Who's working on those last 5-10 lbs?

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kateroot
kateroot Posts: 435
in Health and Weight Loss
I'm down to about 8 lbs left to lose and I've hit a plateau. It's super common with those last few lbs, so I'm just wondering if anyone else is going through the same thing, and what your breakthrough strategy is.
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Replies

  • GalaxyDuck
    GalaxyDuck Posts: 406 Member
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    Without viewing your food diary, there isn't too much advice I can give you. For me I found the last 10 lbs depended more on my diet than how much I was working out. I suggest tracking your sodium and sugar, if you aren't already. Trying to stay under 1500 mg sodium a day (daily recommended intake for adults) helped me, as well as not going over on my sugar.

    If you open your food diary and describe your exercise routine and whether or not you eat back your exercise cals, people might be able to offer you better suggestions
  • lloydrt
    lloydrt Posts: 1,121 Member
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    2 month plateau here, but even though the scale isnt moving, I lost 2 inches in my waist in this 2 month time period.........be wary of scales when youre this close, you may be losing inches and not pounds.............great job though ,keep up the good work......Lloyd
  • Jessicaruby
    Jessicaruby Posts: 881 Member
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    i am 5'7 my CW is 130lbs and my goal weight is 12olbs. no matter what though i can not lose anymore weight(i also dont gain) and my measurments stay the same. it gets frusterating sometimes but i am still working at it! i am damn deteremined!
  • sjcply
    sjcply Posts: 817 Member
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    I am down to my last 7lbs.....I am eating very lean (fruit, veggies, protein) 40%protein, 30 fat and 30 carb and I have kicked up my exercise.....so we will see! My goal is to lose that 7 lbs in 4 wks! :sad: oh lordy!!
  • sunshineshica
    sunshineshica Posts: 277
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    I'd also like to know about getting over the plateau. But I think most people will say you'll need to drastically change your diet or your exercise regime.
  • mamayoga
    mamayoga Posts: 43
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    Me too. I'm not sure yet what my breakthrough strategy is! I am considering: lower carbs. drink more water. exercise more. take a break (eat more, a la Curves diet plan) and then start over again. cut off an arm. J/K.
  • sunshineshica
    sunshineshica Posts: 277
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    2 month plateau here, but even though the scale isnt moving, I lost 2 inches in my waist in this 2 month time period.........be wary of scales when youre this close, you may be losing inches and not pounds.............great job though ,keep up the good work......Lloyd

    awesome job on your weight loss!
  • sjcply
    sjcply Posts: 817 Member
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    i am 5'7 my CW is 130lbs and my goal weight is 12olbs. no matter what though i can not lose anymore weight(i also dont gain) and my measurments stay the same. it gets frusterating sometimes but i am still working at it! i am damn deteremined!

    5'7 and 130lbs....wow I would think that would be a healthy weight to stay at!
  • tararocks
    tararocks Posts: 287 Member
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    i increased my calorie intake for about 9 days...not completing, i still had a few days in there were i was at my normal calories and i actually didn't increase on purpose it just kind of happened. When i had my last 9 pounds to go i stayed at the same number for about a month, no gain but no loss. After those 9 days it restarted me or something and i have steadily lost since then, i am down to my last 3 and still doing great back on my normal calorie count. Good luck!
  • circusmom
    circusmom Posts: 662 Member
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    I've got 2lbs to go, it just won't GO! Honestly, if I don't get there for a while thats fine, I know I'll get there someday ( I wish someday was sooner rather than later).
  • kateroot
    kateroot Posts: 435
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    Macphean, I could open up my food diary but it wouldn't help because I'm terrible at tracking lately. I know the calorie and protein/carb/fat breakdown I'm sticking to, so I tend to add it up in my head throughout the day rather than track it all. I need to get back in the habit of tracking though! I think that will help...

    I'm also considering going lower carb, I'm at about 150g of carbs a day and 80-100g of protein.. Thinking about 75-100g carbs and 100+g protein to see if the shift helps. My fat intake tends to stay around 35-45g. I've been eating about 1600 calories a day and I do high intensity cardio 5x a week and weight training 2-3x. I think lowering my carb intake will help - also been trying to drink as much water as possible, and add more interval training to my cardio. So I guess only time will tell if it works!
  • peterson_jessica
    peterson_jessica Posts: 119
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    I totally agree. I have hit a couple of mini plateau's along my way (I am almost down 30 pounds now) and for me, bumping up my calories for a few days without exercise or with light exercise seemed to "restart" my body. It has worked multiple times for me so maybe it could work for you. I have 11 pounds left to go and I'm hoping I don't hit any more :)
  • kateroot
    kateroot Posts: 435
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    i am 5'7 my CW is 130lbs and my goal weight is 12olbs. no matter what though i can not lose anymore weight(i also dont gain) and my measurments stay the same. it gets frusterating sometimes but i am still working at it! i am damn deteremined!

    I'm 5'7 and shooting for 130-135. Are you sure 120 is an ideal weight for you? Your body might be fighting losing the weight because 130 might be your body's ideal weight. Just asking though, not judging... If you have a small frame, 120 may very well be a reasonable weight for you.
  • jmruef
    jmruef Posts: 824 Member
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    I'm down to the last 5 (well, last 3.5 now as of this morning! WOOT!) I tried raising my calorie intake, drinking more water, working out harder (not necessarily for longer, just pushing myself more)...I'm not sure what did it. I know I was pretty far below calories yesterday so maybe that was it. :angry:

    The thing is, I know I'm losing mucho inches, so the numbers are becoming less important as I go on. I'd *like* to be at my goal weight so I can say I did it, but I've accomplished a lot regardless.
  • katyk00
    katyk00 Posts: 67 Member
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    I am definitely part of the club. Down to my last 5-10 lbs and its been 3 weeks. And no downward movement at all, very frustrating. My diary is open, any suggestions would be greatly appreciated
  • melsinct
    melsinct Posts: 3,512 Member
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    In 2 pounds I will be at my goal for a total of 30 pounds lost.

    I plateaued with 10 pounds left to go for about 2 months. Setting my loss on MFP at 0.5 lb/week is the only thing that broke through it. Also, when I came into the last 5 pounds, I stepped up the exercise. I was just doing cardio but now I have added Pilates for strength training a couple times a week. Now I got rid of the fat, I want to tone up a bit!
  • bodyzen
    bodyzen Posts: 122 Member
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    I'm 5'4 and 127lbs. Looking to get down to about 115-120. I've been really struggling for the past few weeks. I'm upping my cardio and strength training to try and get past it.
  • MissMaryMac33
    MissMaryMac33 Posts: 1,433 Member
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    If your settings are still at 1200 net and 2lb a week --- you need to change them. When you have only 10-20 to lose, the goal should be 1/2lb a week. And for most people, 1200 is too low anyway ---

    I broke my plateus by upping my calories to 1400 and I changed my default to 45% protein, 25% carb, 30% fat. ..
    Lean mean, fish, quinoa, greek yogurt and protein shakes....

    I didn't change my diet much, or my exercise ..I just started to eat more and eat more of my exercise calories back.
  • clumsymofro
    clumsymofro Posts: 52 Member
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    The biggest thing when you get to the point where you only have 5-10 lbs to go is that you are making sure that you are getting enough calories in your body because if you don't your body will take all the calories you consume and "store" them away as opposed to burning them, helping to lose those last few pounds. I've also drastically cut out sugar in my life and only try to eat, at most, 25 grams a day. You also have to beware of protein shakes and bars because even though they are packed with protein, a majority have a whole day's worth of sugar in one bar or shake. I definitely recommend trying the Atkins Advantage protein shakes and bars because they have an adequate amount of calories and fat and like no sugar or carbs. I try and replace one meal a day with those and its definitely helped me continue to shed those last few pounds...I only have 11 left to go! Good luck!
  • rockstarginaa
    rockstarginaa Posts: 1,529 Member
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    I have 3-8lbs left to lose and they are slowly, but surely coming off. I usually will lose 1-2lbs a week then have 1-2 weeks with no change, frustrating.

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