Weight-Loss I've Hit a Major Weight Loss Plateau - HELP!!

Weight-Loss
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MissFrustrated

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Hello everyone!

I'm quite frustrated and would really appreciate any help/suggestions. Over the past few years I've lost approx. 130 pounds (started at 320 at a height of 5'10") but I have been stuck at 190 now for months (at least 4 or 5 months). I was down to about 184 a month and a half ago but somehow have gained and am back at 190ish. I both weight train and cardio everyday. I eat healthy. I eat small frequent meals. I'm definitely eating enough (so it's not a starvation mode problem). I eat whole grains. I get lots of fruit/veggies. I've tried strict low calorie diets, and low carb diets, and both low cal and low carb (trying to mix it up, to get my metabolism always working hard). Now I'm back to just eating healthy and getting all my macro and micro nutrients. I take a daily multi-vitamin, I drink lots of water. I've switched around my work-out routines and have tried new things (new workout classes, swimming, running, etc), and NOTHING IS WORKING! It's no longer an excuse of "well it could be muscle" because I've been weight training for a long, long time now so that cannot still be it. I'm getting so depressed every time I get on the scale because I work so hard and I RARELY eat sweets or greasy food, meanwhile I see my friends eating McDonalds (etc) and not working out and it's not affecting them at all. Makes me think "well what's the point of all my hard work?" Does anyone have any suggestions at all? Thanks in advance!!

-Miss Frustrated
 
Are you keeping track of how many cals you are consuming on a daily basis??
 
you said yourself that you were down to 184 and gained 6lbs...that doesnt' sound like a plateau to me. Plateaus are when you get at a certain weight and then you can't lose any weight for a few wks...not months. Doesnt' sound right. If your eating low cals (depends on how low) and your getting in a half and hour to an hour of exercise everyday...you will lose. I know of people that have hit a plateau, but like I said, months of being plateaued....must be something else.
 
Are you sure you are being as active as you had a few months ago? If your not (desk job, little exercise) you may be eating fairly close to your maintenance.

If you are being very active you might be miscalculating calories. How many calories were you eating before you gained back some of the weight?
 
It's been proven many times that most people and especially people who are overweight underestimate their calories.

I'm not sayin' .... just sayin.'
 
I highly doubt it's a problem of miss-calculating calories. I eat very well, and I'm exercising now more than ever. Like I said, I do weight training and cardio every day.

Does anyone have any suggestions at all as to ways I could tweak my exercising or nutrition in order to jump start weight loss?
 
Have you had your thyroid checked? That could be the culprit.

Anyways, just keep cutting calories until you're losing a steady 1 lb a week. Not much more you can do unless you do indeed have an underactive thyroid.
 
@MissFrustrated:

Thanks for your post. I notice that it's now been about 10 days since your post. Any progress since then? Question for you: Based on your daily caloric intake of 1600-1800 per day, what daily caloric deficit does that create for you (based on your Maintenance Level)?
 
List what you eat in a day. Be honest. List everything caloric, seasonings/sauces/flavour adders, and measures and at what times, and also roughly how much actual water you consume. List it here. Also what your weekly exercise regimen entails.
 
Hmmm, I see you stopped posting, some of the above post do seem a little discouraging...
NedoCTB has a good point, it could be hormonal. I have hypothyroidism and it does affect weight loss. Also read up on pcos!

It sounds like a plateau to me. I had lost a significant amount of weight like you, started at 305, and i got down to 175 but it just stopped. It wouldn't move for months, more then 6 actually. Don't do what I did. I gave up, I wound up gaining 60 pounds back!

Sometimes food allergies can hinder weight loss (or so i've read) so maybe you could look into that as well.

Figure out what your resting bmr is at, that will help give you an estimation on how many calories you should be able to eat in order to lose weight still. If it seems like you're doing everything right and the pounds still aren't moving, I still suggest seeing a doctor and telling them your concern.

Congrats on losing the 130 pounds so far girl! I hope you get out of this funk, I know how discouraging it can be.
 
MissFrustrated said:
Incredibly helpful... thanks :/
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There's not much more help that anyone can give you though.

When you weighed 320 pounds you needed a lot more calories to maintain your weight, now that you're 190 you need less. Eating the same as you did when you lost the weight then may be your maintenance eating now that you're close to your goal.

Also, unless you're precisely weighing everything you're eating you can't be sure about your calories. It's very easy to make a mistake when estimating. And if you eat any high calorie foods like nuts, mistakes can easily push you from maintenance into gain.


You came to ask for advice, and the most obvious thing that stands out is that your calorie counting must be off. There is no reason for a 190 pound woman who works out a lot and eats 1600-1800 calories to gain weight. It's possible you could have medical problems preventing you from losing weight, but since you have successfully lost so much already I would doubt it's the cause.

You just have to do the unpleasant thing of precisely measuring everything and writing it down.
 
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biggestloser105 said:
When you weighed 320 pounds you needed a lot more calories to maintain your weight, now that you're 190 you need less. Eating the same as you did when you lost the weight then may be your maintenance eating now that you're close to your goal. You just have to do the unpleasant thing of precisely measuring everything and writing it down.
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Very good advice.
 
Why don't you try taking a complete week off from your diet and exercise?
Then return to it after that week.

Make sure you do your resistance training 3 times a week (full body workouts done at maximum speed using compound exercises that require a lot of movement like bodyweight exercises)

Seems like your diet is going good.
Try drinking some more water (1-2 gallons a day)
Eat more fruits and vegetables

Hoped I helped ;=)
 
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