Plateaued

I am also at a plateau. I dropped about 15 pounds in the past month and my weight hasn't budged since last Tuesday. I've been eating the same and also exercising the same amount. I think my body might need a break. I'm going to try to make it through my official weigh-in on Friday and then see what changes I need to make. It's so frustrating, I know... at least we're not gaining, though.

I lost 23 pounds and I haven't lost a single pound since and that was 3 weeks ago. I started a new workout routine today. I won't weigh myself again till next Wednesday so I hope I drop at least 1 or 2 by then.

I'm not a professional, but I find that loading up on calories once in a while helps to boost my weight loss. So, once a week or every other, I eat what I want and try not to worry about it. Best wishes, Monica

Again --> Not a professional, but I found this post on yahoo answers regarding muscle confusion and I thought it was helpful.

"PX90 is a pretty good program. It's based on generally sound nutritional science and a workout regimen that focuses on cardio and strength training. There are a couple of issues with it however: (1) The diet itself is a bit restrictive, and it also encourages you to do a "cleanse/detox" before you start, which is NOT healthy. (2) They focus on cardio as their primary fat burner, and cardio really ranks at the bottom of the list.

If you want to do a successful "diet," you MUST allow yourself some opportunity to have the bad-for-you stuff or you'll never stick with it. Also, if you want to lose weight and keep it off you have to make PERMANENT changes to your eating habits. If you do PX90 for 3 months and lose the weight, you'll gain it all back -- plus interest -- if you go back to the same eating habits that made you overweight in the first place. You have to make eating healthy a way of life and make eating large meals and/or eating the bad-for-you stuff the exception, not the rule.

For exercise, strength training is great because the more muscle you have, the more calories you burn. Each extra pound of muscle you have requires 50 more calories to maintain every day. Think about that: If you put on 10 pounds of muscle, your body would require 500 extra calories per day just to maintain itself. Walking is a great fat burner because it burns fat almost exclusively, it burns almost as many calories per hour as cardio, and you can walk as much as you want -- you start burning muscle after about 40 minutes of cardio. High-intensity interval training (HIIT), or sprint training, is better than cardio for fat burning because it burns more fat and it's not steady-state linear exercise, so it helps condition your body for more "real life" activity like playing sports. I'm not totally knocking cardio, but too many people have bought into the cardio myth that it's the be-all-end-all for getting in shape. It isn't.

Would you like a program that doesn't require you to count calories, restrict entire food groups, or completely give up all the stuff you love? Here are a few tips:

1. You MUST exercise if you want to lose weight and keep it off, so do something every day, even if it’s just a 15-minute walk around the neighborhood. Don’t say you don’t have time for exercise; you have to MAKE time. Yes, it takes time and effort, but you’re worth it, right?

2. Walk as much as you want, but don’t do cardio for more than 40 minutes at a time. If you do, you risk burning muscle instead of fat.

3. If you do strength training, use light weights and do lots of repetitions to lose weight. That’ll really help you “tone up.” If you want more muscle, lift heavy and do fewer reps but more sets. A typical toning workout is 3 sets of 12-15 reps using a weight that is just enough for you to "feel the burn." A typical muscle-building workout is 6 sets of 6 reps using a weight that is considerably heavier and has you struggling to complete your 4th, 5th and 6th sets.

4. Your diet will make you or break you. You have probably learned bad eating habits over time (most people do). That’s not your fault, but now you have to deal with it. Make a commitment to yourself to unlearn those bad habits and re-learn better habits.

5. Eat breakfast every day within an hour of getting up. It kick-starts your metabolism. Studies have shown that people who skip breakfast are 450% more likely to be overweight than those who eat breakfast every day.

6. Eat six small meals or snacks per day instead of three squares per day or one big meal per day. Your body expends energy digesting your food, so eating smaller portions more often keeps your metabolism running high because you’re constantly digesting food.

7. Avoid these as much as possible:

-- Trans fat (any type of partially or fully hydrogenated oil)
-- High fructose corn syrup (soft drinks are LOADED with it)
-- Fast food
-- Junk food
-- White sugar, white flour, white rice, white potatoes
-- The deadly C’s (cookies, cakes, candy, chips, cola)

8. Build your diet around these trim-body-friendly foods:

-- Nuts, any kind (almonds are best)
-- Beans/Legumes
-- Fresh vegetables (green is GREAT!!!)
-- Dairy products (as long as they’re low-fat or non-fat)
-- Eggs
-- Lean meats (fish and poultry top the list)
-- Olive oil
-- Whole grain breads/cereals/pasta
-- Fresh fruits (anything that ends in “berry” is a winner)
-- Tea (green tea or black pekoe tea)
-- Cold water or ice water (your body has to expend extra calories to heat it up)

9. Desserts and treats are the exception, not the rule. Having said that, however, (1) you can have a couple of pieces of chocolate every day – just don’t overdo, and (2) Allow yourself one “cheat meal” every week where you eat and drink whatever you want as long as you don’t gorge yourself. That’ll help keep you from feeling deprived and it’ll make it easier to stick with your new healthy eating plan.

Good luck! "

@Hallie! I agree, maybe I will too! I'm due for a day like that or at least a meal! : )

Hallie,

Please provide the following information:

1. Your weight, age, and height
2. Your maintenance caloric intake
3. Your daily calories/macros
4. Describe "Zumba"

There is a more physiological reason why you have plateaued. There are ways to go past this obstacle - but first you need to understand WHY you have plateaued so you understand why you are doing what you need to do to get past this. And I haven't seen a satisfactory answer in this thread.

Rather than type it out here - add me as a friend and I can help you further, if you wish.