[doopdoop]

I know all of this varies from person to person, so I guess I'm just asking to see what personal experiences others have had, or if they have some advice.

So, I've checked my BMR, and they all give me around 1560-1580 calories per day, sans activity. I used to go to the gym fairly regularly, but being away from my free university gym means I only get to go when I have a free trial membership to one down here. So I'm more sedentary now, and I just lift weights and take walks to keep from being a total potato. Anyway, my weight loss has stalled for a while now, and I've been experimenting to try and get it to start again, but I'm trying to figure out if my calories just aren't low enough. Right now, I eat around 1200 at most, usually more like some number between 1150-1200.

I'm short at 5'1", so as much as I want to whine about wanting to be able to eat more, if I'm really eating too much to drop the lbs at this point, I'm more than happy to cut back. I don't know, though. Is 1200 cals a day too much to be eating now that I only have 25-30 to go?

[vabs]

Probably the most conclusive way to find it is going to be dropping slightly lower for a while and see if that helps, how you feel, where your hunger levels are at, etc. In my 100% unprofessional opinion, some people really do need to go lower than 1200 calories a day to see results... but they also seem to be truly few and far between, and have special circumstances.
How long have you been stalled for?

[doopdoop]

Around 3-4 weeks. I think in that time I've shed maybe .5 or 1 lb, but you can never tell with water weight. It just seems ridiculous to me that I can eat so low, maybe hitting 1400 at most on bad days, and still not lose, but I do agree w/ your statement.

I don't know if it has something to do w/ how long I've been on the diet? Since dec 2nd. I just can't stand the idea of taking time off to restart things when I've hardly lost in a month.

[vabs]

Hmm... I think it's common to get a stall after a month or so of starting a diet, but you've been at it way longer than that. Maybe you could try calorie cycling instead of just going lower everyday? That's helped me bust a plateau in the past, without feeling deprived.

[Suzanne 3FC]

Sometimes it's a little harder to lose those last few pounds. Since you've had to cut back on activity, you aren't burning as many calories so it makes sense that your weight loss has stalled.

You could cut back a smidgen more as long as your food choices are good. But is there any way you can up the exercise again since it appears to have played an important part in your initial loss? I understand gyms are expensive, but maybe you could find a way to work out at home using good DVDs, or take more (or longer) walks per day? Something to shake it up.

Our Featherweights forum might contain some tips for losing those last few pounds as well.