It’s easy to get discouraged when your weight plateaus. You’re doing all the right things, sticking with the eating plan, working out, staying hydrated, but the numbers aren’t budging.
Your weekly weigh-ins go from the excitement to see how much you’ve lost, to the hope that you lost anything at all.
For the past three weeks, my Tone It Up weight loss has slowed down dramatically. I’ve lost exactly a pound a week.
Now I’m not trying to look a gift horse in the month, a pound is a pound. And weigh-ins aren’t everything, because measurements are important, too. And I have seen those move down a little more than my weight.
But if I’m being totally honest, there is something about that number on the scale that makes me so happy.
I’m sure I’m not the only one…
So while I’m thrilled with the process overall, I’m trying not to buy into the toddler inside of me that is throwing a fit, yelling that I worked hard and the scale should be nicer to me.
So enough of my pouting, here are my numbers for this week…
Since July 5th I’ve lost
Pounds: 11.6
Arms: 1.5 inches
Chest: 1.75 inch
Abs: 4 inches
Waist: 0.25 inches
Hips: 1.75 inches
Leg: 1.25 inch
Calf: 1 inch
While I’m grateful for the changes I’ve made, I’m within striking distance of my goal of 130, so I’d like to push through this weight loss wall.
So I did a little research on weight loss plateaus.
The Mayo Clinic states that as you lose weight your metabolism actually declines, causing you to burn fewer calories than you did at your heavier weight.
Your slower metabolism will slow your weight loss, even if you eat the same number of calories that helped you lose weight. When the calories you burn equal the calories you eat, you reach a plateau.
Seems like pretty basic stuff. So I did a little more digging on surprising reasons you’re not losing weight. I found three that hit really close to home for me:
You’re not getting enough sleep
This is completely true for me.
I’ve been getting up at my normal time of 4:30 am on the weekdays and 6:30 am on the weekends, but I’ve been going to bed way later than I normally do.
When I really think about it, most nights I’m heading upstairs to get ready a little before 11:00 pm, which means I’m not asleep until closer to 11:15. I need about seven hours of sleep, so a little more than five is not enough.
This is a change I’m happy to make!
You’re underestimating how much diet damage you’re doing when you eat out
This is a little harder to hear than the sleep thing, but is also likely true.
For me, eating healthy when I’m out is usually no problem. I actually enjoy finding a healthier option. But I tend to like what I picked too much.
Meaning I finish the whole thing.
I’ve mentioned it before- portion control is not my strong suit. Enjoying half (or even three quarters) of a meal is really enough for me. I should just box the rest and bring it home for a meal the next day.
Easier said than done, but manageable if I really care about those final pounds.
I’ve also noticed that I snack as I meal prep. Of course, you have to try things you are making to see if they are good, but tasting and eating are two different things.
This might be easier for me to get under control than only eating half of a meal at a great restaurant- I know my weaknesses.
You’re stressed about the scale—and stressed being stressed about the scale.
Most people have heard that stress makes you retain weight. I certainly have, and I tell myself that it’s just a number and it shouldn’t matter.
That is all fine and good, but it doesn’t mean the worry about hitting a goal weight still doesn’t pop into my mind. Am I stressed about it? No. Life is far too good to stress on something like this.
But do I assign more value to it than I want to? Absolutely.
So even though being so close is really making me excited to see that goal number on the scale, and fit into a certain pair of shorts again, I also know that if I don’t, it’s truly no big deal.
I feel better than I did a month and a half ago.
My energy is higher, I don’t feel nauseous, and my sugar cravings are in check. And really that is far more valuable than any pair of shorts. And most certainly it’s better than a split second on the scale!
