Molasses in February
 

Please pardon the pity party rant, but I feel like I am just stuck with both feet going nowhere. I have been counting calories since the end of September. Now we are half way through February, and my weight hasn't gone down in 6 weeks....I got discouraged on Saturday, and went way off plan. This morning I was 3 lbs heavier than my usual stuck weight. I was thinking that maybe I have a gluten intollerance which is causing me to retain fluids...so now I'm off the bread... Has anyone had any experience with this ?

All I thought was "Mmmmm...Molasses!" I used to eat it by the spoon when I was a child.

I have no info to offer except hang in there! I am sure someone will have great ideas for you! I've not been with this long enough this time to hit a plateau.

Well I guess you're the only one out there. Thanks Michelle !

I haven't had any experience with gluten but know many people who have.

Hang tough! There are quite a few of us hitting plateaus right now, and even better, there are many of us breaking them now. There's hope! Maybe your three pound gain is enough to wake up your body and get it revved again. Anything to keep it from getting stable, you know?

You can do this. It's hard, I know. Are you keep track of anything else? Waist circumference? Blood pressure? Cholesterol? Fitness gains? Rest heart rate? Any of these things keep me going when the scale isn't moving.

Eliana, I have just been going by how my clothes fit, pretty much....infact I only recently started to weigh every day. I know plateaus are a fact of life,but I just didn't expect it this soon.... I have been kind of puffy and constipated...and even though I have been on target with the calories, I think that I have been eating less vegies and more bread....so I am changing that and hoping it works.

I would think that if you lost 28 lbs while eating foods with gluten, chances are you probably do not have an intolerance to it. However, if you did eat a lot of refined wheat and sugar, you would definitely retain water from that.

As for trying to break the plateau - you may already be doing this, but I would make sure you are weighing and measuring and tracking every single bite you have, just to make sure that you are counting accurately. And if you have been doing that, then you may need to change your calorie target. Don't forget that your resting metabolism rate is significantly lower at 207 than it would have been at 235. And the amount you burn during activity is also less with a lower body weight. So you have to eat less and/or move more to see the same results.

I definitely sympathize with how frustrating this must be for you, and you have done a great job hanging in there for six long weeks. Don't give up now! Try to find some tweaks, and I'm sure you'll smash through (and be well on your way to Onederland very soon!!)

Thanks, Peanuts ! Come to think of it, I was keeping it low glycemic for the first few months...no breads, just low carb wraps and fibre flat breads... I started baking bread in December...and it was around the holidays that I started losing ground... still eating 1550 calories,but higher glycemic...Maybe it IS just too many carbs.

The puffiness and constipation could certainly be a factor. I fight constipation myself and can't figure out why. I go out of my way to up the fiber in my diet, but my body doesn't seem to know that. Why on earth are we less constipated when eating crap and more constipated eating healthy? :dizzy:

As for the plateau happening too soon, a lot of people tend to hit the first one around 30 lbs. Not sure why. I've read before that 10% is a big plateau marker. I think our bodies are just trying to adjust. But we can't let them. ;)

ETA: We're the same height (despite the extra half inch I try to claim ;) ), we started at the same weight and we've plateaued within pounds of each other. (I plateaued at 203). I'd say this is probably pretty normal.

I have to agree with Eliana. I've noticed that many people tend to plateau right around their 10% mark... and marigrace... if it makes you feel any better, I'm going throught the EXACT same thing as you!! Plateau for about 6 weeks. I've been good on my food, but the scale is just NOT cooperating. However, I must share that I tried on a pair of jeans I could barely button up 3 weeks ago, and I could comfortably wear them out and about, now. So something is happening.

I've resolved to just keep doing what I'm doing and stay patient. Fact is, if I go back to my evil ways, I'll get exactly what I deserve!!!

Hang in there, sistah. :hug:

Point well taken, RaebeaR.

I definitely think the specific foods do make a big difference. I don't do low carb because it makes me feel awful, but I try to stick to whole grains as much as I can. I don't go crazy about it, esp. if I'm at a restaurant or someone's house, but for what I can buy and control myself, I do my best.

I would definitely try to mirror what you were eating back in the first few months. And you might also consider experimenting with a different calorie range too - 1550 is probably still pretty good, but at your new lower weight (woo hoo!!), maybe 1500 is your sweet spot, you know?

Yes, Peanuts, just checked a rmr calculator, and it looks like I need to drop about 60 calories.

I'm right around my 10% mark as well and I'm just stuck around the same 5 pounds..it's been a few weeks and I'm just up and down up and down..GAH!!

We need to stick with it chickie! :hug:

I see you have already gotten a lot of good advice, but I wanted to tell you not to get discouraged. You've already lost 28 lbs! That's great. The rest of the weight will come off, just be patient and don't stop. The worst thing you can do is stop!

Good morning ! I want to thank you all for your suggestions and words of encouragement. I was down 2.2 lbs this morning....almost back down to my stuck weight (lol). Knowing I'm not alone really helps.