Scared of weight loss plateaus.
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meganpettigrew86 wrote: »I get given 1200 no matter my activity level for the 1kg per week loss as it is where it caps.
You have to enter your exercise separately.
My activity level is sedentary (but I manually adjusted my calorie amount to 1440) ... and then I add my exercise, selecting the low/light/slow options most of the time.
yes, it gives 1200 for sedentary, lightly active, and active, because it cannot go below 1200, so adding exercises on top means a sedentary person will have a few 100 extra calories than they should. This is because it is not considered safe for a person to consume less than 1200 cal per day. But if a sedentary person were to consume 1200 plus exercise calories they will not lose at the same rate as an active person who ate 1200 plus exercise calories.
i.e. for me to lose 1kg per week (without exercise and sedentary) I would need to consume around 750cal (not saying anyone should do that). So my first 450 calories burnt doing exercise should not count when on the 1200 calorie program.
This is why it is not feasible to aim for 1kg per week loss per week because that aint going to be good for the body.
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meganpettigrew86 wrote: »meganpettigrew86 wrote: »I get given 1200 no matter my activity level for the 1kg per week loss as it is where it caps.
You have to enter your exercise separately.
My activity level is sedentary (but I manually adjusted my calorie amount to 1440) ... and then I add my exercise, selecting the low/light/slow options most of the time.
yes, it gives 1200 for sedentary, lightly active, and active, because it cannot go below 1200, so adding exercises on top means a sedentary person will have a few 100 extra calories than they should. This is because it is not considered safe for a person to consume less than 1200 cal per day. But if a sedentary person were to consume 1200 plus exercise calories they will not lose at the same rate as an active person who ate 1200 plus exercise calories.
i.e. for me to lose 1kg per week (without exercise and sedentary) I would need to consume around 750cal (not saying anyone should do that). So my first 450 calories burnt doing exercise should not count when on the 1200 calorie program.
This is why it is not feasible to aim for 1kg per week loss per week because that aint going to be good for the body.
MFP is designed so that exercise is added on, especially if you set yourself at sedentary.
I managed to lose 25 kg just fine on 1250 cal + a portion of my exercise calories for the first 16 weeks of my "diet" and then on 1350 cal + a portion of my exercise calories for the next 16 weeks of my "diet".
I dropped 15 kg during the first 16 weeks, and 10 kg during the second 16 weeks.
I opted to eat about 50% of my exercise calories back when I was lightly active (walking for an hour or so), 75% of my exercise calories when I was moderately active (cycling for, say, 3 hours or so), and about 95% of my exercise calories when I was quite active (cycling for, say, 6+ hours).
Oh, and no plateaus either.3 -
Nony_Mouse wrote: »urshela111 wrote: »Nony_Mouse wrote: »If you've increased your workouts and started strength training, you're likely retaining fluid for muscle repair.
How did you come to that 1200 cals? If you don't have much weight to lose (ie less than 20 lb), you should only be aiming for 0.5 lb per week, and you need to eat 50-75% of any calories you burn from exercise as well.
I used the app to generate the calorie intake limit. Thanks a lot. I actually have 20 lbs to lose.
What weekly weight loss goal did you set it to?
1kg per week. (2lbs)0 -
meganpettigrew86 wrote: »I get given 1200 no matter my activity level for the 1kg per week loss as it is where it caps.
Same.
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Weight Plateaus DO exist!! It is a normal body compensation for changes we make in our eating/nutrients, etc. I lost 55 lbs on WW 9 years ago. The first 35lbs came off slowly, but steady. Then I hit the dreaded plateau! I logged, measured, weighed EVERY morsel that went into my mouth, HONESTLY, and every week for 6 weeks I would weigh in, and nothing, sometimes even a small gain!! I had a total meltdown at the scale on week 6. My leader took my journal and we poured over my food choices. After losing 35 lbs and doing moderate exercise, she felt I wasn't eating ENOUGH! So, she upped my protein, and added more healthy carbs, and the very next week I was down 3 lbs!! Our bodies do strange things, and yes, calories in and calories out are the rule, plateaus DO occur and you just have to work through it. I am 10 years older now and gained 25 of the 55 lost back, and it is coming off very slowly, but I am taking every ounce lost as a success. I am geared for the plateau and will make adjustments as they occur. Good luck and hang in there!!
Thanks so much!!0 -
urshela111 wrote: »Nony_Mouse wrote: »urshela111 wrote: »Nony_Mouse wrote: »If you've increased your workouts and started strength training, you're likely retaining fluid for muscle repair.
How did you come to that 1200 cals? If you don't have much weight to lose (ie less than 20 lb), you should only be aiming for 0.5 lb per week, and you need to eat 50-75% of any calories you burn from exercise as well.
I used the app to generate the calorie intake limit. Thanks a lot. I actually have 20 lbs to lose.
What weekly weight loss goal did you set it to?
1kg per week. (2lbs)
I set mine to 0.5 kg/week. MFP gave me 1250 cal. After a month or so, MFP dropped me to 1200 cal, but I raised it manually back up to 1250 cal.
I lost 1 kg/week for the first 16 weeks, but I set my goal at half that.
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Plateaus are awesome... it gives you and your body some time to learn how to maintain. I would rather plateau then gain. Try to see it as a win.6
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I've Plateaued since June after losing 31lb, I have tried changing the type of calorie I eat - more protein for instance. Today I was in Lidl store looking for their high protein rolls, when I spied their Pecan Plaits, I bought 3 for £1 and I have just eaten all three @ nearly 400 calories each!!
May I add I'm sedentary, have 1200 cal's per day, with a goal I have just reduced yesterday to ½ lb per week0 -
smithmssycatsmithiris30 wrote: »I've Plateaued since June after losing 31lb, I have tried changing the type of calorie I eat - more protein for instance. Today I was in Lidl store looking for their high protein rolls, when I spied their Pecan Plaits, I bought 3 for £1 and I have just eaten all three @ nearly 400 calories each!!
May I add I'm sedentary, have 1200 cal's per day, with a goal I have just reduced yesterday to ½ lb per week
Well ... at least you know why you've plateaued.
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There are a lot of mechanisms that mean a calorie deficit goes down after several months of a diet.
Of course one weighs less so one uses fewer calories lugging less weight around
There is quite a bit of research that shows that someone expends (significantly) fewer calories after weight loss compared to a twin that weighs the same as them but hasn't lost weight.
(There is research that shows that a high percentage fat and may be protein diet may help minimise this effect.)
This could easily add up to 500 calories or more a day - that is what was a pound a week loss is now no loss at all.
Less of the hormone leptin from less fat also makes food more attractive.
Of course this all made good sense in prehistoric times or even more recent times - after a few months of famine it was important to refuel the body as soon as possible.1 -
urshela111 wrote: »Here i am back at the plateau again. At 61 kgs. Having lost 9 kgs. This time iv measured my self to keep a tracks of inches lost. Havent seen any significant or any changes at all past 4 weeks.
I have however increased my workout and switched to strength training. Done carb cycling.
But i will eat at maintainence for a week then switch to my deficit at 1200 kcal.
Thank you all!
My weight past three days have 61.1, 61.2 and 61.5 i have started gaining. Now i just want to be sure if im in a plateau at all or it is just water weight fluctuations.
This is not a plateau...this is normal weight fluctuations...and since weight is moving it really isn't a plateau.
A plateau is no change in weight at all for 6-8 weeks.
And for all of those who are claiming they were in one...because they were accurate...yah okay....there are always errors in logging...either due to user error or error on the package.
there are a lot of factors that can account for lack of scale/weight loss. Some of it could be water retention from new exercise, or high sodium intake or travelling or heck cortisol levels are high due to outside stress or stress over a "plateau" but those don't last too long and aren't plateaus.
http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/another-look-at-metabolic-damage.html#more-9313
http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/of-whooshes-and-squishy-fat.html
Weight loss plateaus are really you eating at maintenance even if you all don't want to believe it.
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If you read EVERYTHING about plateaus, then you should know that they are actually RARE.urshela111 wrote: »Last year i lost 9 kgs in 3 months and after that i plateaud at 60kgs for 2 months. I gave up because it affected it mentally. I started working in the hotel industry and over the course of 9 months i gained back the 9 kgs.
Now its been 2 weeks since iv been working out, but im scared il plateau again and the frustration will be back.
P.s (iv read everything about plateaus)
A plateau in weightloss is 6 weeks or more of NO WEIGHT MOVEMENT (up or down) while one has been completely consistent with calorie intake and exercise. That would mean that any change in that 6 weeks, which would include eating something you usually don't or doing an exercise or duration you usually don't, exempts if from being a plateau because the consistency was lost.
What you likely experienced was a stall and many times it happens because initially people are TOO AGGRESSIVE in their calorie deficit. It usually will take the body about 2 months or so to adapt to that deficit and then it reacts in kind by accommodating it by matching metabolic rate to the calories taken in.
I can't truly say what happened because I have no idea about you, but in almost all my clients who stall, there's something they've done differently in their routine that likely caused it after they were being honest with themselves.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
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Ah, but actual science and clinical experimentation ARE THERE to examine and most people who think they are on a plateau, really aren't when ALL INFORMATION gets analyzed.cheryldumais wrote: »Just because you have never been to Spain doesn't mean it doesn't exist. I hit a plateau that lasted three and a half months. I was weighing and measuring and logging everything. I have now lost 84 pounds. What caused it? Who knows. Eating at maintenance for a week got me going again. I went back to dieting and continued to lose at slightly higher calories. I am now 10 pounds from goal. I agree that you may continue to lose inches even if your actual body weight isn't moving. With bodies that have a huge percentage of our weight made up of water we have to understand that although calories in vs. calories out will determine our fat loss body weight is affected by so many things. A classic example is (TMI warning) how often your bowels move. That can affect your weight if things have slowed down. The closer you get to goal weight the slower the loss will be. Many people think they are on a plateau if they aren't losing 2 pounds a week. That just isn't a plateau. If it happens you can get through it. Just don't quit. You have to keep going and keep in mind that if you aren't gaining you are ahead of the game. I decided when I got stuck that if that was my maintenance level I would just live there. I was so unwilling to gain back the weight I had lost. Eat at a level you can live at. Crash dieting never works. This is an eating plan not a diet to go off of and go back to "normal" eating (as in what you were doing before that caused the weight gain). Good Luck.
As I've mentioned, with clients that felt the same way, after we've sat down and analyzed their daily/weekly regimen HONESTLY, there's ALWAYS something that's slightly different. And that slight difference may have been the factor.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
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NOT a plateau because the weight is changing. It's NOT EXACTLY the same. This is why I've stated that plateau's are rare. If you've stalled, then you reassess. Are you actually eating less than you STARTED at 70 kgs? If not, then you need to because you weigh less.urshela111 wrote: »Here i am back at the plateau again. At 61 kgs. Having lost 9 kgs. This time iv measured my self to keep a tracks of inches lost. Havent seen any significant or any changes at all past 4 weeks.
I have however increased my workout and switched to strength training. Done carb cycling.
But i will eat at maintainence for a week then switch to my deficit at 1200 kcal.
Thank you all!
My weight past three days have 61.1, 61.2 and 61.5 i have started gaining. Now i just want to be sure if im in a plateau at all or it is just water weight fluctuations.
Of course I'm assuming you're not undereating if you're using the app correctly.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
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If you're not over 200lbs, this is aggressive which means you're body is responding by slowing it's metabolic rate to compensate for the calories.urshela111 wrote: »Nony_Mouse wrote: »urshela111 wrote: »Nony_Mouse wrote: »If you've increased your workouts and started strength training, you're likely retaining fluid for muscle repair.
How did you come to that 1200 cals? If you don't have much weight to lose (ie less than 20 lb), you should only be aiming for 0.5 lb per week, and you need to eat 50-75% of any calories you burn from exercise as well.
I used the app to generate the calorie intake limit. Thanks a lot. I actually have 20 lbs to lose.
What weekly weight loss goal did you set it to?
1kg per week. (2lbs)
Go for 1% of your body weight a week. Recalculate your calories for that.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
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I am currently in one and it was making me CRAZY... I have lost 70lbs and then nothing, for weeks on end and now all I have done is gain and lose the same 3-4lbs for about a month. I was getting frustrated and beginning to see old patterns creep in and that scared the crap out of me because i had worked so hard to get to this point...so I made some changes... Mostly mental changes, I went to maintenance for about 4 weeks and only got on the scale twice in that time frame. I continued to eat healthy 90% of the time and continued with my workouts as normal. I just needed to stop focusing on the scale and focus more on my health and fitness and to remind myself on why I started this new lifestyle in the first place. Yes, I needed to lose weight but I truly just wanted to get active and live a healthier LONGER life and I knew that wasn't going to happen being a 260lb couch potato. I took a look back at what was different now from when I was consistently losing weigh each week. I was lax in my meal planning/prep. I wasn't working out nearly as much as I had been and my portions were a little bit bigger than usual. Lets face it, our bodies will plateau at some point, I lost 70lbs obviously the weight isn't just going to continue to drop off as I near goal weight so I need to work a little bit harder at it, so it may take a longer time to get there... I just need to push through, make some changes, continue to log my foods, meal prep and commit to my exercise routine and most of all have patience and not give up. I always look at before an after pics to keep me going in the right direct... I NEVER want to go back
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I am currently in one and it was making me CRAZY... I have lost 70lbs and then nothing, for weeks on end and now all I have done is gain and lose the same 3-4lbs for about a month. I was getting frustrated and beginning to see old patterns creep in and that scared the crap out of me because i had worked so hard to get to this point...so I made some changes... Mostly mental changes, I went to maintenance for about 4 weeks and only got on the scale twice in that time frame. I continued to eat healthy 90% of the time and continued with my workouts as normal. I just needed to stop focusing on the scale and focus more on my health and fitness and to remind myself on why I started this new lifestyle in the first place. Yes, I needed to lose weight but I truly just wanted to get active and live a healthier LONGER life and I knew that wasn't going to happen being a 260lb couch potato. I took a look back at what was different now from when I was consistently losing weigh each week. I was lax in my meal planning/prep. I wasn't working out nearly as much as I had been and my portions were a little bit bigger than usual. Lets face it, our bodies will plateau at some point, I lost 70lbs obviously the weight isn't just going to continue to drop off as I near goal weight so I need to work a little bit harder at it, so it may take a longer time to get there... I just need to push through, make some changes, continue to log my foods, meal prep and commit to my exercise routine and most of all have patience and not give up. I always look at before an after pics to keep me going in the right direct... I NEVER want to go back
That is not a plateau...if you are gaining and losing weight you are not in a plateau...it could be a stall due to inaccurate logging, water retention etc but not a plateau.
again cortisol (stress hormone) can mask weight loss by making your body hold water...guess what causes stress...thinking you are in a plateau and will never get to goal...1 -
I am currently in one and it was making me CRAZY... I have lost 70lbs and then nothing, for weeks on end and now all I have done is gain and lose the same 3-4lbs for about a month. I was getting frustrated and beginning to see old patterns creep in and that scared the crap out of me because i had worked so hard to get to this point...so I made some changes... Mostly mental changes, I went to maintenance for about 4 weeks and only got on the scale twice in that time frame. I continued to eat healthy 90% of the time and continued with my workouts as normal. I just needed to stop focusing on the scale and focus more on my health and fitness and to remind myself on why I started this new lifestyle in the first place. Yes, I needed to lose weight but I truly just wanted to get active and live a healthier LONGER life and I knew that wasn't going to happen being a 260lb couch potato. I took a look back at what was different now from when I was consistently losing weigh each week. I was lax in my meal planning/prep. I wasn't working out nearly as much as I had been and my portions were a little bit bigger than usual. Lets face it, our bodies will plateau at some point, I lost 70lbs obviously the weight isn't just going to continue to drop off as I near goal weight so I need to work a little bit harder at it, so it may take a longer time to get there... I just need to push through, make some changes, continue to log my foods, meal prep and commit to my exercise routine and most of all have patience and not give up. I always look at before an after pics to keep me going in the right direct... I NEVER want to go back
That isn't a plateau.
You lost 70 lbs, so you need to adjust your calorie intake.
You became lax in meal planning/prep. You weren't working out nearly as much as you had been and your portions were a little bit bigger than usual.
What you're experiencing now might be a bit of burnout, if you've been at it a long time ... but it isn't a plateau.
And yes, going to maintenance for a few weeks can be good.
When I lost my weight, as I mentioned above, I did it in two sets of 16 weeks each. Between those sets of 16 weeks, I took a 1-month diet break (while travelling) and ate whatever I wanted while doing more exercise than usual. It was a good break and I was ready to get back into it again for another 16 weeks.
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If you read EVERYTHING about plateaus, then you should know that they are actually RARE.urshela111 wrote: »Last year i lost 9 kgs in 3 months and after that i plateaud at 60kgs for 2 months. I gave up because it affected it mentally. I started working in the hotel industry and over the course of 9 months i gained back the 9 kgs.
Now its been 2 weeks since iv been working out, but im scared il plateau again and the frustration will be back.
P.s (iv read everything about plateaus)
A plateau in weightloss is 6 weeks or more of NO WEIGHT MOVEMENT (up or down) while one has been completely consistent with calorie intake and exercise. That would mean that any change in that 6 weeks, which would include eating something you usually don't or doing an exercise or duration you usually don't, exempts if from being a plateau because the consistency was lost.
What you likely experienced was a stall and many times it happens because initially people are TOO AGGRESSIVE in their calorie deficit. It usually will take the body about 2 months or so to adapt to that deficit and then it reacts in kind by accommodating it by matching metabolic rate to the calories taken in.
I can't truly say what happened because I have no idea about you, but in almost all my clients who stall, there's something they've done differently in their routine that likely caused it after they were being honest with themselves.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
Iv been in the 61 weight range for quite a weeks. And all my measurements are same.
What do you reckon i do now?
Will uping my calorie intake to 1500 and eating 50% of the excercise calories help? Should take off from working out for few weeks?
Sorry for bombarding you with questions.0 -
urshela111 wrote: »
If you read EVERYTHING about plateaus, then you should know that they are actually RARE.urshela111 wrote: »Last year i lost 9 kgs in 3 months and after that i plateaud at 60kgs for 2 months. I gave up because it affected it mentally. I started working in the hotel industry and over the course of 9 months i gained back the 9 kgs.
Now its been 2 weeks since iv been working out, but im scared il plateau again and the frustration will be back.
P.s (iv read everything about plateaus)
A plateau in weightloss is 6 weeks or more of NO WEIGHT MOVEMENT (up or down) while one has been completely consistent with calorie intake and exercise. That would mean that any change in that 6 weeks, which would include eating something you usually don't or doing an exercise or duration you usually don't, exempts if from being a plateau because the consistency was lost.
What you likely experienced was a stall and many times it happens because initially people are TOO AGGRESSIVE in their calorie deficit. It usually will take the body about 2 months or so to adapt to that deficit and then it reacts in kind by accommodating it by matching metabolic rate to the calories taken in.
I can't truly say what happened because I have no idea about you, but in almost all my clients who stall, there's something they've done differently in their routine that likely caused it after they were being honest with themselves.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
Iv been in the 61 weight range for quite a weeks. And all my measurements are same.
What do you reckon i do now?
Will uping my calorie intake to 1500 and eating 50% of the excercise calories help? Should take off from working out for few weeks?
Sorry for bombarding you with questions.
Do you have a food scale, and are you weighing everything you eat?
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