Tips on overcoming a weight loss plateau?

January 1st of this year I weighed 235 pounds. I decided I needed to make a change when my friends and I decided to go skydiving and it cost me nearly $100 extra due to how much over 200 pounds I weighed. I bought a Fitbit Charge 3 and a Renpho Bluetooth scale and started my journey.

I biked to and from work (2 miles each way) 5-6 days a week, minus torrential downpour days. I ran 3-5 times a week, and lifted 3-6 times a week. I used the Fitbit calorie tracker and set my intake goal for 1,000 calories below what I burned every day.

Following that regimen, as of July 19th I was down to 205, having lost 30 pounds. Great right? The only problem is, as of this morning I weigh 204.8 pounds.

I haven’t changed anything about my regimen, I have only been over my goal calorie count once in the last 3 weeks, and if anything have been working out more. Yet I still haven’t even lost half a pound in nearly 3 weeks, which is very disappointing after averaging over a pound lost per week. According to my RENPHO scale, my fat free body weight is 174.2, so I know I have the room to lose.

Any tips on how people overcame this plateau? For those who are going to say “Heart rate calorie counters often exaggerate calories burned”, I know that which is why my goal is set for 1,000 under what it says burned, fully expecting its closer to 500-750 under, and it obviously worked for me for nearly 7 months so I don’t know why it’d stop working now

Also, the stagnation of weight loss is not due to the building of muscle, as my Renpho scale tracks muscle mass too and it has risen less than 1 pound in the last 3 weeks. Same with body water

For info: I’m 6’2”, 14.1% body fat my goal weight is 190, under 12% body fat

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NSV: Won office fitness contest

A few years ago, I lost a bunch of weight, neglected maintenance, and gained it all back.

This second weight loss effort was inspired in June, when co-workers decided to start a company fitness challenge. The rules were weird, the math was wrong, the oversight was lacking, and the prizes were dumb. But I joined anyways, because it's past time that I lost a few [dozen] pounds.

Well out of the ~16 participants, half quit early and half quit late. So after 8 weeks, only 4 of us made it to the finish line.

Thanks to hard work, I lost 34 pounds (4 per week!) and tied for winning the whole thing. I was #2 for individual results, #1 for team results, and was voted as the 'most supportive team member'.

I don't want to sound like a drama queen by saying that it was so hard to lose all that weight. But I don't want to sound aloof by saying that it was so easy. The truth is, it was hard work that felt easy. It was pretty much CICO:

• As a big fat fellow with a lightly active lifestyle, my TDEE is about 3200 calories per day.
• On most days, I ate 1600 calories and walked off 400, for a total of 1200. 2000 below my TDEE.
• If a pound of fat is 3500 calories, then that 2000 calorie deficit means losing 0.57 pounds per day.
• Multiply that by 56 days (eight weeks) and mathematically, I should have lost 32 pounds.

...so the 34 that I actually lost is very close to that. I count calories conservatively, so that might explain why I did a bit better than 32. Or maybe that was water weight.

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Overcoming a powerful rationalization

Hey All,

As someone who can't diet too restrictively, I've been utilizing the the calorie counting method (via MFP) for some time. While I've found this to be by far the most effective method of weight loss, I've also found that most of my relapse events are related to a powerful series of false rationalizations surrounding the practice of calorie counting. Even more disturbing, I've seen this rationalization reinforced here and in other places.

I think it's easy for the addicted brain (sugary food is like crack to me) to cast calorie counting in a negative light. Perhaps this is because most people around me don't calorie count, so the behavior feels strange on the surface. In the throes of an urge, it's easy to follow my thoughts down a dark path that ends with a 3000 calorie binge. These thoughts sound like:

• I can't really calorie count forever, can I?
• This is obsessive behavior, furiously scribbling down everything I eat.
• Why can't I be free? No one else around me worries about food this much.
• I'm not really that overweight. Do I really need to lose more?
• What if this makes me anorexic? What if I get too skinny and can't stop?
• Can I really return to normal eating habits after I hit my goal weight?
• Is my goal weight even realistic?

I suppose I'm curious if anyone else has dealt with these sort of thoughts/rationalizations, and what sort of techniques you use to overcome them. Realistically, I can answer each of the rationalizations (for example: "This is obsessive behavior, furiously scribbling down everything I eat." "Well, it's not exactly healthy or normal to eat 5,000 calories a day either...")

I find myself in constant fear that calorie counting will in and of itself result in a new set of issues. I believe intellectually that it is the best method - creating and monitoring a simple calorie deficit. However, I don't feel armed with enough information to shut down the animal part of my brain that wants me to eat everything, and will say anything to convince me to do so. Has anyone else successfully powered through this fear?

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Today Marks My Lowest Weight in 10 Years!!!

This accomplishment means more for my current peace of mind and future health than anything else I can achieve. The past year has seen me diagnosed as diabetic (like my dad and his dad before him...untreated for 20 years!!!), so my weight loss and consumption of predominantly nutritious food are essential parts of disease management. My ultimate goal is to lose at least 100 pounds, more or less, and I can't believe I'm already so close to even the preliminary goal of getting back down below 200 lbs. I've loved reading the anecdotes and advice on r/loseit, and have adapted so much for my own purposes. First I tried fasting, then keto; the dreams I was having of strawberries covered in whipped cream were not fun. Finally, in September of 2017 I downloaded MFP and the journey began. Since then it's both rough seas and smooth sailing. One thing is beyond certain: I was over-consuming calories like a raving lunatic whose lunacy is materialized as soda, ice cream, bread, cookies.

The difference between now and then is stark. I'd already been suffering from intense anxiety and a panic disorder for a bit, most acutely since 12/2015, which I strongly associate with my weight, fear, and pre-diabetes, and felt like I couldn't sleep effectively, couldn't get good erections (changing BP medicines had a positive effect on this), hadn't had sex in years, walking short distances was growing uncomfortable, and I could just feel my fellow humans' disinterest and disdain for me me dripping off of them. I didn't and don't blame them. I was a total mess. Death seemed looming every few minutes. And hey, I haven't dated in a while, and I'm now going on 9 years, 8 months as a celibate heterosexual man who LOVES great sex with great partners, and my libido is quite high, but I still feel so good lately that it hardly matters that I've not felt that exquisite connection with another human in so long. Very hungry for sex though, no shame in admitting that.

What have been the essential components of my weight loss thus far?
Personal will.
1. Consciously cultivating good habits and moderating bad habits until they're unconscious habits.
2. MyFitnessPal-mediated CICO + totally self-honest disclosure of all "food sins."
3. Remembering that I KNOW FOR CERTAIN I can lose weight, since it's happening and has happened before.
4. Purchasing a fantastic ebike. My biking in 2017 amounted to about 100 miles in total. Post ebike, my biking in 2018 was ~1500 miles, and it's truly great exercise. The Juiced CrossCurrent S (now they have X!) was the greatest material purchase I've ever made (even more than my Fender Stratocaster).
5. The enthusiasm I feel when I realize that my "plateaus" are really just slow weight loss, and that a chart of weight loss still shows steady declines even during the seeming plateaus. Memory is very tricky!
6. Positive affirmations from heterosexual women. I can't overstate how good it feels, when you've walked around the world as a morbidly obese middle-aged male, to interact with women when I can feel positive appreciation from them; if not attraction, then at least something better than aversion or disgust. This is a night and day difference. I am legitimately frightened to see what kind of attention I get 20 - 40 pounds from now. I already have a nice body underneath the fat, and women really respond to me when I'm attractive; even spontaneously at bus stops, in line at stores, etc., in a city (D.C.) known for cold interpersonal relationships.

IT'S AWESOME!!!

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Stress and it’s impact on weight loss.

Hi everyone!

This is my first post on here and I was wondering if any of you feel like stress is a major factor in your life you need to take in account to meet your weight goals? For myself I just realized as a university student I go through cycles of weight gain and loss. In the school year I notice that I slowly gain weight and really have to put my fitness or diet on hold during exams. The summer I’m much more relaxed and lose the weight. Gaining the weight when I’m stressed really does awful things to my self esteem and body image. I also feel like even when I do CICO and try to stay on track when I’m feeling low it doesn’t work. (I know CICO works but it just feels like a plateau to me during those times.)

For my current weight loss journey I feel like it’s going quite well. I go to the gym and stick to the 1500 calorie goal. But I’m worried that when school starts in September that I’m just going to go off track again and not being able to cope. What would be the best ways of managing stress and progress?

Thanks in advance.

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I'm finally comfortable with myself and it feels amazing.

Link to imgur album that has a lot of photos in it, from starting to literally today

All linked photos exist in that album

Comparison photos of 1/27/18 to 5/13/19 254-215 lbs

Side shot of the same comparison photo

This journey has been a very long one, I've fallen off the wagon and climbed back on more times then I can imagine.

I stepped on a scale weighing 290 lbs in May of 2012, got mad at myself and decided no more, I'm gonna beat this shit. Got a phyiscal, doctor gave me a diet that looking back on I HAAAAAATED. I'd eat 3 egg whites in the morning, some piddly salad for lunch, and then whatever for dinner.

It worked at first but I got sick of it, and eventually found my way to intermittent fasting which was my bread and butter. I was lifting, doing starting strength first then switched to stronglifts, eventually I slipped up and poor form on squats fucked me, I turned a squat into a good morning, immediately felt a pull in my lower back and was out of commission. Sprained my lumbar, literally had to pull myself to the side of my bed and pull myself over to roll over the next morning. This was my first slip I stopped working out, and eventually, stopped watching what I ate.

I'd hover between 230-255 between moments of "focus" and lapses

January 27th last year, I focused up big time, started with just cardio and intermittent fasting, but eventually I missed lifting, but had a mental block, I was really concerned about my form and not injuring myself again, so, I turned to a personal trainer. He had me on a custom program he made, originally I asked for 3 days lifting, full body, and i'd spend 3 days doing running. I eventually stress fractured my foot running, tweaked my lumbar, didn't focus on eating for a bit but came back out of it.

Switched up programs with him at the start of the year and saw more progress, still 3 day, still full body. till about May when I decided it was time to go solo, I didn't have that mental block for my form in place anymore, I went to /r/Fitness and looked up their programs, settled on a 4 day PHUL program, added Barbell Hip Thrusts to the power leg day but mainly I'm doing that program, and have recently added a custom ab circuit I do at the end of every day as well.

Cardio I'm playing around with but I've developed some foot issue, possibly plantar, so running is a no go for me, but have been occasionally doing stairs, I really want to do this more consistently to help me get over the final little bit.

The past month has been kind of nutty for me, I started a new job at a bar, a friend was there and somehow the weight loss got mentioned, one of the regulars there said I looked fit and was confused, I showed him a picture and I shit you not what he said touched me so deeply, I'll never forget it. He said "You look like one of those weight loss stories you always hear about but never meet". One of my coworkers and good buddies said he'd "Kill to be where I'm at" I'd never considered myself as GOALS for someone before.

Today I had to take this pic, the lighting was on point

I still have 18 lbs I want to lose

But suddenly, I like wearing dress shirts, I've been complimented like crazy lately, I've even gotten a number left for me on a credit card slip.

KEEP AT IT, if you fall off, climb back on, progress, not perfection, if I wanted perfection, I'd already be at my goal weight. I wouldn't have a weight loss graph that looks like THIS What started off as a weight loss journey sparked by self hatred and anger, has turned into falling in love with lifting, and falling in love with myself.

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Frustrated, looking for advice

I had a baby about 5 months ago and gained a lot of weight in my pregnancy. A lot came off right away, but now I’m left with about 30 lbs to lose that are much harder.

I started working with a personal trainer twice a week for circuit training, and following the diet the trainer gave me. I went from basically sedentary to working out 5x per week for an hour. I was very surprised at how much food the trainer had me eating, but while it’s a large quantity, the overall amount of calories is fairly low. E.g breakfast is 1/2c oatmeal 1/2c egg whites, and three meals of about 4oz lean protein and 1cup green veggies, and snacks of cucumbers and tomatoes. I am supposed to have one cheat day per week and a gallon of water per day.

So far, I have been working out for two weeks and on the meal plan for a little over one week. Before everyone comments and tells me to wait longer and be patient, hear me out: I have lost nothing, not even the immediate water weight drop that I have always seen on every other diet I have attempted. My ideas of weight loss my whole life has been calorie restriction and fasting, so this time around I decided to do this is a more healthy, sustainable way.

I just don’t understand how I could have lost nothing so far. Or how I am supposed to be eating so much to lose weight. These may be dumb questions, but this is uncharted territory for me and I’m worried I will continue to not see any real weight loss.

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