[poeticmuz]

Hi, ladies.

I was wondering if anyone had any advice about what I need to do to tweak my weight loss plan. Currently, I have a bodybugg which helped me get over a plateau (lost 10 additional lbs since Jan. 19). I've been trying to increase my weight loss (average 5 lbs a month and would like to avg 6-7). But, after upping my workout, I've stopped losing. Here's my workout plan:

MWF= C25k (60 minutes); Elliptical (30-40 minutes). I increased from 60 total minutes
Tu/Thur = 45-60 minutes (Treadmill--Walking or TurboFire)
Saturday=TurboFire (45 minutes)
Sunday= Rest (If workout on Thursday); Turbofire (If Thurs is my Rest Day).

My bodybugg goal is to burn 3150 calories a day; I've been averaging 3200-3400 on workout days; on my rest day--2600-2700 cals

Eating: My bodybugg average is around 1700-1800 calories a day (some days have been 2000 calorie days; some 1500-1600). Bodybugg says I should aim for 2150 (but, I don't seem lose when I eat that many cals).

Since increasing my workouts (3 days a week for 90 min; 2-3--60min), I went down initially (2 lbs). But, I haven't lost ANYTHING this week. I thought I would have a big initial drop after basically doubling my workouts and increasing my calories.

I'm just really frustrated as I've been recording my food (eating healthy, rarely eating junk) and increasing workouts. I'm losing inches. However, I need to drop lbs as well. I reached a new low (257) and immediately went back up to 259-261. Any ideas? I had a mini-goal to get to 249 before a business trip...that goal is blown to smithereens as I can't possibly lose 8-9 lbs by March 30.

[Eliana]

This is frustrating, I know, but also perfectly normal. A week without a loss is not unusual, especially after increasing the exercise. And you are doing a lot! Keep it up!

You mentioned you are losing inches. This is what you want! You don't wear your weight on your forehead! This is also how you end up being one of those women who gets to say I weigh XXX pounds but I'm only wearing a size ___" Then people ask, how are you wearing such tiny clothes?

I have noticed that when the scale is dropping I am actually not losing inches. Then when the scale stalls out, the inches drop. I've come to prefer the inch drop over the scale.

Exercise is fantastic, but the favored ratio seems to be that weight loss is 80% diet and 20% exercise. Exercise is fantastic for the cardiovascular system, but not so great for the scale. It makes the scale do funky things. But when you get to goal you'll be so glad you exercised along the way.

I'm not really sure what Turbofire is, but aside from that I'm not seeing any strength training. Is that strength training? I highly suggest beefing that up and focusing on strength equal to the cardio.

[Trazey34]

Holy Cow that's a lot of exercise!! I think I ate 1800 cals a day and did a 20 minute walk each day and that was IT lol so kudos to you !!!

but Eliana is right, it's not unusual to have a crappy week on the scale - if you keep up that exercise pace and keep track of your calories, good old physics HAS to take over and that weight'll come off!

[poeticmuz]

Thanks for the tips. My diet has been good. So, I thought the extra workouts would really help. But, weight loss doesn't seem to be linear.

Eliana-Yes, I do weights 2 days a week (at home with dumbbells). I started my weight loss with P90x as well.

I am getting smaller...I was able to fit a size 18 petite jeans from Macys yesterday....down from a 22/24. So, I am getting there....slowly!

[tiffany0809]

I hope it's ok if I jump in...

I recommend swapping some more strength training in place of the cardio. You mentioned that you use dumb bells at home but I was wondering if you have a gym membership. If you do maybe try lifting some heavier weights at the gym a couple times a week. Bodyweight exercises are also excellent, like push ups.

It sounds crazy but extended cardio sessions can actually be counterproductive. Steady-state cardio has a tendency to eat away at muscle tissue, while intervals promote muscle retention. Turbo Fire has intervals so that's definitely a good cardio workout for you but 60 minutes on a treadmill or elliptical may not be adding much more benefit than 30-40 minutes. Upping the resistance on those machines helps too.

You said that you're eating healthy. Do you eat the same thing every day? If so, maybe calorie cycling would help too. Combining it with some strength training may give your body a little jumpstart. Also, keep an eye on how much sugar you're eating. Even though I was eating within my calorie range I saw a HUGE difference when I cut out most of the sugar from my diet. Its added to practically everything!