weight loss plateau!

calidreamin0 · 04-22-2009, 01:49 AM

I know this is a normal thing with dieting and exercise... but Im on a weight loss plateau! I've been losing at least a pound per week for the past few months, and now nothing!

I've increased cardio by 20 more min.s each time I do it. Tonight for example, I went to yoga, a 60min bootcamp cardio class, did 45 mins of cardio, then did a little toning on the legs.

I've come to the conclusion it could be what I am eating. But I am a very healthy eater!!! I only eat fish, no other meats... and I eat fish at least every other day. I have oatmeal for breakfast. A sandwich or something similar on wheat for lunches. And diner varies.. but nothing too crazy. If i splurge for desert its usually sorbet or non fat frozen yogurt. I don't eat anything with trans fats... nor did I ever really much before.

So I am just curious as to whats happening with my body? I am getting more toned and I notice my body changing a lot. Especially with pants! But why isn't that scale moving? Is my body bulking up?

Need some advice!

waveseer · 04-22-2009, 01:53 AM

Try eating a protein and a complex carb three times a day, with a fruit and a dairy product twice a day in between. You end up eating 5 times a day or roughly every 3 hours. This will crank your internal furnace (metabolism) up to hot, hot, hot and you will burn, burn, burn calories.

diabolik · 04-22-2009, 02:00 AM

Don't focus on weight. Focus on how you feel and how you look nekkid and how your clothes fit. Weight tells you nothing about body composition (muscle/fat mix), and the latter is a much better determinant of how good you look.

Sounds like you are looking better, so I'd say keep doing what you're doing until it's no longer working.

Oh, and please don't refer to it as "bulking up" - it reinforces a terrible image in your mind of overly muscular women, which I know most women dread. What is happening is you are adding *lean* muscle - not only does this accentuate your curves, but muscle burns calories all day long, even when you're sitting or sleeping. And since you are adding some muscle without gaining weight, you must be losing fat.

calidreamin0 · 04-22-2009, 02:02 AM

I make a protein shake with non fat greek yogurt, half a banana, and whey protein powder. I usually blend it with water or soy milk. Its been good as a post workout snack/meal.

As far as what to eat during the day... im practically a vegetarian... so Im running out ideas from where to get protein from. Fish, peanut butter, eggs. I eat all of those. And try to rotate them throughout the week. I just don't know what else to eat? Its crazy cause I see smaller people eat fries, beer and chips and I never have these things except the very occasional beer. I know they are probably not as healthy on the inside as I am ... but its still frustrating!

thezebra · 04-22-2009, 03:00 AM

probably what you're eating. my mother changed her diet and lost 10 20 lbs maybe. there are certain foods that don't go with your body, the tricky part is finding the ones that do.

ScorpiGal83 · 04-22-2009, 03:27 AM

what might help is if you did MORE weights instead of only going crazy with the cardio all the time. Because if you don't build up muscles, your body will burn muscles since you're not using them much. Instead of "a little toning on the legs", you should try doing a LOT of legs, arms/shoulders and back presses to build up the muscle. Yes, muscle weights more than fat but in the long run having more muscles actually burns more fat which is what you want, right? So when you do weight training you might "gain" a little bit due to muscles being built up, but after you have the muscles, fat burns away fast and in fact, merely HAVING muscles while not doing anything burns calories.

**arwen** · 04-22-2009, 05:55 AM

The increase of muscle-mass can mask the loss of weight: fat is lighter than muscles! So 'toning' could coincide even with gaining weight, but you are less 'flubby' because it is not fat that you gained.

I also think that if the plateau is a healthy weight, it is just the weight that your body naturally stabilizes at. I had to gain quite a bit the past months, and I was scared it would just not stop. I am at a plateau now too, but came from the other side. What is your bmi?

Twist Down · 04-22-2009, 07:22 AM

I agree with those who suggest trying to add more weight training into your program. Muscles burns calories more effectively than fat. Thats a part of the reason why as we grow older our metabolism slows down, we lose muscle and gain fat.

You are performing a lot of cardio which is good to see. What are you cardio sessions like? have you ever tried high intensity interval training (HIIT) ? Might be worth looking into to add a bit of mixture to your current routine and you might find it an effective form of cardio.

Also ensure you are getting enough rest, sometimes plateaus can be caused from simply not getting the rest our bodies need.

As for sources of protein have you tried eating beans or lentils, certain nuts are also beneficial, exciting stuff eh?

Keep up the hard work, it will pay off!

Striker17 · 04-22-2009, 11:04 AM

I've lost 50 lbs throughout the last 9 months, and I'm still going. If there's one thing I learned about weight loss, it's this:

Weight loss happens in the kitchen, not in the gym. What you eat, and how much you exercise, is nowhere near is important as how much you eat. Try eating smaller portions, and you will lose weight.

Use a website like [Only registered and activated users can see links. ] to figure out how many calories you're eating every day. It'll also be able to tell you how many you should be eating in order to lose weight. Trust me, if you go down to about 1700/day (You might be able to get away with more depending on your current weight), you'll be losing.

Sure, exercise is great too, but it has more to do with health than weight.

COtuner · 04-22-2009, 11:30 AM

I've plateau'd too (trying to lean out a bit more) and have been doing the 5 times a day thing for a while. I'm alternating calorie levels now.... lower some days, higher on other days. Also continuing to change up my exercise routine so I'm doing something different every single time I go to the gym (I'm on about a 7 day cycle before I repeat anything)

04-22-2009, 01:49 AM	#1
calidreamin0 Offline Silver Member Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Northern California Gender: Female Age: 24 Posts: 419	weight loss plateau! I know this is a normal thing with dieting and exercise... but Im on a weight loss plateau! I've been losing at least a pound per week for the past few months, and now nothing! I've increased cardio by 20 more min.s each time I do it. Tonight for example, I went to yoga, a 60min bootcamp cardio class, did 45 mins of cardio, then did a little toning on the legs. I've come to the conclusion it could be what I am eating. But I am a very healthy eater!!! I only eat fish, no other meats... and I eat fish at least every other day. I have oatmeal for breakfast. A sandwich or something similar on wheat for lunches. And diner varies.. but nothing too crazy. If i splurge for desert its usually sorbet or non fat frozen yogurt. I don't eat anything with trans fats... nor did I ever really much before. So I am just curious as to whats happening with my body? I am getting more toned and I notice my body changing a lot. Especially with pants! But why isn't that scale moving? Is my body bulking up? Need some advice!

04-22-2009, 01:53 AM	#2
waveseer Offline Platinum Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: In a world full of possibilities. Gender: Female Age: 46 Posts: 11,065	Try eating a protein and a complex carb three times a day, with a fruit and a dairy product twice a day in between. You end up eating 5 times a day or roughly every 3 hours. This will crank your internal furnace (metabolism) up to hot, hot, hot and you will burn, burn, burn calories. __________________ Whoever dies with the most "happy" wins! ~ shuttlefish profile pic explained: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xl6yXBnLYYM and more: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CKnw9TM_AAI and if you weren't convinced: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S3fPtMuBtMs and if you're not sick yet: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jTvUT_Hx4Dc to accept your partner: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zgP57lJvWRw

04-22-2009, 03:27 AM	#6
ScorpiGal83 Offline Silver Member Join Date: Aug 2008 Gender: Female Age: 26 Posts: 677	what might help is if you did MORE weights instead of only going crazy with the cardio all the time. Because if you don't build up muscles, your body will burn muscles since you're not using them much. Instead of "a little toning on the legs", you should try doing a LOT of legs, arms/shoulders and back presses to build up the muscle. Yes, muscle weights more than fat but in the long run having more muscles actually burns more fat which is what you want, right? So when you do weight training you might "gain" a little bit due to muscles being built up, but after you have the muscles, fat burns away fast and in fact, merely HAVING muscles while not doing anything burns calories. __________________ For a minute there, I lost myself... -- "Don't you just love goodbyes?" - '156', Mew "Conquer yourself, rather than the world." - Descartes

04-22-2009, 05:55 AM	#7
arwen Offline Super Moderator Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: The Netherlands Gender: Female Age: 29 Posts: 5,396	The increase of muscle-mass can mask the loss of weight: fat is lighter than muscles! So 'toning' could coincide even with gaining weight, but you are less 'flubby' because it is not fat that you gained. I also think that if the plateau is a healthy weight, it is just the weight that your body naturally stabilizes at. I had to gain quite a bit the past months, and I was scared it would just not stop. I am at a plateau now too, but came from the other side. What is your bmi? __________________ You always* have a choice.* 11 February 2010: [Only registered and activated users can see links. ]* is due!* Please see the forum rules for posting on enotalone.com

04-22-2009, 02:00 AM	#3
diabolik Offline Platinum Member Join Date: Apr 2009 Gender: Male Age: 36 Posts: 1,635	Don't focus on weight. Focus on how you feel and how you look nekkid and how your clothes fit. Weight tells you nothing about body composition (muscle/fat mix), and the latter is a much better determinant of how good you look. Sounds like you are looking better, so I'd say keep doing what you're doing until it's no longer working. Oh, and please don't refer to it as "bulking up" - it reinforces a terrible image in your mind of overly muscular women, which I know most women dread. What is happening is you are adding lean muscle - not only does this accentuate your curves, but muscle burns calories all day long, even when you're sitting or sleeping. And since you are adding some muscle without gaining weight, you must be losing fat.

04-22-2009, 02:02 AM	#4
calidreamin0 Offline Silver Member Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Northern California Gender: Female Age: 24 Posts: 419	I make a protein shake with non fat greek yogurt, half a banana, and whey protein powder. I usually blend it with water or soy milk. Its been good as a post workout snack/meal. As far as what to eat during the day... im practically a vegetarian... so Im running out ideas from where to get protein from. Fish, peanut butter, eggs. I eat all of those. And try to rotate them throughout the week. I just don't know what else to eat? Its crazy cause I see smaller people eat fries, beer and chips and I never have these things except the very occasional beer. I know they are probably not as healthy on the inside as I am ... but its still frustrating!

04-22-2009, 03:00 AM	#5
thezebra Offline Member Join Date: Feb 2009 Posts: 4	probably what you're eating. my mother changed her diet and lost 10 20 lbs maybe. there are certain foods that don't go with your body, the tricky part is finding the ones that do.

04-22-2009, 07:22 AM	#8
Twist Down Offline Member Join Date: Apr 2009 Posts: 42	I agree with those who suggest trying to add more weight training into your program. Muscles burns calories more effectively than fat. Thats a part of the reason why as we grow older our metabolism slows down, we lose muscle and gain fat. You are performing a lot of cardio which is good to see. What are you cardio sessions like? have you ever tried high intensity interval training (HIIT) ? Might be worth looking into to add a bit of mixture to your current routine and you might find it an effective form of cardio. Also ensure you are getting enough rest, sometimes plateaus can be caused from simply not getting the rest our bodies need. As for sources of protein have you tried eating beans or lentils, certain nuts are also beneficial, exciting stuff eh? Keep up the hard work, it will pay off!

04-22-2009, 11:04 AM	#9
Striker17 Offline Bronze Member Join Date: Dec 2005 Posts: 203	I've lost 50 lbs throughout the last 9 months, and I'm still going. If there's one thing I learned about weight loss, it's this: Weight loss happens in the kitchen, not in the gym. What you eat, and how much you exercise, is nowhere near is important as how much you eat. Try eating smaller portions, and you will lose weight. Use a website like [Only registered and activated users can see links. ] to figure out how many calories you're eating every day. It'll also be able to tell you how many you should be eating in order to lose weight. Trust me, if you go down to about 1700/day (You might be able to get away with more depending on your current weight), you'll be losing. Sure, exercise is great too, but it has more to do with health than weight.

04-22-2009, 11:30 AM	#10
COtuner Offline Platinum Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Gender: Female Posts: 4,102	I've plateau'd too (trying to lean out a bit more) and have been doing the 5 times a day thing for a while. I'm alternating calorie levels now.... lower some days, higher on other days. Also continuing to change up my exercise routine so I'm doing something different every single time I go to the gym (I'm on about a 7 day cycle before I repeat anything)