same weight for 6 weeks now

[miamia]

I find it hard to believe really and don't fully understand but I have stayed the same weight for 6 weeks now. Anyone else in the same boat?

[kantara71]

Hi Miamia,

It depends on what weight you are now and what your target is?

It might also help to look back, if you kept a diary, to the times when you were losing weight to help figure out if what you are doing now is causing your weight to stick and remember that as you lose weight your daily calories allowance will also come down.

If I think I am sticking then I ring the changes, I try a different approach for a few days or a week to see how this helps. This week I binged a bit on carbs and sweet things for a couple of days so I switched to low carb, around 20g per day, whilst sticking to my calories of 1500 per day and it seems to have worked, I am back on track and hoping to lose 2lbs this week.

John

[miamia]

Thank you. Will give it a go.

[esull]

I'm sorry to hear that miamia

Are you eating enough? I aim for 1,200 calories per day, do 10,000 steps per day and half an hour on the exercise bike 3 times per week. I also slot a cheat day into each week (either a Friday or Saturday) where I eat whatever I like and as much as I like and I make it a weekend so that I can enjoy a couple of glasses of wine too

Even factoring in this cheat day I still can lose 3 pounds per week and find it gives me something to look forward to every week.

[Venusflytrap]

Hi miamia ,

What an absolute pain. I so feel for you. There have been 4 or 5 times in my 5 stone plus journey down that I have plateau-ed. I often didn't realise till it had gone on for at least couple of months, because I would put on a little, take some off, put some back on etc. I call it "wavering" now! I used to feel such an idiot, because it meant I hadn't been looking at my progress enough to recognise that I was stuck. A graph is probably the best way for me to notice this. So kudos to you for realising that you are wavering. Now you know you have to do something about it.

What to do is the next question. The others have already listed some great ideas and I fully support all of them as they have all worked for me at some time. But I will just list my successful getting back on track strategies to help me check them off. I wouldn't do them all, just pick a couple that you fancy and see if they make a difference. You can always keep the others for the next plateau!

1. You can review your food diary to see if anything leaps out at you. It sometimes did for me. A habit became obvious on review. But to be honest, although I used to find it, if there was one, this was usually only when I had gotten my weekly losses back on track and could see clearly again. Others might well see your pattern before you do, so if you have a food diary that can be shared (via photo, screen shot, or print out), put it on here. If not, maybe start posting each day's intake from now on. Again photos could save you some time here.

2. Einstein said "Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results." If what you have been doing isn't working for you at the moment, then you have to change what you're doing, if only in the short term. This could be what you're eating, how you're eating, when you're eating, activity levels, your pattern of drinking or even recording honestly. So shake it up!

3. Go back to basics. Revisit your early weeks, if you lost better then, and just eat that way again. Or reread all the guidance for your diet plan and pretend you are starting again. Weighing foods, and measuring liquids, or accurately using pack nutritional information could really make a difference as time and experience allow us to drift into increasing portion sizes without realising.

4. Drinks! Sometimes we forget that they have kcal. So measure and track every drop, even the water! Some of the manufactured drinks with the word "water" in the title contain hidden sugars. Back to those labels. If you like a tipple, check that you are actually having those pub measures that you are kcal counting. Generosity often gives us double or treble what we think we are getting when at home and socialising. Check that if you have asked for a diet version, that is what you are getting. Always ask for sight of the bottle/can, when there is one. And don't forget that milk in teas and coffees. Either measure as you go. Measure it out at the beginning of the day. Or give it up for a while. All these would help you see if this is an issue. Finally drink tap water. Put a known sized glass or bottle full in front of you every time you sit. Take or get it when you're out. Always ask for it as well as any paid for drink. And sip, sip, sip. Sometimes this alone has got me weight loss. Our bodies may confuse thirst with the munchies! And some thirst quenchers are way less kcal than that favourite munch.

5. Eat more! Add one more vegetable serving than normal to every plate. Make sure you get lots of low fat protein. Check on your intake of fats. Teaspoons of oil, especially olive = good. Nuts and reduced fat dairy = good. Butter and spreads straight out the pack and most cheeses = dodgy (so easy to underestimate size here). Unplanned and unmeasured fried foods, especially those eaten outside the home and under the influence of alcohol, can be loss shattering, if we don't estimate them accurately. Try to take your fruit and veg intake up to 10 portions a day (gradually). That should be up to 4 portions of fruit and the rest veg. If you eat masses of fruit, cut back and make sure that you are eating portions not just dipping those fingers into the strawberries or grapes. There is sugar in fruit and too much can certainly slow your weight losses.

6. Most diet plans work on one of two designs: you can eat any amount of a limited range of foods; or you can eat/drink anything you like as long as you limit portion sizes and watch nutritional values. You've been trying one, try the other. This always worked for me. I still weighed my portion sizes as I used to be "portion size blind" having achieved my weight by eating too much of "good" foods! My "portions" were at least twice the size they should have been. So I change my bread down to sliced kcal counted like Nimble or Weight Watchers and small crumpets and thins. Keep it all in the freezer so getting it out and thawing it takes some think time. Limit bread to 1 meal a day. Give up spreads or swop them to quark, zero fat yogurt or 1 flat tsp of mustard, ketchup etc and vary those sauces. Swop a lot of non oily fish into your meals and have a look at quorn, tofu and other low kcal vegetarian options. Take ALL visible fats off meats and go for lowest fat versions of mince etc. That includes not even cooking your chicken in skin, let alone eating it! Cut out cheeses except for reduced fat cottage cheeses and very low fat spready cheese. Cut out everything with sugar added in manufacturing, especially in combination with fats, so no biscuits, cakes, sweets or crisps. Set a kcal limit per day or week for any intake that doesn't conform to your rules so the famine of treat foods doesn't trigger a binge. Really pile on any veg and fruit, they will fill your plates, give you the vitamins and minerals, and provide lots of lovely fibre.

7. Use smaller plates. Our subconscious prefers a fuller smaller plate than the same amount on a larger one. Use patterned plates. A little on a white plate looks smaller than the same amount on a patterned one. Where all your drinks are now diet compatible, increase the size of your cups, glasses etc. The only exceptions to this are drinks with kcals: so hot choc, alcohol, all those coffee house favourites, go for the smallest cup there. Present your meals and even snacks as if you have just been employed as a photographer's food stylist. Make everything look good. Then eat at a table without distraction and really enjoy your food/drink. Eat as slowly as you can manage.

8. Go for more walks. If you are a gym bunny or a class taker, try some different equipment or moves. Try standing instead of sitting, walking instead of standing. Any activity is good. Waiting for the kettle to boil? Tidy the kitchen. Fidget! Tap dance!

9. If your scale weights don't go down in the next 2 weeks after you introduce some changes, then try something more drastic like carb limitation or a weekend off.

The successful slimmer is the one who sees each glitch as a challenge or a puzzle to be solved. There is a solution out there and we will be with you to help you find it. So do not panic. Together we can all get to our goals. And you will be there ahead of the people who would have used this hiccup to give up.

It has taken me a whole year plus to shift that 10.5lbs I put on the second I hit goal! I kept "dieting" and putting weight on. My food diary shows a sorry tale of repeated self deception. In retrospect I had probably become more comfortable dieting than actually being at goal. I had to go quite strict to manage to lose at all. But I am now below goal and thinking about maintenance, when I lose the next 3.5lbs. I should say, in my defence, that I didn't mind losing weight slowly, as I could see results and I knew I would get there one day as long as I kept going in the right direction. I was also absolutely convinced that dieting worked. For me it was just finding which diet was working this week! I have had a lot of ill health, so less movement, and a lot of great holidays and celebrations, so more time off the leash. I am also a bit of a remedial slimmer and live in a food centred house with 2 hungry men, so lots of temptation which it always took me a while to learn to manage. Enough of me defending my glacial progress!

Once you get this disappointment sorted, there is no reason that you couldn't get much better at learning to eat healthily and speed down to your goal. So don't worry. Just enjoy what you have planned to eat and drink and record it. Sometimes that alone will do it!

Best wishes for a better weekend and for planning your way to success at the scales soon.

Venus

[Seuzan in reply to Venusflytrap]

What brilliant tips, thank you!

[miamia in reply to Venusflytrap]

Good morning, So interesting to read your journey. I have already picked out so many tips and will start focusing......It all makes sense, thank you for your input it is appreciated.

[suzybenj]

I have gone low GI and medeterrean, low carbs and exercise more consistently. I have also factored in a mini fast - i try to eat my main meal before 7 in the evening and limit it to veg and protein. I I have also dropped to 1200 calories a day. This seems to have shifted my plateau -but to be honest has taken quite a lot of mental effort and organisation. I hope my reward is reflected on the scales

It has taken my body a few weeks to register this - and I have had to a just to all the extra fibre as well.

Good luck and don't give up

[Venusflytrap in reply to suzybenj]

I don't know if it will cheer you up, suzybenj , but I did find I could go back to my previously successful option once I had gotten off that plateau. So the plateau seemed to be temporary. Mind you, all our bodies and lives are different!

Venus

[Hidden]

I would really recommend trying some strength exercises, something small, little and often, e.g. 10 squats and lunges every day, or whatever you find manageable. The NHS Strength & Flex podcasts could be an alternative or a circuit Training class if you have somewhere near you that does it, if you need the encouragement and motivation of doing this stuff in a group. I used strength exercises to help push my weight loss when I was trying to lose the last few lbs, just a sort of intense month of it, it definitely helped.

[Venusflytrap]

Good advice Hidden , please keep pushing it. I got as far as looking at the home page for the podcasts yesterday. Who knows with a bit more of a kick, I may actually click on one today! Or tomorrow!

[Hidden in reply to Venusflytrap]

Let me know when you do, maybe I'll join you!

[Venusflytrap]

Just thrown my back out a little again. So will be going for a very sedate walk this after!