Does anyone else think this about plateauing?

2

Replies

  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,876 Member
    Maybe with 14 Lbs to go you should set a more reasonable calorie goal...with 14 Lbs to lose, you really shouldn't be trying to drop 2 Lbs per week.
  • yopeeps025
    yopeeps025 Posts: 8,680 Member
    If you are always in calorie deficit there is not such thing as a plateau. If you always change up there workout routine with always calorie deficit your body cannot get used to it.
  • seltzermint555
    seltzermint555 Posts: 10,742 Member
    im wondering, you say you are not sure if you can do this another month, but how do you expect the rest of your life to continue after youve reached your goal? you wont be able to go back to your old eating habits - ever, if you want to keep your goal weight.

    its not just something you need to do for a month, its something you need to do for a lifetime, so if you are having trouble with the restrictions youve put upon yourself then you need to alter your "program" so it becomes something you can live with longterm.

    I agree with this. I wanted to come back and respond after your second post in this thread, OP, but I wasn't sure how to word my opinion and this poster above did it perfectly.

    When I was still in the zone of 30+ pounds I wanted to lose, 1.5/week was ideal and pretty comfortable. Now I've had to move down to 1 lb per week and I'm having more success with that and it's so much easier. Of course our calorie goals may differ widely based on things like gender, h/w, activity...but for me, 1.5 lb per week would have meant about 1300 cal/day and 1 lb per week is over 1400 cal/day (before exercise)...doesn't sound like a huge difference but it feels like it.
  • Wookinpanub
    Wookinpanub Posts: 635 Member
    Thanks everyone. I like using other objects to compare the weight I have lost. If I pick up a 45 lb dumbbell which about what I have lost, that dumbbell is HEAVY!

    A lot of people said I need to continue this for a life time. I have just been killing it in the gym lately and pushing myself which feels great but I certainly can't do this much more let alone a life time. Once I hit my goal I was going to cut back a little on the intensity of my workouts
  • Wookinpanub
    Wookinpanub Posts: 635 Member
    Thanks...do you see anything wrong with being aggressive (low cal + some intermittent fasting) and pushing myself on the workouts so I am losing 2-3 lbs a week until I hit my goal of 195 then cutting back some and aiming for the .5 lbs/week for a while? I wouldn't mind getting to 190-185 range. I am 6 ft 3.
  • Pipsg1rl
    Pipsg1rl Posts: 1,414 Member
    I didn't have a large weight loss needed, but since I'm short it makes a huge difference. Since around August of last year I've lost about 13-15lbs.

    I'm at the last 5 and it's seriously slow going. I set my weight loss to .5 a week when I got to 5 lbs though because I already knew it wouldn't happen fast.

    I am really trying to keep this as my lifestyle and not a quick loss solution. it's so tough sometimes when the scale isn't moving, but I know I can continue to be happy with me where I am.
  • WonderWhitney11
    WonderWhitney11 Posts: 78 Member
    Not urgency but the feeling I won't be able to get there. It's hard to describe I guess. Combination of the incredible amount of effort it takes just to lose 2 measly lbs, how I struggle with eating and how I don't see myself getting that thin.

    Maybe it is because I worked incredibly hard this past week with a lot of sacrifices on the diet side and just not sure I can have that same intensity for another month or so.

    Try this: go to the grocery store and pick up two boxes of butter (4 sticks each) and look at them. That is TWO POUNDS! Seriously... it's not measly. That's a lot of fat to lose.

    My mom set out blocks of butter on the dinner table for me once when I was feeling down about a small weight loss. It really puts it in perspective... it is hard work and it may not seem like anything is happening- but every pound is like a brick of butter melting off your body!
  • zerryz
    zerryz Posts: 168 Member
    Thanks everyone. I like using other objects to compare the weight I have lost. If I pick up a 45 lb dumbbell which about what I have lost, that dumbbell is HEAVY!

    A lot of people said I need to continue this for a life time. I have just been killing it in the gym lately and pushing myself which feels great but I certainly can't do this much more let alone a life time. Once I hit my goal I was going to cut back a little on the intensity of my workouts

    Unfortunately, this is what many do, and find that they gain again, and the yo-yo effect starts. The idea is that you move to lose .5 lbs a week, so you just get used to your lifestyle. So, by the time you hit maintenance, you're pretty much adjusted. You should stop doing special things to hit a goal. When you get to your goal, nothing magic happens. It takes an equal amount of work to stay there. People that are in shape work damn hard to stay there. It takes a lifetime commitment to really want that. It becomes a lifestyle. It's not a destination. That's why people call it a journey. It goes on and on forever.

    ^This. Plateau is a sign that the body is adjusting to the new lighter weight, all part of the process and likely to hit the folks like us who have 60+ lbs to lose. I figure, it took me 10+ years to put on 70+ lbs. I'm a winner if I get rid of them in 3. And I did. Patience. and measure.. Looks like you're overdoing both diet and exercise, hard to sustain over a lifetime. You'll get there. Good luck!
  • janatarnhem
    janatarnhem Posts: 669 Member
    Nearly 2 years of faithful posting. And I've been at the same weight as I was a year ago. I still have 50 lbs to lose and yes it's frustrating. I'm busting my butt everyday to lose just one more pound and doesn't seem to happen. I've completely busted the calories in vs calories out theory! I love riding my bike and normal days are 16 miles or more. I'm burning 1100-1300 or more calories and eating most days at 2000 or slightly more. Yup no weight loss. I feel like I'm definitely learning to maintain nicely. Each day I wake up ready to try again. Yes I have days where I'm absolutely perfect! Hit my macros and the works. Then there are days when my meals are completely horrid. Yesterday was one of them. But I know and I feel with every part off who I am that if I just keep working on it. Doing the best I can. I will succeed!

    You have just added some much needed support to keep carrying on! Thank you! ......I won't bore you with the details....just know you have helped!! :happy:
  • Jannalicious
    Jannalicious Posts: 215 Member
    Nearly 2 years of faithful posting. And I've been at the same weight as I was a year ago. I still have 50 lbs to lose and yes it's frustrating. I'm busting my butt everyday to lose just one more pound and doesn't seem to happen. I've completely busted the calories in vs calories out theory! I love riding my bike and normal days are 16 miles or more. I'm burning 1100-1300 or more calories and eating most days at 2000 or slightly more. Yup no weight loss. I feel like I'm definitely learning to maintain nicely. Each day I wake up ready to try again. Yes I have days where I'm absolutely perfect! Hit my macros and the works. Then there are days when my meals are completely horrid. Yesterday was one of them. But I know and I feel with every part off who I am that if I just keep working on it. Doing the best I can. I will succeed!

    You have just added some much needed support to keep carrying on! Thank you! ......I won't bore you with the details....just know you have helped!! :happy:



    Then I'm very happy that I shared. Happy to help where I can. Best of luck to you :-)
  • icrushit
    icrushit Posts: 773 Member
    I simply focus on a goal in front of me, and find that helps a lot as I would find it difficult/ depressing if the only goal I had was a really big one I would only reach at some point in the future. I use half stone milestones, and like any other form of effective motivation for me, the bigger goal is built on a foundation of little wins along the way :) The trick often is to keep yourself focussed, and don't give your mind a chance to wander - keep it honed in on an achievable goal that you can target with a laser-like focus! :)
  • deksgrl
    deksgrl Posts: 7,237 Member
    With only 14 pounds to go, your body is not going to want to lose 2 pounds per week.
  • 1HappyRedhead
    1HappyRedhead Posts: 413 Member
    im wondering, you say you are not sure if you can do this another month, but how do you expect the rest of your life to continue after youve reached your goal? you wont be able to go back to your old eating habits - ever, if you want to keep your goal weight.

    its not just something you need to do for a month, its something you need to do for a lifetime, so if you are having trouble with the restrictions youve put upon yourself then you need to alter your "program" so it becomes something you can live with longterm.

    ^THIS^
  • BlueInkDot
    BlueInkDot Posts: 702 Member
    Your ultimate success is 99% dependent on your attitude, your outlook, your perspective, how you motivate yourself.

    When you look at something differently, it LITERALLY CHANGES YOUR REALITY.

    When you BELIEVE something to be true (or not true), you MAKE IT THAT WAY.

    You can CHANGE your reality just by BELIEIVING it to be something.

    YOU control your reality just by controlling your thoughts.

    I keep an image in my mind of the woman I want to be. And I don't tell myself "I'm going to be her someday." I tell myself "I can be her TODAY." And I do my best to ACT like that person whom I want to be RIGHT NOW.

    The person I want to be gets up early, exercises regularly and eats healthy foods. She's happy, silly and youthful but also capable, wise and logical. Most of all, she sees every day as a clean slate, a new opportunity to become the best version of herself she can be, to help the people around her, to make her world better somehow. She never lives in the past, but she treats every day like the first day of the rest of her life and she always does her best to make the most of it.

    Since that^ is my goal, I don't weigh myself. lol. :tongue:
  • BlueInkDot
    BlueInkDot Posts: 702 Member
    I simply focus on a goal in front of me, and find that helps a lot as I would find it difficult/ depressing if the only goal I had was a really big one I would only reach at some point in the future. I use half stone milestones, and like any other form of effective motivation for me, the bigger goal is built on a foundation of little wins along the way :) The trick often is to keep yourself focussed, and don't give your mind a chance to wander - keep it honed in on an achievable goal that you can target with a laser-like focus! :)

    My mini-goals are like "Get to the gym today," "Eat an apple," "One more push-up," "Get out of bed," I really can't imagine planning or making goals very much farther than that. :P

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