Last 10-15 lbs. How did you lose it?

lunajes · March 2019

So I have those last stubborn about 10-15lbs to come off. I had lost over 40lbs this last year with good old diet and exercise, hit my goal weight- 132. I’m 5’3 1/2. Then life happened. Gained 15 back. Now it’s been a struggle to get it back off. I’m back at the gym at 6am in the morning for at least an hour, cardio and strength. I’m tracking my food really well. Tracking my exercise. But the scale budges 2 lbs up, 2 lbs down. You guys know the scale cha-cha. Any feedback or experiences with this? I’d like to see the weight off within 3 months. Thanks.

mmapags · March 2019

Slowly. Very, very slowly.I think when you are in this position, time frame goals are counter productive. Fluctuations happen. Especially to women. Be patient and use this time to learn sustainable maintenance habits. They are invaluable.

hungrywombat · March 2019

This is what has worked for me to lose my last 5kg -
1. Be patient. If you want it to come off healthily and sustainably, it's going to take a long time. A modest deficit (0.5lb is the usual guideline) will help you to keep getting appropriate nutrition and will pave the way for maintenance with healthy habits.
2. Tighten up your logging. Both on making sure you weigh everything, and double checking the accuracy of the entries you are using.
3. Meal prep if you possibly can, it really helps with staying on track.
4. Be patient. It's going to take a long time AND water weight fluctuations from hormones can be more noticeable at a lower weight. Use a weight tracking app to help you look at the overall trend when you're getting frustrated.
5. Be consistent.
6. Be aware of your own traps - I know that when I have alcohol, I become a ravenous raging food beast and eat everything in sight. So while I am prioritising losing weight, I've made a conscious decision to really cut back on drinking wine. Don't get me wrong, I still enjoy the occasional glass, but switching to a nice relaxing cup of tea when I get home instead of a glass of wine has supported the process.
7. Up your NEAT - it doesn't hurt to try and increase non-intentional exercise. Getting off the bus a stop or two earlier, carrying items to the dinner table individually to get a few extra steps in - anything helps.
8. Be patient. It's going to take a long time.
9. Be kind to yourself and try to see it as an act of self care rather than punishment for having regained. Stress doesn't help anything and hating the process is only going to increase the likelihood of falling off the wagon with a vengeance.
10. Don't forget that life happens - there will be the occasional event that forces you to go off track. There will be days, or weekends, or holidays where you are focusing on things other than your diet. Be consistent, make the best choices you can, and look at the bigger picture.

Good luck!

sijomial · March 2019

I lost my last 10lbs at 1lb a week as I had my weekly calorie deficit precisely dialled in by then.

Suggest you revisit your logging accuracy as the first step if your weight loss results are out of step with your apparent calorie deficit, if you want help with that then an open diary helps enormously.

PS - as you are smaller than me 1lb/week might well not be appropriate, or as easy to achieve, for you.

lunajes · March 2019

Thanks you for the feedback and support everyone! I appreciate it!

ceiswyn · March 2019

I lost the last 10-15 lb slowly and painfully. My problem was mostly psychological; I swung wildly between the delight of 'wow, I'm almost there!' and the frustration of 'how am I not there yet?!', both of which encouraged the consumption of more biscuits than were perhaps good for my overall deficit

You already know the way: obsessively accurate tracking of diet and exercise. As for the mental side, you have to find your own way to keep on trucking right to the line.

apullum · March 2019

Log every single bite you can using a food scale. This includes prepackaged foods, produce, oil, cooking spray, everything. Your deficit is very small and it doesn’t take much to wipe it out.

Set your pace of loss to 0.5 lb/week and don’t expect to see the scale go down often. In my last few pounds, the scale went down a pound once every 4-6 weeks. Your weight is not going to come off in 3 months unless it’s all water, which it doesn’t seem to be. If you’re like me, it may take closer to a year to lose those last few pounds.

Check your exercise calorie burns. Ask yourself if they’re realistic. Be honest about it.

Finally, have a plan for maintenance. When you reach your goal weight, you can’t “stop dieting.” The weight will come right back. See the maintenance board for discussions of how people approach maintenance calories.

Phirrgus · March 2019

Download and use a tracking app like Libra. It will show a slow trend vs what we expect to/hope to see on a scale. Right now I'm trending about 0.7lbs down.....per month

Pretty much where I ought to be I think, within 3 or so lbs of goal weight.

sardelsa · March 2019

Many people find it helps to log everything accurately since you don't have as much wiggle room in your deficit. Also water weight fluctuations can mask progress so try not to get discouraged.

I take it slow and steady, I don't overdo the cardio, take regular breaks and focus more on measurements and progress photos.

6raham · March 2019

I am going through exactly the same, hit goal weight, then put on 7lbs and now desperate to get rid of the again. I have looked reverse dieting so slowly adding calories back into my day to day routine and having to accept it is going to be a slow progress, that or i end up in an endless cycle of cutting calories down to bare minimum and over exercising, binging, then cutting which wasnt helping!

lunajes · March 2019

Well. Practicing patience, staying the course and being consistent. Things I know, just need a community reminder not to set unrealistic expectations of myself either. At 34, shouldn’t I know this?? Thank you all again for the encouragement and support. Best of luck to all of you on your fitness and diet journey.

NorthCascades · March 2019

I wrote my goal weight in a piece of paper and taped it over the scale display.

Maxxitt · March 2019

To add to the great suggestions above, an app like Happy Scale helps with the cha-cha because it tracks trends and averages - for me, the steady .7 lb loss trend gets me through the peaks and valleys.

PAV8888 · March 2019

11.1lbs over 365 days, taking me from slightly overweight well into the normal weight zone.... year 2 on MFP.

If I wasn't looking at trendweight.com I would have been convinced I was gaining weight... while I was losing at just under a lb a month!

I didn't loosen up on my logging until more than a year after that, so my routines were quite similar and a continuation of my previous more rapid weight loss ... but with a smaller deficit.

emilysusana · March 2019

Small deficit, slow loss and patience will help you do better when you reach your goal and enter maintenance again. Think of it not as something temporary that you need to do in three months so you can be at goal (and then what? Go back to “normal” life again?). Think of it as weight management. Right now, that involves a deficit, later, you’ll aim for energy balance...

SCoil123 · March 2019

Very slowly. I came to this site with 30lb to lose and it took me two years - about 15lb a year. If it wasn’t for trendweight I probably would have given up. Seeing that line move down despite fluctuations was reassuring that I was on the right track

rickiimarieee · March 2019

lunajes wrote: »

So I have those last stubborn about 10-15lbs to come off. I had lost over 40lbs this last year with good old diet and exercise, hit my goal weight- 132. I’m 5’3 1/2. Then life happened. Gained 15 back. Now it’s been a struggle to get it back off. I’m back at the gym at 6am in the morning for at least an hour, cardio and strength. I’m tracking my food really well. Tracking my exercise. But the scale budges 2 lbs up, 2 lbs down. You guys know the scale cha-cha. Any feedback or experiences with this? I’d like to see the weight off within 3 months. Thanks.

I know you want to reach your goal weight but are you happy with how you look? I say if you are screw the goal weight. You probably aren’t losing anymore because you’re gaining muscle (from the gym).

AvianDB · March 2019

I have about 15-19 left here and still losing ~1.5lb a week.

You really want to make sure you’re counting your calories properly, and use a food scale to ensure it! Update your goals on MFP as well to ensure it gives you the most accurate calorie target too (for your current weight). Exercise really does help, and drink plenty of water (not too much but enough, it helps a little with water weight fluctuations).

Damienriven · March 2019

Lost 23 pounds in about 2 months doing IF and a small amount of calorie restriction.

mlm7126 · March 2019

I totally get where you’re coming from! I log meticulously, exercise 4-5 times per week. I’ve only lost four pounds since August, ugh! My best advice would be to stay the course, be patient, be kind to yourself, and celebrate those non scale victories.

whmscll · March 2019

Yep, I have just 5-10 pounds to lose, and I’m losing like 1/4 pound a week. BUT I am losing.

Last 10-15 lbs. How did you lose it?

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