3 month plateau please help

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  • digregorio84
    digregorio84 Posts: 27
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    thanks for your repsonse. I think my metabolism is depressed or something, perhaps that's a myth too. But the advice here said I would gain at maintenance because i had been "undereating" and i did eventually level off where i didn't gain, but once i made cuts i still didn't lose. I didn't lose the added weight until i made drastic cuts. I'm thinking that someone with a body fat percentage of 35.5% with about 55 realistic pounds I can lose, I should be losing a little easier and it just isn't coming off. I work out pretty hard, get my heart rate up doing interval running and cycling to no avail. I don't overeat carbs and I drink enough water. I really have no idea what's wrong. but again thanks for replying back i'll look into that book.
  • digregorio84
    digregorio84 Posts: 27
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    I don't know your financial situation, but it might be a good investment to go get an actual BMR test done.

    quite possibly i am not burning as much while sedentary as these calculators, etc suggest
  • digregorio84
    digregorio84 Posts: 27
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    diet break is needed

    i tried that, gained 13 pounds, and lost 13 pounds, now back to square one.
  • smn76237
    smn76237 Posts: 318 Member
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    Did you say you were eating 1900 at maintenance while working out? Probably still not enough. I'm a female, 27 years old, 5'1ish, 175lbs and eat 1900 (and often more) calories to LOSE weight. I'm not abnormal either, there are a lot of women eating 1900 on here to lose weight. As a taller male I'm sure you should be eating more. Use this to calculate your TDEE-20%.
    http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/
    How many weeks did you eat at 1900 before you dropped it by 300-400 calories? I know it sucks but after 2.5 years of a severe calorie deficit, it will just take some more time to get back to normal. There are a lot of threads on here about plateaus, such as this one:
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/826338-tips-to-bust-through-a-plateau-dieters-edema
    Finally, congrats on losing 153lbs! That itself is freaking impressive.
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,401 MFP Moderator
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    BUMP:

    So it's been 3 months. I followed the advice here, upped my calories to maintain. I ended up gaining 13lbs (from 204-217). I didn't waver. I stuck with it and my weight leveled off at 217. So then i cut about 3-400 calories to start losing again. Nothing. Weeks and weeks...nothing! So instead of being stuck at 204 I was stuck at 217. More depressed than I was previously! I went back to about 13-1500 calories and lost the weight I gained. Now I am back at 204 and guess what? Stuck again. I'm ready to give up thinking my body just doesn't want me to be thin. I've lost 156 lbs since 2010 and only to still be fat and well short of my goal. Good grief.

    The problem you probably face is that you have suppressed calories for such a long time, then your have an adapted RMR. In an essence, your body became more efficient at burning less calories. How many calories where you eating when you upped your calories? Essentially, you gained 13 lbs in 13 weeks, so it would be easy to do some math.


    But the first step would be get blood work and if you have $100 get an RMR test done.
  • croooz
    croooz Posts: 48 Member
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    thanks for your repsonse. I think my metabolism is depressed or something, perhaps that's a myth too. But the advice here said I would gain at maintenance because i had been "undereating" and i did eventually level off where i didn't gain, but once i made cuts i still didn't lose. I didn't lose the added weight until i made drastic cuts. I'm thinking that someone with a body fat percentage of 35.5% with about 55 realistic pounds I can lose, I should be losing a little easier and it just isn't coming off. I work out pretty hard, get my heart rate up doing interval running and cycling to no avail. I don't overeat carbs and I drink enough water. I really have no idea what's wrong. but again thanks for replying back i'll look into that book.

    Not sure about the depressed metabolism, I think it might have more to do with overstressing your body. Crazy idea for this place but I would recommend you drop the cardio. Do weights 2-4 times a week but stop the cardio for a while. Cardio has the ability to make one more adept at gaining weight. At the beginning any amount of activity will help us in losing weight but after a while our bodies become adapted to the cardio and we have to do more and more and more. Cardio then begins to increase the amount of the stress hormone cortisol which wreaks havoc on us. Our bodies rebel and hold onto the fat. It believes, and rightly so, that there is a crisis. So my advice is to take time off the cardio. Throw in some sprints 1-2 times a week but stop any chronic cardio. Keep your calories low but stop the cardio for a month and see how it goes.

    I'm not sure what the RMR tests are going to tell you that you don't already know from your own experiences. There is the possibility of eating more however like you I tried that and all I did was gain weight. Obesity changes things. I believe once we're down to lower bodyfat percentages that the increased calories will help but until we get there it'll be low calories, weights, occasional sprints, and no chronic cardio.
  • digregorio84
    digregorio84 Posts: 27
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    Did you say you were eating 1900 at maintenance while working out? Probably still not enough. I'm a female, 27 years old, 5'1ish, 175lbs and eat 1900 (and often more) calories to LOSE weight. I'm not abnormal either, there are a lot of women eating 1900 on here to lose weight. As a taller male I'm sure you should be eating more. Use this to calculate your TDEE-20%.
    http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/
    How many weeks did you eat at 1900 before you dropped it by 300-400 calories? I know it sucks but after 2.5 years of a severe calorie deficit, it will just take some more time to get back to normal. There are a lot of threads on here about plateaus, such as this one:
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/826338-tips-to-bust-through-a-plateau-dieters-edema
    Finally, congrats on losing 153lbs! That itself is freaking impressive.

    Thanks for your reply. I ate anywhere between 1900-2300 for about 2 months, had gained the 13 lbs and made a small cut in intake as suggested and i ended up staying the same. But I guess i didn't stick with it long enough, those extra 13 lbs were really uncomfortable, made my jeans a tighter fit, shirts more snug, etc. Thank you for those links I will look into that!
  • digregorio84
    digregorio84 Posts: 27
    Options
    thanks for your repsonse. I think my metabolism is depressed or something, perhaps that's a myth too. But the advice here said I would gain at maintenance because i had been "undereating" and i did eventually level off where i didn't gain, but once i made cuts i still didn't lose. I didn't lose the added weight until i made drastic cuts. I'm thinking that someone with a body fat percentage of 35.5% with about 55 realistic pounds I can lose, I should be losing a little easier and it just isn't coming off. I work out pretty hard, get my heart rate up doing interval running and cycling to no avail. I don't overeat carbs and I drink enough water. I really have no idea what's wrong. but again thanks for replying back i'll look into that book.

    Not sure about the depressed metabolism, I think it might have more to do with overstressing your body. Crazy idea for this place but I would recommend you drop the cardio. Do weights 2-4 times a week but stop the cardio for a while. Cardio has the ability to make one more adept at gaining weight. At the beginning any amount of activity will help us in losing weight but after a while our bodies become adapted to the cardio and we have to do more and more and more. Cardio then begins to increase the amount of the stress hormone cortisol which wreaks havoc on us. Our bodies rebel and hold onto the fat. It believes, and rightly so, that there is a crisis. So my advice is to take time off the cardio. Throw in some sprints 1-2 times a week but stop any chronic cardio. Keep your calories low but stop the cardio for a month and see how it goes.

    I'm not sure what the RMR tests are going to tell you that you don't already know from your own experiences. There is the possibility of eating more however like you I tried that and all I did was gain weight. Obesity changes things. I believe once we're down to lower bodyfat percentages that the increased calories will help but until we get there it'll be low calories, weights, occasional sprints, and no chronic cardio.

    Thanks again for you response. I think you're right about too much cardio. I'm also interested in thyroid work done. Some good news and to be honest I don't know why or how, but I'm finally under that 204 number that I've been stuck to. Weighed today and was 202. Let me knock on some wood!
  • redraidergirl2009
    redraidergirl2009 Posts: 2,560 Member
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    Did you say you were eating 1900 at maintenance while working out? Probably still not enough. I'm a female, 27 years old, 5'1ish, 175lbs and eat 1900 (and often more) calories to LOSE weight. I'm not abnormal either, there are a lot of women eating 1900 on here to lose weight. As a taller male I'm sure you should be eating more. Use this to calculate your TDEE-20%.
    http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/
    How many weeks did you eat at 1900 before you dropped it by 300-400 calories? I know it sucks but after 2.5 years of a severe calorie deficit, it will just take some more time to get back to normal. There are a lot of threads on here about plateaus, such as this one:
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/826338-tips-to-bust-through-a-plateau-dieters-edema
    Finally, congrats on losing 153lbs! That itself is freaking impressive.

    Thanks for your reply. I ate anywhere between 1900-2300 for about 2 months, had gained the 13 lbs and made a small cut in intake as suggested and i ended up staying the same. But I guess i didn't stick with it long enough, those extra 13 lbs were really uncomfortable, made my jeans a tighter fit, shirts more snug, etc. Thank you for those links I will look into that!

    From a TDEE perspective I would guess that 1900-2300 for you to be eating while working out isn't very much. I am 5'2" and my TDEE is something like 2200-2300. You might also look into www.fat2fitradio.com, basically it's the idea you eat at your TDEE for your goal weight and your body should adjust. Like you, I think I messed up my metabolism from regularly eating under my bmr and undereating for years. So I am trying this fat2fit method. Hope it works
  • JoanB5
    JoanB5 Posts: 610 Member
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    No one has mentioned exercise mix ups, so I'll put in a plug. I was stuck for a month, did two weeks of two sessions of High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) on the treadmill and weight started flying off. I had to back off. I've put some of it back on and could stand to lose a few more if I wanted to get down to goal weight, but I'm starting some lifting, so I figured a few extra pounds isn't going to hurt me for this phase.

    Have you tried some lifting? That may mix things up for you as well. It drastically alters body fat percentages for people in short amounts of time if you've primarily done cardio in the past (I think that's what you said you were doing, I can't remember the beginning of the thread for sure.) Mixing up exercise can help.

    PS: this spreadsheet by a MFP number cruncher, "HayBales" calculates TDEE. For me, it was lower than most online sites, but takes into consideration the actual types of exercise, my goals, and averaged a ton of other sites generators into one spreadsheet. It has more conservative estimates than I'm seeing in the wild. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0Amt7QBR9-c6MdGVTbGswLUUzUHNVVUlNSW9wZWloeUE

    PSS: 40% protein is an awful lot of protein to jump to in my opinion. I do not see that recommended widely.
  • JessHealthKick
    JessHealthKick Posts: 800 Member
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    Did you say you were eating 1900 at maintenance while working out? Probably still not enough. I'm a female, 27 years old, 5'1ish, 175lbs and eat 1900 (and often more) calories to LOSE weight. I'm not abnormal either, there are a lot of women eating 1900 on here to lose weight. As a taller male I'm sure you should be eating more. Use this to calculate your TDEE-20%.
    http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/
    How many weeks did you eat at 1900 before you dropped it by 300-400 calories? I know it sucks but after 2.5 years of a severe calorie deficit, it will just take some more time to get back to normal. There are a lot of threads on here about plateaus, such as this one:
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/826338-tips-to-bust-through-a-plateau-dieters-edema
    Finally, congrats on losing 153lbs! That itself is freaking impressive.

    yeah I personally eat 1400-1600net, and as I am exercising most days, I will eat closer to 2000 calories. I am a 140lb female... I really think that you could be under eating. If you aren't exercising, 1900 sounds about right for maintenance, however if you are exercising too then you are depriving your body, telling it to be more efficient with how many calories it burns (i.e. slowing your metabolism!)
  • runfreddyrun
    runfreddyrun Posts: 137 Member
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    have you gotten your body fat tested at a bod pod or dexa scan? if not, i highly recommend it. as i understand it, fat requires fewer calories. meaning, someone with a much higher bf% (like myself) does not require as many calories as someone with a lower bf%. so the standard thing on MFP is to tell someone 'oh, you're not eating enough, you need to eat more! i eat xxx calories a day . . . ' there is not much meaning or truth in this unless someone knows all the information about you (including an accurate bf%) and even then, they are still estimates.

    so go to the bod pod. it's cheap ($35). i'm going in the morning myself.

    and also - i don't know how i feel about this, but there is a registered dietician that comes on here from time to time and he gets the 'starvation mode' and 'plateau' questions a lot. his standard answer is always to reduce the amount of calories you are eating. he also points out how many many people under-estimate their daily calorie consumption while overestimating their calorie burn. take that for what it's worth. i'm sure you can take that too far.

    unfortunately, there is no easy answer. get all the accurate information you can get (i.e. body fat and RMR) and just keep trying things. maybe try reducing 10% (that is what the RI suggests) from your current 1300-1500. make sure to stick with it for a month though.

    and i agree with the suggestion about stopping cardio and starting weight training 2-4 times a week. and then maybe add in a little (1x or 2x a week) of HIIT. many people feel you get as good as or greater benefit from HIIT than you do for steady state cardio.

    don't give up. something will happen at some point. and then make sure to come back here and tell everyone about it. i've been on my own $%#@ plateau for the past few months so i feel your pain.

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