overcoming the dreaded 'plateau'?

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a_q_u_a_lizard
a_q_u_a_lizard Posts: 43
in Health and Weight Loss
hey im new here and cant seem to get past a 5-7 pound loss. im looking to lose about twenty pounds by the end of summer. anyone else have a similar problem or any tips?

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  • megrrt
    megrrt Posts: 115 Member
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    It is very frustrating ...I got out of my plateau by upping my caloires to match my BMR. Try "zig-zagging" your calories. And make sure you always eat at least 1200..NET
    Good luck
  • clrrrr
    clrrrr Posts: 261 Member
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    I'm having the same problem! I was at 152ish at school, a month or so later I'm down to 146 (on a good day; with water weight and stuff I usually hover around 148) now, and I was hoping to be at least below 145 by now. I've been relatively strict with a balanced diet and plenty of vigorous exercise and I'm almost never over my calorie recommendation...what gives?
  • kathywoo10
    kathywoo10 Posts: 139 Member
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    Try some tips from this blog. It helped me! Good luck!

    http://fitnesswithnatalie.blogspot.com/2011/05/most-dreaded-word-in-weight-loss.html
  • a_q_u_a_lizard
    a_q_u_a_lizard Posts: 43
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    yeah i know exactly what you mean! so frusterating, i guess we just have to stick with it and see what happens!
  • bjohs
    bjohs Posts: 1,225 Member
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    Every single person is different. Try lowering calories. Try increasing your calories. Look to your food journal to see if ANYTHING can be improved. Change up your exercise routine if it's something you have been doing for more than a few months. Are you drinking enough water. In my case, after experimenting with a lot of different things, I tried having a dark chocolate snack in the evening before bed. Nothing else with my day changed. Calories stayed the same. Amount of exercise stayed the same. But I finally pushed past my plateau after 6 weeks and lost 2.4 lbs in 7 days. The point is to try to find out what it is that YOUR body needs. Time for a change! Good luck!
  • mollymoo89
    mollymoo89 Posts: 202
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    It is very frustrating ...I got out of my plateau by upping my caloires to match my BMR. Try "zig-zagging" your calories. And make sure you always eat at least 1200..NET
    Good luck

    Completely agree! I've been at a plateau as well for a while but I did see a difference once I upped my calories. Then, i started to zig zag as well. Check out this website: http://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calculator.htm
  • bjohs
    bjohs Posts: 1,225 Member
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    I'm having the same problem! I was at 152ish at school, a month or so later I'm down to 146 (on a good day; with water weight and stuff I usually hover around 148) now, and I was hoping to be at least below 145 by now. I've been relatively strict with a balanced diet and plenty of vigorous exercise and I'm almost never over my calorie recommendation...what gives?

    Try being vigorous with your balanced diet and relatively strict with your exercise. Switching that around may be just what your body is asking for. Remember, it's 80% diet and 20% exercise. Once I turned it around, I dropped 10 pounds in 3 weeks. I was stuck between 137-139. Just stick with it and you'll find the answer to what is making you plateau! :)
  • bustertriscuit
    bustertriscuit Posts: 13 Member
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    I was at a plateau of 138 for about two weeks at LEAST. So frustrating. Working out just about every day, eating well.
    Then, a few days ago I burned the soles of my feet walking outside without shoes on. They blistered and I didn't want to go to the gym until they felt better. In those 3 days, I did not work out and I drank a ton of water which I hadn't been doing prior. I lost 3 pounds.
    Now i'm afraid to go back to the gym lol!!!
    I kept telling myself I had to just keep going and I'm glad that I did. Hopefully it will continue. I'm sure it won't be as rapid, but if I can lose another 5 pounds in the next two weeks or so I'll be happy.
    And definitely go by how your clothes are fitting. My pants have almost been falling off, even with the steady plateau. I have to admit though, it didn't do much for my confidence even though it should have. I wish we didn't have to be number obsessed :(
  • TheBraveryLover
    TheBraveryLover Posts: 1,217 Member
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    I've never hit a plateau but I had a time that my weight loss slowed down. I tried zig zag, (which helped a bit) but then I wanted more so I increased my calories by an additional 300 calories for 2 weeks and that did the trick. I've since had some stress in my life which caused me to eat a very little amount of food for a few days in the last week, but I'm starting to get back on track. Try increasing your calories by a couple hundred calories and don't check the scale for at least one week and see what happens.

    Also, during this time, increase your water intake by 2 more cups a day.
  • ShortyZof
    ShortyZof Posts: 1
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    That's so funny I'm new here too and am having the exact same experience. Week 1: 3.2 lbs lost, Week 2: 2.4 lbs, Week 3: 0.4 lbs, Week 4: 0.2 lbs (although I was on vacation for that week so I'm glad to have just basically maintained...)

    I'm totally new to counting calories and all this but I can definitely see it's not a magic bullet. After the first week I thought--This is so easy!! I can lose 3 lbs a week just by counting calories!! Ha ha ha not so.

    Good luck there seem to be some good suggestions to your post, like zigzagging. I guess it's a very common problem!!

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