function properly if there is not fuel in the tank. I would suggest upping your calories to 1400/1500 but make sure that you are eating nutrient rich, high protein foods wit plenty of fruits and vegetables, which will feed the muscle you have. Lean chicken breast with brown rice and veggies is a favourite of mine!

    However, it is also possible that your body has gotten used to the exercise regime you have been doing. If you change it up then your body starts to use different muscles, which will burn more calories and help you break the plateau.
    Recently I have been doing a lot of running. Starting off my workout with a 5k! It's a fantastic motivator and really opens up your body for an intense, calorie burning workout which should shed the pounds fast!

    I hope this helps! I'm hoping that continuing it myself will reap the rewards, we'll see t my next weigh in.

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