Can I avoid the plateau?

deekaydee · October 2011

Hello...I have been using MFP for a couple months but am a first-time poster on the message boards.

First, some background:

I'm 5'7", 34, starting weight 180, current weight 168, goal weight 140. I've lost weight at a fairly steady pace since joining MFP 7 weeks ago.

My daily calorie goal is 1370 (I'm set at sedentary activity level since I have a desk job, and 1 lb per week loss). I DO eat back my exercise calories almost all the time.

I aim for a "spike" day once a week where I eat about 500 calories over my goal. I primarily do that so my body doesn't get TOO used to a sub-1400 calorie diet. It also helps so that I don't feel like I'm constantly obsessing about being under my goal. I still track calories on my spike day, and don't go ridiculously overboard. I figure 500 cal is probably putting me back at around maintenance level, so shouldn't be sabotaging my efforts too much.

I workout for 30-45 minutes 5 or 6 times a week. (I also have 3 young kids, ages 6 and under, that keep me busy when I'm not at work...but I don't count running after them as exercise!)

- strength training 1x per week, but I am working on increasing that. I've had 3 sessions with a personal trainer so I can get a good strength training routine going. I really enjoy weight lifting and am NOT afraid of lifting heavy. I plan to move up to 3x per week of strength training.
- cardio (running): 2x per week on the treadmill, 30 min. (I try to vary the incline and/or speed so I'm not running at the same level each time, but I don't know how effective that is.) 1x per week of interval training (running) on the track -- 2 laps jogging, 1 lap all-out sprint, for about 15-20 minutes, followed by 20 minutes of jogging. 2x per week jogging outdoors, with some running partners, for about 30 minutes.

Here's my question: Now that I've been doing this a few months, I keep waiting for the dreaded plateau to show up. I'm a little worried about what that will do to my motivation and will power. I'd like to try to avoid it if at all possible. I know my body is likely adapting to my new eating habits/workout routine, but if I can keep it guessing enough that I can avoid a plateau, I'd love to do it.

Any suggestions to keep that plateau at bay? Or is it all but unavoidable?

(Sorry this is long. I'm a detail person.)

Sallycinnimon · October 2011

bump

k9hrd · October 2011

Bump

msiamjan · October 2011

I don't really have an answer, but it sure sounds like you're doing a lot to maintain your momentum. Love the idea of a "spike day." I've read some posts from people who have "cheat days" but I know that wouldn't work for me, as it would just turn into a cheat week, month, year. But a spike day might be worth trying. Good luck!

montiy · October 2011

YAY for detail people. Sometimes I feel like an oddball for being one; it's good to read posts from other people who are oddballs, too.

mangledspoon · October 2011

I like the sound of your current plan! Sounds like a really good one. I guess if you start to hit the plateau stage, just change it up a bit. Add a few minutes to your runs or increase the speed.

Articeluvsmemphis · October 2011

some people don't plateau until they're very near their goal, like within 10pounds, and those are the hardest pounds to get off. I though I wouldn't plateau and that I had enough variety to keep me going, but alas, I did. IDK if it's a rule that you HAVE to plateau, but it looks like you are doing well so far, and keeping it steady. a plateau can "wound" your motivation, but NEVER let it kill it, makes you go harder. my suggestion, if you do plateau try eating eating something new, or leaving something out of your typical diet for about a week, or try a new exercise.

ldurnal · October 2011

Take a look at you sugar intake, run a report on MFP to see your intake levels. Many foods are low in calories, but still contain a lot of sugar. Check with dietician to see where you need to be.

timp_williams · October 2011

I've only just started strength training with a personal trainer, which I'm absolutley loving. This is to help me lose weight, but be generally stronger and fitter for the heaps of tennis I play. As a result of looking for a phone app to record my progress I finished up buying the workout book from Max Workouts by Shin Ohtake (I've seen adverts for Max Workouts on this site). This book totally backs up what my personal trainer is getting me to do, which is to work hard for repeated short intervals and change the routine every 3 weeks to avoid a plateau caused by your body adapting to the exercises. I start a new set of exercises tomorrow for this reason.

Although you can plateau with weight loss, I believe if you stick to the simple rule of keeping calories in less than calories out you'll still lose weight. The key to this being to track what you eat. Although I've been doing this for a while now with Weight Watchers, my personal trainer did a food analysis for me and has started me thinking even more about healthy eating and in particular the percentage of protein, carbs anf fat I have. Hence starting with MyFitnessPal. This is my first day and I think it's brilliant, and with a synced phone app too! Perfect. Now to really shed those pounds (15 down and 23 to go)...

psuLemon · October 2011

Well you are doing good things which can prevent a plateau. One thing to reduce a plateau is change your routine every 30 days. But keep in mind that plateaus just mean you need to revaluate your calories or your exercise. Also you can plateau in weight but still lose inches or body fat. This is also why i suggest measuring the inches of your body and getting your bf measured. Just try to not get discouraged and keep pushin play!

madisonsteelex · October 2011

The spike day is a really good way to avoid plateau, because a plateau happens when your body gets used to having a low amount of calories a day, and your metabolism slows down to go with that.
Adding the strength training will definitely help also, and you might want to try addind some other cardio into your routine so your body doesn't get used to running every day.

adtrevors · October 2011

I'm a bit leery of spike days, I use to do them but the more I get into nutritional/metabolic biochemistry the less convinced I am that they serve any real physical purpose. If you find dieting stressful I wholeheartedly think its a great idea b/c you don't feel as deprived.

The "slower metabolism' explanation is also only about half true. If you are restricting calories for long enough your body may eventually 'slow down' b/c it thinks it is starving and wants to avoid dieing. Its an evolutionary adaptation that worked well in the past. However I'd wager that most people that plateau also have some issues with muscle loss. The fact that you are strength training should help you avoid that.

My biggest piece of advice for you to avoid plateaus is to focus on quality of quantity. Working out too much can stress your body out and increase cortisol levels, which will work against you losing fat. I'd drop the cardio and do an extra day of sprint intervals with alternating 30 seconds of sprinting with 60-90 seconds of rest. Go look up High Intensity Interval Training if you want to look at it more. Takes a fraction of the time as regular cardio with as good or better results. I can vouch for this, as will a large number of trainers (of athletes, not gym personal trainers).

Boosting strength training to twice a week wouldn't be a bad idea either, just make sure you work different body parts on the two days. If you are getting a decent amount of muscular inroading during your session you'll need 7 days to recovery. Anything more than that will only slow down your strength gains and waste time. If you find you can't get to the gym an extra day you can always do an at-home session doing basic bodyweight exercies. Mark Sisson (from Mark's Daily Apple website) has a great workout of 5 exercises you can grab from his site when you subscribe to his newsletter (which you can then unsubscribe to if you don't really want it, but its a good read as well).

Also remember food quality is important as food quantity! Eat real food and you won't have to worry about plateauing until you get to your ideal body composition.

Good luck!

Can I avoid the plateau?

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