I have hit a Plateau....Help

what's said over and over again here, is weight loss is a matter of using more calories than you take in ... you might want to start recording you calories in an online food journal like or one of the other 50 or so free programs that do the same thing - to see how many calories you really are getting.

Working your body to the point your knee is going to give out doesn't help you in thelong run... take care of your knee
 
Hi Michael,

I feel very nervous being the first to post something... but consider my advice as ... something before what someone else will post! Being stuck at a plateau myself, I figure I should follow some of these too, if not all!

- Have you tried to write in a journal/notepad/anything every thing you eat & drink for a whole month? Food diaries are interesting in that they tend to show how we can underestimate our little binges, bites, sips, and more.
- Along with the food journal, maybe counting one day in the week where you look up the facts on the food you buy/eat. The idea being looking at what we eat may be less healthy than we think sometimes, or pretending to be healthier than it is.
- The workouts look good - but then I'm not an expert -, particularly if your body "feels" it/is challenged and that the resistance/weights you use have not remained static for too long... But definitely lookout for other comments on this one! The knee thing... It does sound harmful... (listen to Mal on that!)
- Along the same lines as the two first things, maybe look at making sure you don't under-eat either...!

Just some things I will try to use to overcome my own plateau! And good luck whichever way! :D
 
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As said above, if you aren't in an energy (calorie) deficit, you aren't going to lose weight. Without know for sure how many calories are going in and out, best bet is this is where your problem lies.

Add to this fact that weight loss is not a linear phonomena.... meaning, weight will not always come off on a consistent basis. The body is a "finicky" thing.

You have 2 choices:

1. Do nothing at the moment and keep doing what you were doing when you lost the last 20 lbs (congrats btw).

2. Start tracking your calories using something like . Pain in the ass, I know, but most likely worth the time and aggravation. I find many people actually get used to it. And for those that don't, there are ways to get around having to count calories everyday. However, I still think it is wise/necessary for starters.

Another option, which I don't think should be one, is the one you are currently doing: Pushing your body to the max day after day, harder and harder, trying to trigger something. Boat loads of cardio is NEVER the answer. It's so much ridiculously easier, effective, and efficient to manipulate diet.
 
Thank you so much for your replies.

At first I was looking at this from a healthier lifestyle standpoint. I was very excited when I started seeing weight drop off. I wanted my moderated food intake and increased physical activity to be how I lived and not something I did to lose weight. I had found a comfortable medium zone where i felt good about myself and wasnt depriving myself of food.

I guess if I want to continue to lose weight I'll have to look at it as a diet until I reach a weight I feel comfortable with.

After looking at my calorie intake I do see some days (especially on the weekends) where i could cut back some more.

Thanks again for the help. I'll be back.
 
Things that help break plateaus

- Changing your exercise routine.
If you are doing longer more relaxed workouts, change to shorter more intense workouts.

- Eat more protein in your diet

- Do cardio before breakfast

- Lift weights, or change your weight routine/lift heavier.
 
Whenever I hit a fat loss plateau, I use this strategy to "jump start" the fat loss again. I don't know if it's for everybody, but it works for me without fail.

1) Don't eat a single calorie 4 hours before you workout.
2) Drink Green Tea during this time if you get hungry. It has natural antioxidants and will give you energy as well...great stuff!
3) Lift weights for 30-40 minutes...not intense, just a regular workout.
4) Hit cardio hard for 30 minutes

By the time you hit cardio, you will have very little stored carbohydrates in your system. Your cardio will be much more effective and you will definitely burn body fat.

Do this for 2-3 weeks just to get things rolling again...if you do this any longer than 2-3 weeks, your metabolism will slow down and you will hit another plateau.

This certainly isn't the only way to lose fat again, but it is another option that works.

You sound like you are doing great!

Rusty
 
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Hi, i had a plateau stage for 2 weeks not long ago, and was doing much the same as you, i just kept at it but rested more and eat more but in keeping with the calorie defecit and sure enough the wieght loss started again.:)
 
I'm in the same boat that you are.. actually I'm in the boat about a mile behind where you are now, but I've always heard that the first ten pounds is easy.. and then the rest is hard.. so you've already jumped that hurdle by dropping 20. What I'd try is shocking your body with different types of workouts.. alternate from running to biking maybe.. and definitely up the amount of fiber you're eating, as that will probably get you to the next level.
 
Need Advice: Weight Plateau

Hello everyone after about a 100 lb weightloss from 307 lbs to 210 lbs...I seem stuck now.

I weightlift 4-5 days a week with football team and everyone keeps telling me I'm still losing, but that I just gain equal amount of muscle, but I don't believe it possible to be gaining muscle that fast.

And I was wondering what is an appropriate amount of calories to eat for a 6 foot tall white male weighing 210 lbs.

Considering for the past 8ish months I've only been eating 1500 calories a day which I figured out wasn't much more than starving.

So anyway...suggestions...I'm getting severely discouraged now that I can't seem to drop weight anymore
 
I think ( someone will come along with the right answer ) you should be eating in the region of 2500kcal a day.

I had a similar story to yours as I'd lost over 90lbs but went on a 4-5week plateau and I looked after my calorie input and everything.

In the end it's been one if three things, or a combication of them all.

1st. I went out for a banquet Chinese that must have been the worse meal calorie and fat wise I had eaten in 18 months, it was around 6 courses :eek2: , I stood on the scales the next day and I was instantly a pound heavier than normal. BUT the week after's weight in came with a shock loss of 3 lbs! Now read 2 as too why possible.

2nd. I had been doing mostly 40min cardio 5 times a week with weights on everyone of those days. I decided to turn that up to 1hr 5 times a week while using a pulse monitor and opting for the weight loss mode on every machine. This meant my pulse was around the 140bpm mark all the workouts. I then took my weight lifting into a 3 day split instead of 5 days, so that that two days of cardio did not have lifting in the middle.

3rd. This week was my first week of 6 small meals a day. One of them being a meal substitue and the other a after workout protein shake. And so far this week has been a 2lbs loss.


I can't vouch that any of them is the exact reason, or that they will/wont work for others in the weight loss game but I though it was worth passing.
 
Congratulations on your weight loss - you're doing great.

How many times per day do you eat? 6? What kind of portion size (no bigger than your fist)? 1500 calories is pretty lean for someone at your height and weight. You may just need to increase your caloric intake, number meals, and decrease your portion size (all of these in combination will increase your metabolism...assuming you keep doing your current workout schedule).

How is your cardio? At least 3 times per week for 30 minutes? You might want to incorporate that as well.

A book you might want to consider is "Body for Life" by Bill Philips (or his other book "Eating for Life"). You've already got the workout down, but your diet and cardio may need some work. Once you get that figured out for yourself, you'll be ripped.

Good luck!
 
How to get past a plateau

Hi all, first time poster, long time reader.

First of a little about me. Back at the beginning of january i weighed 230 pounds or so. I started a routine of eating a lot more healthily, drinking less beer, and staerted exercising, cardio and weights.

My diet over the past six mnoths or so has envolved eating a lot more fruit, lean meats and cereals compared to what i was eating previously, totalling up to about 1800 calories a day. I am a 6 feet tall, 26 year old male. Today I currently wieigh about 196 pounds, but the problem is i have weighed this amount for nearly three weeks now.

I seemed to have hit a plateau in my weight loss and it is becoming very frustrating. My aim is to get to 182 pounds which would be a healthy weight for my height. I seem to be storing the majority of the weight on my stomach.

Am i eating enough calories at 1800 a day? It seems to have helped me lose a lot of weight only eating this amount but i keep reading that someone my size should be eating close to 2000+ calories a day.

Any help is sincerly appreciated. Thank you in advance :)
 
A few things I would like to know before my complete advice is given...

-What is your diet like in detail?
-What is your exercise program like in detail?
-Have you been very committed this whole time or have you had moments where you have fallen off the wagon and re-fed yourself?

Breaking through wont be a problem at all, just got to look as see the best approach.
 
Ok thanks for the response.

My diet is basically

bannana first thing (7.30)
cereal (9.30)
picece of fruit (11.30)
lunch usually large lean meat salad sandwich (1.00)
piece of fruit (3.30)

then workout

dinner usually large portion of vegetables with lean red meat or chciken or fish
(6.00)

maybe small snack before bed (10.00)

Workout consists of cardio three or four times a week for roughly 40 mins, i try to get some interval training in. Then weight training three times a week for 40 mins, working differnet muscles each workout, mostly compound exercises.

Yes i kind of fell of the wagon a couple of times but for no longer than a week at a time.
 
More protein per meal and more meals w/ protein to boost metabolism.

Change your workout drastically to shock your body. Most people that hit plateaus do so because they do the same workout routine. The body is incredible at adapting. If you do the same thing, your body will maintain whatever state it needs to handle your activity. Change it up drastically!

Also cut out the pre-bed snack and drink lots of water.
 
I'll agree with most of what's been said here already. From a personal point of view, now that I've lost 100lbs and gone through a plateau I would aim for.

* Rest, rest, rest. You can do too much,and rest is as important as being active. I've had enough weeks now to say that when I rest 2 days I seem to shift more weight than if I work out on them.

* Six small meals a day. I tried everything to break a plateau, and in the end this is what did it. I currently eat bran flakes for meal 1, meal 2 is 5 pieces of fruit, 3 being cottage cheese with rivita or a sandwich, 4 is a protein based meal replacment, 5 is main food of the day, 6 then a post work out whey protein shake.
 
Baur time said:
Ok thanks for the response.

My diet is basically

bannana first thing (7.30)
cereal (9.30)
picece of fruit (11.30)
lunch usually large lean meat salad sandwich (1.00)
piece of fruit (3.30)

then workout

dinner usually large portion of vegetables with lean red meat or chciken or fish
(6.00)

maybe small snack before bed (10.00)

Workout consists of cardio three or four times a week for roughly 40 mins, i try to get some interval training in. Then weight training three times a week for 40 mins, working differnet muscles each workout, mostly compound exercises.

Yes i kind of fell of the wagon a couple of times but for no longer than a week at a time.
Click to expand...

Okay well there are some serious problems with your diet. Horrible protein and fat and fibrous veggie intake. You are basically living off of fast sugar spikes, if not careful this could lead to problems with insulin resistance overtime.

I also don't like your low caloric amount either.

My advice is to one understand the basics of nutrition.

For real simple go here.
http://weight-loss.fitness.com/nutrition/13065-easiest-nutrition-guidelines-ever.html

For still simple but more info go here.
John Berardi - 7 Habits

To finish her off end here...
John Berardi - Lean Eatin' Part I
John Berardi - Lean Eatin' Part II

After you get the nutrition down 100% then focus on trying to optimize your workout plan.
 
Damn! I didnt even think my diet was that bad lol. Looks like I have got a lot of changes to make, starting with reading the topics you posted. Thanks for the advice, I will keep you updated.
 
I am not an expert but just an avarage person so don't take my advice at all but your diet seems ok for me. If all people could eat this way, I don't believe anyone could be fat. Of course some changes can be made but I don't see how such menu can be health threataning :confused: I am going to read those articles carefully but my first impression is that more or less that is what every slimming specialist suggests - ved, fruit, meat...
Sorry it didn't answered your question but I kind of wanted to give my opinion that it sounds like a very healthy menue. Maybe you can exchange some fruits to veg as a snack and work on the variety and what was said about the exercies above makes sense to me as well. Sorry again for not giving so competent opinion.
 
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I have hit a plateau

Hi,

I’ve been working to reduce my body fat and so far have lost around 25 pound. While successful thus far I have hit a plateau. I’m pretty sure that my body has become accustomed to distance walking and the level of weight training I have been doing. My information is as follows:

Gender: Male
Height: 6 foot 3 inches (75 inches)
Frame: Large (8.9% Bone Mass)
Age: 25 years old (soon to be 26)
Weight: 207lb – 209lb
Body Fat Percentage: 23%

Diet
I eat 3 meals and 2 snacks every day spaced 3 hours apart (6AM, 9AM, 12PM, 3PM, 6PM). Each meal is around 500 calories with dinner upwards to around 700 calories. Each snack is from 100 – 200 calories. I take multivitamins daily. Breakfasts consist of either oatmeal with cinnamon and a little honey or a cold cereal with soymilk in addition to some fruit. Lunches are generally soup (generally a legume: lentil or split pea), a piece of whole-wheat toast and a small salad. Dinner fluctuates, but is generally a portion of meat (beef, chicken, pork, fish [tuna, salmon, tilapia, etc.]) with brown rice and a vegetable(s), or a pasta dish (i.e. spaghetti with meat sauce). Snacks are granola bars, peanut butter toast, yogurt, raisins, or fresh fruit.

Daily Calorie Range: 1800 – 2200
Daily Water Intake: 12 –15 (8 oz) glasses
Body Water Percentage: 55% -56%

Exercise
I exercise 7 days a week. I do weight training on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. Weight training consists of pushups, vertical pushups, sit-ups, jumping jacks, concentration curls, dumbbell wrist curls, reverse dumbbell wrist curls, dumbbell shrugs, dumbbell fly, dumbbell bench press, one arm dumbbell row, seated dumbbell press, dumbbell front raise, dumbbell lateral raise, calf raise, dumbbell step up, and dumbbell lunge. The other 4 days of the week I walk on the treadmill at a speed of 4.5 – 5 mph generally for distances exceeding 6 miles (i.e. I do half marathons [13.1 miles], 10 miles, or 8 miles depending on energy level). I also stretch for about 15 minutes every day. I also ride my bike at a moderate speed several nights a week for around 1 hour.

So my question is what should I do to surpass my plateau. If I increase my cardiovascular workout speed I will be jogging and would prefer to avoid high impact on my knees, ankles, and treadmill. South Florida is very hot and humid so I avoid cardio outside to prevent dehydration and heat stroke. :p What should I be doing different? :confused: Thanks!
 
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