HELP! How do I get over a weight loss plateau?!

Options
StephLinden
StephLinden Posts: 3 Member
edited October 2017 in Health and Weight Loss
I’ve lost approx 40lbs in 5-6months and have hit the dreaded plateau. I work out 45-50mins 6 days a week. All cardio no weight training (addicted to cardio). I must say I’ve been lax on calorie tracking and need to start again. I’m also a camel and hate drinking water! So I know more water is a must as well. Any tips or tricks would be greatly appreciated. A month with no weight loss so discouraging.
«1

Replies

  • Tacklewasher
    Tacklewasher Posts: 7,122 Member
    Options
    livingleanlivingclean wrote: »
    Start tracking your calories... Simple!

    Ayup.
  • ladyreva78
    ladyreva78 Posts: 4,080 Member
    Options
    livingleanlivingclean wrote: »
    Start tracking your calories... Simple!

    thirded
  • sosteach
    sosteach Posts: 260 Member
    Options
    you answered your own question
  • maggibailey
    maggibailey Posts: 289 Member
    Options
    They are all right of course. After a long time of counting calories people think they have the portion thing down and can stop. And occasionally they can, but some people may need to just jump back into it on a short term basis to realign portions. Also if you are down 40 pounds (awesome by the way!) then you need less calories than you did when you started. Recalculate your caloric needs for your new smaller body and track your calories for a month. I bet the weight starts moving again ;)
  • Muscleflex79
    Muscleflex79 Posts: 1,917 Member
    Options
    StephLinden wrote: »
    I’ve lost approx 40lbs in 5-6months and have hit the dreaded plateau. I work out 45-50mins 6 days a week. All cardio no weight training (addicted to cardio). I must say I’ve been lax on calorie tracking and need to start again. I’m also a camel and hate drinking water! So I know more water is a must as well. Any tips or tricks would be greatly appreciated. A month with no weight loss so discouraging.

    what tip or trick do you want short of 'count and log your calories' ??
  • PixelPuff
    PixelPuff Posts: 901 Member
    Options
    Have you been recalculating your calorie needs/goals as you have lost weight, too? Seems simple, but people do forget to do it.
  • StephLinden
    StephLinden Posts: 3 Member
    edited October 2017
    Options
    I guess it just requires going back to basics!
  • PixelPuff
    PixelPuff Posts: 901 Member
    Options
    StephLinden wrote: »
    Muscleflex79 wrote: »
    StephLinden wrote: »
    I’ve lost approx 40lbs in 5-6months and have hit the dreaded plateau. I work out 45-50mins 6 days a week. All cardio no weight training (addicted to cardio). I must say I’ve been lax on calorie tracking and need to start again. I’m also a camel and hate drinking water! So I know more water is a must as well. Any tips or tricks would be greatly appreciated. A month with no weight loss so discouraging.

    what tip or trick do you want short of 'count and log your calories' ??

    It was a general question towards those who may have gotten over a plateau. There is more tip aside from counting calories. Refer to previous responses.

    On that note, after a certain point of weight loss (started just a little under morbidly obese, this was around juuuust higher than overweight), I began to lose my weight once a month. I would plateau, then my period would come, and woosh.

    During weight loss, if you have a pattern... Expect that the pattern may change. Just hold out and see how it goes sometimes.
  • Nony_Mouse
    Nony_Mouse Posts: 5,646 Member
    Options
    StephLinden wrote: »
    I guess it just requires going back to basics!

    There's really nothing else we can say until it's confirmed that you're actually eating at a deficit. If you were logging accurately, we'd have other suggestions, but that's the first thing to try.
  • StephLinden
    StephLinden Posts: 3 Member
    Options
    PixelPuff wrote: »
    Have you been recalculating your calorie needs/goals as you have lost weight, too? Seems simple, but people do forget to do it.

    I have but I never tracked my recalculated calories. BUT, when I started I put my activity as sedentary. I upped it to “lightly active” and it’s about the same. So I don’t know what to follow!
  • PixelPuff
    PixelPuff Posts: 901 Member
    Options
    StephLinden wrote: »
    PixelPuff wrote: »
    Have you been recalculating your calorie needs/goals as you have lost weight, too? Seems simple, but people do forget to do it.

    I have but I never tracked my recalculated calories. BUT, when I started I put my activity as sedentary. I upped it to “lightly active” and it’s about the same. So I don’t know what to follow!
    Is it recommending 1200 calories? MFP won't go lower than that (safety), so that may be why. Even if someone wants an aggressive goal for their weight loss (2lbs/week), sometimes it just cannot be done safely. Have to make sure you are still eating properly.

    What is your height/weight, if I may please ask?
  • Kst76
    Kst76 Posts: 935 Member
    edited October 2017
    Options
    StephLinden wrote: »
    PixelPuff wrote: »
    Have you been recalculating your calorie needs/goals as you have lost weight, too? Seems simple, but people do forget to do it.

    I have but I never tracked my recalculated calories. BUT, when I started I put my activity as sedentary. I upped it to “lightly active” and it’s about the same. So I don’t know what to follow!

    I agree...that is hard.
    I am always on my feet, walking, cleaning, carrying grocery but I still had my settings to sedentary. But that only gave me 1300 calories per day. My fitbit tracker avarages 15000 steps a day. So I changed it to light active and half a pound a week. Now I get 1700 calories. I weigh everything.
  • Kst76
    Kst76 Posts: 935 Member
    edited October 2017
    Options
    GrumpyHeadmistress wrote: »
    I’ve been on MFP for 22 months and have lost almost 110lbs. I religiously measure everything with three exceptions - when I eat out (rarely), my daily wrap (no idea why I don’t record the weight as I do measure) and low cal jelly (only 2-7 calories per pot).

    I’ve never had a plateau. I’ve lost some weeks, gained some weeks (hello ovulation!) and stayed the same some weeks but never had a proper plateau. And I attribute that to my obsession with measuring.


    This calls for a new thread. What do people consider plateau? To me a plateau is when you stay the same weight for more than a couple of weeks.
  • GrumpyHeadmistress
    GrumpyHeadmistress Posts: 666 Member
    Options
    karintalley wrote: »
    GrumpyHeadmistress wrote: »
    I’ve been on MFP for 22 months and have lost almost 110lbs. I religiously measure everything with three exceptions - when I eat out (rarely), my daily wrap (no idea why I don’t record the weight as I do measure) and low cal jelly (only 2-7 calories per pot).

    I’ve never had a plateau. I’ve lost some weeks, gained some weeks (hello ovulation!) and stayed the same some weeks but never had a proper plateau. And I attribute that to my obsession with measuring.


    This calls for a new thread. What do people consider plateau? To me a plateau is when you stay the same weight for more than a couple of weeks.

    Ditto. I’d say at least 3-4 weeks.
  • PixelPuff
    PixelPuff Posts: 901 Member
    Options
    I'd say just over a month as well, considering what I put above for what my pattern changed to.
  • VintageFeline
    VintageFeline Posts: 6,771 Member
    Options
    karintalley wrote: »
    GrumpyHeadmistress wrote: »
    I’ve been on MFP for 22 months and have lost almost 110lbs. I religiously measure everything with three exceptions - when I eat out (rarely), my daily wrap (no idea why I don’t record the weight as I do measure) and low cal jelly (only 2-7 calories per pot).

    I’ve never had a plateau. I’ve lost some weeks, gained some weeks (hello ovulation!) and stayed the same some weeks but never had a proper plateau. And I attribute that to my obsession with measuring.


    This calls for a new thread. What do people consider plateau? To me a plateau is when you stay the same weight for more than a couple of weeks.

    I've gone up to 8 weeks to really see the downward trend/a proper properly because I'll bounce around the same few pounds then a little whoosh. All averages out. At the moment I'm largely seeing the scale move once every 4 weeks. Again, not a plateau, I'm still losing, it's just not showing on the scale yet due to natural fluctuations.

Categories