plateaued, calorie cycling.

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  • LiannaMC89
    LiannaMC89 Posts: 25 Member
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    Congratulations on your progress so far! There is a metabolic limit to how much energy can be drawn from fat daily. It's 30 cal/lb fat, so it is really helpful to know your BF% and your total pounds fat. When your calorie deficit is greater that what can be drawn from fat, the body has no choice but to extract what it needs from lean mass. :((

    When you were 30 pounds heavier, your fat could give you 900 More kcal/day than it can now. At your new lighter weight, you have less margin for error and can tolerate less deficit safely. Sparing muscle is the primary reason people intentionally slow their weight loss as they become more lean.

    Many people advise adding slowly, upping intake 100 kcal daily and holding that 2 weeks before upping it another 100 kcal daily. It's less than 1oz almonds/day, and I've never had a problem adding 100 kcal. I have done this following a few weeks at a big caloric deficit, and I didn't gain. I kept losing in that annoying scale-stuck-3weeks-then-whoosh way. Others recommend eating at maintenance a couple weeks. I have not tried this approach, but some seem to really appreciate eating more. You're doing great. Good luck.
    Thank you!! I'm definitely going to add in nuts!
  • mi2mina
    mi2mina Posts: 24 Member
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    i was at 215 about 2 years ago my lowest weight was 178 and now im at 187 i have been able to maintain between holidays xmas thanksgiving between 184-188 for a year and havent been able to get out of that cycle ...i do boot camp twice a week but recently....went back to calorie counting ....its the most efficient for weightloss. and i have more control. then having eating habits out of control...so hopfully this time around i can actually get to 175 by october .. good luck...oh yea try HIT training , hight intensity training get your heart pumping quick...its mostly about the after burn....
  • Kitteneyes01
    Kitteneyes01 Posts: 125
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    Also, something I forgot to mention, not sure if it's in your link, you can also try drinking 100% fruit juice. Half a cup counts as one serving of fruit, and some are high calorie. A glas can have up to 250! If I can't meet my calories through food (which is very rare, like only when I have stomach flu or something) I drink fruit juice. Dried fruit also rocks that calorie boat! Just don't go eating a whole jar of Nutella like I do sometimes...or 6 ounces of cheese with honey over it. Lol you know, unless you have LOTS of calories to spare. :bigsmile:
  • Kitteneyes01
    Kitteneyes01 Posts: 125
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    i was at 215 about 2 years ago my lowest weight was 178 and now im at 187 i have been able to maintain between holidays xmas thanksgiving between 184-188 for a year and havent been able to get out of that cycle ...i do boot camp twice a week but recently....went back to calorie counting ....its the most efficient for weightloss. and i have more control. then having eating habits out of control...so hopfully this time around i can actually get to 175 by october .. good luck...oh yea try HIT training , hight intensity training get your heart pumping quick...its mostly about the after burn....

    Haha! For someone as out of shape like me, someone who can't even handle one regular push up (which is what you get for losing solely through diet and not doing strenght for 4 years btw), this is a bad idea, so I'll stick to calorie cycling :bigsmile: for now... Hehehe
  • LiannaMC89
    LiannaMC89 Posts: 25 Member
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    i was at 215 about 2 years ago my lowest weight was 178 and now im at 187 i have been able to maintain between holidays xmas thanksgiving between 184-188 for a year and havent been able to get out of that cycle ...i do boot camp twice a week but recently....went back to calorie counting ....its the most efficient for weightloss. and i have more control. then having eating habits out of control...so hopfully this time around i can actually get to 175 by october .. good luck...oh yea try HIT training , hight intensity training get your heart pumping quick...its mostly about the after burn....
    I dropped from 210 since i went pescatarian a little over a year ago along with cardio and weights. Then i got lazy, high stress, popped back up to 190, then dropped to 181, and now im stuck between that and 183. I was looking into HIIT too, just trying to figure out what routine i wanna try:)
    Also, something I forgot to mention, not sure if it's in your link, you can also try drinking 100% fruit juice. Half a cup counts as one serving of fruit, and some are high calorie. A glas can have up to 250! If I can't meet my calories through food (which is very rare, like only when I have stomach flu or something) I drink fruit juice. Dried fruit also rocks that calorie boat! Just don't go eating a whole jar of Nutella like I do sometimes...or 6 ounces of cheese with honey over it. Lol you know, unless you have LOTS of calories to spare.:bigsmile:
    True, lately i've been a waterholic, thats all i want due to the "lovely southern california weather" :laugh:
  • SnazzIT
    SnazzIT Posts: 215 Member
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    What worked for me was intermittent fasting -- I guess this could be seen as a more extreme version of calorie cycling. After reading about some of the benefits of fasting and being stuck bouncing back between the same two lbs for 6 weeks (despite sizable weekly deficits), I thought I'd give it a try -- a new way to create those weekly deficits. I tried the 5:2 plan and after the first week, the scale started moving again. I'm not sure if it was just coincidental timing of a release of water weight or what, but it did get the scale moving again and I found a better way for me to create that weekly caloric deficit. I found IFing to be very manageable and that was a big surprise for me.

    Yep, I did a three day water only fast to boost a change on my scale (which worked), and again have found my weight almost at a stand still for the last three weeks so I have started green juice fasting, and water today (and for the next 4 days) to give me another boost.
  • needsalife3
    needsalife3 Posts: 56 Member
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    I tried calorie cycling but my metabolism is just too slow. I have to eat 1200 cal a day without adding back exercise. To break an 8 month plateau I changed up my exercise. Not longer, not harder, just different. Good luck.
  • lindsey1979
    lindsey1979 Posts: 2,395 Member
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    For HIIT, look into hill sprints. Some of the best HIIT out there and really gets quite a work out.

    http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/par46.htm
    http://www.poliquingroup.com/ArticlesMultimedia/Articles/Article/989/Eight_Reasons_Everyone_Should_Do_Sprints.aspx
  • amys31
    amys31 Posts: 108 Member
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    I have a suggestion..as I have fallen into the media and MFT trap of starvation mode. First off....research starvation mode and you will see that it is extremely difficult to get into starvation mode...do the research dont trust me or the media. Secondly I have been maintaining my weight and eating what I am supposedly supposed to eat given my activity bla bla...haven't lost a bit!!!! Hmmm interesting right?! So I cut back and started calorie cycling...guess what Im not hungry and I lost 13 lbs. If you have questions friend me..Ive been researching this for many years and am in the fitness industry. I am willing to pay it forward free of charge, because I know frustration!

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