Stuck! Help!

cabrzama
cabrzama Posts: 24 Member
edited September 24 in Health and Weight Loss
I am stuck! I started in February 2009, weighing in a 255. I got all the way down to 202 in November 2010 and have creeped up to 208 in the months since. My eating has always been about 75% compliant since I started two years ago and I am a bit of a gym junkie, never missing a day (Monday-Saturday) even when sick or with fairly painful muscle strains in my back and legs--I still head to the gym early in the morning and put my time in. I put in a minimum of one hour in the gym, but lately have stretched that to an hour and a half of spinning, various eliptical machines, treadmill, jogging around a track, and weight lifting. My average calorie burn is about 1000 - based on my heart rate monitor that measures calories too (sometimes I'm as low as 750 and as high as 1250, depending on how much resistance stuff I do). I eat somewhere between 2200 and 2600 calories a day, and usually a little higher on the weekends (that's where I am not usually quite as compliant).

But I am frustrated that my weight loss has plateued now for nearly four months (in fact I've gained a few). Since my eating is about the same -- I still track my calories carefully. And since my exercise is the same length (or more) and I have varied my workouts quite a bit, is it possible that I need an extended break from exercise??? Could my body be so used to the variety of things I do, when I do them, and how I do them that it just isn't as efficient at metabolizing my food as it once was? Would a couple weeks away from the gym (as much as it would kill me mentally) be the cure for me. I've even considered just getting up and walking for an hour (just something minimal) even though the calorie output would be far less.

You are about my age and weight and have powered past that 200 barrier - what do you think I need to do?

Here are my numbers:
--41 years old
--72 inches tall
--208 lbs
--18-19% body fat
--Goal weight of 185, and maybe 15% body fat
--Work a desk job, 5 days a week

Replies

  • lhollandlong
    lhollandlong Posts: 2
    Hello,
    I'm not your age or weight but have a couple of suggestions. First, I am skeptical of any gadget that measures calories burned anyway but 1000 on average for an hour (no matter what you are doing) seems really high to me. Maybe stop logging the exercise and stick with the calorie goal? Second, does your current calorie goal account for your weight loss? At 200 you burn require fewer calories than at 250. Third, if either of the first two are not helpful, keep at it. Plateaus are natural and to be expected at some point :) Good luck!
  • stanvoodoo
    stanvoodoo Posts: 1,023 Member
    Have you measured? Could be muscle too..... By the calorie count I gather you are eating back all of your exercise calories, try going up or down by 100-200, I would say down since your intake is so high and see if that breaks the plateau.

    Lots of talk on this subject, I just gave the highlights.
  • baker326
    baker326 Posts: 2
    HI Frances here, I am no expert but have you tried to lessening your calories? Mmaybe somewhere between 2000-2400 and keep up the same routine. Hope this helps...Don't give up noe!
  • karabuchanan
    karabuchanan Posts: 1
    I am in the exact spot you are. Same weight for the last 6 weeks, fluctuating about 3lbs. I'm the same age as you, go to the gym 4 days a week, desk job & have stepped up my cardio and still stuck!!! I have been using fitness pal recently for logging my food and it says that I am not eating enough. If you're burning 1000 calories that means your only keeping about 1300 calories, which sounds low to me for a man. Maybe try eating more protein? I don't know if stopping the workouts is good or not. Good luck!
  • cabrzama
    cabrzama Posts: 24 Member
    Thanks for the ideas - I used to use the machines to tell me calories but my heart rate monitor does it more accurately as it is based on exertion (heart rate). Yes i adjusted down a bit but some have suggested I am too low at 2200 a day with that much burn at the gym. I've been through other plateaus but this has been by far the worst. May I should re-evaluate using that monitor. I go pretty hard on my workouts so it seems realistic to me that I can burn 1000. Thanks again.
  • cabrzama
    cabrzama Posts: 24 Member
    Yeah measurements have all been about the same - at least I'm not getting bigger I guess.
  • Northantsman
    Northantsman Posts: 32
    Hi, I am about the same age and the same height as you. A few twinges of angyna and a high cholesterol count persuaded me to drop from 215 to 174. From what I can see on the net, a male of our age should be eating about 2000 to 2500 calories just to stand still. I aim to eat about 1400 - to avoid the 1200 starvation point - but even that only aims me at a 1 to 1.5 pound loss a week. And I go to the gym 4 to 5 days a week burning 500 to 600 calories on the cross trainer.

    The cholesterol burning diet means no fat which I achieve by being 90% vegetarian. Hard to find the fat in fruit and veg. Hard to find calories as well so I can eat loads and can comfortably be full without any sort of carbohydrate crash. Obviously I have the occasional bad day but it's not the end of the world.

    Maybe you are exercising so much you feel the need to eat after you exercise if it leaves you feeling a bit woozy. My suggestion would be to look at what you're eating and go for bulk more than carbs or protein. You can't absorb a lot from bulky veg!
  • cabrzama
    cabrzama Posts: 24 Member
    Last week I was pretty discouraged - had gone four months without a loss and had actually nudged up a bit. With about 20 lbs still to go (after losing 50) this was very frustrating. So I got on here and spilled my guys and asked for help. Everyone pointed out the obvious problem (too big of a calorie deficit).

    I am happy to report that this week has been awesome--back to my normal weight loss trend. I only changed two things - so please take note, those of you on plateaus and who are about to give up (as I was just one week ago). First, I re-evaluated the number of calories my body needed and looked closely at what I was expending. I was surprised at how big the gap was some days (800 - 1200). I've since heard from some on this forum and read articles on the Internet that you really shouldn't create more than a 500-700 caloric deficit or risk going into a plateau. It's counter-intuitive but very true - I am living proof of that.

    Second change is related. In order for me to SEE and KNOW for sure I was producing that kind of deficit so I could avoid it I had to keep VERY close track of my calories - not just estimates as I had been doing but truly using the strengths of MyFitnessPal to help me get a true picture of what is going on. I don't believe I will always have to do that. I think one can estimate when one is at maintenance level but until you reach that - it really is critical to keep close track as this takes away any tendency to cheat or low-ball your totals. You can't cheat your body - it knows so the only fool is yourself.

    Anyway - just wanted to say thanks and give a little encouragement to those struggling to not give up and keep fighting for your goal.
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