Weight loss plateau (newbie help)

[SunsetRunner]

Hi, newbie needing advice

So I started my journey on 10 Oct.

Fitbit steps: weekdays 13k-ish weekends 3k

Fitbit cal burn: 2.5k ish up to 3.5k ish

Tdee at lightly active: 2400 cal

I installed my fitness pal, put movement at lightly and got a cal intake of 1.9k. I followed this until the end of the month (dont eat back excercise cals) and lost weight everyday. Total weight loss 10 oct- 30 Oct = 9lbs.

Since the 5th Nov I've been cycling the same 2lbs through a 4 day cycle. 218,219,220,218, tomorrow will be my second week in this 2lb down 2lbs up. I dont know what to do now. 

Full disclosure my food is not baked chicken and veg. I've gone from extremely disordered eating of junk to normal food but it isnt what a bodybuilder would eat. It's a carb with a protein mostly ie ham and cheese bagel, quorn fajitas. Always within cal allowance.

^ thanks for reading all that rambling and any advice will be appreciated. I don't have a clue what I'm doing.

[Dominique · Accepted solution]

Welcome to the community, @SunsetRunner!

My first reaction would be: give it some more time. Five weeks is still a very short period, and 9 lbs in 5 weeks is still a respectable total loss. Just because you lost them during the first 20 days does not mean you expected the same to happen during the next 20 days, right?

Weight loss isn’t about perfection (so don’t beat yourself up because you’re not eating a "bodybuilder’s diet", it’s not a prerequisite), it’s about consistency. You appear to be doing the right things (for instance, focusing on calories), so just carry on and make incremental changes in your intake and your activity level.

I also think you need to have more than one cycle before you can assess the full impact of hormones. Consider using one of the ongoing topics in this forum in which community members report their progress for accountability purposes.

[SunsetRunner]

Hi Dominique! Thank you for your reply!

This part: "Just because you lost them during the first 20 days does mean you expected the same to happen during the next 20 days, right?" - this made me chuckle, you are 100% right, thats exactly what I'm doing. 

Thanks for giving me some perspective. It's extremely helpful to see things from another point of view and just take a step back. Thank you 🙂

[Dominique]

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@SunsetRunner wrote:

Hi Dominique! Thank you for your reply!

This part: "Just because you lost them during the first 20 days does mean you expected the same to happen during the next 20 days, right?" - this made me chuckle, you are 100% right, thats exactly what I'm doing.

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Sorry, I intended to write "... does NOT mean you expected...", so if you found my post humorous, it was unintentional . 

Btw, you may want to consider linking your Fitbit account to TrendWeight, especially if you weigh yourself frequently. Once fed with enough historical data, TrendWeight will help you see whether you’ve "plateaued" or are still making progress.

[SunsetRunner]

Oh  the premise of what you meant was spot on though. I literally went "9lbs in Oct so If I lose 9lb every month ill be at goal by x". 

I just made a account on trend thanks for the advice