Grinding halt to weight lose, discouraged

[Mom3grand6]

Hello. I've been over weight my whole life and a bona-fide sedentary couch potato. I started at the end of April and have lost 38-40 lbs by changing the way I eat and incorporating more vegetables, which I never ate. I used the fitness pal app to keep track of the food I ate and calories. I got a fit bit a month ago and started exercising. I walk everyday and I move every hour so I can get my hourly activity. It was a major accomplishment. However, I have been the same weight for 3 or 4 weeks now. I do not cheat and I am doing the same as before and then some. Why isn't that scale moving? I even gained a pound at the beginning. I only weigh myself once a week and it's so disappointing. I've increased my walking distance and intensity as I can and now try to walk a mile or so in the morning and a mile or so at night at moderate intensity. Today I'm too sore to move. I'm so discouraged as I have another 60 pounds to reach my goal. I'm ready to give up. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

[Mom3grand6]

Why does it say jogger under my name? That's a joke, as I never have jogged. Lol

[shipo]

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@Mom3grand6 wrote:
Why does it say jogger under my name? That's a joke, as I never have jogged. Lol

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Check out the information at this link:

• http://bit.ly/1pPC8uw

[USAF-Larry]

Don't get discouraged, @Mom3grand6, but rather look at what has changed or needs to change.  As you have lost weight, have you changed your caloric intake to match your new weight? Or, are you consuming the same amount of calories now that you were when you started your weight loss program?  Remember, you must consume less calories than you burn if it is to result in weight loss.  Keep walking as much as you can to increase your heart rate so that you burn more calories.  Most importantly, don't give up! Make sure you are getting the right amount of calories, from the right kind of foods, and do daily exercise.

If you haven't already done so, get some Fitbit friends that can help challenge you and encourage you to keep on keeping on!  You can find lots of Fibtit friends here - Looking for Fitbit Friends? Find them here

The "Jogger" title under your name is assigned based on your activity in the community, and has no other meaning.  As you become more and more active in the community, that title will change.

[Dominique]

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@Mom3grand6 wrote:
Why does it say jogger under my name? That's a joke, as I never have jogged. Lol

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Don’t worry, I’m ranked as "veteran runner" even though I’ve never been younger at heart 😉

[Dominique]

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@Mom3grand6 wrote:
I started at the end of April and have lost 38-40 lbs.

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End of April to end of August = 4 months. You’ve lost 40 lbs in 4 months, that’s 10 lbs per month, 2.5 lbs per week. It’s huge, you cannot expect to sustain the same pace forever, or ever for the next four months. Metabolic adaptation is taken place. You need to do things differently: smaller deficit for slower weight loss, maybe a diet break. Check posts from @JohnRi, he’s managed to lose a lot over a longer period of time.

[A_Lurker]

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@Dominique wrote:

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@Mom3grand6 wrote:
I started at the end of April and have lost 38-40 lbs.

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End of April to end of August = 4 months. You’ve lost 40 lbs in 4 months, that’s 10 lbs per month, 2.5 lbs per week. It’s huge, you cannot expect to sustain the same pace forever, or ever for the next four months. Metabolic adaptation is taken place. You need to do things differently: smaller deficit for slower weight loss, maybe a diet break. Check posts from @JohnRi, he’s managed to lose a lot over a longer period of time.

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Actually, 40 pounds in 3 months (she mentioned that the weigh loss had stopped).  My advice is the same as already given by @Dominique

[JohnRi]

Hello Mom3grand6,

There is a reason why we call it a weight loss journey.  It's a long journey.  A journey that really never ends. 

First of all, I discourage people from only taking a weekly weight in.  Today my weight on the scale was 203.8, two days ago it was 199.2.  Four days ago it was 203.3.  Your weight can change 2-4 lbs a day.  Your fit bit app will create a weekly average.  So take your weight daily.  IGNORE the number.  Just log it, and forget it.  Our weight changes depending on your hydration level, when you last had a bowel movement, and you have to deal with your monthly cycle too.  Look at weekly averages on Saturday.  This will tell you how you are doing more than a single reading once a week. 

I highly recommend going to Trendweight. http://trendweight.com and linking this to your Fitbit account. 

This is my 3 month chart.  To understand this, the black dots are my weight readings.  A reading below the current weight trend pulls the trend down.  A reading above the trend pulls the trend weight up.  I've had many periods where my weight "was stable" but the trend was actually falling. 

This is my 6 month trend.  And you can clearly see my "weigh ins" are all over the place, but the trend is always downwards.  Man I really am getting close to my goal...

This is my 4 week trend.  You can see how my trend is correcting itself from the odd low readings I had for a couple of days.  It also evens out odd high readings. 

Bottom line, I pretty much ignore daily numbers, and only look at the trend.  If it's going down, I'm happy.  The next month should be interesting.  I lost my job, and I'm moving, so exercise is going to be random, and inconsistent.  Diet at this point isn't enough to drive my weight loss, so I'm expecting my trend be flat for the next four weeks.  I hope.  Hopefully it won't go up....

The next thing I want to tell you is have patience.  It takes a very long time to lose weight. 

It took me 1 year to lose 79 lbs.  I power walked about 1000 miles. 

I'm going to tell you at the point you are at, diet is 80% of the weight loss, but Exercise is huge factor.  I would suggest you also try to walk at least 60 minutes at a time.  And to walk briskly.  At my midway point in my weight loss, I was walking 5-6 miles a day.  At the end of my weight loss journey, I'm now walking around 3 to 4 miles a day, with occasionaly 5-6 miles days.  I also lift weights, 6 days a week.

At the end for me, exercise is 80% of my weight loss now.  I just don't burn enough calories without it, and I can't eat low enough to really lose weight. 

One I did when I first started walking, I tried to walk too fast, too soon.  I could barely walk a mile.  However when I slowed down, I was able to increase my distance to 2 or 3 miles.  Once I got that far, I then started to work on speed. 

I took me 3 months to go from 1/4 of a mile to 3 miles every other day.

You said you are so sore, I think you might be pushing too hard.  Try slow down a bit, but try to walk farther. 

You can also add weight training at some point.  Adding muscle mass increases calories burned.  Walk will make your legs stronger, but the rest of your body will gain little from it.

Good luck and stay with it!

[JSp78]

Hi! I'm sorry your feeling discouraged but you shouldn't be! 40lbs in 4 months is really good! I agree with other that food is the main focus when you begin loosing weight. Eating more natural is always good and drinking water.

I disagree with weighing yourself on a weekly basis, I would do it after a month at least. Also, don't focus on the numbers, use a measuring tape or even your clothes to see your progress. Most of us rely on the scale but that can bring us down mentally. Muscle weighs more than fat so, it could be that with all of the walking your doing your gaining muscle tone in your legs and buttocks and since it weighs more than fat....the scale doesn't recognize that.
Be encouraged to stick with walking and exercising! You've done a great job so far, don't let it all go to waste! You should also consider adding some weights when walking, nothing major...maybe just the hand one to carry along and move your arms 🙂
Our bodies hit a plateau at times which means, it's time to mix things up. Your body learned to deal with the new "walking" you introduced so now you need to change it up a bit 🙂

You've got this! Don't quit, keep going! 

[Bobbinyc]

@Mom3grand6  Hi.  First you should be very very proud of what you have accomplished thus far.  That is quite a bit of weight to lose in a short time.  If you have been overweight your whole life, and you are now focused on it and taking charge in a healthy way, you should be beaming about your success.

I learned the hard way that what really matters is our health, not a number on the scale.  Actually, the scale is not the best measure of how we are doing.  Like others have said, you could be gaining muscle.  Also, when we lose weight, we don't know if we are losing water, muscle, waste,....could be things besides fat.  A tape measure tells you more.  And time tells you more.

Most of all, this is a biological process and not totally in our control, though definitely something we influence.  I started trying hard several months ago and had no weight loss, zero, for 4 months.  Then 3 weeks ago, with no big change, the weight started to come off.  It's like my body got the message.

I believe that it is far more important to focus on your health than to give a number on a scale that kind of power over you.  Are you eating healthy?  Are you creating good habits you can maintain for life?  Are you learning a lot about emotional eating?  Are you getting good at food prep?  Are you making being active something you will do forever?  If these are true, that is the real victory.  If you eat really well and are active, and drink water, etc., your body will get to the weight it needs to be.  Meanwhile, you will feel better, have more vitality, and be healthier for a more vibrant, full life.  And isn't that what matters?

Scales sometimes get stuck, sometimes they have more ups and downs than a trampoline.  It can be frustrating, but if you are getting healthier, you are giving yourself a chance at the best possible life and that is something to celebrate.

[Dominique]

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@Bobbinyc wrote:

Like others have said, you could be gaining muscle.

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Not that I want to spoil the party, but no one eating at a deficit is going to gain more muscle mass than they’re losing fat, thus resulting in a net weight gain. That being said, I agree the scale shouldn’t be the only tool used to assess your progress: it is indeed a good idea to take body measurements as well.

[Mukluk4 · Accepted solution]

You've basically have two choices:  Reduce Calories or Increase Activity Intensity.

[shipo]

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@Mukluk4 wrote:

You've basically have two choices:  Reduce Calories or Increase Activity Intensity.

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Or a balance of each.  🙂

[Dominique]

@Mukluk4 wrote:

You've basically have two choices:  Reduce Calories or Increase Activity Intensity. 

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Her calculated deficit for the first three months was 1667 calories per day (40 lbs lost in 12 weeks), which was already way too high. Making it even higher (whether by eating less, moving more or both) will only make things worse.

[AndyDandyPandy]

Everyone that is trying to lose weight is obsessed with the scale. I too am going through the same problem. But when the scale won't budge, I have another option to test myself if I had any results. I try on clothes that I can't fit in before. I try them out every 1 to 2 weeks to see if they get looser. Also another great way is measure your waist or body fat. It is more losing fat than weight. Just keep on doing what you are doing even if the scale doesn't change. As long as you are living healthy, you will see results but maybe not rapidly. Just never go back to your old habit because remember that staying the same weight is better than gaining. People might tell you to eat more or eat less but just listen to your body. Don't starve yourself but dont over feed yourself too. Eat when you feel you're eating for energy. Don't force yourself to eat when you're not hungry because you think you need to meet a certain calorie especially if you're trying to lose weight. You might end up binging or putting on extra calories that you don't need. As long as you feel you are doing the right thing then just keep on doing it and ignore the rest. Just keep living and doing what's right. Be healthy and stay healthy my friend. Don't give up.