4 year plateau after losing 93 lbs. Advice?
LoseYouself
Posts: 249 Member
I've been counting calories, improving my nutrition & fitness as well as trying to lose weight for 5 years now. I lost 93 lbs in the 1st year (2008-2009), and have maintained that loss for 4 years within a 10 lb range. I cannot seem to get below 200 lbs. Every time I get close, I get stuck between 199-202. I've only ever seen 199 once .. 2 years ago. Currently stuck at 203. Here's some info before I get to my question:
-I'm active 4-5x per week. I do weight lifting (3 day split), running, yoga, Les Mills Combat classes, etc
-I have a good amount of lean mass according to a PT assessment of my body composition.
-I aim to lose 1 lb per week, with maybe 30-35 lbs left to lose.
-I do not have a thyroid or health condition.
-I do have a cheat/splurge day of junk food once in a while (don't most people?), which may hinder me, but not to this extreme. It's not enough of a caloric surplus to cause gain or maintenance.
Any tips for me from the following options?
1) Should I focus on a period of maintenance since I've never done this? Is 5 years with no maintenance break actually hindering me? I've done caloric increases, but not full maintenance.
2) Should I TRY to stop counting calories for a while and focus on natural hunger cues, even though I cannot imagine being able to do this? I may gain weight because I often want to eat more than my caloric goals.. even with a very small deficit! That is why I use MFP so much, to keep me on track with my goals/plan ahead/avoid over eating.
3) Should I just keep doing what I'm doing and trust the process?
-I'm active 4-5x per week. I do weight lifting (3 day split), running, yoga, Les Mills Combat classes, etc
-I have a good amount of lean mass according to a PT assessment of my body composition.
-I aim to lose 1 lb per week, with maybe 30-35 lbs left to lose.
-I do not have a thyroid or health condition.
-I do have a cheat/splurge day of junk food once in a while (don't most people?), which may hinder me, but not to this extreme. It's not enough of a caloric surplus to cause gain or maintenance.
Any tips for me from the following options?
1) Should I focus on a period of maintenance since I've never done this? Is 5 years with no maintenance break actually hindering me? I've done caloric increases, but not full maintenance.
2) Should I TRY to stop counting calories for a while and focus on natural hunger cues, even though I cannot imagine being able to do this? I may gain weight because I often want to eat more than my caloric goals.. even with a very small deficit! That is why I use MFP so much, to keep me on track with my goals/plan ahead/avoid over eating.
3) Should I just keep doing what I'm doing and trust the process?
0
Replies
-
Bump0
-
no one?0
-
I am no expert but I think that your free day probably counteracts the rest of the week. Try cutting those out.0
-
Your diary is closed so it is hard to see what you are doing.
I am not an expert and have definitely struggled myself. I have been working this for the past 5 yrs. was down about another 20 lbs a year ago, but then hurt my neck and am trying to get back into the mental mind frame. So here is my 2-cents...take it or leave it
1- as a previous posted stated.. Maybe your " cheat day" is really undoing your hard work. My sister noticed this especially if it included alcohol
2- are you weighing/measuring what you eat. Sometimes our guestimations can be way off. You may be eating more than you think.
3- are you eating a variety of foods- fruits veggies, complex carbs, lean proteins. Or spending your cals on junk.
4- are you eating back your exercise cals...and how do you figure them (I've noticed the numbers that mfp uses seem to be high)
I'm not sure if any of that helped but I tried. Send me a friend request if you want. Sometimes it is hard to fight this weight loss battle when it takes so long. And then you read about people who make these amazing transformations in 6 months. I want to cry
0 -
that's not a plateau, that's maintenance.
the answer is simple...
if your logging is accurate, then your calorie goal is too high.
if your logging is inaccurate, then log more accurately.
also, there is no such thing as a cheat day. if you deliberately choose not to log on those days, then you really aren't counting calories.0 -
If you have a good lean mass composition, why bother? I'm stuck at 203 also (been on a plateau since about August... only lost 12 lbs since) but my BF has gone from like 40% to about 30%. I would be a-ok if my weight stayed the same if I could get a better lean mass ratio. Your pics look great!0
-
If you have not lost weight for 5 years - you are at your maintenance calories.0
-
...aaaandthat's not a plateau, that's maintenance.
the answer is simple...
if your logging is accurate, then your calorie goal is too high.
if your logging is inaccurate, then log more accurately.
also, there is no such thing as a cheat day. if you deliberately choose not to log on those days, then you really aren't counting calories.
quote]
If you have not lost weight for 5 years - you are at your maintenance calories.
[/quote]
this.0 -
Might have to get a little more clean with diet. The smaller you get, the more those bites count.
But, try some HIIT training to mix things up. Pretty easy to accomplish on a treadmill.0 -
Your diary is closed, and of all the things you spelled out that you're doing you did not once say "i meticulously count all my calories using a food scale and hit my calorie goal every day."
You're eating too much. Drop the calorie goal by 300 and hit it every single day.
The weight will come off.0 -
that's not a plateau, that's maintenance.
Yep.
And the definition of insanity is said to be doing the same things over and over and expecting a different result.
So something obviously needs to change. Eat more, eat less, eat cleaner, change up your exercise routine. Presumably if you're over 200 lbs you do have the potential to lose some more.0 -
You're eating too much. Drop the calorie goal by 300 and hit it every single day.
*recalculate your TDEE and then subtract 300 calories or 20%0 -
If you have not lost weight for 5 years - you are at your maintenance calories.
Agreed.
ETA: The good news is that you've accomplished a great victory in the loss you've made so far. The fact that you've maintained for so long means that you can be successful at keeping it off for good. Be proud. You can either maintain weight and focus on working on body composition, or you can create a calorie deficit and lose some more. Either option sounds reasonable to me! :flowerforyou:0 -
bump0
-
How many calories are you eating each day? You're going to have to lower to lose weight - that's just physics. If you want to use up the energy stored in fat, you're going to have to input less energy than you are eating currently. I'd also recommend getting rid of cheat days. Alcoholics don't have cheat days with alcohol, why would those who struggle with food give into that sort of temptation?0
-
You're eating too much. Drop the calorie goal by 300 and hit it every single day.
*recalculate your TDEE and then subtract 300 calories or 20%
Her TDEE is what she is eating which = maintenance. No recalculation is needed.0 -
Yes, I agree with this. What are you eating at now? How tall are you? What is your body fat percent? Sounds like you have found your maintenance level for your current weight so eat less or exercise more. Maybe stop cheating so much or offset them with a big workout that day. Honestly I really don't have cheat days or meals but I do work the splurges when I am going out into my calorie budget.
You're eating too much. Drop the calorie goal by 300 and hit it every single day.
*recalculate your TDEE and then subtract 300 calories or 20%0 -
In addition to other advice, consider changing up what you're doing to work out. Your body often adapts over time when doing the same workout each day, so consider going with the P90X mentality of "muscle confusion" and getting Resistance in one day, Power in another day, cardio in several days, etc. ... but mix it up. Google "muscle confusion" for more info.
Without knowing what your calorie intake is right now, I can't suggest whether you should stay the same or not. It's possible you need to RAISE your intake. There are loads of articles at www.teambeachbody.com under fitness tips and nutrition tips that address this issue. It's not a cut-and-dry answer for every individual.
Good luck!!
JJ0 -
If you have not lost weight for 5 years - you are at your maintenance calories.
QFT
Cutting off fat, and changing your body composition is probably the hardest thing on earth to do, because it requires that we starve ourselves. And I don't mean starve as in go days without eating, I mean starve as in, eat less calories per day than we need.
what's your diet composition, your macro goals? what things have you tried to bust under 200? I mean, it boils down to a simple math equation, calories0 -
okay, but there was a while where I was eating 900 calories and not losing... guess what? When I recalculated, I realized the TDEE I SHOULD have was around 2100, so I ate 1800, took a week or two of gaining slightly and then started losing again. So no, she shouldn't necessarily just cut 300 from what she IS eating (as aforementioned, I don't know what she is eating because her diary is private). She may be eating too little for all we know, so calm yo'self.
You're eating too much. Drop the calorie goal by 300 and hit it every single day.
*recalculate your TDEE and then subtract 300 calories or 20%
Her TDEE is what she is eating which = maintenance. No recalculation is needed.0 -
okay, but there was a while where I was eating 900 calories and not losing... guess what? When I recalculated, I realized the TDEE I SHOULD have was around 2100, so I ate 1800, took a week or two of gaining slightly and then started losing again. So no, she shouldn't necessarily just cut 300 from what she IS eating (as aforementioned, I don't know what she is eating because her diary is private). She may be eating too little for all we know, so calm yo'self.
You're eating too much. Drop the calorie goal by 300 and hit it every single day.
*recalculate your TDEE and then subtract 300 calories or 20%
Her TDEE is what she is eating which = maintenance. No recalculation is needed.
Who on earth is excited..a little testy aren't we?
If she is not losing, for 4 years, then she is at maintenance. That is her TDEE.0 -
okay, but there was a while where I was eating 900 calories and not losing... guess what? When I recalculated, I realized the TDEE I SHOULD have was around 2100, so I ate 1800, took a week or two of gaining slightly and then started losing again. So no, she shouldn't necessarily just cut 300 from what she IS eating (as aforementioned, I don't know what she is eating because her diary is private). She may be eating too little for all we know, so calm yo'self.
You're eating too much. Drop the calorie goal by 300 and hit it every single day.
*recalculate your TDEE and then subtract 300 calories or 20%
If she had been eating 900 calories for 4 years, she would have been losing weight.0 -
I lost 36 lbs in 3 months in the past on a very low calorie and crazy cardio diet and maintained at 154 for 3 years,no matter what i ate.if i worked out or not.
After 3 years when i wanted to lose more I took a break for a month(same time of my wedding-so that helped)
Then I cut carbs,increased carbs,cut protein,increased protein and tried all sorts of silly stuff.
After all the crazy experimentation,What seemed to work for me is increase calories.
I did a 3 month bulk(ate over maintenance-combined this with thanksgiving and christmas)-in which period i didn't do any cardio and just lifted and lifted.mind you I did gain a good 15 pounds during this period.(i was just stubborn to make this work).
Then i only cut 300 calories from my maintainance.I lost 6 pounds so far in cut and am steadily losing.My workouts include 2-3 hours of cardio per week and 2 sessions of Lifting per week and the rest days i do yoga.I make sure I dont abuse this balance,although I do get tempted to overdo sometimes.
I used scooby workout website to figure out my calories(my numbers are a 100 calories less than predicted on there).
From my experience,slowly increasing calories upto TDEE will minimize weight gain.Example if your TDEE is 2400 calories and you were eating 1200.Eat 1400 for 1 month or until your stomach feels comfortable at that.Eat 1600 the next month or until your stomach feels comfortable at that.and so on until you reach 2400.
Another observation from my experience-look at your body if you feel mushy in your problem areas.example im a pear shaped person,i look at my thighs.Whenever I feel my thighs are getting mushy,i slow down on cardio and up protein.I Think this is keeping my body composition such that maximum fat loss and less muscle loss is happening.0 -
Five consecutive years of "dieting" is a bit much. Your RMR and TDEE likely have lowered so what used to be a deficit in calories is now your maintenance. You can either decrease calories to see how your body responds for a month or so or increase calories to establish your new, adjusted TDEE to relieve your endocrine system of the persistent stress you've placed on it over the years.0
-
okay, but there was a while where I was eating 900 calories and not losing... guess what? When I recalculated, I realized the TDEE I SHOULD have was around 2100, so I ate 1800, took a week or two of gaining slightly and then started losing again. So no, she shouldn't necessarily just cut 300 from what she IS eating (as aforementioned, I don't know what she is eating because her diary is private). She may be eating too little for all we know, so calm yo'self.
You're eating too much. Drop the calorie goal by 300 and hit it every single day.
*recalculate your TDEE and then subtract 300 calories or 20%
If she had been eating 900 calories for 4 years, she would have been losing weight.
Right. I guess I shouldn't be telling her to recalculate things, analyze things logically, just keep cutting back. Glad that trend is coming back. Works SO well.
...anyhow, if her LBM is good and she looks good (she does in her photos) then I'm not sure its necessary to lose more, but if she feels it is, let her recalculate, if her deficit is already too big and that' the source of the issue, recalculating will fix it. If she recalculates and finds that she should be eating less than she already is, that will reaffirm what you're saying, but what's the harm in that? Oh no, she may have spent a few moments thinking about it rather than blindly accepting advice to continue cutting calories! the humanity!0 -
bump0
-
[insert cat fight gif]0
-
[insert cat fight gif]
tl;dr I CAN'T GO TO BED! SOMEONE IS WRONG ON THE INTERNET!0 -
okay, but there was a while where I was eating 900 calories and not losing... guess what? When I recalculated, I realized the TDEE I SHOULD have was around 2100, so I ate 1800, took a week or two of gaining slightly and then started losing again. So no, she shouldn't necessarily just cut 300 from what she IS eating (as aforementioned, I don't know what she is eating because her diary is private). She may be eating too little for all we know, so calm yo'self.
You're eating too much. Drop the calorie goal by 300 and hit it every single day.
*recalculate your TDEE and then subtract 300 calories or 20%
If she had been eating 900 calories for 4 years, she would have been losing weight.
Right. I guess I shouldn't be telling her to recalculate things, analyze things logically, just keep cutting back. Glad that trend is coming back. Works SO well.
...anyhow, if her LBM is good and she looks good (she does in her photos) then I'm not sure its necessary to lose more, but if she feels it is, let her recalculate, if her deficit is already too big and that' the source of the issue, recalculating will fix it. If she recalculates and finds that she should be eating less than she already is, that will reaffirm what you're saying, but what's the harm in that? Oh no, she may have spent a few moments thinking about it rather than blindly accepting advice to continue cutting calories! the humanity!
You might want to check if she is actually logging food accurately before you tell her to eat more than she is maintaining on if you want to get specific and not make blanket statements yourself. Did you see the OP state that she had a very small deficit? I doubt very much that she thinks 900 calories is a very small deficit.0 -
okay, but there was a while where I was eating 900 calories and not losing... guess what? When I recalculated, I realized the TDEE I SHOULD have was around 2100, so I ate 1800, took a week or two of gaining slightly and then started losing again. So no, she shouldn't necessarily just cut 300 from what she IS eating (as aforementioned, I don't know what she is eating because her diary is private). She may be eating too little for all we know, so calm yo'self.
You're eating too much. Drop the calorie goal by 300 and hit it every single day.
*recalculate your TDEE and then subtract 300 calories or 20%
If she had been eating 900 calories for 4 years, she would have been losing weight.
Right. I guess I shouldn't be telling her to recalculate things, analyze things logically, just keep cutting back. Glad that trend is coming back. Works SO well.
Take a step back.
We have no idea how much the OP eats. Her diary is closed and she made no mention of how much she eats in the OP.
I understand that a lot of people have the "you're eating too little!" reaction a lot of the time, but reality is that the body can only lower metabolism so much to cope with caloric deficit. No normal-sized adult can eat 900 calories a day long term without losing weight. Period, end of story. No matter how much "dieting" they've done, that level of metabolic adaptation just isn't really possible. The best way in the world to calculate your BMR and TDEE is not by using a formula on a web page: it's by using long-term calorie intake and expenditure data and calculating it for yourself from your own data.
It's obvious to me that this woman is eating too much. If you're still overweight after 4 years of exercising and eating a certain number of calories, then you're just eating too many calories. Maybe she's not weighing her food and actually eating a lot more than she thinks. Maybe she's vastly overestimating calorie burns so she's eating back too many calories. Maybe her calorie goal is just too high to begin with. Maybe she has those "cheat" days a little too often. Maybe she logs for a couple of weeks then stops for a couple of weeks.
We know pretty much nothing about the OP. We have no idea what or how she is eating. She hasn't told us and her diary is closed. Yet somehow we're all arguing over whether she needs to eat more calories or fewer calories.
It's nonsensical. We're arguing over something none of us have any idea about. Let's see if the OP opens her diary.0
Categories
- All Categories
- 1.4M Health, Wellness and Goals
- 393.6K Introduce Yourself
- 43.8K Getting Started
- 260.3K Health and Weight Loss
- 175.9K Food and Nutrition
- 47.5K Recipes
- 232.5K Fitness and Exercise
- 431 Sleep, Mindfulness and Overall Wellness
- 6.5K Goal: Maintaining Weight
- 8.6K Goal: Gaining Weight and Body Building
- 153K Motivation and Support
- 8K Challenges
- 1.3K Debate Club
- 96.3K Chit-Chat
- 2.5K Fun and Games
- 3.8K MyFitnessPal Information
- 24 News and Announcements
- 1.1K Feature Suggestions and Ideas
- 2.6K MyFitnessPal Tech Support Questions