UH OH! The dreaded plateau...

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girlalmighty08
girlalmighty08 Posts: 130 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
After weeks of consistently losing weight, I think I have finally reached a plateau. I still have about 30 pounds to lose until I'm at my healthy weight, so I know it's not just a "natural" plateau. I work out 5 days a week doing a combo of cardio and strength training, and I know my diet hasn't slipped because I diligently log each day.

Any tips for busting through this frustration?
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Replies

  • CarrieBeard
    CarrieBeard Posts: 117 Member
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    Waiting to see what advice you get. Right there with ya! STUCK. Scales not moving.
  • daaaaaanielle
    daaaaaanielle Posts: 114 Member
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    Is it really a plateau though?

    It's not uncommon to not lose weight for a couple of weeks then start losing again. Are you tracking any measurements? You might be losing size but not weight.
  • Azexas
    Azexas Posts: 4,334 Member
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    How long has it been since you lost weight?

    Weight loss isn't always linear. If it has only been a couple weeks it could be a few different things: Meals high in sodium may make you retain some water weight, where you are in your monthly cycle can also effect some water weight. When you log your food are you also using a food scale to measure and weigh all of your food?
  • Seigla
    Seigla Posts: 172 Member
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    I've been there several times. Most of the times I created a larger calorie deficit and then I continued losing again. Sometimes I just lost motivation/had to focus on other areas of my life, and I just took a break until I felt ready to go again.
  • diannethegeek
    diannethegeek Posts: 14,776 Member
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    It's hard to answer these kinds of posts without more details. How long has it been since you last saw a drop on the scale? A plateau is something like 6-8 weeks without a drop on the scale and with no changes to your routine (since diet & exercise changes tend to come with some water weight retention - which can screw with the scale). If it's only been a few weeks, then it's possible that it's just a natural stall and will go away on its own.

    Other than that, the most common problems we see come from underestimating calories eaten and overestimating calories burned.

    Opening your diary might help to get you more specific advice if you're comfortable doing so.

    You're logging everything you eat? Including condiments, cooking oils, veggies, cheat days, etc? I only ask because so many people tend to forget about the little things. Are you using a food scale, measuring cups, or eyeballing your portion sizes? Most people can be off in their estimates by several hundred calories when they eyeball portions. Measuring cups are better, but a food scale is going to be the most accurate.

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1234699-logging-accurately-step-by-step-guide
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1290491-how-and-why-to-use-a-digital-food-scale

    And make sure that you've calculated your calorie goals appropriately. Remember that these are just estimates. You may need to play around a little to find what works best for you.

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1080242-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/819055-setting-your-calorie-and-macro-targets

    If you're exercising and eating back your earned exercise calories, be sure that you're using accurate estimates of your burn. MFP and gym machines have a tendency to overestimate certain activities, which can cause you to eat back more calories than you need to. Even a heart rate monitor isn't 100% accurate. If you're eating those extra earned calories it might be a good idea to eat only 50-75% of those.

    And there's something to be said for the fact that some people just burn fewer calories than the generic equations predict. If that's the case for you, you may need to adjust your calories a little lower until you start losing again.
  • girlalmighty08
    girlalmighty08 Posts: 130 Member
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    Like I said, I know it's not my diet as I track diligently and I "repeat" meals alot, so I know it's not changes in sodium levels, etc., and yes I use a scale. I'm eating 1200 a day so I don't want to drop that number any lower.
  • brocktaylor87
    brocktaylor87 Posts: 6 Member
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    Make sure that the numbers make sense. If you still consistently have a calorie deficit, just keep up what you're doing and within a week or two the numbers will start to fall again.

    I just busted out of a 10 day plateau. I didn't lose anything at all for 10 days even though I was maintaining a good deficit. On day 11 I had lost a pound, on day 12 I had lost another. Just don't lose your motivation!
  • strong_curves
    strong_curves Posts: 2,229 Member
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    How long have you've been "plateauing"?
  • T1DCarnivoreRunner
    T1DCarnivoreRunner Posts: 11,502 Member
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    1. Being 30 lbs. from your goal weight does not mean it isn't possible to be in a plateau.
    2. Plateaus are a normal part of the process, and in my experience, they just become longer as you get closer to your goal weight. My last plateau was at about 30 lbs. from my goal weight and lasted 6 months. The whoosh was bigger as a result.
    3. How long has it been since you have seen scale movement? Have you only lost for "weeks" and you are not considering a small period of time without loss to be a plateau? Others may have seen things happen differently, but I had plateaus for days and weeks from the start. After almost a year of trying to lose, I went from days and weeks-long plateaus into months-long plateaus.
  • cathipa
    cathipa Posts: 2,991 Member
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    Maybe consider eating more? 1200 is too low for most people. Have you tried calculating your BMR or TDEE -20%. These might be better numbers which can improve your losses.
  • DeguelloTex
    DeguelloTex Posts: 6,658 Member
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    cathipa wrote: »
    Maybe consider eating more? 1200 is too low for most people. Have you tried calculating your BMR or TDEE -20%. These might be better numbers which can improve your losses.
    That seems unlikely.

  • cathipa
    cathipa Posts: 2,991 Member
    edited June 2015
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    Why? I used to buy into the 1200 calorie diet and then would burn out, "plateau" and then say screw it. Once I learned (like many others here) you can eat more and still lose then I upped my calories and I did lose, probably the most I've ever lost.
  • DeguelloTex
    DeguelloTex Posts: 6,658 Member
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    cathipa wrote: »
    Why?
    Because weight is lost in a caloric deficit. A smaller deficit would mean a smaller loss.

  • trogalicious
    trogalicious Posts: 4,583 Member
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    daaaaaanielle wrote: »
    Is it really a plateau though?
    WNYEj9G.gif
  • cathipa
    cathipa Posts: 2,991 Member
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    DeguelloTex wrote: »
    cathipa wrote: »
    Why?
    Because weight is lost in a caloric deficit. A smaller deficit would mean a smaller loss.

    That would also imply weight loss is linear and as long as you stay at the same caloric deficit you will lose at the same rate which we know if not true.
  • DeguelloTex
    DeguelloTex Posts: 6,658 Member
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    cathipa wrote: »
    DeguelloTex wrote: »
    cathipa wrote: »
    Why?
    Because weight is lost in a caloric deficit. A smaller deficit would mean a smaller loss.

    That would also imply weight loss is linear and as long as you stay at the same caloric deficit you will lose at the same rate which we know if not true.
    It in no way implies that weight loss is linear.

  • cathipa
    cathipa Posts: 2,991 Member
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    OK then explain why she is not losing if in fact she is logging everything correctly? I can't believe with her activity that 1200 calories would put her in maintenance.
  • madhatter2013
    madhatter2013 Posts: 1,547 Member
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    DeguelloTex wrote: »
    cathipa wrote: »
    Maybe consider eating more? 1200 is too low for most people. Have you tried calculating your BMR or TDEE -20%. These might be better numbers which can improve your losses.
    That seems unlikely.

    Actually this is highly likely. OP up your calories to 1500 diet for a few days then go back down. I bet you'll see results again. 1200 is very low and we all started there. Then we get smart and realize that it's too low for most of us and we calculate our TDEE -20%. I think you'll find that upping your intake for a few days periodically will "jump start" (I hate that phrase but there's really no better one) your loss. This is what works for me. May not work for you. Don't give up.
  • T1DCarnivoreRunner
    T1DCarnivoreRunner Posts: 11,502 Member
    edited June 2015
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    DeguelloTex wrote: »
    cathipa wrote: »
    Why?
    Because weight is lost in a caloric deficit. A smaller deficit would mean a smaller loss.

    One would think, but then some of us have experiences that just plain don't add up to that. There was a time that I thought I could get faster losses by eating less. So I cut back my calories further. After 3 weeks of consistent gains that I couldn't understand, I found some research that showed where people had gained when eating below BMR. The standard calculation showed my BMR was greater than the calorie level I was eating. So I increased consumption back to previous levels and started to lose weight again. You may want to argue that it is impossible for my experience to have happened, but I know it did.

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