Permanent Plateau?!
kayemeh
Posts: 3 Member
For reference, I am 5'2" and 167 pounds.
I have been restricting my calorie intake to 1,200 for a few months now. My biggest downfall is my lack of motivation for exercise. However, I do get some in here and there and hardly ever deviate from my 1,200. My weight WILL NOT budge other than a normal fluctuation of 5 pounds or so. I never go above 168 but have also never been below 163.
I don't eat badly. I eat a balanced diet. I've seen my doctor and my blood work is all normal. I feel like the only way I'm going to drop this weight is to exercise for 2+ hours a day. It's killing my overall motivation because I'm a results driven person.
Anyone in a spot like this? How did you kick yourself out of that plateau.
And happy first post to me
I have been restricting my calorie intake to 1,200 for a few months now. My biggest downfall is my lack of motivation for exercise. However, I do get some in here and there and hardly ever deviate from my 1,200. My weight WILL NOT budge other than a normal fluctuation of 5 pounds or so. I never go above 168 but have also never been below 163.
I don't eat badly. I eat a balanced diet. I've seen my doctor and my blood work is all normal. I feel like the only way I'm going to drop this weight is to exercise for 2+ hours a day. It's killing my overall motivation because I'm a results driven person.
Anyone in a spot like this? How did you kick yourself out of that plateau.
And happy first post to me
0
Replies
-
Can you open your diary?
How do you measure your food?
The other thought is to take a break from dieting for a short period of time and eating at maintainance.0 -
how badly do you want it? Even just some exercise may help.0
-
there is no such thing , the issue is more likely a few things
1. 1200 is prob.too low for your body type, unless you literally sit at a desk drive home and sit on the couch .
2. you have to move .. even if its just parking farther away .. you got to move, nothing will last even if you do lose it if you dont get out and do something ...
3. weighing versus measuring ? or guessing , and approx ???0 -
there is no such thing , the issue is more likely a few things
1. 1200 is prob.too low for your body type, unless you literally sit at a desk drive home and sit on the couch .
2. you have to move .. even if its just parking farther away .. you got to move, nothing will last even if you do lose it if you dont get out and do something ...
3. weighing versus measuring ? or guessing , and approx ???
I normally don't eat things that don't have a calorie count for them. With fruits and vegetables, I approximate.
I guess I am just frustrated because I had a gym membership and was burning between 200-500 calories 6 days a week and still had this problem.
Starting to think that the title of this post should have been "Apparently I have zero clue how to diet properly!"0 -
Almost certainly the lack of exercise isn't the issue and the surplus calories are. It could easily be due to mistakes in recording what you eat. For example, not weighing food or not weighing it properly.
A balanced diet isn't necessarily a calorically appropriate one.0 -
there is no such thing , the issue is more likely a few things
1. 1200 is prob.too low for your body type, unless you literally sit at a desk drive home and sit on the couch .
2. you have to move .. even if its just parking farther away .. you got to move, nothing will last even if you do lose it if you dont get out and do something ...
3. weighing versus measuring ? or guessing , and approx ???
I normally don't eat things that don't have a calorie count for them. With fruits and vegetables, I approximate.
I guess I am just frustrated because I had a gym membership and was burning between 200-500 calories 6 days a week and still had this problem.
I don't know what that means. Do you measure your portions? If so, do weigh or use measuring cups?
Will you open your diary?0 -
there is no such thing , the issue is more likely a few things
1. 1200 is prob.too low for your body type, unless you literally sit at a desk drive home and sit on the couch .
2. you have to move .. even if its just parking farther away .. you got to move, nothing will last even if you do lose it if you dont get out and do something ...
3. weighing versus measuring ? or guessing , and approx ???
I normally don't eat things that don't have a calorie count for them. With fruits and vegetables, I approximate.
I guess I am just frustrated because I had a gym membership and was burning between 200-500 calories 6 days a week and still had this problem.
I don't know what that means. Do you measure your portions? If so, do weigh or use measuring cups?
Will you open your diary?
All the way at the bottom of this page OP, you can make your diary public:
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/account/diary_settings0 -
If you're not losing and you're guessing your calories, then more than likely you're consuming more than you need.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness industry for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition0 -
You're not in a plateau, you're maintaining. To start losing you need to change something. Look at your portion sizes (REALLY look at them), do you count liquid calories, look at any extras you sneak in, do you overestimate activities?
99.9999 times out of a hundred when people complain of a plateau, there is an imbalance between calories in vs calories out. Be honest with yourself and take a long, hard look at where in this equation you are going wrong.
Good luck!
ETA: you absolutely don't need to exercise to lose weight, although it is advisable to do it for your overall health. It's very difficult to outrun a bad diet!0 -
Plateau's generally occur because of what I like to call "calorie creep." It's easy to let your eyes trick you into underestimating your portions, and they have a tendency to slip more and more with time. To combat this, you need to be vigilant about measuring and weighing your food. Weight loss is a simple matter of calories in vs. calories out. If the data you log is not consistent with the results, the data is probably bad.0
-
Plateau's generally occur because of what I like to call "calorie creep." It's easy to let your eyes trick you into underestimating your portions, and they have a tendency to slip more and more with time. To combat this, you need to be vigilant about measuring and weighing your food. Weight loss is a simple matter of calories in vs. calories out. If the data you log is not consistent with the results, the data is probably bad.
I'm definitely thinking this is the issue. I've been estimating and sadly I think I've been vastly underestimating. I think I made my diary public. I haven't logged every day into MFP as religiously as I should be, I've just kept a running mental list I guess. I am beginning to think I'm so comfortable eating the same things over and over that I don't feel the need to log it.. but I'm definitely seeing that I have been maintaining instead of the restricting I thought I had been.
I guess I really haven't been honest with myself - which makes me really thankful that I made this post.0 -
Plateau's generally occur because of what I like to call "calorie creep." It's easy to let your eyes trick you into underestimating your portions, and they have a tendency to slip more and more with time. To combat this, you need to be vigilant about measuring and weighing your food. Weight loss is a simple matter of calories in vs. calories out. If the data you log is not consistent with the results, the data is probably bad.
I'm definitely thinking this is the issue. I've been estimating and sadly I think I've been vastly underestimating. I think I made my diary public. I haven't logged every day into MFP as religiously as I should be, I've just kept a running mental list I guess. I am beginning to think I'm so comfortable eating the same things over and over that I don't feel the need to log it.. but I'm definitely seeing that I have been maintaining instead of the restricting I thought I had been.
I guess I really haven't been honest with myself - which makes me really thankful that I made this post.
Look on the bright side, at least you got it pretty quickly when confronted with the truth. Many people in your position refuse to believe they're eating too much, throw a hissy fit, and rage-quit when told the truth.0 -
There could be two reasons why you feel so drained out.
Maybe you work a lot of hours and it drains all your energy.
Or you could be low on protein.
Protein is the scientific name for strength.
The more protein you have, the stronger you feel.
:explode:0 -
This Plateau thing is confusing the hell out of me. I've always known Plateau to be a good thing.:ohwell:0
-
Being honest with yourself will usually resolve the issue.Plateau's generally occur because of what I like to call "calorie creep." It's easy to let your eyes trick you into underestimating your portions, and they have a tendency to slip more and more with time. To combat this, you need to be vigilant about measuring and weighing your food. Weight loss is a simple matter of calories in vs. calories out. If the data you log is not consistent with the results, the data is probably bad.
I'm definitely thinking this is the issue. I've been estimating and sadly I think I've been vastly underestimating. I think I made my diary public. I haven't logged every day into MFP as religiously as I should be, I've just kept a running mental list I guess. I am beginning to think I'm so comfortable eating the same things over and over that I don't feel the need to log it.. but I'm definitely seeing that I have been maintaining instead of the restricting I thought I had been.
I guess I really haven't been honest with myself - which makes me really thankful that I made this post.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness industry for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition0 -
Wut?:huh:Protein is the scientific name for strength.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness industry for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition0 -
This Plateau thing is confusing the hell out of me. I've always known Plateau to be a good thing.:ohwell:
Why would (temporary) failure to make progress towards a goal be a "good thing"?0 -
We're the exact same height and same weight! I was staying about the same until I started weighing all my food and exercising 3 times/week. I also try to do little things, like drink more water and park further away. I only lose about a pound a week, so I don't lose weight as quickly as I can because I don't always stay under calories and I let myself go over sometimes. But they're right, being accurate is the most important thing.0
-
This Plateau thing is confusing the hell out of me. I've always known Plateau to be a good thing.:ohwell:
Wut?0 -
Plateau's generally occur because of what I like to call "calorie creep." It's easy to let your eyes trick you into underestimating your portions, and they have a tendency to slip more and more with time. To combat this, you need to be vigilant about measuring and weighing your food. Weight loss is a simple matter of calories in vs. calories out. If the data you log is not consistent with the results, the data is probably bad.
I'm definitely thinking this is the issue. I've been estimating and sadly I think I've been vastly underestimating. I think I made my diary public. I haven't logged every day into MFP as religiously as I should be, I've just kept a running mental list I guess. I am beginning to think I'm so comfortable eating the same things over and over that I don't feel the need to log it.. but I'm definitely seeing that I have been maintaining instead of the restricting I thought I had been.
I guess I really haven't been honest with myself - which makes me really thankful that I made this post.
Big step in the right direction there. We humans are amazing at lying to ourselves.0 -
it may be that exercise is more critical for you than for others. it could be that the calories you eat- as low as they are- are the 'maintain' amount for you. I say this as someone who, like you, has a weight that doesn't deviate from within a 3 pound span despite doing massive changes to my diet over the years. I HAVE lost weight twice in my adult life (where i was 'thin' or at least close to my right BMI) and i worked out like a mofo. People say 45 mins, 4 times a week or so should be good- and it IS for most but i had to work out 2 hours daily to cause weight loss. But i do think you should workout with weights and see what happens then.0
-
This Plateau thing is confusing the hell out of me. I've always known Plateau to be a good thing.:ohwell:
Plateau is not the same thing as maintaining.0 -
Plateau's generally occur because of what I like to call "calorie creep." It's easy to let your eyes trick you into underestimating your portions, and they have a tendency to slip more and more with time. To combat this, you need to be vigilant about measuring and weighing your food. Weight loss is a simple matter of calories in vs. calories out. If the data you log is not consistent with the results, the data is probably bad.
I'm definitely thinking this is the issue. I've been estimating and sadly I think I've been vastly underestimating. I think I made my diary public. I haven't logged every day into MFP as religiously as I should be, I've just kept a running mental list I guess. I am beginning to think I'm so comfortable eating the same things over and over that I don't feel the need to log it.. but I'm definitely seeing that I have been maintaining instead of the restricting I thought I had been.
I guess I really haven't been honest with myself - which makes me really thankful that I made this post.
This happened to me in dec/jan and I had to go back in my diary and be honest with myself. I wasn't moving as much and was eating more. Get a digital scale and be careful on the nutritional facts there are some really crazy nutritional facts that people delude themselves into thinking. Like a donut is less than a 100 cals.
Good luck to you and find something you like to do and do it. I love Zumba classes and go a couple times a week also I got a Fitbit which was perfect for me bc I'm a numbers person and love to see how many steps I can get and can I beat those steps the next time. Good luck to you.0
Categories
- All Categories
- 1.4M Health, Wellness and Goals
- 394.1K Introduce Yourself
- 43.9K Getting Started
- 260.4K Health and Weight Loss
- 176.1K Food and Nutrition
- 47.5K Recipes
- 232.6K Fitness and Exercise
- 435 Sleep, Mindfulness and Overall Wellness
- 6.5K Goal: Maintaining Weight
- 8.6K Goal: Gaining Weight and Body Building
- 153.1K Motivation and Support
- 8.1K Challenges
- 1.3K Debate Club
- 96.4K Chit-Chat
- 2.5K Fun and Games
- 3.9K MyFitnessPal Information
- 15 News and Announcements
- 1.2K Feature Suggestions and Ideas
- 2.7K MyFitnessPal Tech Support Questions