Hello everyone! This is my first post here but it looks like there are a lot of people giving good advice here, so I expect to hang around for a while. 
Hopefully in time I will have the know-how to help others out as well.
I started a rather extreme diet/exercise plan on Boxing Day of 2011. I'm 5'5'', was 162 lbs and very out of shape with a fast-food/budget diet and zero effort to exercise. I did a complete overhaul, now eat modest fast-food a maximum of once a week, focus on fresh fruits, veggies, lean meats, low-fat dairy, and high-fibre whole grains, and switched from sugary pops to fortified juices, the occasional diet soda, and lots of water. I am also working on getting more and more exercise each week. I started at 90 mins of low intensity exercise a week and am now up to 100km of biking a week (an hour 4 times a week at 15-17 mph and medium resistance), working on even more.
Problem is, the first few weeks went very well (I lost 7 pounds in the first month), and now I seem to have plateaued at 154 lbs. I haven't seen my weight budge in the last week and a half despite a lot of effort. I'm thinking it's likely that I'm getting muscle mass from the biking, and muscle weighs more than fat, but I'm not so sure because I don't struggle much with my workouts and I'm used to my muscles being sore after workouts... which mine never seem to be on this particular plan. People keep saying I look slimmer, but I know they're obligated to encourage me I don't feel like I'm making progress anymore and I'm not sure why.
Other than steadily getting more and more exercise, the only changes I've made since the start is eating more grains and fibre and less dairy. My stomach was very mad at me for a couple of weeks and my doctor advised that I add some high-fibre cereal and less milk products, which I did and has been treating me better.
Am I doing something wrong? Please feel free to ask any questions that might help me figure out where I'm going wrong. If I continue with this plan, will I start to lose weight again soon? Is there a better way to focus on fat burn instead of muscle gain? I love biking and would prefer to continue that, but not if there's a more efficient way to burn off some of this pudge. Any input is appreciated.
Hopefully in time I will have the know-how to help others out as well.I started a rather extreme diet/exercise plan on Boxing Day of 2011. I'm 5'5'', was 162 lbs and very out of shape with a fast-food/budget diet and zero effort to exercise. I did a complete overhaul, now eat modest fast-food a maximum of once a week, focus on fresh fruits, veggies, lean meats, low-fat dairy, and high-fibre whole grains, and switched from sugary pops to fortified juices, the occasional diet soda, and lots of water. I am also working on getting more and more exercise each week. I started at 90 mins of low intensity exercise a week and am now up to 100km of biking a week (an hour 4 times a week at 15-17 mph and medium resistance), working on even more.
Problem is, the first few weeks went very well (I lost 7 pounds in the first month), and now I seem to have plateaued at 154 lbs. I haven't seen my weight budge in the last week and a half despite a lot of effort. I'm thinking it's likely that I'm getting muscle mass from the biking, and muscle weighs more than fat, but I'm not so sure because I don't struggle much with my workouts and I'm used to my muscles being sore after workouts... which mine never seem to be on this particular plan. People keep saying I look slimmer, but I know they're obligated to encourage me
I don't feel like I'm making progress anymore and I'm not sure why.Other than steadily getting more and more exercise, the only changes I've made since the start is eating more grains and fibre and less dairy. My stomach was very mad at me for a couple of weeks and my doctor advised that I add some high-fibre cereal and less milk products, which I did and has been treating me better.
Am I doing something wrong? Please feel free to ask any questions that might help me figure out where I'm going wrong. If I continue with this plan, will I start to lose weight again soon? Is there a better way to focus on fat burn instead of muscle gain? I love biking and would prefer to continue that, but not if there's a more efficient way to burn off some of this pudge. Any input is appreciated.