How long was your longest plateau?

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  • JerseyGirlinTN
    JerseyGirlinTN Posts: 144 Member
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    Almost 2.5 months and I tried everything - finally I went to my trainer to for help and we looked at what I was eating.

    In this specific case (I hit 3 plateaus of about 4 weeks over a 2 year period), I was having a 12oz can of Coca-Cola a day. It was my single treat and form of caffeine and I allocated calories for it, even coming in under my daily calorie count. However, he was explaining that the sugar was signaling my body to hold on to calories for a few hours and that I was probably "sugar sensitive". Sure enough, I cut Coca-Cola out for two days and started shredding weight again.

    On another plateau I had to start varying my calorie intake daily. Instead of hitting my allotted 1800cal goal for example, I ate 1400 one day, 2100 another day, 1800 the day after - had to start being predictably abnormal on my calories.

    The final plateau was due to workout - my mix of workout and effort had become predictable. I had to start changing things up, add strength training, or take it away. Reverse the order of things, go light to heavy and back and forth.

    The one thing I learned in the 3 years I lost weight was my body was very good adapting and it would equal a plateu - so I was constantly changing things - calorie count, exercise, rest days, types of food. Just keep your body guessing.

    This is interesting! I too am a habit eater - same thing for breakfast, same general things for lunch and dinner. My workouts are always the same too, with the same mix of running, cycling, and lifting, depending on the day.

    Maybe shaking things up a bit would work.
  • tristaj90
    tristaj90 Posts: 330 Member
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    HAHAHAH. I've been on a plateau for 9-10 months. Basically I've gained some weight back and then had a VERY SLOW TIME getting it back down. Still 2 lbs over my lowest weight and still can't break past that plateau...
  • JohnnyResets
    JohnnyResets Posts: 177 Member
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    Oh gee, I gained 12-13 pounds since October and getting it off has been nightmarish... main thing is just to keep plugging away.. maybe try and change up something in your macros... but don't stop....
  • cedman1
    cedman1 Posts: 104 Member
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    Six months and every minute sucked more than the previous.
  • DoubleR_Boss
    DoubleR_Boss Posts: 30
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    A cheat day! (anxiously awaiting Super Bowl for my next one)
  • JerseyGirlinTN
    JerseyGirlinTN Posts: 144 Member
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    Six months and every minute sucked more than the previous.

    I'm sorry to say this, but you just brightened my day. 2 1/2 months seems like nothing compared to 6!!!
  • danahubley
    danahubley Posts: 40 Member
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    Plateau is not an excuse. If you have been fortunate enough not to have had one that's awesome, but do not discount those who are going through one. It can be depressing enough and we should support each other and not criticize. :)
  • Aimee71B
    Aimee71B Posts: 19 Member
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    I to believe I may have hit a plateau. Granted, it's only been a 8 days( might be in panic more ), but this is the 1st week i've not lost 1.8-2.2 pounds per week. I have in the last week increadsed the lenght and endurance of my excercise for the 1st time, so wishful thinking that maybe its just a bit of muscle gain. I've found that in the last 2.5 months my calorie consumption before excercise is 1000-1100 and feeling very satisfied and full.
  • danahubley
    danahubley Posts: 40 Member
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    1000 - 1100 is likely too low, especially with exercise. Perhaps you need to increase your calorie intake to 1200 - 1300 to avoid your body thinking its starving.
  • bellevie86
    bellevie86 Posts: 301 Member
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    Plateau does not always mean you are just eating at your maintenance. I know this because currently I'm at my second in the last few months. They have never lasted longer than a week and a half. My maintenance is very high, so I can say with certainty that I am NOT eating 2400 cals a day. I weigh everything, measure everything, pack dinners for my job, etc. I log everything, and I have been successful for the last 5 months eating at 2 different levels, 1500 & 1750. Last year I also lost 30 pounds successfully with the exact same behaviors. Now that I am at 10-15 pounds out from my goal weight and normal BMI level I am having an issue with this small plateau. I say I have a high maintenance because I'm a server who is on her feet 6-7 hours a day, sometimes ran off my feet. I also do Focus T25 5-6 days a week with added cardio sessions spread throughout the week and am just plain active all day. Am considering upping cals to the TDEE recommended 10-15% deficit, figure i'll just go in the middle at 12% since the 15% is for 20 pound loss, and I want 12-15 pounds still off. I find it frustrating that some people tell people that are dealing with plateaus that they're not real, despite some of these people having been successful already in losing 40+ pounds. :mad:
  • Duck_Puddle
    Duck_Puddle Posts: 3,224 Member
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    Somewhere between 6 and 8 months. But it wasn't a "plateau", I was eating at maintenance (because I wasn't weighing food). My plateau magically cleared when what I was logging as intake matched what I was actually eating. Not implying that's your issue-just sharing my mistake.
  • kingscrown
    kingscrown Posts: 615 Member
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    I'm on a one year plateau. When I really tighten up my diet I move down, but I'm just not in the mood to really tighten it up.
  • ruthrowlett1
    ruthrowlett1 Posts: 82 Member
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    I weighed 164 in October and now I battle between 161 - 162.5 I'm going to up my calories and try to get it shocked back into gear! I do a lot of cardio and weighs atleast 2 days per week. Also thinking I should add another weight day. I logged 90% so if you look at my diary it isn't accurate some days! That is my 2nd goal to be better at logging every bite! Those add up and I'm sure those extras add up to eating more than you thought!!!

    Good luck all and any advice on what you did to overcome the plateau is helpful!!
  • doIlhands
    doIlhands Posts: 349 Member
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    I've been bouncing between 158-162 for the past 2 months. To be fair though, i've been slacking on the logging... >_>
  • ruthrowlett1
    ruthrowlett1 Posts: 82 Member
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    A cheat day! (anxiously awaiting Super Bowl for my next one)

    GOOD day for me to have a cheat day also!!!
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,372 Member
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    Plateau does not always mean you are just eating at your maintenance. I know this because currently I'm at my second in the last few months. They have never lasted longer than a week and a half.

    That's not a plateau. A plateau is 6 weeks of no weight loss.

    The only way to get out of a plateau is to have an appropriate goal, and to clean up your logging. That's it. Most people who have 'plateaus' don't weigh their food, don't log everything, don't log properly, or eat too little (I don't really get the last one, but I've seen it happen).
  • deedzzz
    deedzzz Posts: 220 Member
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    5 months!!! :)
    Then i dropped 10 lbs out of nowhere
  • diannethegeek
    diannethegeek Posts: 14,776 Member
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    I spent two months gaining and losing the same pound. A lot of the things that had been working for me when I was 215 pounds stopped working as I lost weight. It was frustrating and I had a hard time figuring out what I was doing wrong since everything had "worked before" (I wasn't on MFP at the time so I didn't have the information on these forums). I double-checked my goals, got more accurate with my logging, cut back on cheat days, started eating a little more throughout the week (I was lethargic and moody at 1300 calories, phoning in my workouts and moving less at home and work), and accepted that two pounds a week was no longer going to happen.
  • Mr_Knight
    Mr_Knight Posts: 9,532 Member
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    Longest actual plateau was less than a week.

    But I am a meticulous logger and dedicated exerciser. And I'm only now getting down to the "20 lbs to go" stage, which also makes a difference.
  • TheEffort
    TheEffort Posts: 1,028 Member
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    My longest was a month.

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