Plateau for weeks.

Options
marisaconti1
marisaconti1 Posts: 7 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I have been at a plateau for weeks and getting tired of this. I exercise 5 - 6 day a week. Purchased a pedometer, I get between 10,000 -12,000 steps.
Log my food intake everyday, I stay within 1200-1300 cal./day.
I don't want to give up! What is going on? I had a physical 6 months ago, all test that I had done came back negative, I don't take medication so why is my body being so resistant to losing weight?
I raised my cal. intake and all that did was make me gain weight which is not what I want. Does anyone have any idea on what else I should do?

Replies

  • Fursian
    Fursian Posts: 526 Member
    Options
    How many weeks?
  • semcadam
    semcadam Posts: 19 Member
    Options
    Are you measuring? Whenever I have a plateau like this, it is usually because I am putting on muscle!
  • lorrpb
    lorrpb Posts: 11,464 Member
    edited February 2016
    Options
    How long has it actually been? A plateau is defined as 6 weeks or more with no weight loss while maintaining the same calorie deficit. I can "stall" for as long as 3 weeks at a time, but I just keep following my plan and eventually I see the drop I'm looking for.

    Most plateaus are due to "calorie creep." Increasing your calories will make you gain weight. Recalculate your calorie needs in MFP based on your current weight. Make sure you are logging accurately, which usually means using a food scale to weigh your food. There are lots of threads on here about how to do that.
  • Ninkyou
    Ninkyou Posts: 6,666 Member
    Options
    Are you weighing your food on a food scale? That's the first thing I'd do. Weigh everything, log it as accurately as possible, follow calorie intake and profit.
  • yarwell
    yarwell Posts: 10,477 Member
    Options
    I see you're age 55 but don't know your height & weight. You're eating 1300 but your diary is closed so we can't see of what or form an opinion on accuracy (settings, lower left set to Public).

    Is your exercise the steps, or additional to them ?
  • agirlcalledrinn
    agirlcalledrinn Posts: 28 Member
    Options
    Without knowing how long you've been dieting or how long you've been stuck, no one can say for sure. But, in all reality, you probably just need to ride it out.

    The plateaus can take some time, especially if you've been dieting for awhile or are nearing the edge of overweight into normal.

    Instead of using the scale, switch to measurements for a month or two. So many people get stuck on the scale being the end all, but your measurements are a much more accurate representation of your body changing, fat loss, muscle gain, and overall health. I haven't lost any significant weight in months, but my measurements have changed significantly. I have biceps you can see. Mini gun shows. They weren't there before.
  • trjjoy
    trjjoy Posts: 666 Member
    Options
    Are you using a scale to weigh your food? Do you use MFP's recipe builder? Are you using the correct food entries from the database?
  • zoeysasha37
    zoeysasha37 Posts: 7,088 Member
    Options
    Are you using a food scale ?
  • Rocknut53
    Rocknut53 Posts: 1,794 Member
    Options
    MiniChef_Kriss wrote: »
    I waited mine out. seeing results are nice but its not the only reason you are eating right and excersizing

    ^^This^^ I hit a plateau 3 years ago when I tried MFP, during which time I convinced myself that I looked the same as when I started although I had lost 20+ pounds. So, here I am again, determined to not get derailed by plateaus and slow losses. With all the info from everyone on here, you can pick what might work for you and be the most beneficial. I have increased my exercise a lot which not only makes me feel awesome, but seems to decrease my appetite. Just hang in there, there's nothing to be gained by giving up.
  • ericvr
    ericvr Posts: 1 Member
    Options
    I have a similar frustration. I'm 6'3" and 205 lbs, classified myself as sedentary and a goal of losing 2 lbs per week. I'm allotted 1500 cal/day, scan or enter my food from the MFP search lists, and use a Fitbit Charge HR for step tracking. I've had six weeks of approx 4000 calories of deficit per week and have lost zero weight. Either I'm not logging my food properly or my Fitbit is dramatically overestimating the impact of steps (9200 steps per day gives me an exercise credit of 1109 calories - seems like a lot). Weighing my food seems really tedious - can't see myself taking the time. I'm contemplating going back to basics - drop the electronics and go with eating healthy, reasonable portions, and regular exercise. Any advice?
  • lorrpb
    lorrpb Posts: 11,464 Member
    edited February 2016
    Options
    Try weighing a few things, especially the highest calories foods you eat and calorie dense foods, Lind nuts or peanut butter, or whatever it is for you. It could be an eye opener. Certainly portion control is key, as is exercise. Be conservative with how many exercise cals you eAt back.

Categories