Has anyone made it through their weight loss journey *without* plateauing?

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havronab
havronab Posts: 40 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
So just out of curiosity, has anyone made it through their weight loss journey without experiencing any significant plateaus? Especially those who have lost significant amounts of weight? I'm curious because I've lost 90+ pounds over the last 8ish months, and I keep waiting to hit a plateau. I assume it will happen at some point, or at the very least my rate of loss will slow, but it really hasn't yet. Which I'm not complaining about of course, but it just seems weird. I have another 40-50 lbs to lose, and I'm curious if/when I will experience this. I know there is no way to predict this...just curious what other people's experiences have been. Thanks!
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Replies

  • Blitzia
    Blitzia Posts: 205 Member
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    I haven't hit a real plateau yet. My weight loss is around 1.3 pounds per week, so even though I might expect to see .5 lb weight loss every 3-4 days, I've had a couple of times where my weight stayed the same for a week or so before a big drop. So for real plateaus, I haven't hit one yet.

    I've been losing since October/November 2016. I'm down 43.5 pounds, don't really have a goal weight, but I can only lose maybe 15 more pounds max. I don't know if that's helpful because I haven't been losing that long, but for what it's worth, I'm almost done and haven't hit a plateau yet.
  • LAWoman72
    LAWoman72 Posts: 2,846 Member
    edited April 2017
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    No! LOL!

    But I'm 60 lbs. down so far and I wouldn't trade that. It doesn't matter how long it's taken; I'm here. And I had to start somewhere, and I had to not freak out at each plateau and binge or try some crazy stunt that would backfire later in retaliation to the over-restriction.
  • havronab
    havronab Posts: 40 Member
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    @LAWoman72 lol yeah that's what I'm worried about...hitting a plateau and somehow letting it get the best of me/interfere with my overall progress.
  • LAWoman72
    LAWoman72 Posts: 2,846 Member
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    havronab wrote: »
    @LAWoman72 lol yeah that's what I'm worried about...hitting a plateau and somehow letting it get the best of me/interfere with my overall progress.

    Oh don't! Don't worry! First of all, it hasn't happened yet. Second of all, right now, if that pic is accurate, you look GOOD. If you had to "stay" there for a few weeks at a plateau you'd still be looking just plain awesome and, I'm assuming, feeling much better, too. Third of all, your thin is going to be forever! So who cares when you get there? (Well, you're already there, IMO, so let's call it "your goal" instead of "your thin," but you get the idea.) You're SO THERE, you've gotten so far, don't let a plateau, if it happens - it may not - derail you.

    And even for those who are nowhere near "there," as I said...one way or another, you want to get there, right? If it takes a few weeks longer or a few weeks shorter, does that matter? Just keep going. :)

  • havronab
    havronab Posts: 40 Member
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    @Blitzia @quiksylver296 Thanks, that's still helpful! Good to know it's possible. Did you guys do anything in particular like varying exercise routine or adjusting calorie intake at all to prevent plateauing or did it just work out that way naturally?
  • leejoyce31
    leejoyce31 Posts: 794 Member
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    I lost over 85 pounds without a plateau. I stopped losing when my weight dropped to bottom of healthy BMI.
  • Mycophilia
    Mycophilia Posts: 1,225 Member
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    I lost 41kg during my first cut, gained 17kg from my botched bulking attempt and have lost 13 of those on my second cut. During this whole 2.5 year period, I've only "plateaued" during planned diet breaks/maintenance phases.
  • quiksylver296
    quiksylver296 Posts: 28,442 Member
    edited April 2017
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    havronab wrote: »
    @Blitzia @quiksylver296 Thanks, that's still helpful! Good to know it's possible. Did you guys do anything in particular like varying exercise routine or adjusting calorie intake at all to prevent plateauing or did it just work out that way naturally?

    I made some specific adjustments to my workouts - training for powerlifting competitions - that may not be helpful to everyone. I did adjust my calorie count a couple of times as my weight went down. Currently losing slowing on 2015 calories per day, 5'9, 170 lbs.
  • havronab
    havronab Posts: 40 Member
    edited April 2017
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    LAWoman72 wrote: »
    havronab wrote: »
    @LAWoman72 lol yeah that's what I'm worried about...hitting a plateau and somehow letting it get the best of me/interfere with my overall progress.

    Oh don't! Don't worry! First of all, it hasn't happened yet. Second of all, right now, if that pic is accurate, you look GOOD. If you had to "stay" there for a few weeks at a plateau you'd still be looking just plain awesome and, I'm assuming, feeling much better, too. Third of all, your thin is going to be forever! So who cares when you get there? (Well, you're already there, IMO, so let's call it "your goal" instead of "your thin," but you get the idea.) You're SO THERE, you've gotten so far, don't let a plateau, if it happens - it may not - derail you.

    And even for those who are nowhere near "there," as I said...one way or another, you want to get there, right? If it takes a few weeks longer or a few weeks shorter, does that matter? Just keep going. :)

    Oh jeez, you're making me blush! ETA: weird my messages keep disappearing or not posting in their entirety. I don't post often so not sure what I'm doing wrong. Anyway... Thank you for the encouragement! I am feeling like I'm mentally prepared for a plateau should I experience one, but of course I'd prefer to avoid it if possible. I am feel good with where I'm at now, but I still have a lot I'd like to accomplish. Patience is the hardest part of losing weight for me, but I will keep at it regardless of what happens.
  • Theo166
    Theo166 Posts: 2,564 Member
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    My mini plateaus so far were mostly about changes in salt. Start snacking on sun flower seeds daily and your scale weight will definitely plateau. But each of these have been followed with a nice whoosh of water weight loss.
  • JaydedMiss
    JaydedMiss Posts: 4,286 Member
    edited April 2017
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    no. Id feel like i was at times, But month by month the numbers show consistent loss. I just tend to whoosh every 1 month 2 days

    edit:100 pounds down- as i said iv felt like i was plateaud multiple times but it was just me being impatient i never actually did the minds a weird thing. I think math says you wont plateau unless you get sloppy or make drastic changes to what your eating (simplified for majority of people without rare conditions)
  • havronab
    havronab Posts: 40 Member
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    JaydedMiss wrote: »
    no. Id feel like i was at times, But month by month the numbers show consistent loss. I just tend to whoosh every 1 month 2 days

    edit:100 pounds down- as i said iv felt like i was plateaud multiple times but it was just me being impatient i never actually did the minds a weird thing. I think math says you wont plateau unless you get sloppy or make drastic changes to what your eating (simplified for majority of people without rare conditions)

    Awesome! Thanks for the input and awesome job losing 100 lbs!
  • SafioraLinnea
    SafioraLinnea Posts: 628 Member
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    I'm down 47 pounds as of today. My trend is down. I don't plateau. I wobble around the same number for a few days, then I have a significant loss, gain some and wobble but at a lower weight than the previous time. Wobble days can be 2-5 days in a row before my substantial loss day.
  • Chadxx
    Chadxx Posts: 1,199 Member
    edited April 2017
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    142 pounds down so far and not a single plateau. I have heard many times "I can't believe you haven't plateaued yet. You just keep losing weight." That is when they get a quick lesson and start to understand the concept of counting calories accurately and maintaining a deficit and that it really works.
  • havronab
    havronab Posts: 40 Member
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    Chadxx wrote: »
    142 pounds down so far and not a single plateau.

    @Chadxx Amazing!! You give me hope!! Do you think you have done anything in particular that has prevented a plateau or just following MFP's calorie goals?
  • cross2bear
    cross2bear Posts: 1,106 Member
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    115lbs down and to the best of my knowledge, no plateau. I say this because in the beginning, I only weighed myself every 6-8 weeks or so, when at the doc's office for other stuff. Now I weigh more frequently at home, but everytime I had no loss, or a gain of a bit, I knew exactly why that was and I knew how to address it. Sometimes it took me a few days to get my head out of my *kitten* and get back on track, but that doesnt count as a plateau to me - its me being a doofus and not paying attention to what I was doing.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,871 Member
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    In my experience, plateaus are usually one of three things...

    1. Impatience...as weight loss progresses, it tends to become more erratic and less linear...many people mistake this for a plateau when in reality it's just impatience and unrealistic expectations

    2. Diet fatigue and calorie creep...this can be huge and I'd say probably the biggest issue where plateaus are concerned...particularly as the margin of error shrinks

    3. Huge deficits caused by underfeeding and overexercising...it's a massive stress on the body and really messes around with hormones that can stall weight loss/fat loss. This issue is compounded when one is already relatively lean or not tremendously overweight.

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