Stopped losing weight, what the heck??

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campuscop2003
campuscop2003 Posts: 2
in Motivation and Support
I started at 322lbs in nov 09, Oct 2010 I was 305 and today weigh 281lbs, I have lost 3 pounds a week about. I eat no more than 1550 (minimum 1500) cals per day and walk about 1 hour per day at work. I started really dieting this past Oct, even though I lost 20lbs over the past year. In the past week since my last weigh in, I have not lost a single pound. I can't understand why my weight loss has stopped. I am happy I lost 25lbs or so , but I am upset it stopped. Getting quite mad about it. My fear is all my past diets have failed when I quit losing weight. I give up and eat like a pig again.My anger if making me feel like dropping cals further to get it going again, however I know thats not healthy. My wife said I hit a plateau. How do I get past that. I know its only been a week of no weight loss, but after losing 3 pounds per week for about 8 weeks, it stopped and I am concerned. Any advice.

Replies

  • clahut
    clahut Posts: 211 Member
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    If it helps - I've been doing this since July and what i have noticed is that I lose weight for a couple of weeks, then nothing for two or three weeks, and repeat! :smile:

    It gets really REALLY frustrating and every time it happens I wonder 'is this it?'. But I keep tracking, make sure I am drinking all my water and maybe change my workout routine/calorie intake for a few days, and my body starts to respond again.

    Stick with it - you can do this :smile:
  • AriesGrl
    AriesGrl Posts: 174 Member
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    I have been doing this for 2 years and have hit many, many plateau...my advice is change up your cal number for 2 weeks...and 150 cals or so...cause believe it or not you need to eat more to lose. Then when you start losign again go back to the 1550...sometimes when you do this for a long period of time your body adjust to the set cal limit. So to kickstart and trick your body again sometimes you need to change it up by 150-200 cals for a few weeks.....hope this is helpful=)
  • danastar
    danastar Posts: 3
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    Clahut, that was a great reply! I've been feeling frustrated too...I've been tracking on MFP for only a few weeks and it seems like, since I've been tracking, I've stopped losing weight!!! You're right though...steady wins the race. Thanks for the encouraging words :0)
  • shawnnshinta
    shawnnshinta Posts: 37 Member
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    ditto!
    don't feel lonely!
    I'm in the same boat. some say the first pounds you loose is water ( whatever that means), which you loose quickly.
    After that though as I was advised here on this forum, is that as long as your " goal pace" is consistant with the time alloted to loose that weight, then your still golden.
    Ex: you want to loose 2lbs per week, but the first 2 wks you lost 6lbs. That means you are 2lbs ahead of your goal pace.

    don't given up because scientifcally if you take in less calories than your body is burning, then you WILL loose the weight.
  • lutzsher
    lutzsher Posts: 1,153 Member
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    At the beginning of the year I wrote my "anticipated" weight on an annual calendar on each Monday, showing a loss of 2 pounds per week. By mid year I was a bit discouraged as I went for 2 weeks without losing anything. I decided to pull out that calendar and see where I thought I "should be". Much to my surprise I was the exact weight that I had hoped I would be!

    Some weeks you lose more, some less, but it all averages out in the end as long as you are doing your due diligence.

    Truthfully, until you haven't seen any loss for about 3 weeks you cannot consider it a plateau so just keep doing what you are doing. Remember as well, you are NOT doing this just for the number on the scale, you are doing this to be healtheir so you can have a longer lifespan!
  • themommie
    themommie Posts: 5,023 Member
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    Dont give up, just stick with it. Change up your calories by 150, change your exercise. just do something different for a week or two, sometimes your body gets used to what you are doing and you just need to change it up , sometimes your body just needs a little time to adjust. This happened to me I was loosing steadily about 2lbs a week , then one week nothing, I didnt change a thing just kept doing what I had been and the following week I lost 5lbs , go figure. Hang in there, the weight will come off
  • mjcrothers
    mjcrothers Posts: 59 Member
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    Thanks for this post. I really needed it this week. I lost 6lb in 3 weeks and was really happy. Those were my first 3 weeks here so I was really excited that I had found something that works for me. But the last 2 weeks I have lost nothing. And so I started getting back into my old habit of thinking that food was bad and the less I ate the better even though I know this is wrong. Then starts the cycle of blood sugar levels getting so low and getting so hungry that I can't think properly and end up eating all the wrong food and too much of it.

    So, to cut the story short, thanks for this post!!
  • dancer3d
    dancer3d Posts: 2
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    What AriesGrl said it correct. I actually read an article in Prevention Magazine that said you really should have 6 days of eating really healthy (right) and 1 day a week you can load and that will keep your body guessing. I've tried it myself and it does work. Best wishes.
  • campuscop2003
    campuscop2003 Posts: 2
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    Thanks for the replies!!! I will try to be patient and get it going again. Gonna be hard though cause I am so stinkin angry that I have not lost an ounce in a week and my habits are the same. I have steam coming out of my ears right now. Hopefully I can kick start it again before I explode.
  • Janworkingitout
    Janworkingitout Posts: 434 Member
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    This is really encouraging advice. I have lost 55 lbs since July, but have not been able to lose a pound in 3 weeks! After the 2nd week of no weight loss I increased my exercising, ate less, still stuck on the same weight!

    It's nice and necessary to be reminded that it's not about the number on the scale, but good health! Thanks for the encouragement!
  • ChellieIrish
    ChellieIrish Posts: 593 Member
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    Well done on your loss so far :drinker: I cannot see your diary but maybe check out some of these threads :wink:

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/6556-the-answers-to-the-questions

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/10589-for-those-confused-or-questioning-eating-your-exercise-calo
  • Janworkingitout
    Janworkingitout Posts: 434 Member
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    Thanks for the links ChellieIrish and your kudos! I just jumped into my fitness pal in July :glasses: without using the tools they give us...I love this program!

    Okay, I figured out my BMR, also read about eating my exercise calories, which I have not been doing. I went over my food diary the last 3 weeks and there was a lot of "under my calorie goal" at the end of the day. I've been so concerned about not overeating during the holidays I have not been eating enough! Starting today I will eat my exercise calories and calorie goal. Thanks again for the links!
  • ChellieIrish
    ChellieIrish Posts: 593 Member
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    Thanks for the links ChellieIrish and your kudos! I just jumped into my fitness pal in July :glasses: without using the tools they give us...I love this program!

    Okay, I figured out my BMR, also read about eating my exercise calories, which I have not been doing. I went over my food diary the last 3 weeks and there was a lot of "under my calorie goal" at the end of the day. I've been so concerned about not overeating during the holidays I have not been eating enough! Starting today I will eat my exercise calories and calorie goal. Thanks again for the links!

    You are so welcome :drinker: Up your cals slowly day by day so your body gets used to the increases :wink:
  • SHBoss1673
    SHBoss1673 Posts: 7,161 Member
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    To me it sounds as if you're taking a bit of a wrong approach to this whole thing. Thinking of this as dieting until you lose enough isn't how you make the changes permanently. People diet and gain, yo-yoing back and fourth for years. Until you make the changes to your lifestyle and stop thinking about it as a diet, the changes will always be temporary. Create goals that aren't weight based, find new activities that you enjoy, things that will keep you active and healthy that you can do daily or weekly and enjoy, so they don't feel like more work.

    For instance, my goals are based around the two mens sports I play, baseball and football. My goals are performance based. Which means they aren't direct measurements of weight or body fat %, but I know that in order to achieve them I need to be in excellent shape. I also have a body fat % goal, which is also not tied to my weight, but is very closely tied to the foods that I eat and the types of exercise I perform. I also am a runner, and I have a goal of a Sub 17 minute 5K within the next year, this is a difficult goal for me, but I have a plan. Once I achieve my goals, I'll set new goals, and on and on. Don't set an endpoint to your weight loss, set goals for your life. Achievements, not weight.
  • Sweet13_Princess
    Sweet13_Princess Posts: 1,207 Member
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    When you hit a plateau, it can be very frustrating. I agree with shifting your calorie amounts or switching your workouts might just be the thing to get you out of this slump. It shocks your body into losing the weight again. I understanding about the yo-yo dieting thing. I do the same thing, give up, when I don't meet my goals. Just keep tellling yourself why you are doing this. Post up your reason where you can see it. Put up a before picture, so you remember why you are doing this. Anything to spark that motivation again. For me, buying new gym shoes helps. Then I need to go and wear them!*LOL*

    Shannon
  • abedocs
    abedocs Posts: 1 Member
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    I stopped losing too for the past couple of weeks. :((

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