Breaking a plateau, small losses add up

JennOnTheRocks
JennOnTheRocks Posts: 112
in Success Stories
I have been "stuck" in the 230's for some time. A friend told me that maybe I just needed a good binge to break my plateau. Then she added that is she only lost 6 lbs one month she would give up. I opted to distance myself from this so called "friend". This is my last 30 days on MFP.

6lbs_zps86dab19a.png

I lost a pound and then hovered at 235-236 for several weeks. I won't lie, it was frustrating but I chose to trust the process, it hasn't failed me. Then one day, BAM I broke that plateau.

What I am trying to say is ...Don't let stalls get you down. They happen. The most important thing is how YOU handle them. Plus, the next time you get down about only losing 6 lbs one month I want you to multiple that by 12. Those 6 lbs may not seem like much today but at the end of the year those 6 lbs add up to almost 100 lbs.

TRUST THE PROCESS

Replies

  • tarotlou
    tarotlou Posts: 47
    I needed to see this today I felt like throwing the scales out the window, I have only just joined MFP but for two months before I was walking on average 8 miles a day, I put in what I weighed 2 months ago thinking that when I do my first weigh in I will have lost loads and I have lost 7lbs, I thought what's the point then I read your article and this has spured me on and with rational thinking I have only been counting calories for one week. Thank you for your insight and advice :)
  • JennOnTheRocks
    JennOnTheRocks Posts: 112
    I needed to see this today I felt like throwing the scales out the window, I have only just joined MFP but for two months before I was walking on average 8 miles a day, I put in what I weighed 2 months ago thinking that when I do my first weigh in I will have lost loads and I have lost 7lbs, I thought what's the point then I read your article and this has spured me on and with rational thinking I have only been counting calories for one week. Thank you for your insight and advice :)


    I am so glad I could help!!

    Don't forget inches too! Sometimes the scale doesn't move but the measuring tape does! Congrats on the 7 lbs! That is 7lbs GONE and that number will only grow while you shrink! :)
  • godsgrl33
    godsgrl33 Posts: 307 Member
    By what I can see, you weighed yourself every other day and recorded it. I would only record the weight every week or so. It is discouraging the way you did it, but think about it. You've lost 6 lb. in a month's time. That is good! That's a pound and a half per week! You should be proud of yourself.
  • MyJourney1960
    MyJourney1960 Posts: 1,133 Member
    glad you distanced yourself from your "friend". I think we tend to be our own worst enemies at times and we certainly don't need the "dysfunctional voice" to come from a "friend".

    I agree that 6 lb in one month is awesome! no , it's not 100 lbs, or 25 lbs, but it's 6 lbs less than you were a month a go and that is awesomeness!

    and you are so right - 6 lb a month adds up to 72 lbs a YEAR. now how awesome would THAT be!

    Thank you for posting this - I am just starting out (well, i've *started* many diets before but for some reason i feel really good about this one!) - i really need the motivation.
  • onwarddownward
    onwarddownward Posts: 1,683 Member
    I weigh in every other day or do, except for period days. I measure once a week and I take progress photos every couple of weeks.

    There are people I can trust for advice (mostly MFP'ers who have lost and are maintaining) but I use my commonsense to judge what I'm being told, or I research it.

    There's a lot of misinformation out there because so many people have read this or that and weight loss/fitness is riddled with myths, half truths and outright lies.

    The truth is simple. Eat less, move more.
  • JennOnTheRocks
    JennOnTheRocks Posts: 112
    By what I can see, you weighed yourself every other day and recorded it. I would only record the weight every week or so. It is discouraging the way you did it, but think about it. You've lost 6 lb. in a month's time. That is good! That's a pound and a half per week! You should be proud of yourself.

    I weigh in every other day, just to keep my body in check. I don't base my success off the scale, not on a daily or even weekly basis. It is just a gauge to see what is working, or not, for me.
  • JennOnTheRocks
    JennOnTheRocks Posts: 112
    I weigh in every other day or do, except for period days. I measure once a week and I take progress photos every couple of weeks.

    There are people I can trust for advice (mostly MFP'ers who have lost and are maintaining) but I use my commonsense to judge what I'm being told, or I research it.

    There's a lot of misinformation out there because so many people have read this or that and weight loss/fitness is riddled with myths, half truths and outright lies.

    The truth is simple. Eat less, move more.

    I agree with you 110%. :)
  • JennOnTheRocks
    JennOnTheRocks Posts: 112
    glad you distanced yourself from your "friend". I think we tend to be our own worst enemies at times and we certainly don't need the "dysfunctional voice" to come from a "friend".

    I agree that 6 lb in one month is awesome! no , it's not 100 lbs, or 25 lbs, but it's 6 lbs less than you were a month a go and that is awesomeness!

    and you are so right - 6 lb a month adds up to 72 lbs a YEAR. now how awesome would THAT be!

    Thank you for posting this - I am just starting out (well, i've *started* many diets before but for some reason i feel really good about this one!) - i really need the motivation.

    Thank you and congrats on taking that first step! You don't have to be great to start but you do have to start to be great. :)
  • dortilolma
    dortilolma Posts: 103 Member
    Thank you for posting this!

    Last week I almost gave up. I'd hit my plateau and the scales would not budge for weeks, then on Wednesday, despite low calories intake and exercise I'd put on 2 pounds and I was ready to throw in the towel.

    It must have been an anomaly because the following day those two pounds were gone plus one more!

    So yes, just keep at it and eventually the inches and pounds will fall away.
  • triinityz
    triinityz Posts: 146 Member
    6 pounds a month? I WISH! I plateau about every 5 pounds, some times for MONTHS. Never give up, because if you are stuck at least you aren't gaining! Though it is frustrating as heck! :explode:
  • Jennifer10723
    Jennifer10723 Posts: 374 Member
    I agree! 6 pounds a month is great!!!

    Weight loss isn't easy. It is such a mental game as much as it is diet and exercise. The trick is to not let your mind get the best of you. lol. I get frustrated when people say calories in vs calories out. It really isn't that simple. There are so many factors.
  • lillisag
    lillisag Posts: 15 Member
    The smaller you get the harder it is to lose the weight. YOU ARE DOING GREAT!!!

    Sometimes a plateau is only a measure of water retention and cutting back on salt will help.
    Next time try to drink lots of water and cut back on salt :flowerforyou:
  • kathyszoo
    kathyszoo Posts: 311 Member
    Jenn-You are so right that you have to trust the process!. I started out last June at 240 and after one year I've lost and more importantly kept off 50 lbs! This last plateau I hit was so discouraging for me that I was ready to throw in the towel but then realized even though the scales weren't budging, I had lost quite a few inches and have dropped more than 2 sizes! Until I found MFP, I have never lost this much weight and am excited to continue this path towards much better health!
  • kateauch
    kateauch Posts: 195 Member
    Bump- thanks for this!!

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