I'm sorry Jay! - but being a maintainer at 147 is NOT a bad thing! But I do know how disappointing it can be to not get to your goal. However, I think you're really ONTO something here. Maybe if you continue to "tweek" your diet &/or exercise routine, the scale will start moving downward again. Remember... it's not JUST diet... it's exercise too. And both are "tweekable".

The increase in protein has not helped my weight budge at all. So I'm still "maintaining" at 182. Ugh. I'd like to maintain at 181 for a while. Then 180, the 179....

HOWEVER - adding the extra protein DOES seem to make me feel "that much more fuller". So my afternoon snack has been "dismissed". I guess that can be chalked up as a success?

Very interesting ideas here. I have to say I agree with the 300 calorie meal not being satisfying enough all the time. Very informative post!

And yeah, I'd LOVE to be stuck in the 140's.

Clearly your body wants to maintain at 147 at 1200-1300 calories- metabolism issue. So my suggestion would be if you want to lose more exercise more or change the exercise you are doing or the intensity. If you don't you might want to do a body fat % and that might make you more comfortable staying at 147???? Just a thought

Great thread. Lots to think about.

Maybe it is working, maybe it just needs a little more time.

I increased my protein over the last week and a half, still not sure of the impact on my weight loss, but I know that I have been feeling a lot better... I'm not totally there yet, I vary between 58-85 grams per day, my goal is to get to 90 grams per day while I'm still trying to lose, bumping it up when I go back to a higher calorie intake.

Good luck Jay!

Thank you all for your support! Today my scale reads lower again--I guess I'm heading on the downside of the bobbing "waves" for a minute or two.

I'll report back after another week or so... I sure hope I can figure out this cycle...

Jay

Hey! I'm bumping this one up one last time for a final report.

I've figured out what's going on.

What's going on is that after a certain length of time, eating less than my maintenance level, trying to lose, I then eat over my maintenance level. I make a choice, conscious or not, to eat beyond that "limit" so to speak. And that's why I am not losing weight.

I go along... cals are 1349, 1289, 1353, 1343, 1398, etc.... and my weight is going along... 149.8, 149.6, 149.2, 149.6, 148.2, etc.

And then suddenly I have three days where cals are 1745, 2099, 1874.

And my weight goes 148.6, 150.6, 150.0...

There is no mystery about it. I'm not staying with the plan, and that's why I'm not losing weight.

Oh yes, the averages say I should be losing... the averages say I still have a calorie deficit overall. But the averages lie... The real test is whether I'm losing. I am not.

Therefore, regardless of what the averages come out to be in my tracker, I am in fact only eating to maintain my weight. Observations do not lie.

So my next challenge, should I decide to take it, is to figure out how I can stay on plan, really stay on plan, for more than ten days running.

Jay

Jay -- Score one for good observations!

I wish I could help with the next part -- that's been my problem too! Keep us posted!

LOVE the brutal honesty Jay. Glad you've come to the conclusion that the only way to consistiently lose weight - is to consistiently stay on plan.

Just amazing how easy it is to veer off track, even slightly, and the affect that it has on our weight.

As far as staying on plan for 10 days running - you CAN do it. It's a doable thing. Make it your mission. Treat it as your job in fact. And we all know how well you do your job. You wouldn't dream of "messing up" on your job. Weight loss must be looked at in the same way.

Good luck buddy, in whatever you decide.

Thanks for all this information, Jayell (and others) and your updates. This trying to push thru plateaus is so hard. They say to mix it all up - but, there's no guarantee.

You've done so well and tried so many things. Keep doing the best you can.

subbing to this great thread!!!