Hi everyone. Long time lurker. I am posting today to see if anyone has any advice for me. Long story short, I recently lost 100 pounds over the course of 6 months and now my weight has remained the exact same for almost 2 months. I do not snack, I don't have cheat meals, no sugar, I cut out breads and pasta, and I eat about 1000-1200 calories everyday with everything weighed and portioned accordingly.
I'm getting very frustrated at this point because I have tried to lower my calories even further and the scale still isn't budging. The only things I can think of, that may be the issue is I work 12 hour days 6 days a week and therefore, I do not have time or the energy to exercise. I remain sitting 90% of my day and I do come home and eat late and sleep very soon after.
I'm currently 330 pounds. So at this weight I feel like the pounds should be dropping off me rather quick still. A lot of people START their diet/lifestyle change at this weight. I'm eating way under my recommended calories I know but I've been doing this since day 1 and I do not feel hungry or deprived in any way. So it doesn't make sense to eat "just because". That was what got me to my highest weight in the first place.
Does anyone have a meal plan, a book recommendation, or advice that could help me get over this hurdle and start losing again? With my time being very limited exercise is tough for me to factor in at this point but if that's what you all think might be the problem, please let me know!
Thanks all! Happy New Year!
Adding this: I typically eat the same things for breakfast and lunch with little variation. Breakfast: 100 calories oatmeal with fruit and coffee black. Lunch: 2 eggs, baby carrots and 100 calorie pack of hummus or guac to dip them in. Dinner: Varies but usually 3 oz. of lean protein and 1-2 cups of veggies.
Last edited by Krys; 12-27-2018 at 08:43 AM.
Reason: Adding my typical meals
Bright Line eating has worked for me and the only real difference from what you are doing is I eat a bit more protein and vegetables than you do but about 1200 calories a day during weight loss phase. While not a fan of people claiming "starvation mode" stalls you, I do find that cutting calories any more honestly does NOT help and it may be that your metabolism is just slowing down based on activity level and low intake..... Sleep is critical........There may be other insights.....You can google the program if interested. I did not sign up for the various "boot camps" etc but participate in free online forums for the program and, most importantly, bought the book on Amazon.
Light exercise (walking) throughout the day has been fundamental for me - so fundamental that when I don't do it my weight starts creeping up. It is not part of my plan which says no exercise is necessary but it does help. and eating late is also not so good. I work a desk job as well and set a timer to get up and take frequent short walks. I also do intermittent fasting 16:8 which means I only eat my 3 planned meals during an 8 hour period so breakfast is at 10am. 2 months is definitely a plateau but hang in there ......... I had one of those in June (also at about 100 lbs down) and it did pass and weight started coming down again.
It sounds like you are doing everything right and kudos to you for 100lbs down so far. I know how hard this is!
Thank you! I'm going to research this ASAP. I like your idea about how to incorporate walking. I'm going to give that a try. As for the intermittent fasting, I was already looking into this so I think I will give that a try next week and start bringing my meal preps to work with me! It's a different approach to what I've been doing and I'm willing to do anything at this point to get my weight loss going again.
The main thing is it is sensible and in line with what you are already doing but there is a larger community doing this and may have unique insights. Most are on FB and you need to be invited. You can PM me if interested once you have looked into the approach ... If not, no offense taken..I know there are lots of different ways you can go but finding something sensible and healthy and something you can do the rest of your life just makes so much sense to me and it is nice when you see someone who is on the right track and not looking for miracles..........
Last edited by grannynancy; 12-27-2018 at 10:06 AM.
Are you sure you eat 1000-1200 calories per day? I just tried to estimate your daily calories, and I got 700, but I don't know which fruits and vegetables you eat, so I had to guess. Did you leave anything out? You might be eating too little.
Is the oatmeal just oats, or is anything added to it? Check the ingredients to make sure there's no added sugar.
How do you cook the eggs? If you fry the eggs, be sure to use a healthy oil.
Although hummus and guacamole are typically healthy, check the ingredients to make sure there are no unhealthy additives, and try to look for a hummus with a healthy oil (e.g. olive oil), if possible.
What type of lean protein, fruit, and vegetables?
If you don't have time to exercise at home, would it be possible to exercise at work? For example, take the stairs instead of the elevator. If you need to talk to a coworker, walk to their office instead of using the phone.
Yes I am sure about the calories, over the last 2 weeks I've cut my calories to about 800 thinking it would help me start losing again. The oatmeal is plain oats in a 100 calorie packet with no sugar added and the eggs are always hard boiled. As for the lean protein I eat chicken breast, fish, or tofu.
I am going to try and eat all my meals at work starting today to avoid eating at night and as for exercise I run a business so it's just me here 12 hours a day. I plan to incorporate walking 15 minutes back and forth in here every few hours and see how that goes. Does it sound like exercise is my problem for not losing in your opinion? I just don't understand at 330lbs why the weight loss has all but stopped. I'm not cheating, taking bites of this or that and eating anything I'm not mentioning, and I've stuck with my meal plans during the holidays. I know it sounds ridiculous and I should be losing being so big and that's why I've come here. Thank you!
Last edited by Krys; 12-28-2018 at 09:00 AM.
Reason: spelling
I purchased the book last night! I'm going to read that throughout the next couple of weeks. Thank you. Unfortunately I do not have a facebook or social media of any kind. Weird I know. I may reconsider after reading more about Bright line. Much appreciated.
I would definitely not go below 1000! Basically I find it hard, at below 1400 to keep up with micronutrients such as proper vitamins and minerals and they are critical to weight loss as well. But 1000-1200 with supplementing those vitamins and minerals in short order has served me well. Anytime I have shortcut food to much I would just stall.
I think when you drop below a certain point your metabolism really does slow down to conserve! Moving more will definitely help though.
Exercise might be part of the reason, but maybe not the entire reason. Have you spoken to your doctor about it? Your doctor can do tests to see if you have any medical problems, or if you have any nutrient deficiencies.
For fish, I recommend getting one that's high in omega 3. Personally I like wild Alaskan salmon, but there are other good ones too.
For vegetables, I recommend eating a variety, and preferably at least some of them should be green leafy vegetables.
Yes, taking a walk every few hours will help. You can also try doing some squats (2 or 3 sets, twice a week). Squats will help you build muscle, which will speed up your metabolism.
Do you get enough sleep? If not, that might be part of the reason.
i would definitely recommend getting your bloodwork checked. A hormonal imbalance can definitely slow down weight loss.
When I weighed about 250, I tried to lose weight and was working out 3 days a week for 60 minutes with a trainer and 3 days a week for 60 minutes swimming laps and eating about 1500 calories a day. In 10 months, I lost 18 pounds. That was very frustrating. This time around, I started even higher, at 267, but was put on Metformin for my PCOS and Synthroid for my hypothyroid and now I'm eating 1500-1600 calories a day and just walking 30 minutes every day (some days more, but never more than 60 minutes) and I've lost 60+ pounds in just under 10 months. So I'm eating more and moving less than I was last time around, and yet have lost 3 times the weight in the same time frame. Hormone imbalances can be a HUGE factor.
I went to my doctor earlier this year and everything came back normal. I did speak to my doctor over the phone last monday and I found his advice not very helpful. He suggested phentermine and/or eating 6 small meals and upping my calories to 1600 a day. Both of which I do not wish to do. Congratulations on your weight loss by the way!
Since I last posted here I think exercise may have been part of the problem. Weighed myself this morning and the scale FINALLY moved and I'm down 2.8 pounds since Thursday just by walking more and eating my meal preps for lunch instead of dinner. Also I am taking some multivitamins which I was not doing before. Thank you for all your suggestions!
I went to my doctor earlier this year and everything came back normal. I did speak to my doctor over the phone last monday and I found his advice not very helpful. He suggested phentermine and/or eating 6 small meals and upping my calories to 1600 a day. Both of which I do not wish to do. Congratulations on your weight loss by the way!
I have not found anything doctors did for me to be helpful. Wise decision !
Since I last posted here I think exercise may have been part of the problem. Weighed myself this morning and the scale FINALLY moved and I'm down 2.8 pounds since Thursday just by walking more and eating my meal preps for lunch instead of dinner. Also I am taking some multivitamins which I was not doing before. Thank you for all your suggestions!
Yay. It is amazing how critical some of the micronutrients are for weight loss and also the comment on adequate sleep is absolutely essential as that is when much of the "work" of weight loss happens.
Since I last posted here I think exercise may have been part of the problem. Weighed myself this morning and the scale FINALLY moved and I'm down 2.8 pounds since Thursday just by walking more and eating my meal preps for lunch instead of dinner. Also I am taking some multivitamins which I was not doing before. Thank you for all your suggestions!
Multivitamins are useful if you have a deficiency, but the best way to get vitamins is from food (especially vegetables).
Do you measure your portions? I suggest eating a minimum of 2.5 cups of vegetables per day.
Leafy greens such as spinach, kale, bok choy, and cabbage tend to be very high in vitamins, but as I mentioned earlier it's good to have variety, because different vegetables are high in different nutrients.
Getting over this plateau
