Hey group,

I'm 30 and stand 5'9" tall. Presently at 190 lbs and a size 12. When I began in November 2010, I was a size 20 and 270 lbs. I didn't begin this slowly. Having been in fair shape once before in 2006, it wasn't difficult to give up poor eating habits. It also didn't take long to begin making one hour sessions on the elliptical achieving 15-20 miles per week. I've been drifting between 188-192 since December. So continuing the same routine is no longer working. Everything I read about getting past a plateau says to step it up and cut certain foods. I don't feel I can possibly do more physical activity than I already am without absolutely killing my body. I run on the treadmill or use the elliptical at high to mid interval resistance levels for an hour at a time, and once a week attend a power pump class. I also don't know how else to change my pristine eating habits. This is getting incredibly frustrating, and i don't know what else I should be doing. I need to make 170 lbs before I can even approach a surgeon about skin removal (at one time I was between 300-310, so the excess skin is an issue). Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

"Pristine eating" is a meaningless term in the context of fat loss.

Fat loss or gain is an equation of energy.

If your weight hasn't changed in three months you're no longer dieting, you're maintaining.

I can give you some suggestions but I would need to know more about what your diet looks like.

I plug everything I put in my mouth into myfitness pal. The calories range from 1200-1400. A typical day begins with 2 large sized eggs, 1/2 slice whole American, and 1/2 a zucchini sauteed in 1/2 tsp olive oil. Lunch consists of 2 cups romaine or iceberg lettuce, 1/8 cup black beans, 2 Tbsp kroger brand salsa, 1 Tbsp low fat sour cream, at times 1/8 of an avocado diced. Dinner will be 1 cup brown rice or 1 cup regular pasta with a mix of (all raw and fresh) zucchini, green bell peppers, sliced carrot, red onion, sliced garlic clove, and grape tomatoes sauteed in 1/2-1 tsp olive oil followed by a mixing of 4 oz straight canned tomato sauce. Sometimes I'll add a tsp of goat cheese if I have it.

The pasta and rice are the only starches I have. There is no sugar or flour. Never diet soda. Just water. Lots of water. I spent two years in culinary school, and my mother is a registered dietician, so I'm not a complete uninformed moron. I know I need more protein, but I just can't afford it and don't want the calories.

Good to know you're not a moron.

Taking you at your word I can only assume that since you've been dieting for such a long time your hormones are a bit out of wack and you need to take a step back before you can move forward again. I think you could use a diet break.

Therefore I'd suggest you to take a little time off of from exercise and slowly start increasing your calories over the course of a week until you get up to around 1800-2000. See if your weight becomes stable or if it continues to go up. (If you're retaining a lot of water you may not see your weight go up at all)

I would advise you to go see a doctor, bring your food log, and be prepared for him/her to be skeptical. Try to get to a referral to an endo so you can get a proper workup.

Goodluck

I had questioned the possibility of metabolic shutdown due to the long decrease in calories. I took the opportunity to test going off for two weeks with the flu followed by a kidney infection. I went from 188 to 192 in that time. After beginning back 2 weeks ago as of Monday I'm back to 190. So an increase in calories along with no gym time not only puts me in a terribly crabby state, but it causes weight gain as well.