I'm stuck at my current weight...advice?
 

I've read these boards for years, but this is my 3rd time posting. :D

I've been on my weigh loss journey forever (or at least that's what it feels like). I'll lose 20 pounds, maintain for 6 months, lost another 10 pounds, maintain for 6 months, and so on. I haven't really stressed about it much as I have been steadily losing. Now I have been at 161-163 for about 2 months and don't know what to do to jump start my weight loss again.

My weight loss strategy has been to each the same things for breakfast and lunch every day. I'll have plain oatmeal with fresh blueberries and green tea for breakfast, and a grilled chicken salad with homemade balsamic vinaigrette for lunch. Dinner is usually what the rest of the family has but I just eat a smaller portion. I have 5 children, ages 10, 9, 7, 5, and 4 who also eat very healthy now and my husband is into MMA fighting so is more into diet than I am, so we don't have any junk food in the house. I have between 1500-1700 calories a day.

I lift heavy 3 days a week and do cardio 3 days a week. I try to alternate steady state cardio with HIIT. My measurements started out at 42, 38, 47 and are now 38, 31, 40. I'm happy with my progress so far but don't know what else to do to see the scale move. Maybe fewer calories? I work out a lot and hate to go below what I'm eating now though. Any suggestions?

I do have PCOS, which makes losing more difficult.

Thanks!

Is your PCOS being treated? Are you on any medications? Are you IR?

How many carbs do you eat per day?

it sounds like you have a lot of muscle and close to goal. (if it were me, i would just stop there)

maybe it's time to mix up the exercise. try different exercises to confuse your body.

are you happy with your meals? you don't have to eat the same thing everyday. it sounds like it was just easier to keep track if it was the same.

Thanks for replying!

The only med I'm currently taking is Spiro. I was on Metformin but couldn't handle the side effects very well so was taken off.

I've been looking back through my food diary and I do eat plenty of carbs, but they are mostly complex carbs so I'm not too concerned about those. Maybe I'll experiment for a few weeks with less carbs and see if that gets the ball rolling.

I'm really fine with eating the same thing for breakfast and lunch. I found that if I didn't have to worry about what I was going to have for meals, I didn't make bad food choices. Just one of those little quirks that works for me, I guess. :)

It is very hard for those of us with PCOS to lose any weight. You will probably need to get your meds right before you will start losing any more weight.

Have you tried Metformin ER (Extended Release)? People who get sick on regular metformin usually do very well on ER. There are also different brands of Metformin which reacts differently in each person. Check out the PCOS forum, there are many more of us in the same boat.

BeckyRN, I also have PCOS and even though I was eating complex carbs like brown rice, I realized I had to limit those too.

I don't limit vegetables or fruits, however.

You can try substituting some of those complex carbs for vegetables for a two week period (keeping the same calories) and see if has any results.

Assuming you're accurate about your caloric intake it is safe to say that your body has achieved equalibrium at your current weight.

I would suggest is taking a break. Increase calories slightly. I'd go up to 2000 - 2100. The reason for this is that your metabolism could be regulated downward after you've been dieting for such a long time. While doing this take a week off from the gym. Just give your body a break. You're probably going to gain weight the question is how much. How much you gain will tell you a whole lot about what is happening with your body and why you're stuck.

I would also suggest higher protein intake and lower carb intake. Since you like to eat the same things to keep it simple instead of oatmeal and berries I'd suggest 2 eggs and berries. Dinners vary as you say but I'd go high veggie and high protein and low (or no) carbs.

Honestly with my PCOS I have to limit carbs period- complex or not. Veggies are fine but if I start eating too much breads or pastas, even if they are whole wheat, I instantly stop losing weight.

I'd try to lower your carb intake to no more than 100 grams a day (compensate by adding more protein) and I think you'll be pleased with the results.

It sounds like you are making pretty good choices already. The only things I would recommend based on my own experience are:
- if you're estimating your daily calories, try plugging them in to an online counter for a week. You may be surprised by what you find. (I personally found I was having 500-600 more calories a day than I thought... therefore certainly the main culprit to not losing in forever)
- How about weekends? Or days when you're not paying as much attention to what you're eating? Suddenly things sneak in that are high in sodium or pack a calorie punch.
- water, water, water. (just in case you aren't drinking as much as you should)

are your measurements still going down while the just the scale stays the same?

It seems like when we start dieting we get overly posessive of the scale. I wonder why that is? Sure it's nice to see the numbers go down, but remember if you are exercising you are replacing that fat with more heavier muscle weight. Don't weigh every day or even every week. Give yourself a break to concentrate on you and your new lifestyle. Weigh once every 3 weeks or so. Pay attention to how your clothes are feeling; too big, just hanging on you, able to zipper those pants... The scale will drive you crazy.

Good luck

I'm going to take all of your advice and limit complex carbs for 3 or 4 weeks. Hopefully I'll see changes after that. I'm going to add more protein to breakfast so I'll alternate eggs with oatmeal and eat more veggies with dinner. I'll also cut way back on brown rice and whole wheat pasta. I track all of my calories on the Lose It app on my iphone. I LOVE that app! I'm feeling motivated again. Thanks guys!

@LandonsBaby, all of my measurements are the same, but I am seeing more muscle definition.

I'm the same height you are and until the last month or so had similar activity level (busy month so less activity). Anyway, I can't eat that number of calories and lose much. You might try cutting a couple of hundred calories and carefully tracking calories.