Weight loss Plateau

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anitamcmillen
anitamcmillen Posts: 26 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi anyone and everyone! I am having a serious weight loss plateau! Since September I have been hovering around the same weight. Logging, exercising blah blah blah. Can't get in with an actual certified dietitian until October. Has anyone faced this and gotten past it? Thanks!

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  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 33,960 Member
    edited February 2023
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    Yeah, you're still eating too many calories if you've been stuck for five months. How did you decide how much to eat and how well are you tracking your food?

    Food logging: https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1234699/logging-accurately-step-by-step-guide/p1

    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/872212/you-re-probably-eating-more-than-you-think

    ...and good info: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1080242-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants

    Buy a food scale. Log all your food, even days you go way over. It's about consistency, and you've been consistently eating too much. Lower your calories by (at least) 250 per day.
  • Beverly2Hansen
    Beverly2Hansen Posts: 378 Member
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    MFP over calculates exercise calories. Try logging your exercise calories as 1 calorie work outs and see if that stops the weightloss stall. When I was eating back my exercise calories I definitely went into maintenence for months (about a year) and I nearly gave up.
  • tomcustombuilder
    tomcustombuilder Posts: 1,624 Member
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    What is your height, weight and calorie target?
  • Rockmama1111
    Rockmama1111 Posts: 262 Member
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    Also, can you expand on “logging and exercising blah blah blah”? Is your logging tight? Do you log exercise calories and if so, how? Do you eat those calories back?

    How close are you to your goal weight?
  • anitamcmillen
    anitamcmillen Posts: 26 Member
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    Thank you all for responding. I just spent 30 minutes replying and apparently did it wrong and lost everything. I am new to posting in this forum. I will try again in a bit. #frustrated
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 33,960 Member
    edited February 2023
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    anitamcmillen wrote: »
    Thank you all for responding. I just spent 30 minutes replying and apparently did it wrong and lost everything. I am new to posting in this forum. I will try again in a bit. #frustrated

    You don't have to answer us...and if you are trying to figure out "quoting" on these forums, it does take a little practice.

    I hope you find a solution, unfortunately it may just be that you have to tighten up your food logging and eat less...like all the rest of us. :) No one likes that.
  • anitamcmillen
    anitamcmillen Posts: 26 Member
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    What the heck is a BBC Code? I have lost 43 pounds then got COVID and stopped losing. I log on MFP and exercise. You are all probably right. I just need to weigh my food more and measure more instead of guessing. This is my second plateau though and I am super aggravated. Thanks for listening.
  • anitamcmillen
    anitamcmillen Posts: 26 Member
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    Oh, and I want to lose at least 50 more pounds.
  • nossmf
    nossmf Posts: 9,070 Member
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    The body losing weight isn't a straight line, instantly responsive to changes in diet/exercise. Some times it'll lose steadily, then appear to stall (or even backtrack a bit) before making a sudden LEAP ahead.
  • StaciInGa
    StaciInGa Posts: 65 Member
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    If your weight isn't changing in the way you'd like, and you have been estimating/guessing at logging: the first step is to improve your logging accuracy. Estimating results in errors, unfortunately. Bring out the food scale and really track calories in. You are eating at maintenance it seems.
  • anitamcmillen
    anitamcmillen Posts: 26 Member
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    I agree. I am taking a real hard look at what I have been doing. I am weighing, measuring and reducing. I am going to bed hungry. The number is going down again. Damn. This is hard. :/
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 33,960 Member
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    anitamcmillen wrote: »
    I agree. I am taking a real hard look at what I have been doing. I am weighing, measuring and reducing. I am going to bed hungry. The number is going down again. Damn. This is hard. :/

    As to the hunger. Usually when I first reduce calories I'm pretty uncomfortable as far as hunger goes for about one week. Stay the course and your hormones will rebalance and your hunger will likely decrease significantly.

    I had to really look at *what* I was eating and make sure I was hitting my goals on calories, protein, fiber, potassium, calcium, iron, all that. It's a lot.

    To Keep It Simple? I cut out treats foods that were mostly sugary, wheat based things. Cut way back on breads and quit eating chips, pre-made cereals, crackers, pretzels, anything mostly wheat. One serving a day seems to be my sweet spot to stop the craving/false hunger.

    Then, protein in every meal and snack. 5-8 servings of whole fruit and/or vegetables daily. One potato or one serving of beans. Various forms of fats. Dairy, 1-2 servings a day. I cut back to 10g of cheese at a time with a meal.

    It matters what I eat. A lot.
  • anitamcmillen
    anitamcmillen Posts: 26 Member
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    Sugar free jello is my best friend. Also, deep breathing and remembering I am hungry not starving. ;)
  • MelodyandBarbells
    MelodyandBarbells Posts: 7,725 Member
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    anitamcmillen wrote: »
    Sugar free jello is my best friend. Also, deep breathing and remembering I am hungry not starving. ;)
    I love it, too! My favorite is the butterscotch flavor. It was the first thing I’d eaten in a long time that reminded me how it feels being sated after a meal or snack. Like it plugged a hole in my stomach lol
  • quiksylver296
    quiksylver296 Posts: 28,442 Member
    edited March 2023
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    https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10634517/you-dont-use-a-food-scale/p1
  • sarabushby
    sarabushby Posts: 784 Member
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    For a filling and comforting dessert I like the small Ambrosia rice pudding light pots. They’re 116 cal each but really make you feel like you had a good meal.
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 33,960 Member
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    I'm glad you are finding more success.

    That trek is a great goal. Is it on horseback?
  • MelodyandBarbells
    MelodyandBarbells Posts: 7,725 Member
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    You look absolutely radiant! I’m curious about your upcoming trek as well, but also, care to share your findings as you started to tighten up your logging? Anything unexpected or surprising you found, if you could spare some time 🙂 I think it could be really cool for others in the same boat to see!

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