Hit the wall after losing 45 lbs

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I have been in the program since the middle of January. I have had a great deal of success of going from a men's size 41 to a 36. However, over the last few weeks I struggle to lose any more weight, after averaging losing 2 1/2 pounds a week. My diet hasn't changed. I have a light breakfast; mostly coffee, sometimes with 1/2 grapefruit, 250 cal sandwich for lunch, and about a 500 - 750 calorie dinner, with some moderate snacks. I keep my protein intake where I should, but keep my fat and carb count lower than normal on most days. This results in the intake of 1000 to 1200 calories/day to which I burn about 330 cals on the treadmill 5 days a week. I also take a multivitamin and a calcium substitute. What has happened? After so much success, I seemed to have hit the wall. I really want to lose another 15 lbs and get to 185 pounds. Any suggestions???

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  • malabaugh
    malabaugh Posts: 130 Member
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    I would suggest increasing your calories. 1200 is a minimum for women. Also, add some high intensity cardio and weights. Good luck! I hear the last pounds are the hardest to get rid of.
  • Mayor_West
    Mayor_West Posts: 246 Member
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    You plateaued- your body has adapted to your diet and exercise and it needs to be shocked into making more gains. I'd recommend incorporating 2-3 days of strength training, as well as increasing your carb and fat intake as well. Your calories are way, way, way too low. Read any of the threads here about starvation mode to get a better idea of how this effects your metabolism.
  • Lightjulesloves2run
    Lightjulesloves2run Posts: 91 Member
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    I hit a wall after 45 lbs also...try increasing ur calories..changing ur exercise a lil, drinking lots of water, and push through it. When I increased my cals..I started to lose! Change it up..and then u can go back to what u were doing..just have to give ur body a jumpstart! Good luck! Great job so far!!!
  • EHuntRN
    EHuntRN Posts: 320 Member
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    Yep...I think you need to increase your cal intake too!!!
  • tlh523
    tlh523 Posts: 8 Member
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    Thanks for all your advice. May was a tough month as I only lost 0.8 lbs. This is after losing 43 pounds from January thru April. However, I took your advice and increased my caloric intake from 1000 - 1200 / Day to 1300 - 2000 daily and so far this month I am back on track...I lost 6 pounds since June1....Go figure, eat more and lose more:) 10 more to go and I hit my target of 185. Last January I started the program at 245 :) I can only wonder how low I can go. I never thought I would see 200, much less the low 190's. 185 would be good but 170 would be awesome....
  • ImperfektAngel
    ImperfektAngel Posts: 811 Member
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    After 65lbs lost, I too hit a wall. I was not eating back exercise calories, so I tried that, worked for a bit. Now I lowered my calorie intake to 100 cals less and it seems to be going down again. I will try szig zagging as well, probably next week, hope it all works and good luck to you :D