Grr. I've been doing well (or so I think, I've lost 30 pounds since late June). I had a huge drop a couple of weeks ago -- lost 6 pounds in a week without changing my eating or activity level. So far, I've had this annoying (to me) pattern of losing for a week, usually 2-3 pounds, and then being stuck at the same weight for a few days to a week without any changes in what I'm doing.
So, I had that big loss in a week, and have now been losing and gaining the same 0.4 pounds for the past two weeks. It's driving me crazy! I've been eating 1200-1500 calories a day (with an occasional 1600 day, which is still well below my bmr), exercising, nothing has changed. I'm so OVER it!
Fortunately, it hasn't made me want to say, "what's the use!" and I haven't started binging or throwing in the towel, because ultimately I don't crave too much junk anymore *and* my goal really is to be healthier. However, it's DRIVING.ME.NUTS.
This kind of stuff is to be expected so get used to it. Weight loss is not a linear path. I usually lose a couple lbs the nothing for weeks then a couple more then nothing. It's completely normal. Hang in there youre doing great. The most important part is persistence. Good luck!
It takes time for your body to respond to the calories in/out. You don't eat 3500 calories and immediately step on the scale and see a 1 lb gain (unless what you ate weighed a pound ). It can take several days for your body chemistry to adjust - up OR down - to the calories you are consuming vs. burning, and that is why sometimes you don't lose any weight for a couple weeks, then all of a sudden get a "whoosh". If you keep doing your plan, it will all catch up with itself in a matter of time. Really, if you lose 6 lbs in one week, you can pretty much guarantee a stall after that (unless you are on the biggest loser and working out 8 hrs a day -- and even THEN they always have a low-loss week after a big one). You probably know all this, but maybe it helps to see it in black and white.
I know it's not for everyone, but this is why I have been weighing once a month and loving it. I am on plan, and I can NOT be bothered by 0.4lbs up and down. Some people like to track daily trends and be able to see the ups and downs of daily living, but I prefer to see some LOSS when I get on the scale. And so far, I always have.
the more your lose weigh the slower it comes off. I mean the more you have to lose at first, the quicker it comes off.
and six pounds a week? I'm happy if I loss 2 a week! lol. The healthy weight loss is 2.5 a week, so your doing just fine.
being on a diet is about patience, I mean the weight doesn't come off as quickly as if came on, and a lot of people expect it to magically com off, and it is frustrating, but don't stress and just continue to keep up your healthy lifestyle. Your doing great!
Thanks, guys! That's exactly the stuff I needed to hear. I *know* it, but it's hard to remember it when things stall for a little bit... I was a little panicky when I lost that 6 pounds (which is HIGHLY unusual for me) b/c I knew it meant I was in for a stall...
I'm just going to keep on plan. Eventually the science of it all has to catch up!
This is similar to my body's pattern too - I have "whooshes" where I lose about 3 pounds all at once (sometimes more!), followed by a bounce back of a pound or so and then as much as three weeks of +/- 2 pounds. Lather, rinse, and repeat.
It's actually a remarkably reliable pattern, if I stay on plan - it just requires me to focus on the longer term view. That's not a bad thing - it just means I have to evaluate how my plan is working by the month (or even longer) not by the day or by the week.
I hear ya! I weighed in this morning and only lost 0.8 pounds this week AND this was only week 3 for me! Way too early for things to be slowing down so much!
-4 week 1
-1.6 week 2
-0.8 week 3
I do not see a good pattern here. I understand how frustrating it is to put in so much hard work and not see the results you are hoping for.
It's clear that you know it WILL come off. You just needed to vent about being annoyed. Keep sticking to it and the scale will move eventually! It HAS to! Maybe next week you will see another 6!
I swear I lose weight the week before my tom and that's it. The other three weeks of the month its just up and down a pound or two. Hang in there, you have already lost a lot of weight so you for sure know what you are doing.
A doctor once told my mother that she had an efficient body when she was complaining about weight. Her body (that I inhereited) used calories wisely. It figured out quickly what it was getting and used slightly less to store some away. If I keep to the same calories every day my body will quickly figure out the pattern and my weight will stall. I try to do low fat, low cal, low carb for one week and then a maintaining diet for the next week, slightly larger portions, a few more carbs, still watch fat though, after 20 plus years of dieting my stomach does not like fat any more. More exercise one week, less the next.
Try doing different things and see if that helps the pounds or ounces go.
Thanks, card! I'm *trying* to cycle my calories, and starting today I'm shaking up my workout routines a bit. I'm been doing C25K and just finished it, so my workouts have basically consisted of long runs for the past 3 weeks. Today I did a Jillian Michaels workout, tomorrow I'll do HIIT, and Saturday I'll do a distance run (I don't want to lose all the endurance I've gained!). I'll do my workouts like that for awhile and see what happens.
I don't think I'm getting on the scale for a week. It's making me too mad! I'm hoping next week I'll hop on and bam! A couple pounds down.
I'm there myself, 3 weeks of pounds just flying off and now, still the same, still the same, still the same.
I am not giving up this time. No depression or eating because it doesn't make a difference.
This WILL happen this time.
Here's a sample of my weights for the month of September. I have a tendency to lose for about two weeks and then stay the same for two weeks out of every month. It does get frustrating, but if you can look at what you lose in a month, it's much more satisfying.
I wish people would say that you should ideally lose 4-8 pounds in a month rather than 1-2 pounds a week. Yes, it's the same thing, but I don't think most of us lose 1-2 every single week. Saying 1-2 pounds sounds like we should steadily lose on a weekly basis but that simply isn't true.
This is where my one year commitment to plan has been literally THE secret to my success. In the early days when the scale was frustrating me, I could not quit because I had made a commitment and was intensely curious to see where I could be if for just this one time I stuck to the plan without giving up for one year. Every past attempt has left me quitting after a 30 pound loss because I didn't think I was losing fast enough.
Just need to vent.
Think about how frustrated you'd be w/o that 6 lb loss first.
). It can take several days for your body chemistry to adjust - up OR down - to the calories you are consuming vs. burning, and that is why sometimes you don't lose any weight for a couple weeks, then all of a sudden get a "whoosh". If you keep doing your plan, it will all catch up with itself in a matter of time. Really, if you lose 6 lbs in one week, you can pretty much guarantee a stall after that (unless you are on the biggest loser and working out 8 hrs a day -- and even THEN they always have a low-loss week after a big one). You probably know all this, but maybe it helps to see it in black and white. 
