The best way to shock my body past the plateau?
Corystormy
Posts: 13 Member
I feel like I have been stuck at this point for ever. From your past experience what is the best way to get through/past the plateau? I have increased my weights, increased my days, changed exercises and machines. And the best I have seen is a 1 pound loss. My measurements have gone down, 13.5" total loss in 5 months.
Any suggestions?
Any suggestions?
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Replies
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In my experience it's more about what you eat than what exercise you do. Look to see if you are sticking to your calorie goals and the quality of the food you eat too.0
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Measurements are much better than the scale - 13.5" total loss is amazing. For a plateau, I increase the lean protein, decrease the carbs, and log really carefully. Keep up the exercise. I saw a photo in the Paleo Coach book that really struck me. Here's the link: http://everydaypaleo.com/attention-scale-addicts-part-2/. She looks so different, but her weight is the same. Good luck - you're doing great.0
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Eating more can help, too. I've tried it myself and seen others suggest it here. Either increase your daily calories if you're close to your goal, or eat maintenance for a day or two.0
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I feel like I have been stuck at this point for ever. From your past experience what is the best way to get through/past the plateau? I have increased my weights, increased my days, changed exercises and machines. And the best I have seen is a 1 pound loss. My measurements have gone down, 13.5" total loss in 5 months.
Any suggestions?
First, is it really a plateau? How long have you been "stuck"?
Second, after switching up your exercise routine, how long did you stick with it before changing it up again?0 -
When I've hit a plateau, I have actually increased my calories by 150 and started dropping weight again the next day. Don't ask me about science because I know nothing about it. All I know is that is what worked for me.0
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Hard to tell what's going on without seeing your diary, but in my experience a plateau usually means that you are eating at a deficit that is too high and need to up your calories. I started eating at 1200 calories and plateaued quickly. I upped to 1600 calories and lost a bunch of weight
then plateaued again. I just upped even more to 1900 calories and started losing right away.
Calculate your TDEE and subtract 20%. Any more than that is too big a deficit and although you may lose initially... you will eventually plateau again. Would love to help you as I have been here many times and know the frustration!0 -
If your measurements keep going down, what's the problem?I feel like I have been stuck at this point for ever. From your past experience what is the best way to get through/past the plateau? I have increased my weights, increased my days, changed exercises and machines. And the best I have seen is a 1 pound loss. My measurements have gone down, 13.5" total loss in 5 months.
Any suggestions?0 -
If your measurements keep going down, what's the problem?I feel like I have been stuck at this point for ever. From your past experience what is the best way to get through/past the plateau? I have increased my weights, increased my days, changed exercises and machines. And the best I have seen is a 1 pound loss. My measurements have gone down, 13.5" total loss in 5 months.
Any suggestions?
^ This. Honestly, I'm wondering how a loss of only 1 pound but an amazing 13.5 inches is even possible given the amount of muscle mass increase vs. fat loss that must take. I'd be beyond excited.
That said, if you want help please answer these questions. How much do you weight? How many calories are you consuming? What is your exercise program look like? How consistent with it all are you?0 -
^answering this would be helpful. Also, I think she means she's only losing a lb a week, not 13.5 inches per pound.
If your measurements keep going down, what's the problem?I feel like I have been stuck at this point for ever. From your past experience what is the best way to get through/past the plateau? I have increased my weights, increased my days, changed exercises and machines. And the best I have seen is a 1 pound loss. My measurements have gone down, 13.5" total loss in 5 months.
Any suggestions?
^ This. Honestly, I'm wondering how a loss of only 1 pound but an amazing 13.5 inches is even possible given the amount of muscle mass increase vs. fat loss that must take. I'd be beyond excited.
That said, if you want help please answer these questions. How much do you weight? How many calories are you consuming? What is your exercise program look like? How consistent with it all are you?0 -
Try to find a SAUNA.... i heard that a sauna can help jump start the plateau process. i'm starting to hit a plateau right now and i'm going to hit the SAUNA today.0
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^answering this would be helpful. Also, I think she means she's only losing a lb a week, not 13.5 inches per pound.
If your measurements keep going down, what's the problem?I feel like I have been stuck at this point for ever. From your past experience what is the best way to get through/past the plateau? I have increased my weights, increased my days, changed exercises and machines. And the best I have seen is a 1 pound loss. My measurements have gone down, 13.5" total loss in 5 months.
Any suggestions?
^ This. Honestly, I'm wondering how a loss of only 1 pound but an amazing 13.5 inches is even possible given the amount of muscle mass increase vs. fat loss that must take. I'd be beyond excited.
That said, if you want help please answer these questions. How much do you weight? How many calories are you consuming? What is your exercise program look like? How consistent with it all are you?
I see your point.
In that case, OP, you are doing everything right except that you need to adjust your mindset to accepting a wonderfully steady and slow loss rate. Carry on!0 -
Ok weight is currently 197#. 37 y old female. My loss is since February with the weight and the inches. Exercise program consists of 5-6x per week. Cardio every day about 30 min ( any combo of the elliptical, bike, treadmill). Weights M-legs, T- arms, W- just cardio, Th- Legs, F-arms., and every day abs, If I do a 6th day it is just cardio like zumba or yoga. This week I alternated the days with 2 heavy lifting days and 2 heavy rep days. I am a student and have increased my exercise days from 3-4 days a week to 5-6 since June, now that school is out for the summer.
TDEE is 2772, after -20% is 2217. My MFP calories are set at 1200, and I try to eat back my calories. Although I do find it hard a lot of time to reach the min. My diary is open I think. I try to eat a lot of protein (every meal) and not so much carbs, and lots of fruits and vegetables. I am still a bit confused with the TDEE numbers. I feel like that is way too many calories.
Hope this gives a bit more insight.
And I have been stuck at this weight for a few weeks now.0 -
Ok weight is currently 197#. 37 y old female. My loss is since February with the weight and the inches. Exercise program consists of 5-6x per week. Cardio every day about 30 min ( any combo of the elliptical, bike, treadmill). Weights M-legs, T- arms, W- just cardio, Th- Legs, F-arms., and every day abs, If I do a 6th day it is just cardio like zumba or yoga. This week I alternated the days with 2 heavy lifting days and 2 heavy rep days. I am a student and have increased my exercise days from 3-4 days a week to 5-6 since June, now that school is out for the summer.
TDEE is 2772, after -20% is 2217. My MFP calories are set at 1200, and I try to eat back my calories. Although I do find it hard a lot of time to reach the min. My diary is open I think. I try to eat a lot of protein (every meal) and not so much carbs, and lots of fruits and vegetables. I am still a bit confused with the TDEE numbers. I feel like that is way too many calories.
Hope this gives a bit more insight.
And I have been stuck at this weight for a few weeks now.
If you have been stuck for a few weeks, it is not a plateau.
ETA: If you have increased the days of working out, you might not see any change on the scale.0 -
Ok weight is currently 197#. 37 y old female. My loss is since February with the weight and the inches. Exercise program consists of 5-6x per week. Cardio every day about 30 min ( any combo of the elliptical, bike, treadmill). Weights M-legs, T- arms, W- just cardio, Th- Legs, F-arms., and every day abs, If I do a 6th day it is just cardio like zumba or yoga. This week I alternated the days with 2 heavy lifting days and 2 heavy rep days. I am a student and have increased my exercise days from 3-4 days a week to 5-6 since June, now that school is out for the summer.
TDEE is 2772, after -20% is 2217. My MFP calories are set at 1200, and I try to eat back my calories. Although I do find it hard a lot of time to reach the min. My diary is open I think. I try to eat a lot of protein (every meal) and not so much carbs, and lots of fruits and vegetables. I am still a bit confused with the TDEE numbers. I feel like that is way too many calories.
Hope this gives a bit more insight.
And I have been stuck at this weight for a few weeks now.
If you have been stuck for a few weeks, it is not a plateau.
ETA: If you have increased the days of working out, you might not see any change on the scale.
Agreed. Diet is much more important than increasing your workouts and too much working out can be counterproductive to long term success.
You have lost 1 pound since February or 1 pound in a "few weeks"? I'm inclined to say that you are not on a plateau as you've lost a considerable number of inches and you will have short periods of a few weeks with minimal weight loss. That said, are you weighing and measuring your food? Your diary is not open, by the way.0 -
1# is since May. And yes I am weighing and measuring. Also, I only measured the other day and those inches lost are since I measured in February. I will see about the food diary again.0
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I'm even more confused now. You say your TDEE-20% is around 2200 calories, then why is your goal set to 1200? And you're not even eating that much? And if you've lost 13.5" (from where?) then there's no plateau. That's a lot of size (I assume from your waist?).0
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for me, when I hit a plateau I take a couple of days 'off' and eat and drink what I want, I may have a small gain that week but it seems to kick start my loss for the next few weeks.
When I hit a plateau and i try to be extra good my weight loss seems to stop completely for some reason and recently when I was at slimming world, I ate only salads and fruit which were 'free' and didnt eat any 'syns' for 10 days and put on 3lb! I lost my motivation after that.
Some people may not like to take days off, but it works for me.
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Also confused.I'm even more confused now. You say your TDEE-20% is around 2200 calories, then why is your goal set to 1200? And you're not even eating that much? And if you've lost 13.5" (from where?) then there's no plateau. That's a lot of size (I assume from your waist?).0 -
inches lost is total body. arms, chest, waist, hips, thighs.
And I don't understand the TDEE. I just go with what MFP gave me and try to eat back my exercise calories, but with all the water I drink it gets hard and Im just not that hungry. I just read about the nut and coconut butter combo for adding calories at the end of the day. I may have to add more nuts to bring up my calories.0 -
A refeed or simply eat at maintenance for a couple of days0
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My problem was that I lost the 17 lbs then couldn't seem to lose any more. I upped my calorie intake but I gained three lbs. I am still eating less than the 1200 so that could be my problem. If you are losing inches you should be happy, the weight loss will catch up soon enough 0
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Start logging again more consistently.0
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A plateau is a complete lack of change after a certain point. If you lost 13.5 inches over five months, you're not plateauing. If you had only lost one pound and virtually no measurement change after five months, that would be closer to a plateau.
Reevaluate your goals--a number on the scale, or reduced body fat %?0 -
Fast for 36 hours.0
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Leangains.com
It worked WONDERS for me.0 -
Ok weight is currently 197#. 37 y old female. My loss is since February with the weight and the inches. Exercise program consists of 5-6x per week. Cardio every day about 30 min ( any combo of the elliptical, bike, treadmill). Weights M-legs, T- arms, W- just cardio, Th- Legs, F-arms., and every day abs, If I do a 6th day it is just cardio like zumba or yoga. This week I alternated the days with 2 heavy lifting days and 2 heavy rep days. I am a student and have increased my exercise days from 3-4 days a week to 5-6 since June, now that school is out for the summer.
TDEE is 2772, after -20% is 2217. My MFP calories are set at 1200, and I try to eat back my calories. Although I do find it hard a lot of time to reach the min. My diary is open I think. I try to eat a lot of protein (every meal) and not so much carbs, and lots of fruits and vegetables. I am still a bit confused with the TDEE numbers. I feel like that is way too many calories.
Hope this gives a bit more insight.
And I have been stuck at this weight for a few weeks now.
So now you are aware of what could be possible.
You feel this is way too many calories compared to what exactly? The 1200 you have been netting, which really turns in to how much actually eaten daily when you eat back?
And if these are the only numbers you've known, the 1200, should compare it to what you used to eat.
Your inches lost but not weight does show you are not in a plateau, but you may be eating a whole lot closer to TDEE than you think.
So that potential TDEE is based on no slowed metabolism, and avg ratio of fat mass to non-fat mass (LBM).
If you've been bad and badly undereating, you may have much less muscle mass, therefore LBM, than expected, and your TDEE is in reality lower.
You can also suppress it.
For instance, that much cardio may mean you are very fit, good VO2max. But if using the cheaper Polar HRM's with no VO2max stat, it's assuming bad BMI is bad VO2max - which could be bad assumption.
So you actually could be burning more than you think if that's the case.0 -
Ok weight is currently 197#. 37 y old female. My loss is since February with the weight and the inches. Exercise program consists of 5-6x per week. Cardio every day about 30 min ( any combo of the elliptical, bike, treadmill). Weights M-legs, T- arms, W- just cardio, Th- Legs, F-arms., and every day abs, If I do a 6th day it is just cardio like zumba or yoga. This week I alternated the days with 2 heavy lifting days and 2 heavy rep days. I am a student and have increased my exercise days from 3-4 days a week to 5-6 since June, now that school is out for the summer.
TDEE is 2772, after -20% is 2217. My MFP calories are set at 1200, and I try to eat back my calories. Although I do find it hard a lot of time to reach the min. My diary is open I think. I try to eat a lot of protein (every meal) and not so much carbs, and lots of fruits and vegetables. I am still a bit confused with the TDEE numbers. I feel like that is way too many calories.
Hope this gives a bit more insight.
And I have been stuck at this weight for a few weeks now.
Here is my advice:
1. I would work less muscle groups on individual days instead of dividing it by arms/legs. Try giving more attention to individual muscle groups like..Monday: Biceps/triceps/shoulders Tuesday: quads & Hamstrings Wednesday: Chest/Back Thursday: Adductor/abductors and glutes Friday: you could do a hike and focus on stretching
The more I split up my muscle groups, the more I lose weight, gain muscle, and its when my body looks best overall. Many on this forum swear you can only lose weight or build muscle, but thats never been the case for me.
Another thing to consider is if you are not losing weight, it could be because you are gaining muscle, which weighs more than fat, so sometimes its not necessarily a bad thing and inches are a much better indicator of your process.
Oh and 1200 calories seems way too low, but your TDEE does sound high. I would add 200-500 more calories and see if it helps.0 -
I feel like I have been stuck at this point for ever. From your past experience what is the best way to get through/past the plateau? I have increased my weights, increased my days, changed exercises and machines. And the best I have seen is a 1 pound loss. My measurements have gone down, 13.5" total loss in 5 months.
Any suggestions?
If you're lifting weights and eating to support that, you are gaining muscle mass. Muscle is more dense than fat, thus it takes a lot more fat loss to happen to see the scales go down than it would if you weren't lifting.
You said it yourself, your measurements are down, which can only mean that you've lost fat tissue.0 -
Bump.0
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Ok weight is currently 197#. 37 y old female. My loss is since February with the weight and the inches. Exercise program consists of 5-6x per week. Cardio every day about 30 min ( any combo of the elliptical, bike, treadmill). Weights M-legs, T- arms, W- just cardio, Th- Legs, F-arms., and every day abs, If I do a 6th day it is just cardio like zumba or yoga. This week I alternated the days with 2 heavy lifting days and 2 heavy rep days. I am a student and have increased my exercise days from 3-4 days a week to 5-6 since June, now that school is out for the summer.
TDEE is 2772, after -20% is 2217. My MFP calories are set at 1200, and I try to eat back my calories. Although I do find it hard a lot of time to reach the min. My diary is open I think. I try to eat a lot of protein (every meal) and not so much carbs, and lots of fruits and vegetables. I am still a bit confused with the TDEE numbers. I feel like that is way too many calories.
Hope this gives a bit more insight.
And I have been stuck at this weight for a few weeks now.
Here is my advice:
1. I would work less muscle groups on individual days instead of dividing it by arms/legs. Try giving more attention to individual muscle groups like..Monday: Biceps/triceps/shoulders Tuesday: quads & Hamstrings Wednesday: Chest/Back Thursday: Adductor/abductors and glutes Friday: you could do a hike and focus on stretching
The more I split up my muscle groups, the more I lose weight, gain muscle, and its when my body looks best overall. Many on this forum swear you can only lose weight or build muscle, but thats never been the case for me.
Another thing to consider is if you are not losing weight, it could be because you are gaining muscle, which weighs more than fat, so sometimes its not necessarily a bad thing and inches are a much better indicator of your process.
Oh and 1200 calories seems way too low, but your TDEE does sound high. I would add 200-500 more calories and see if it helps.
ok, so I add the 200-500 to my daily 1200, before the exercise calories are added in? My daily calories would be about 1500 + exercise calories?0
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