How long do plateaus typically last for?

Hey guys!

I am really really close to my goal weight.  I have hit a plateau that has lasted almost 3 or more weeks now though.  I have started to change my work out a bit, and make it more intense.  I am getting into running now, and I have cut stuff like alcohol out of my diet (for the time being.  I'd like to be able to have the odd drink on the weekend!)  I am making myself drink more water, and I am trying to break my food up into smaller, more frequent meals.  Tomorrow I am going to start some weight training, so hopefully all these changes will help shake things up!

It seems weird that each day I have a deficit of 600 calories, yet the scale isn't moving.  I kind of feel like I should just be eating those 600 calories if they aren't contributing to weight loss anymore!  Heheh.  I am going to wait another week, and if I still haven't lost anything, I might just try going on maintenance for a week, and then resume my 600 calorie deficit again.   I just find this whole thing weird.    I'm not in a rush, because I am at a healthy weight now, but I don't want to give up until I reach my official goal!

I've hit 2 both lasting about a month.  Interesting thing is they're the same weights I stopped at on the way up.  I tried changing my exercise, zig zag, you name it.  They seem to resolve just as suddenly as they started.  

This is from an article called " The Truth about Metabolism" by Stacy Whitman. It quotes some of the top obesity specialists in the country.
regardin plateaus, it says:

"As you lose weight your RMR will slow down because you have less body mass to support.  As a result, your body requires fewer calories to sustain its vital functions. Consequently, you won't need to eat as much to feel satisfied and to fuel your exercise. If you don't further modify your eating and exercising habits, you'll eventually hit a weight-loss plateau. To get past the plateau and continue shedding pounds, if that's your goal, consume fewer calories (without dropping too low) or increase the intensity and duration of your workouts."

I got stuck for 6 weeks :P

then I upped my fibre to over 30g a day, and tried keeping my cholesterol below 300mg.....

not really sure if that's what did it...but the next week, I was down 3lbs.

and now I'm stuck again..........argh.

so I hear ya, feel yer pain

xoxoxoxoxo

haha mine has lasted a whole year and a half!  But I like to think positive about it- at least I haven't gained and losing 20 pounds and keeping it off an entire year isnt too shabby... 

I've kept up with my exercise hardcore and my eating habits off and on through out the year.  I figure (and hope) that as soon as I straighten out my eating habits and keep it consistant I'll get past this year long plateau.

Mixing up your workout is key though.  And if you have never weight trained before, starting is DEFINATELY a good idea.  Not only will you look good (toned) but it is a very important part of exercise along with cardio.  The more muscle tissue you have, the more calories you will burn.  Good luck!

Damn. I've only been on a plateau for 2 weeks now and I feel TERRIBLE. You seem to still be keeping pretty positive about it.

I know how you feel though...it's like your work is going to waste when there could be other things you are doing and more things you could be eating.

The worst part of this whole thing is that this plateau feels like when I spent years around 220 lbs - and I ate whatever I wanted and stayed the same weight. I wasn't happy with that weight, but at least I didn't torture myself by eating healthier, less, and working out more...

Just gotta keep trudging on I guess

Well, all along I have been keeping careful tabs on what I eat.  As my weight has gone down, I have adjusted my daily calorie intake, so that I am eating an appropriate amount.  Right now I eat 1700 calories plus what I burn in exercise.  (I am 5'7 and weigh 133 pounds.  I am trying for 128 only because most of my weight sits in is my lower half, and my goal is to improve that area a bit more if I can.)  I am confused...should I be trying to eat a bit less?  I do a l ot of cardio, and I think I'd be really hungry if I ate less.  I could do it to see what happens, but I want to make sure I have enough energy for my workouts.

I think the reason that this plateau isn't getting me down, is that I have already achieved my goal, and hit a more healthy weight.  I could be content where I am now, and feel that I have done well these past months.  I just want more improvements, and since I intend to stick to this lifestyle long term, it's not that bid a deal.  My birthday is in a few weeks though, and that was my target date for all this weight loss.  Maybe (fingers crossed) with the weight lifting, I will have success!

Well good luck!

I guess I'm really frustrated because I'm still in the exact middle of my goal for how much I wanted to lose and it seems like such a long journey

Iam pretty new here but your post struck a chord with me as I was stuck in  plateau limbo since August of last year. then all of a sudden a few weeks ago I lost nine pds fairly fast. the thing I did different was I bought a resitance bike which is excellent for a cardio workout. and I also realized I didnt need all the calories I was consuming because I really was not that hungry. I still have 30 pds to go and am very determined as I was diagnosed with diabetes in Dec.05 and was very ill with it and never want to be that obese again or that sick! but I do love how I look and now I enjoy shopping for clothes!

Most  plateaus do end I think as mine did sometimes it just takes doing something different with the workout or what your doing on the diet!     Good Luck.

Wow now I know I am not alone. Tomorrow marks 7 weeks of my plateau. I have change my workout, completely!! Stopped working out , ate maintainance, lowered cals, EVERYTHING!! Nothing has worked. I guess my body will lose when its ready. Hopefully soon!! I have noticed that my 1st plateau occured at a weight I was at for a while , and this one is also a weight I was at b 4 too.  I really dont think there is a real solution to plateaus, we just have to ride em out and eventually our body will give in.

*bump*

Wow...kristinedaqueen...you've been on a plateau for 7 weeks?  How frustrating!  I'd be pulling out my hair.  I say I am not in a rush...but I would like SOME encouragement from the scale every once in a while. ;)  What sucks it that when I began on this new life style, I typed my stats into CC, and out came a nice target date.  I have had that day circled on my calender, and I was hoping that I would have reached my goal by my birthday.  I was going to  go out shopping for my Birthday, and buy some new jeans!  There is no sense buying them until I am at my target weight.  I buy expensive jeans, so I want them to fit perfectly!!  I would be at my target weight if I was steadily loosing 1 pound a week.  Instead I am at a standstill.  Oh well...that's life I guess! 

To make myself feel more positive, I went out today and bought a new workout outfit.    I started lifting weights today, and that has GOT to kick things into gear.    The BEST part of my day today, was that my brother came to visit me (I haven't seen him in several months) and the first thing he commented on was how good I looked.  He asked if I"d lost weight!  I was so happy that he noticed!  I am trying to focus on all the positive things going on, even though at the back of my mind this is annoying the hell out of me.  :)

yup it sucks. anybody have any advise to offer on how to break plateaus?

Hi, I sent you that quote from the article.  Yes it is quite possible you need to eat less, that is what the article says.

The whole idea that you eat back calories from exercise is exclusive to this website.  If you tote a laundry basket, you don't eat back those calories. Every action you do burns calories, and most of the calories you burn from various activities can easily exceed what you burn at the gym. That you work out is just what you do along with everything else.  So I say, stop factoring that in.  I eat the same calories every day, knowing that five or six times a week I will do some intentional exercise. You can't really accurately figure calories from exercise anyway... gym machines are unreliable.  If you eat a fig newton, you know how many calories those are, because it says so on the package.  Exercise is a huge guess.

That you have a "deficit" is based on some theoretical number you got from a formula or site.  That is based on averages. You could be hundreds above or below that average. So base your metabolism on what the scale says.  Say you are eating 1500 calories a day and losing 1 pound a week, so you know from the scale that likely your maintenence level for your current weight is 2000 calories per day.

The key part of what you initially wrote is that you are close to your goal weight.  Because you now weight less, your body needs less calories. For every ten pounds you lose, you need 100 calories less per day, give or take.  So the number you started out dieting on was good in the beginning, but now is causing a plateau.

Okay, with additional posts I see you are 5'7" and 133. I am 5'8 and 128.  To maintain I eat about 1550 calories a day average.  I work out about five or six days a week, but am otherwise inactive.  I am 51, so maybe that slows it some.  I have a daughter  who is 16,  5'9, 124,  is training for cross country in the fall, and trying to gain weight. I just figured her calorie consumption... under 1900 per day.  So it makes complete sense to me that you are plateaung because you are maintianing... your current total energy expenditure is equal to yout total calorie consumption.

So like that article says,  cut back on calories, or increase exercise. Also this is a real good time to double check the calories you eat, to be sure you are accurately counting. Often undercounting is the problem. I have been calorie counting for many years, and still find I make errors, plus sometimes I for get to record things.