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Plateau

anditshannahnotreally
anditshannahnotreally Posts: 5 Member
edited November 2024 in Health and Weight Loss
Hi, I started at 132, went down to 120 by switching my life long vegetarianism to veganism (not for weight loss) once I realized how good I looked with the weight gone I began dieting at 1,200 calories a day. That's when I hit 115 within a month. I want to be 110, but now I'm almost done with my second month and I haven't lost any. Should I up my intake ? Lower it? Been dieting for about 55 days now, I weigh my foods , excerise (run, walk) , I just don't understand. Any ideas on how to push the final 5? Thanks !

Replies

  • snickerscharlie
    snickerscharlie Posts: 8,578 Member
    How tall are you?
  • anditshannahnotreally
    anditshannahnotreally Posts: 5 Member
    5'4
  • ChromiumG
    ChromiumG Posts: 16 Member
    Im at a pretty serious plateau right now too. Im 169-170lbs though. Id LOVE some advice too on how to break it.
  • jjpptt2
    jjpptt2 Posts: 5,650 Member
    edited June 2017
    I'd stay right where you are. You're down 17lbs in a month, it's unrealistic to think you can keep up that rate of loss. Be patient.

    If anything, I'd make sure my logging was tight... everything was getting weighed, measured and logged. Everything. But I wouldn't change my calorie goals.
  • jjpptt2
    jjpptt2 Posts: 5,650 Member
    edited June 2017
    ChromiumG wrote: »
    Im at a pretty serious plateau right now too. Im 169-170lbs though. Id LOVE some advice too on how to break it.

    95% of plateaus happen because of things like sloppy logging, poor consistency, relaxed/skipped workouts, etc. I'd make sure those things are where they should be (i.e. where they were when you were losing, pre-plateau) before I did anything else.
  • anditshannahnotreally
    anditshannahnotreally Posts: 5 Member
    Oh, no no no. I went vegan in March 2016 and by August 2016 I was down by 12 pounds. I began dieting and lost 5 pounds in a month.
  • klrenn
    klrenn Posts: 245 Member
    edited June 2017
    The last 5 are going to come off very slowly...if you're careful about tracking, you may be able to do half a pound a week. But it probably won't be completely consistent and could take a few months after you dial in your logging.

    I'm 5'4" - Before I was lifting weights my lowest was about 110 and it was very hard to stay there...there's just so little leeway with how few calories I had to work with that I naturally ended up between 115 and 120.
  • jjpptt2
    jjpptt2 Posts: 5,650 Member
    anditshannahnotreally wrote: »
    Oh, no no no. I went vegan in March 2016 and by August 2016 I was down by 12 pounds. I began dieting and lost 5 pounds in a month.

    Then that's even more reason to stay the course. 12lbs in 6 months is perfect. 5lbs in 1 month is probably not sustainable.
  • bribucks
    bribucks Posts: 431 Member
    I'm in the same boat with my plateau, however mine was due to a combination of inaccurate tracking plus being sick for a few weeks. I am 5'3'' and 120 (trying to get to 110) so similar size. From everything I've read, it sounds like the initial weight comes off way faster due to water weight. You have only been on this diet for 2 months, so give it time. Plus most people would qualify a true "plateau" as being 6-8 weeks of no change.

    Are you sure you have really lost "no" weight this month? Or has it only been such a small amount you may not have noticed? I just started using the app Happy Scale - you weigh in every morning and it smooths out tiny fluctuations and shows you trends instead. I think it's been helpful for me so far.

    Since you are now down to the last few pounds, you should really only be at a rate of 0.5 lbs/week. It's not glamorous or exciting, but you are close to your goal so losing faster really wouldn't be too healthy.

    What does your exercise look like? How many days a week? Just cardio, or do you do strength training too? I just added strength training to my routine so I am going to see if that makes a difference for me.
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