Another plateau question

[HHackney]

I'm hovering around 197-198. I look better than I did. I'm still tracking my calories, still exercising, and have added even more activity to my routine since I've started working again. Since I work in a gas station....a place not know for it's healthy food choices...I've been even more careful about what I eat. I'm drinking enough water to drown a fish. I've changed up and intensified my workout. I'm doing everything that I think I'm supposed to.

So why have I stopped at 197-198?

I've been at this weight since about the end of April and it still hasn't changed. I can see a change in my body, but not a change in my weight. Why?

 

[shawnnam]

I'm hovering around 197-198. I look better than I did. I'm still tracking my calories, still exercising, and have added even more activity to my routine since I've started working again. Since I work in a gas station....a place not know for it's healthy food choices...I've been even more careful about what I eat. I'm drinking enough water to drown a fish. I've changed up and intensified my workout. I'm doing everything that I think I'm supposed to.

So why have I stopped at 197-198?

I've been at this weight since about the end of April and it still hasn't changed. I can see a change in my body, but not a change in my weight. Why?

Hey there

I had got stuck at 8.8 pound loss for like a week straight, in fact my weight kept fluxing from 2 pounds up to being constant for a week straight. I found I was not eating nearly enough, I upped my calories and I lost .6 pounds from 2 days of just eating a little more than usual. I don't know what your BMR is or anything, or what kind of exercise you do, but that could be the culprit. It sounds weird, but it really does make a difference for your body. It is much easier for it to justify letting go of fat when it knows you are going to give it enough energy to survive and thrive, if you don't give it enough energy it adjusts to too little energy and then you're new BMR is much lower than it would usually be.

Other than that, if you have high sodium stuff it could make you retain water, which can make your weight remain constant or even go up!

I am sure there could be other explanations, those are just some things I have encountered. Also, if you are doing weight training you could lose inches, but keep the weight. Building muscle will make your body become slimmer and more toned, but you may not see a drop in weight... to lose fat you will want to do some cardio too (walk outside, treadmill, elliptical, HIIT) AND add in weight training... for maximum results

 

[HHackney]

Again with the eating thing. This is becoming my biggest problem.

I was doing 2 days of weights, then 3 days of cardio, including some HIIT at least twice a week. But when I plateaued I upped it to HIIT five days a week instead, plus the two days of weights.

But I think you hit it with the eating part. Doing the math that is... kids+husband+gym+work+legal degree = did I remember to eat anything today?

I started checking my portions...only eating a serving instead of a box...and making sure everything is balanced, but I stopped tracking my calories everyday. I figured I was skipping enough meals that I was probably still doing good.

I have a really bad habit of being too busy to eat though. My husband jokes that he has no idea how I can stay alive on one string cheese stick a week. Since I try to steer clear of sodium, I'll go back to tracking my intake and see if that helps.

 

[Jericho]

Your weight plateau may just be due to water weight. I ran into this I was still burning fat, but my weight on the scale wasn't changing, I cut my water intake to about half what it was and my weight dropped precipitously.

...and that is likely the stupidest thing you could do.

You need water. Period. You need to stay hydrated especially when trying to lose weight.

 

[Jeanette401]

Again with the eating thing. This is becoming my biggest problem.

I was doing 2 days of weights, then 3 days of cardio, including some HIIT at least twice a week. But when I plateaued I upped it to HIIT five days a week instead, plus the two days of weights.

But I think you hit it with the eating part. Doing the math that is... kids+husband+gym+work+legal degree = did I remember to eat anything today?

I started checking my portions...only eating a serving instead of a box...and making sure everything is balanced, but I stopped tracking my calories everyday. I figured I was skipping enough meals that I was probably still doing good.

I have a really bad habit of being too busy to eat though. My husband jokes that he has no idea how I can stay alive on one string cheese stick a week. Since I try to steer clear of sodium, I'll go back to tracking my intake and see if that helps.

I know what you mean - I can sometimes manage not tracking and do fine, but it seems like even when I think I'm not eating that much I can still apparently eat more than I should when I'm not tracking. :/

Then I start tracking again and magically the weight loss starts! ... I wish I could be one of those "Just listen to your body" people, but my body seems to want lots of things that aren't helpful for losing weight. ... And do you mean to say that a serving of triscuits isn't the whole box!?

 

[Harold14370]

Haha. It just goes to show you. A lot of people claim they break their plateau by drinking more water and that releases the water their bodies were holding onto. Now here is somebody who cut back on water, and broke through the plateau. Reality is, the plateau will end on its own, inevitably, if you are in a calorie deficit. So no matter what you do, or don't do, it works.