[Ailuj]

Ok Hello everyone
I am 15 5'2 140lbs currently I lost 20 pounds in the matter of 2 months just by doing a bit of exeercise each day! But that does not seem to be working anymore or even with alout of exercise. I lost that 20 pounds last winter and i've kept trying to lose the last 20 pounds spring through summer and now its almost october! ( I do eat healthy also!) I just don't know what to do anymore i feel really lost because iv'e been trying so hard to lose these last 20 pounds and it just wont go !!
any tips or maybe workouts I should be doing?

[ChickieChicks]

First off..CONGRATS! It sounds like you were really making headway! 20 pounds at our height is a BIG DEAL. :-)

Maybe now that you are 20 pounds lighter, you might be eating at a level that is more maintaing your current weight, instead of losing. Given your age, I think it is best to talk with a nutritionist. Make a food journal for a week, so they can look it over.

Good luck!

[Ryler832]

It sounds like you are stuck at a plateau. Just like Brown mentioned, you should change things up a bit. Your body adapts to the changes you have made. Depending on your current calorie intake try to reduce it by 100 and see how that works out for you.

[Ailuj]

Thank you everyone for your support,ideas and comments i decided im going to do the couch to the 5k and get the last 20 off that way hopefully !

[Napia]

It was a lot of trial and error for me to break my plateau. At times I just flat gave up my focus but I never let myself gain more than 10 lbs. I gained and lost the same 10 lbs for NINE months sometimes exercising and sometimes not. I finally decided to introduce a lot more raw veggies into my diet. That, coupled with a bit more strenuous and a more committed exercise routine finally pushed past that plateau.

Might you try eating more veggies if you can?

[JohnP]

It's not a question of more exercise or more veggies.

It's calories. Unless you want to be doing a massive amount of exercise for the rest of your life you should get a handle on what is happening with your caloric intake - aka - your diet.

[Napia]

Originally Posted by JohnP

It's not a question of more exercise or more veggies.

It's calories. Unless you want to be doing a massive amount of exercise for the rest of your life you should get a handle on what is happening with your caloric intake - aka - your diet.

Since you posted directly below my post and negated my advice, I'll respond directly to you.

This is reason I suggested more veggies. For me more veggies meant making healthier snack choice, which in turn meant less calories and getting more nutritional bang for my buck. Raw veggies are also quite filling.

And stepping up your exercise, even if it's just changing it up or even re-evaluating what you're doing and figuring out how to expend more energy (e.g., walking up more hills, parking further (farther...shoot which one means distance) from the door, taking more stairs etc., is also about burning more calories. Hence you create a caloric deficit and you loose more weight. It's about making smarter food choices and getting more exercise by expanding on the things you already do. That way you exercise smarter and not harder.

But I'm sure you know this. Just suppose you needed more of an explanation of where I was coming from.

And if not. Don't knock it till you have to try it. I did and it knocked me off my nine-month plateau.

[JohnP]

Originally Posted by Napia

Just suppose you needed more of an explanation of where I was coming from.

I was not directly responding to your post. I was responding to the OP and refencing your post and another. If you read the OP it is unclear if they understand the basic tenant of how fat is lost or gained. In my experience the vast majority of people are unclear the singular fact that calories govern fat loss or gain.

I did think your second post was quite helpful in particular the part about how small movements add up to a lot of calories burned over time.

[DietVet]

But in any case, the point is that the first step is starting to manage diet--calories in, calories out and with some attention to the content of those calories.

[April Snow]

I agree that it's almost never as straight forward as "calorie in - calories out" but I also agree that it's too simplistic to say "eat more veggies." The relevant part about that is eating more veggies to REPLACE foods that have more calories and therefore lower overall calorie intake.