Hit a plateau

ClipperMiami
ClipperMiami Posts: 3 Member
edited December 2024 in Health and Weight Loss
The program has set 1500 calories a day to meet my goal. It turns out I can do this easily, no real hunger emergencies. I get about 300-350 calories a day "credit" from a morning walk. I generally end the day about 300-400 calories BELOW the target, i.e. the exercise credit.

My calculated basal metabolism should be around 2200/day so my calculated target puts me about 700/day below the base rate and my actual puts me around 1000/day below the base.

In the first month I lost 14 pounds but have now been stuck there at a plateau for the past 10 days, generally +/- 1 pound. This just doesn't make sense so I"m curious if this is normal. Given the delta between my base rate and my actual i should be 1000 cal/day below the base and ought to be losing precipitously.

Replies

  • 987Runner
    987Runner Posts: 209 Member
    Congrats on the initial loss! If I had to take a guess, I'd say you need to change up your exercise. I do boot camp once a week and one of the gals said she walked every day and she hit a plateau for years. Once she started boot camp she lost 25lbs in about six months (she started a few times a week and increased up to five at her peak. Now she is maintaining at 2x a week again). Walking is great, it's certainly better than nothing, but I think it's important to gradually increase/introduce a more strenuous activity if you are physically able to handle it.

    Good luck!
  • Actually_Mike
    Actually_Mike Posts: 61 Member
    I have hit a stopping once too, I found that changing your exercise routine and actually INCREASING your caloric intake by a little bit can help to start the weight loss routine again. Hope this helps!
  • SueInAz
    SueInAz Posts: 6,592 Member
    When you hit a plateau doing the same things, it usually means that your body has become used to what you're doing and your current weight is now your new "normal." Congrats!

    Seriously, the best way to break a plateau is to switch things up a bit. Try some different exercises instead of walking, walk longer or add some stints of jogging into your walk. Eat at maintenance calories for a few days then go back to the way you're eating currently.
  • ClipperMiami
    ClipperMiami Posts: 3 Member
    I'm just having a hard time believing that 1200-1300 cal/day has become the new maintenance level. With a resting basal metabolism for my age of around 2200-2300/day the delta is simply too great for it to plateau. This suggests that something is seriously wrong with the numbers. Either the basal metabolism number is nonsense or the consumption tracking is completely wrong. With a delta of 1000 cal/day it simply can't plateau for 10 days --- yet it has.
  • SueInAz
    SueInAz Posts: 6,592 Member
    You're probably right. At 1200-1300 calories, you're possibly eating too little so your body is holding on to what it has. The solution remains the same. Eat more for a little while and see if that doesn't get things moving again.
  • myfitnessnmhoy
    myfitnessnmhoy Posts: 2,105 Member
    All of my plateaus have been broken by one of two simple techniques:

    1. Upping my exercise and my calories.

    - I find that if I do that, I start feeling more energetic and within a week or two the weight loss starts again.

    2. Re-tuning the percentage of my calories obtained from fat vs. carbs vs. protein (it doesn't appear to matter as much HOW that retuning is done).

    - I think I'm just causing my body to readjust to the new intake, and that seems to somehow cause weight loss while it's happening.


    I'll be honest - I have NEVER achieved long-term weight loss without major suffering by lowering my caloric intake. When I came to this site, I actually INCREASED my caloric intake without changing my exercise regimen, and started losing weight again, plus the extra calories gave me the energy for more aggressive workouts and I'm now losing weight as fast as I ever have in my life without any "suffering".

    I lost 50 pounds in a year by depriving myself of calories, and 30 in two months by bicycling 30 miles a day three days a week and stuffing myself with good quality foods.

    Your body may be different, but try adding some intensity to your workouts AND eating all your calories (in healthy proportions of fats, proteins, and carbs). Give it a week or two, and see if that doesn't snap the plateau and get you going again.
  • ClipperMiami
    ClipperMiami Posts: 3 Member
    I find myself frustrated :-)

    I went from 282 to 252 or so from mid-February to mid May. Since mid-May I have made ZERO progress, and currently sit at 252 +/- 2.

    My calorie intake remains in the 1300-1500 per day. My carb intake has actually gone down significantly from 100+ gm/day in the February-May period to 40-50 gm/day since then. My fat intake has remained relatively stable. Fortunately I do not have any hunger difficulties at this level and experience very little urge to snack.

    I still walk generally 2.4 miles every morning, about 18 min/mile and burn approximately 300 calories/day.

    Since mid-May when I plateaued I bought a home gym and have added a regimen of strength exercises 5 days/week.

    There has been NO weight change. since mid-May. The BMR calculator still shows my base around 2050/day so theoretically I should be 700-800 calories/day below BMR yet there remains no change even with the reduction in carbs and increase in exercise.
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