Plateau going on 5 weeks! HELP!

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  • StalgiaPasternak
    StalgiaPasternak Posts: 55 Member
    ana3067 wrote: »
    You're eating more than you think you are.

    Please provide us with an example diet of yours for days you work out and days you don't work out, including measurement or weight of the foods you eat (I'm guessing you do neither), any oils you add when cooking food, any sweetener you add to your drinks, all fruits and veggies, all liquid consumption other than straight water.

    So when I was counting calories I would get a Starbuck's breakfast sandwich (390 or 400 calories for lunch), have a Subway sandwich for lunch (550 calories) and then have Chicken and some veg for dinner with maybe a cookie or two (European cookies I buy only have about 40 calories for two!!!) The only place that I would be less anal about measuring calories was at dinner time since it wasn't a pre-bought meal but I would use super healthy recipes that are clean eating or for a while WW recipes.

    Now, without counting calories (which I have to say was a huge stress relief and I honestly do believe that not having that stress helped me to lose 18lbs in a far more relaxing manner) I have the same breakfast sandwich from Starbuck's (400 calories) and then I don't eat lunch just drink lots and lots of water and then I eat a similar dinner but I probably eat more rice or pasta than I did when I was measuring or counting but I know all about how those two things can be uber calorie dense so I don't exceed a cup that's for sure.

    Then working out I work out about 5-6 times a week mostly doing the cross trainer (NordicTrack) and then I do kettle bell workouts and a yoga class once a week because my muscles were getting way to tight from all the exercise. I do an hour on the NordicTrack and vary the program from Hike, to Climb, to Ski and I do the KettleBell work out for 30 minutes. I sometimes do Yoga after to stretch out.

    I'm really happy with the exercise because I feel far more positive and I have way more energy and I have to say my bum and thighs are looking way better and my arms seem more toned. I wonder if maybe my plateau is that I'm gaining muscle?

    As I explained, I'm really never hungry at all and I'm wondering if that is a sign of something? I will eat the Starbuck's sandwich at 7am for example. Drink water all day and then by dinner at 6pm I'm feeling totally fine with the idea of skipping dinner because I'm not feeling hungry. I force myself to eat though because I feel like that is just not healthy to not even eat at least 2 meals a day. I don't snack at all either.

    It's all very bizarre! I don't know if I should be signing back up for some kind of program where I have to count calories or points to force myself to eat certain things and see if that works but I have to say that I did that off and on for 2 years and it really depressed me. I don't think it has a positive psychological impact on me. That's why I was thinking maybe clean diet or paleo or something where I eliminate sugar, gluten, processed anything and don't have to measure may be better. I also find it very stressful to have to plan all my meals and do the shopping and research recipes. I use to love that but now that I have a career and a toddler I really find it exhausting to have to be so diligent that way.

    I was kind of hoping someone on here may have had a similar experience and could tell me how they got through it. To summarize:

    Eating less or around 1200 calories a day
    Working out 10 hours a week
    Never feeling hungry
    Stuck at a plateau for 5 weeks
    Bottom and thighs toning as well as arms
    Feeling energetic
    Oh and I can't sleep
  • StalgiaPasternak
    StalgiaPasternak Posts: 55 Member



    I know right! Comments like "Actually no, you are wrong" could be way more tactful and are generally considered very rude when people are actually trying to help. My guess, if it were someone in person it would have gone more like: "Thanks for your input but I have logged some days and found X... is it possible to stop losing weight when you eat too little?"...

    And the answer to that - is "No". Starvation mode as you describe it is a myth, you can however lower your metabolism in VLCD's. It's called metabolic adaptation. (Source: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19198647)
    [/quote]

    Exactly! So strange to me that people would speak to someone asking for help like that! In the age of the internet we can all look stuff up ourselves and the only reason why I posted here is because all the articles I've read on plateaus is not really helping me to resolve the issue and I haven't found any that really relate to my situation. I think I agree with you about starvation mode being a myth I mean how can you explain impoverished countries right? Only, I have read a few stories on here and elsewhere of women and men finding that once they ate more the weight started flying off again so I'm wondering if that could be it.

  • emdeesea
    emdeesea Posts: 1,823 Member
    Why don't you just go back to logging everything for one month starting Monday. Do it until Jan. 1 and see what happens. If you see no movement and no results then go back to square one and start over.

    Another thing is this: if your'e only eating 900 calories, that's not enough and your loss will slow down. I'm 5'6" and weigh about 150, and eat about 1,500 a day and lose about a half pound a week. When I was stupid and eating only 1,000 a day, my loss slowed down. The same week I bumped it up to 1,500 a day I start losing again.

    Anyway the idea is if what's you're doing isn't working, do something else. So go back to logging everything that you eat, and bump up those calories to about 1,400-1,500 a day. Do that for one month then reassess.
  • zyxst
    zyxst Posts: 9,134 Member
    I think OP should talk to a doctor, therapist, nutritionist, and possibly someone at http://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/ since keeping a food diary and calorie counting isn't working.

    Best of luck.
  • StalgiaPasternak
    StalgiaPasternak Posts: 55 Member
    zyxst wrote: »
    I think OP should talk to a doctor, therapist, nutritionist, and possibly someone at http://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/ since keeping a food diary and calorie counting isn't working.

    Best of luck.

    I am quite shocked you would make this kind of suggestion! Are you a qualified person to assess something as serious as an eating disorder based on a thread online?

    I am just as puzzled as anyone that I am suddenly never hungry when I use to be such a gourmande. The fact that I am trying to figure it out indicates that I am worried as well and certainly don't need projections by strangers added to what could simply be a matter of tweaking something.
  • StalgiaPasternak
    StalgiaPasternak Posts: 55 Member
    emdeesea wrote: »
    Why don't you just go back to logging everything for one month starting Monday. Do it until Jan. 1 and see what happens. If you see no movement and no results then go back to square one and start over.

    Another thing is this: if your'e only eating 900 calories, that's not enough and your loss will slow down. I'm 5'6" and weigh about 150, and eat about 1,500 a day and lose about a half pound a week. When I was stupid and eating only 1,000 a day, my loss slowed down. The same week I bumped it up to 1,500 a day I start losing again.

    Anyway the idea is if what's you're doing isn't working, do something else. So go back to logging everything that you eat, and bump up those calories to about 1,400-1,500 a day. Do that for one month then reassess.

    I see what you are saying and this could work only as I said I really find having to count calories depresses me that's why I'm considering Paleo or Clean Diet so that I don't have to do that.
  • emdeesea
    emdeesea Posts: 1,823 Member
    edited November 2014

    I see what you are saying and this could work only as I said I really find having to count calories depresses me that's why I'm considering Paleo or Clean Diet so that I don't have to do that.

    Well, part of being an adult is sometimes doing things we don't like. So it's up to you. Good luck.

  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,372 Member
    I agree with going to see a doctor, if you're eating too little and are never hungry, that's not normal.
  • StalgiaPasternak
    StalgiaPasternak Posts: 55 Member
    Francl27 wrote: »
    I agree with going to see a doctor, if you're eating too little and are never hungry, that's not normal.

    Yeah it's weird. Doctors are so useless though. I find you really have to figure things out these days. All they do is try to give you drugs. Or, they don't do anything and say it will just improve on its own! lol Must be nice to make so much money for doing very little (talking about GPs here).
  • StalgiaPasternak
    StalgiaPasternak Posts: 55 Member
    emdeesea wrote: »

    I see what you are saying and this could work only as I said I really find having to count calories depresses me that's why I'm considering Paleo or Clean Diet so that I don't have to do that.

    Well, part of being an adult is sometimes doing things we don't like. So it's up to you. Good luck.

    It's not that I haven't done that religiously many times. In fact, there could probably be 5-6 years of my life over the course of the past 15 years I was doing that. I just find it's depressing and unsustainable and quite frankly not realistic (at least for me) long term. I want a lifestyle change not a temporary fix. Those never work.
  • kyta32
    kyta32 Posts: 670 Member
    The diet you are describing sounds low in many nutrients. You can enter it for one day in MFP to check if you are getting enough calcium, iron, etc. If you are not getting the basics your body needs, you will pay for it eventually. Your goal should be long-term health, for your sake and to be a good example to your children.

    If you are actually only eating 900 calories a day and exercising heavily, you may be in ketosis. The ketones will make you less hungry, as your body breaks down your lean mass to keep you alive. You can see where this would be a problem, right?

    That being said, the only way to be sure of your calories are only 900 would be by tracking them, and any potential extras (i.e. milk in coffee, finishing off your kids' meals/snacks, etc.) If you have 10 hours to exercise a week (quite an accomplishment when taking care of a todller, by the way), you should be able to find 10 minutes a day to log your food (if it really is the same everyday, you can copy meals from one day to the next in MFP). Some of the posters are being rude, but a lot of dieters find that tracking calories really makes a difference in how much weight is lost (it doubled my rate of weight loss), and ease of tracking is one of the main benefits of MFP. I'm sorry to hear you had such a hard time with it.

    You say you like the way your body is looking. You can check your progress with a tape measure. If you are losing inches, you are not in a plateau, whatever the scale says, and you may be replacing fat with muscle.

    If you are concerned, please talk to your Dr. Appetite loss is a symptom of many serious diseases, and, again, you need to be healthy for your family. Keep in mind, your Dr. may want you to track your calories and activities to be certain of your calories in/calories out.

    If you are happy with your activity level, keep it up. There are, however, ways of losing inches that don't take up quite as much time, like HIIT workouts. Some dieters find they can get effective results working out 30 minutes a day. Changing up your workouts can also sometimes help with plateaus.

    Plateaus do hit a lot of dieters. Sometimes changing things up helps, sometimes you just need to be patient a little longer until the scale or your inches start moving. I hope things work out for you. Good work on your weight loss so far (especially while working out and taking care of a toddler), and good luck :)
  • StalgiaPasternak
    StalgiaPasternak Posts: 55 Member


    Plateaus do hit a lot of dieters. Sometimes changing things up helps, sometimes you just need to be patient a little longer until the scale or your inches start moving. I hope things work out for you. Good work on your weight loss so far (especially while working out and taking care of a toddler), and good luck.

    Thank you! I think I'm going to try and following for a month:

    1 - Track calories using MFP and push for at least 1400 calories per day
    2 - Follow the Paleo diet but track the calories
    3 - Keep up my exercise regime (I bought the NordicTrack so I can exercise after my toddler goes to bed and whenever the T.V. is on. It was totally worth the investment to have such easy access to exercise and I got it on sale so it actually works out to be less expensive then a gym membership after just one year it would be free!).
    4 - Book a physical for January to get bloodwork done.

    I think the other strange symptoms I have is that I can't sleep even though I'm exercising so much you'd think I'd pass out. I have acne on my back too and my breakouts around ovulation are way worse so I'm thinking either it's from sweating so much more or that maybe there is a hormonal imbalance at play? It's all very bizarre!
  • StalgiaPasternak
    StalgiaPasternak Posts: 55 Member
    I'll come back and post here after my experiment and let you all know if it worked! Thanks for all your advice! Well the positive helpful advice!
  • kyta32
    kyta32 Posts: 670 Member

    I think the other strange symptoms I have is that I can't sleep even though I'm exercising so much you'd think I'd pass out. I have acne on my back too and my breakouts around ovulation are way worse so I'm thinking either it's from sweating so much more or that maybe there is a hormonal imbalance at play? It's all very bizarre!

    It could very well be hormonal. It's a good idea to talk to your doctor and make sure it's not something like PCOS..., again, good luck :)
  • Mr_Knight
    Mr_Knight Posts: 9,532 Member
    edited November 2014
    Francl27 wrote: »
    ...if you're eating too little and are never hungry, that's not normal.

    More accurately: "that's not what's actually happening".

    OP is clearly eating more than they think. There's not even a hint of a question about that.
  • PikaKnight
    PikaKnight Posts: 34,971 Member
    edited November 2014


    I don't know if you can read properly but as I've outlined I know exactly what I am eating. I find your attitude really negative and I am really tired of males in particular thinking it's okay to be rude and talk down to women on here as if you are Buddha on the mountain top. I'm not sure if you've heard the expression: "If you don't have anything nice to say don't say anything." Questioning the authenticity of my assessment of MY OWN BODY is a very condescending masculinist opinion. Evolve!

    LOL. Did you miss all the women (including myself) basically saying the same thing as him?

  • Christine_72
    Christine_72 Posts: 16,049 Member
    Stalgia just start meticulously weighing and measuring your food/drink intake over the next month and see what happens. Yes weighing every morsel of food that touches your lips is a pain and a tad obsessive. But it might give you some answers. Good luck xx
  • Lourdesong
    Lourdesong Posts: 1,492 Member
    edited November 2014
    More accurately: "that's not what's actually happening".

    OP is clearly eating more than they think. There's not even a hint of a question about that.


    I don't know if you can read properly but as I've outlined I know exactly what I am eating. I find your attitude really negative and I am really tired of males in particular thinking it's okay to be rude and talk down to women on here as if you are Buddha on the mountain top. I'm not sure if you've heard the expression: "If you don't have anything nice to say don't say anything." Questioning the authenticity of my assessment of MY OWN BODY is a very condescending masculinist opinion. Evolve!

    Well, at least you're cheapening feminist rhetoric so it loses power, but as long as you do so to serve your own selfish ends it's all good.

    I'm a woman, I posted earlier in your thread. I think your post here is more offensive than any I've seen in your thread. It's so dishonest and manipulative, it's kind of sickening.

  • GaleHawkins
    GaleHawkins Posts: 8,160 Member

    More accurately: "that's not what's actually happening".

    OP is clearly eating more than they think. There's not even a hint of a question about that.


    I don't know if you can read properly but as I've outlined I know exactly what I am eating. I find your attitude really negative and I am really tired of males in particular thinking it's okay to be rude and talk down to women on here as if you are Buddha on the mountain top. I'm not sure if you've heard the expression: "If you don't have anything nice to say don't say anything." Questioning the authenticity of my assessment of MY OWN BODY is a very condescending masculinist opinion. Evolve!

    [/quote]

    jissn.com/content/11/1/7

    LolBroScience shared the above link this week that hits on the subject of plateaus and helps us understand why deficit dieting can be counter productive especially if we have yo yo'ed many times. I agree with LolBroSciene's article that points out how critical it is to understand our hormones that controls our weight level.

    Best of luck.