Slow and Steady wins the race?

For the first 4-5 months I was loosing approximately 2.2lbs a week and I was soooooo thrilled!

For the last month and a bit it's slowed down significantly, this is what I've weighed every thursday:

2008-02-28: 147.50 2008-02-21: 148.00 2008-02-13: 148.50 2008-02-07: 149.00 2008-02-01: 150.50 2008-01-24: 150.75

So in the last 6 weeks I've lost 3.25lbs... which is vaguely depressing.

I keep trying to tell myself that at least i AM still losing weight and that should be enough but my goal weight is 126(ish)lbs and it just seems like an almost impossible task despite the 50.5lbs already lost.

I guess I just need some motivation, or someone to tell me that it will pick up again?

Has anyone else had this happen, is there anything I could do? I've upped my exercise slightly but it soooooo cold... i can't wait for summer.

I'm in the same place, losing MAYBE 3 lbs a month, sometimes just one or 2. Trying to keep the perspective, that anything that isn't a gain is gonna help with the final goal (at whatever weight) of maintenance. And if I do lose a lb, and manage to MAINTAIN it, that a lb you don't have to lose again.

(186 right now, down from 250 11 months ago.)

Man I can't wait for summer either, and am taking the view that even if it's just a holding pattern, it's great right now compared to a year ago.  What I wouldn't have given to have weighed THIS last spring!

I should be the last person to give you advice since I'm not even losing at all in any serious way now. I'm afraid the closer you get to your goal, the less wiggle room you have in calories so the harder it is to stay just where you need to be. Some people kind of forget that their BMR and all that change as they lose weight, but I doubt that's your case. From your posts, you seem to really know what you're doing. 

Some folks swear by varying their intake/exercise. The theory is that you 'fool' your body out of any plateau. I'm skeptical since that's sort of the way I live -- lower cals during the week, more on the weekend. I just try not to be too extreme in either direction. 

I found someone with the same basic stats as me who made it to the goal I'm looking for. It turned out that she was sick when she lost the last 15 pounds. Not much help there.  Don't think I want to go there!

Hang in there!

Thank you both! I will get there eventually... I'm sure we all will, it's just frustrating in the mean time.

I have been trying to vary my calories a bit, allow myself a treat, like tomorrow I'm eating 1500 calories, which WOULD be my maintenance calories at my goal weight and is half way between my diet and maintenance at this weight, so I figure it's a good calorie intake if I am going to go up and down a bit...

I just really want to get this all out of the way before I start university and I SHOULD but it's just seems like an endless thankless task at the moment.

Oh well, I have a BMI of 27 so at least I'm getting towards "healthy"

Thanks again for your stories and motivation!

I think as you get closer to your goal the weight loss does slow down.  In my case I'm getting very close to my goal, and I have to work much harder to lose any weight.  I'm increasing the amount of exercise I do, but also increasing the calories slightly.  I think it's OK for the weight loss to gradually taper off.  Good luck reaching your goal - it sounds like you're almost there!