[LadyLai]

Hi! This thread is dedicated to those of us who have been faced with nasty plateaus that have taken us outta of the game for a time. All the desire is still there but our motivation is struggling to keep us going. Well now, it's time to take all our energy outta feeling sorry and regretful and put it back into action. If this is your second (or third, fourth..fifth!) time around of making a go of it, you know exactly what struggles I'm talking about. Please come join and be ready to finally blast those pounds away with a little encouragement, support and perhaps some enlightenment to help you along your way!!

[LadyLai]

Hi!

I joined 3FC with the highest intentions of losing 100lbs. and I made great head way (losing 57lbs.). BUT...it started slowing down when the things that used to work for me wasn't working anymore. And though I tried to continue the harder it became to push myself. It's hard to keep going when everyday you try and everyday you get disappointed. Before I knew it...all my negative self-talk and old comfort friends reared their ugly heads again. So, it's been a love/hate relationship between me and food this past while. I've had the greatest intentions to pick myself back up and kick butt, but then there was always something to come along to make a great, easy excuse. It's summer vacation...everyone around me is eating it..I can pick myself up tomorrow..yada..yada..yada.. Now this is it! No more excuses...time to "Wake UP" and to really make an effort..a serious effort. As serious as the first day I joined this support site. Woo Hoo!

Here's a link that offers some enlightenment regarding plateaus, it may give you a light bulb moment.

http://health.msn.com/dietfitness/ar...ntid=100096724

Take care and thanks for visiting!

[jelynn]

Even though I can hardly call mine a plateau I *am* ready to hit hard again so am joining your thread!
Totally recommitting to make this next year count.
Congrats on your 2 lbs gone, Tina! We can do this

[maryblu]

Mine is not a plateau, either; it is a full-on relapse......REGAINING 20 #s of an 80# loss and maintenance of 4 years, but I too, have had enough of the added weight. It just seems every day I choose the rewards of food over the rewards of being at an absolutely great weight for me........135#s, here I come. Count me in!! Thanks for the post, the boost, the oomph!!

[RRVMMM]

Plateau/Relapse here. I haven't changed my ticker to show my true weight yet, but being honest the scales read 229 today, which is down a couple of pounds from the highest I have been since my relapse. The plateau started in December, and even though I have continued to eat healthy I did quit my exercising then threw in a "bad" day here and there and the scales started going back up. I started exercising again 2 weeks ago but have kept my "bad" days. I know its time to kick the "bad" day thing to the curb, but it is just so hard.

I really think this thread will be great for all of us. Thank you Tina for starting it.

[LadyLai]

Hi, good morning all! I thought I'd start by telling something that I did today that I'm proud of myself for doing. **Hence the quote under my ticker** I got on my elliptical and burned 221 calories. I could only last 15 minutes, sheesh, you sure get out of shape really fast when you stop exercising! Another thing I'm rather proud of too, is that another pound has left for the "second time" hehe! I feel really spiked and excited about my attitude towards this. I think I can turn things around for the better! Yay!

Emily, that's what it's all about. Just ready to hit it hard again. Recommitting ourselves! Thanks for the congrats BTW. You're so right, we can do this! Love your energy girl!

Maryblu, first of all..congrats on that amazing loss! Maintaining for four years is awesome! Like you, I'm trying to turn things around NOW before I spoil all of my hard work with mindlessness. Time to take the reigns again and start steering our own wagon! Welcome!

Robbin, I know once you start feeling in control again your bad days will become minimal. I know how hard it is, but if we can muster up a little bit of strength against negativity we'll slowly regain our will to make good of the days we're given.

I see a lot of great fat busting days ahead of us!

Have a great day ladies and here's to making every effort today to change our tomorrow!

[meowee]

Hi there . . .

So good to see you back posting Tina . . . you've definitely been missed, Chickie.

My whole year has been one long plateau so far . . . actually I tend to refer to it as "inadvertently practicing maintenance". Whatever you want to call it, a twelve pound loss in almost 8 months does not exactly thrill me to bits. I know, I know . . . definitely better than what it could have been if I hadn't been at least half-way trying.

Anyway . . . here's a good little article from Prevention Magazine that was in my e:mail this morning . . . thought you might all enjoy a read . . . http://www.prevention.com/cda/articl...%20Tips%20Ever

Have a great day everybody . . . see you again soon . . .

[RRVMMM]

Good morning ladies, hope everyone is doing good. I did slip up on food yesterday but I walked an extra half mile last night, not that it really did much cause the scales are up 3 pounds today but hey lets blame it on water weight and move on, I am sure they will be back down in no time and I am ready to kick this in the butt.

Have a good day.

[staffingchick]

Hello! I am new to the boards....Tina thanks for telling me about this group! I am so confused....I am not losing weight, but people are still saying that I look like I have! I make the mistake of weighing myself daily....how often do you girls weigh in? I am just so impatient. I feel like I have been on point lately with my diet, and my family walk/jog nightly. Do you have any good tips for breaking the plateau? I'm excited to get it done for good this time! Good Luck girls!!

[LadyLai]

Good morning ladies! It's nice to see some movement in our new thread! How exciting! I'm really so happy today for two reasons: 1) the scale dropped another two pounds and 2) I pushed myself an extra 5 minutes on the elliptical. Granted I did dropped the resistance down a notch..but hey I burned 53 more calories than yesterday! Woo Hoo!!

Linda, Hi! Thanks for missing little ol' me. I missed it here too. You seem to be riding the same wave I was on. Little to no movement for an extended amount of time. Sad to say it broke me this summer and I lost myself. Now I am paying for it, but hey at least it's reversable right?! Keep at it girl!

Robbin, sorry to hear of your nasty scale reading. But your attitude is amazing today! One thing you can be proud of yourself is the fact you pushed yourself a little extra too! Here's to having a fully OP day! You know what to do right? Chug that water today!

Staffingchick, welcome and thanks for coming to check us out! Congratulations on what you've lost...that's really great! I know it never seems to come off fast enough, but if we focus on living a healthier life soon we'll reap the benefits of looking good in time. But that's always the part of plan that we're waiting for that never seems to come fast enough! LOL! For breaking a plateau I find zig zagging your calories helps or intensifying your workouts. What plan are you using? I calorie count, sticking to the ol' method of calories in vs. out. I'll post something regarding breaking plateaus. Oh yeah, I weigh everyday...I find it keeps me accountable for the day. Whether I need to be more diligent or if I can have an extra few calories.

Well, chickies haven an awesome day! Keep fighting for your right to be a better you!

[LadyLai]

It is common to start a new exercise or diet program and see results right away. The pounds will start melting off and then all of a sudden the scale gets stuck and it seems impossible to lose anymore weight. This is called a weight loss plateau, and though the causes behind it are complex there are some simple ways to break through them.

To begin with, when trying to lose weight you should only weigh yourself once a week. This is because you may think you’ve hit a plateau when you are really only experiencing a normal fluctuation of weight. It is common for the human body to retain and expel water in cycles, so measuring yourself daily may be misrepresenting your actual weight loss progress.

It is also important to set reasonable expectations for yourself. People lose weight at different rates, so don’t be disappointed if the pounds don’t come off as fast as you had expected. In general the more weight you have to lose the quicker they will come off. I realistic expectation of weight loss is about one percent of your total body weight weekly.

Another way to break your weight loss plateau is too eat something bad. Though this may not seem logical it often works. Your body gets stuck in a routine and by adding something completely different to our diet your metabolism might be jumpstarted again.

It is also important to not skip meals or starve yourself. Limiting your food intake in this manner can trigger your body to go into starvation mode, which will actually slow down your metabolism. Eating less than 1000 calories a day means that you are denying your body of essential elements necessary for survival. Your body’s only defense is to slow down your metabolism in order to store energy in the form of fat. In order to jumpstart your metabolism, and break through your weight loss plateau you should eat 4 to 6 small meals a day.

Another tip for breaking your weight loss plateau is flushing out excess water. If your plateau is due to fluid retention you should limit your salt intake and drink plenty of water. Keeping your body hydrated with water has other benefits as well; it can give your metabolism a jumpstart. If the body is deprived of water the kidneys will begin to focus their attention on retaining water instead of burning fat. Experts agree that you should drink eight 8-ounce glasses of water daily.

Exercising can also push you past your plateau. When you are dieting or eating less your body’s natural response is to slow down your metabolism. You can stimulate it again by exercising. Experts recommend doing some sort of physical activity for at least 60 minutes a day.

If none of these helpful hints helps you break through your weight loss plateau you may want to try changing your diet for a few days. Experts recommend that your normal diet be made up of at least 50 percent carbohydrates. However, you may want to lower your carb intake and raise the amount of proteins in your diet for a few days to get off the plateau that you body has stalled out on.

Hitting a weight loss plateau can be frustrating and cause you to lose your motivation and give up. To avoid this it is important to understand that it is normal to hit a plateau despite your best efforts. You should stay dedicated and realize that you will break though your weight loss plateau eventually and continue to lose weight if you stick to your plan.

[jtammy]

I just wanted to jump on and say hello to all of you, especially you ladies that were in our previous 1 lb thread. It's great to see you all posting again! I had wondered how each of you were doing.

[staffingchick]

Wow! I can't believe how much weight some of you have lost....that is so amazing! You are such an inspiration! It's nice to hear that I'm not alone in the torture of weighing in daily:-) I try to wait a week, but I just can't. I agree with Tina....that it keeps me accountable for my actions. I have been watching my calories also. I was doing the no carb/low carb thing, and it just didn't work for me. Do you all drink lots of water during the day? Do you really think that helps you with your loss? Thanks for the warm welcome girls....I'm looking forward to getting to know all of you. By the way...my name is Angela - "Staffingchick" is my screen name b/c I own a staffing agency! Have a great day!

[LadyLai]

Tammy, it is soOOOo good to see you. You have always been and always will be an inspiration to me! Congratulations on your furthered weight loss! Look how close you are to goal! You go girl! I'm so beyond proud of you for sticking this through, like I used to say...you're like a rock! I know this thread seems to be dedicated to getting over plateaus and ruts, but please feel free to keep coming in here and posting. We'd love to have ya around!!

Angela, I try to guzzle the recommended amount..some days (especially lately) I haven't gotten no where near that. But when I'm on program completely 100% I manage to drink 2.2 litres a day. Now that is peanuts to some, but that is amazingly well for me. And I actually think it helps, you know, "flush" all the fat and toxins away. Also helps against water retention. So glad to hear you're feeling well recieved and comfortable here. I look forward to getting to know you equally as much!

Well girls the weekend is upon us, and if you're me, that means incrediable challenges lie ahead. My sister and family is coming either tonight or tomorrow. You know what it's like when you have company..it's so hard to keep OP. But fingers crossed, I'm feeling really dedicated..I think my willpower will outlast my temptations! If I don't get a chance to check in throughout the weekend..I hope you all have a great one (in all aspects of diet and exercise)!

[ruthannie]

Hi all (thanks for the invite, Tina),

This seems like a good place to start. I'd been sliding off program since early summer and just couldn't seem to get the fire lit under my motivation, but at the same time I kept telling myself I wasn't going to quit (again). Fortunately I didn't drop the exercise and activity even when I wasn't paying attention to food intake. Actually I was paying a LOT of attention, just not doing anything to get it under control.

So after a great 2 week camping vacation and with a busy Fall semester looming, I've put my healthy hat back on. I started logging a couple days ago and have stayed steady; which is more than I can say for the past 3 months.

First challenge- tomorrow is my birthday and we are going for brunch at my favorite restaurant (Lidia's Kansas City) for celebration on Sunday. I've been staying low on my points so I have some extra, but it will take a mindful attitude (I tend to throw restraint to the wind when celebratory).

Good thing it's with friends I need to catch up with, so I will talk a lot [can't talk with a full mouth- that's bad manners ]. I'm also going to look at the menu online and decide what my best choices are. There WILL be other birthdays and my goal is to end my 40's in a healthy active body.

ruthannie