Barb, your DH is probably in shock. You're not the girl he's used to and almost half the woman. He's going around wondering where the real you is and where the heck did this new replacement come from.

Dgramie, hang in there girl-only one more week and you can get back to normal. Congratulations on getting out of the 20s.

Nicki, sorry, I got distracted by your cool new avatar, and totally forgot you made it to ONEderland!!! You know what THAT means... you win the Highly Coveted Flamey Award! Congratulations!

Barb, sorry to hear about your struggles with dh. I don't have any good advice, but I'll give you one of these.

Isabella,

I'm just killin' a little time here. I did not get to Costco after all. I was literally in the driveway getting set to leave, when my son's friend showed up, surprise! So, the boys wanted to go to the mall, and I gave them a ride.

While there, I thought I'd try to find a couple of hoodie sweatshirts for myself, since my old favorites are really worn out and ratty looking. Wasted a lot of time there, because they were either seriously overpriced, or just not my style. I met up with the boys again for a late lunch (OP for me), then got the heck out of there. I don't do the mall unless I'm desperate!

Ended up at Walmart...no luck there, either on the hoodies, but I did find a warm shirt/jacket thing with fleece inside, a zipper, and handwarmer pockets, so I bought 2 of those. This takes the pressure off finding a sweatshirt, so I can just buy one if I see a really cool one that I can't live without.

I had to hurry home to meet a client, receive 3 boarding dogs for the weekend, then it was too late to make the Costco run, so I am just waiting for the boys to call me to pick them up.

So, I will start today, the 21st of Feb and within 8 weeks I would like to be below the 170 mark. When I started all this I thought it would be easy but I have had many obstacles and it's not as easy as I thought. So, we'll see. Good thread to start-I like it

today was a bit better than the last few days...

Didn't make it to the gym, but I've reduced my carb intake to 51g (38g of which was from a piece of supermarket-style frosted yellow cake), which is a whole lot better than what I've been doing.

Maybe tomorrow I'll restore some sort of normalcy to my routine. I have great hope for tomorrow.

I finished the first complete week on my diet. I lost 2.4 lbs. I went from 138 to 135.6. However, I'm not really sure I weighed 138 to begin with. Probably more like 137. I didn't weigh myself when I started. So probably more like a 1.4 lbs loss. But hey, I'll take it! Here's to week two!

CC Easter Challenge 2.4/10 lbs

Good Morning

I need some advice or some encouragement. I am OP and exercising. I keep my calories between 1200 and 1500. I have been on this new "life" program for six months. I have lost 51 lbs.. For the last month I have been going up one or two lbs. and then down one or two lbs.. I have tried to increase exercise and added in strength training. Nothing is helping. I am starting to get scared that nothing will happen. I have read that I could take a break from OP for a month, but I know that wouldn't be good for me. I think I would lose my focus.

Have you been on a plateau and how did you get off?
Should I just keep going as I am doing?
Any advice would be great!

Glad ya'll like my new avatar!!! Thought it was time to retire Edward. LOL. At least for now!

Yeah the "1" was just a ruse. Damn scale! I was expecting it though. At least I haven't gone up a lot from Friday weigh in. And I'm pretty sure I'm down for the week. I can still make it though.

Hattie - I haven't reached that spot where I plateau yet....do you need to update your calorie range? Maybe you should completely change your exercise program. Up your cardio or something. I'm so sorry. I wish I could help more. I know you'll figure it out though!

hattie_ It has taken me 4 long months to lose out of the 220s. I had been losing alot faster until then. It took me looking at how I ate week 1 of my new life compared to how i am eating now.I found I have beem eating alot more carbs...so i cut them back and went back to eating more veggies and whole foods. My scales are moving again in the right direction. I truly was eating to many carbs even though my calories were on track. Taking a break would just side track me!!! Good luck and try really looking hard at your calorie breakdown. Also are you drinking enough water??

Hattie - I'm with you! I've been fighting with the same couple pounds all month. Keep with it...you (we) will push through this. Make sure you are accurately counting your calories and measuring. Are you getting enough calories? I haven't hit your weight yet so I don't know if mine will drop much. 1200 seems awfully low. Drink lots of water. Keep up with the exercise. Are you extra stressed about anything? That could affect things. I just had this discussion with my trainer on Friday because I've been frustrated. He attributed a bit of it to stress levels. I also haven't been feeling great and haven't been getting a good night's sleep due to a 3 year old that doesn't think sleep is necessary. So, I guess my advice is to evaluate all areas and keep on trucking!

Yeah Hattie,

I also went through a period like that.

I was "casually dieting" (meaning I was cutting back on calories in a more laid back, casual manner) and making efforts to go to the gym, but nothing too serious. I lost 20lbs, and then I just stalled for like almost 2 months.

Thats when I took matters in my own hands, joined the 3FC community, and became a SERIOUS dieter. After New Year's I adopted a calorie-cycling diet (alternating hi days and low days), and I also cut carbs WAY WAY back- actually I'm doing Atkins induction along with the cycling right now. Since January 1st I've lost between 10 and 15lbs.

If you're plateauing, I highly recommend that you research calorie cycling and see if it something that you would be interested in and would benefit from. From what I've read (and heard) it seems to be a technique capable of kicking even the stubbornest bodies out of plateau.

Either way, good luck, and if you look hard enough I'm sure you'll find something to get you out of your plateau. Best wishes to you!


~shauna~

Hi Everyone!

jamsk8r - LOL, I can relate to having an excited and sometimes overpowering dog. I have a 100+ German Shephard that get overbearing at times when we are going for a run, swim in the lake, or just throwing sticks....LOL He definitely keeps me on my toes.

Hattie - I have plateaued before and what worked for me is like what Nicki said -change it up. Change your 'regular' foods, sometimes even increasing your calories for a few days and then decreasing them works. Also, change up your work out - do something different.

Ok, I finally broke my plateau and am down 2lbs this weeks - yes! Now onward towards my goal for the Easter Challenge.......23lbs to go!

Hi ladies man I got so sick for about two weeks and then when I got better I fell of the wagon so to speek. But now I am back and ready to join a new challenge I did end up losing the 10 lbs by V day but never got my butt back on here! Now I am here every day I need you all more then I thought LOL! Good luck oh I am gonna say another 6 by easter!

Hattie, after 51 lbs, a plateau would be "normal", however, I'd say your cals are too low. You shouldn't be anywhere near 1200 at your current weight. Your body doesn't store all the essential nutrients in your fat stores, so if you cut it below essential levels for your weight, it will have to draw from other stores like your bones and muscles, to keep essential bodily functions going and support activities like you moving around, eating, and working out. Especially with the workouts, you need more fuel than that. Usually raising the cals back up will make the scale go up temporarily, as the body balances things out, then you'll start seeing fat burn show up on the scale. The scale is really a poor measure of what's going on with bodyfat, so don't rely on that exclusively. It's more important how you feel, how your clothes are fitting, etc. You should feel energetic, athletic, strong in your workouts, healthier than before. If you don't, you're either not eating enough, or you're not eating the right kinds of foods. Check the maintainer's forum to see some examples of healthy diets...they have in the past had a "no excuses" thread where they post their daily menus. Eat often, drink lots of water, make every bite count towards making you stronger and leaner.

Grabec, welcome to the challenge!

Shauna, don't make me get the carb police over there to ! Yellow cake is not a power food!

Madrid, congrats on the weight loss!

Nicki, no worries, it will be back! You hit it, you go up, you dip a little lower, it's normal. That's one reason I like to track my weekly average, too, since it will show the trend more reliably than the number of the day.

DG, you hit that right on the head. Starchy carbs just kill my best efforts. Too bad, cuz I love a good sandwich!

Grits, WTG on the 2 lbs! I'm glad I'm not the only one with a big dog that's a bundle of energy!

It's a sunny day and I've wasted too much of it at the 'puter. I think I'll get out there and enjoy some of that sunshine before it's too late! I'll check in later with the workout report. Right now my everything hurts from yesterday's crossfit workout, so I'll wait a little before laying a hurtin' on whatever body parts still function.

I know this post started a while back .. But I hope it's okay to start now I plan to lose 15 pounds and be one pant size smaller ..