I haven't been around much the past few days because I've been busy with family obligations, but I have been sticking to my plan and getting my workouts in. TOM ended a few days ago, which generally means a little whoosh a few days after.

When I got on the scale before TOM started, I was at 153.4. This morning and yesterday morning, I was at 156.4. So in spite of being OP and working out regularly, I have somehow managed to gain three pounds.

I know, I know, there are all kinds of reasons this could happen. I am not always as careful as I could be during TOM. There's been more alcohol than usual lately (though not that much). Recently I've switched up my workouts by starting the P90X classic plan, which means a lot of heavy lifting that I hadn't been doing previously. So some of it could be muscle gain, some water retention.

It's also at the 30 pound mark since my last plateau, which means I should really have been expecting another major plateau. (For some reason they have happened to me every thirty pounds. It's been almost like clockwork. Weird, but true. Yet I didn't see this one coming.)

I guess I am more frustrated than usual because 153 marks the line between 'obese' and 'overweight' for me, and bouncing back up into that (admittedly arbitrary) category has been pretty disheartening.

Anyway, I am just publicly stating that I'm resetting my ticker to reflect my current weight, and I am hoping to move it back down again soon. I am going to push my calories back down (P90X recommends 1800 because of the intense workouts -- for example, my heart rate monitor claims I burned 600 calories during an hour of Plyometrics this morning, though that estimate seems high to me -- but I'm going to try 1400-1500 and see how it goes for awhile).

I'd love to say my clothes are fitting better and I'm sure I'm losing inches thanks to the lifting, but the truth is I feel *bigger*, especially in my stomach and arms. Those are my two worst problem areas, so I sort of feel like crying from frustration. But I won't. Instead I will keep pushing forward and hope to move my ticker back down soon. (I should reset my avatar as well, but I just can't bring myself to do it. I lost those 90 pounds, darn it!)

I was 150.4 on October 21st. It's been bouncing around the 150s ever since. Frustrating doesn't even really begin to cover it at this point. Gosh, when I think about the timeline, I really am plateaued. I've even been in denial about that.

stay strong and don't give up.

Just remember how amazing you've done so far and how close you are too goal!

I wish you all the best of everything.

Hang in there, Caroline! You are doing so well, you'll have this plateau beat in no time.

Thank you for sharing your ticker and frustrations with us. Keep strong and keep putting one foot in front of the other! You have done an excellent job!

I'm stuck at a plateau too, Carolyn, and have been for over a month. I have no excuse; I can't blame it on anything other than a relaxation of my calorie counting and a reduction in excercise. If my weight is still up on Friday, I'll have to change my ticker, too. Sigh.

Thanks for sharing. Your post has made me face up to the facts that I, too, should change my ticker so that I can be honest with where my weight is.

I hate plateaus. I've never been strong enough to get past one. It sounds like you've beat it twice already, so good for you! You sound armed and read to get past this one.

Thanks for the encouragement, everyone. It really does help an amazing amount, when I'm busy being hard on myself, to be reminded by you wonderful people of just how far I've come. (Seriously, I forget! Crazy but true.)

I'm sorry you're in the same boat as me, but I think facing up to it really is the best way to turn it around. I know that like yourself, I haven't been strict enough with calorie counting. Owning that knowledge and getting back on track sent the scale down half a pound this morning, so maybe it will continue in that direction. Here's hoping!

My body LOVES plateaus. They are tough to power through for sure, but with this weight loss effort I have managed to keep in mind where I started and remembered that I don't want to go back there. Which isn't to say I haven't slipped up; I certainly have, quite a bit. But picking yourself back up and getting back on track is what counts in the long run. That's a great lesson I learned here!

I think being public about my weight loss has helped a lot too. Not only with 3FC and my livejournal, but with my coworkers. I guess I should count myself lucky they're nosy and have no qualms about asking how it's going!

If your are feeling "bigger" maybe you are retaining water like you thought... I'm sure you'll see it come off again very soon. Stick with your plan, watch your salt and sugar intake, and make sure you are drinking plenty of water.

I've done the plateau thing... it bites. You HAVE come so far and you KNOW what the problem is and you ARE doing something about it! I see this (self induced) plateau ending very soon