HELP! How to break a 4 month plateau

mllelumiere
mllelumiere Posts: 9
in Health and Weight Loss
Hello everyone!
I am in need of serious help here
I am 5'5 and weigh 139 pounds. I used to weigh 146.7 pounds and it took me a year to get where I am and maintain.I am now trying to lose at least three pounds more but my goal is 133 pounds. I eat anywhere from 1550 to 1750 calories a day and workout 6 days a week and I do steady speed jogs half of the days (around 35 min) and the others short hiit intervals (20 min) with some jillian michaels videos before the cardio (30 min) or other bodyweight circuits like push-ups, squats, jumps, etc.
What could I be doing wrong?

Thanks in advance for your help!

Replies

  • shadow2soul
    shadow2soul Posts: 7,692 Member
    Have you tried measurements? You might be losing inches instead of pounds.
  • Huffdogg
    Huffdogg Posts: 1,934 Member
    try doing compound barbell lifts.
  • tassshhhaaa
    tassshhhaaa Posts: 29 Member
    Just happened to me for 5 whole months. I cut out ALL working out for TWO weeks. I lost 2.5 pounds. I think sometimes our bodies have to recover!

    I'm about to go back to working out, so hopefully the weight loss continues. Good luck!
  • christina0089
    christina0089 Posts: 709 Member
    What are your net calories in general for a day? Maybe you are just not getting enough in. It sound like you are but if you eat 1600 and burn 1500 I hightly doubt you are. Have you talked to a nutristionist? It may help you to know exactly how much you should be eating in your specific situation. MFP is great but it is very generalized and not everyone is the same. Good luck.
  • mllelumiere
    mllelumiere Posts: 9
    I've measured myself and I've lost only a centimeter off my chest waist and hips in the last couple of months...I do notice more definition in my abs though... And I'm only two centimeters from my goal in each of those areas....
  • mllelumiere
    mllelumiere Posts: 9
    I think I'm gonna up my calories to 2000 for the next few weeks and see what happens...thanks I might cut back on working out too maybe I need that...
  • xMonroeMisfit
    xMonroeMisfit Posts: 411 Member
    1. Re-Calculate your TDEE/BMR
    2. Give your body a "REST"
    3. Change up your exercise routine
    4. Tweak your diet
    5. Measure yourself & take progress pictures


    *Are you SURE you're not over-exercising and not eating back?
    *Are you accurately measuring food you consume
    *Are you retaining water/drinking enough water/watching your sodium intake?
  • mllelumiere
    mllelumiere Posts: 9
    1- I've done that several times and tried different calorie intakes and nada
    2-how would I give myself rest? Easy workouts and increase calories?
    3-I try to change things up every 3 weeks
    4-I might need to cut back on carbs..
    5-I do this once a month since I'm close to what I want my measurements to be

    I track food religiously and every single bit literally
    I am not sure if I'm over exercising I know I used to and I've cut it to an hour a day

    I drink at least 5 500ml water bottles per day and I somewhat watch my sodium and I sleep 7-8 hours per night
  • xMonroeMisfit
    xMonroeMisfit Posts: 411 Member
    1- I've done that several times and tried different calorie intakes and nada
    2-how would I give myself rest? Easy workouts and increase calories?
    3-I try to change things up every 3 weeks
    4-I might need to cut back on carbs..
    5-I do this once a month since I'm close to what I want my measurements to be

    I track food religiously and every single bit literally
    I am not sure if I'm over exercising I know I used to and I've cut it to an hour a day

    I drink at least 5 500ml water bottles per day and I somewhat watch my sodium and I sleep 7-8 hours per night


    - Eat at Maintenance for a week or 2 and don't exercise. Reset your body. Keep it guessing.

    What i mean by over- exercising is, when you calculate your TDEE, are you being honest and counting the true amount of time you are exercising?

    I know when i first started i lied to myself and said, well i have a desk job, so im pretty sedentary/maybe lightly active. In actuality i was working out 5-6 days a week. Once i stopped lying to myself and ate more, the weight came back off.
  • BurtHuttz
    BurtHuttz Posts: 3,653 Member
    1- I've done that several times and tried different calorie intakes and nada
    2-how would I give myself rest? Easy workouts and increase calories?
    3-I try to change things up every 3 weeks
    4-I might need to cut back on carbs..
    5-I do this once a month since I'm close to what I want my measurements to be

    I track food religiously and every single bit literally
    I am not sure if I'm over exercising I know I used to and I've cut it to an hour a day

    I drink at least 5 500ml water bottles per day and I somewhat watch my sodium and I sleep 7-8 hours per night


    - Eat at Maintenance for a week or 2 and don't exercise. Reset your body. Keep it guessing.

    What i mean by over- exercising is, when you calculate your TDEE, are you being honest and counting the true amount of time you are exercising?

    I know when i first started i lied to myself and said, well i have a desk job, so im pretty sedentary/maybe lightly active. In actuality i was working out 5-6 days a week. Once i stopped lying to myself and ate more, the weight came back off.

    She's right about everything. Have a look at this to make setting your daily intake correctly easier: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/952996-level-obstacles-lose-weight-target-fat-easy
  • radiantrox
    radiantrox Posts: 34 Member
    Since you've tried upping your calories and you're tracking them. Maybe you should talk to your doctor and have your thyroid checked, if you haven't already.
  • mllelumiere
    mllelumiere Posts: 9
    Thanks!
    I'm a bank teller but I workout 6 days a week for an hour which would make me moderately active?
    I've tried eating 300 calories less per day of what maintenance would be for a moderately active person...I'm not sure
  • mllelumiere
    mllelumiere Posts: 9
    Thanks for the link!
    It's very interesting :)
  • mllelumiere
    mllelumiere Posts: 9
    I think I will get it checked
    I've been thinking that could be a factor...

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