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Help with weight loss plateau: food & exercise journal included
I lost 7 pounds in 5 weeks and despite tracking my calories carefully and stepping up my activity, I haven?t lost anything in almost 2 weeks.
BMR is 1658. When I use the Harris Benedict equation for moderately active, it gives me 2570.
If I want to lose 2 pounds a week, I need to eat 1570 cals a week. (deficit of 1000 calories a day)
The 6 days I?ve tracked below, although higher than average, gave me an average deficit of 911 calories per day, so I should be seeing something if not quite 2 pounds.
Can you ladies help me out, please?
Activity:
Sun: a.m. tabata (4 rounds), p.m. 5k
Tues: 5K
Wed: tabata + 1 short round core
Fri: 5K
Sat: 55 min kickboxing
Sun: tabata (4 rounds)
5k = 32-35 mins including warm up. Average HR= 28-30 beats per 10 seconds, averaged out to 174bpm
TUESDAY: 1485
B: 1 C Shredded wheat with Bran + 3/4 C 1% milk 245 cals
14oz coffee 2tb 10% cream, 1tb milk = 50 cals TOTAL 295
Snack 1: 1/2 c yogurt (astro original 1% vanilla) 1/2c raspberries = 120
strawberries 5 med= 30
2 X Caffeine free herbal tea TOTAL 150
Lunch, 3 cup container packed with spinach, red & green peppers, cucumber approx 30-40 cals
1 small banana, 2 ryvita toasts, 1tb natural PB = 260 TOTAL 300
Snack 2: small Tim's coffee 1 milk, 1 cream 50 cals, kashi dark choc coconut bar 130 TOTAL 180
Dinner: Lasagna 1.5 slices (made with smart pasta) 510, green beans 30, spinach salad 20 TOTAL 570
Wed: TOTAL 1645
B: 1 C Shredded wheat with Bran + 3/4 C 1% milk 245 cals
14oz coffee 2tb 10% cream, 1tb milk = 50 cals TOTAL 295
Snack 1: 1/2 c yogurt (astro original 1% vanilla) 1/2c raspberries = 120
1 apple 95
2 X Caffeine free herbal tea TOTAL 150
Lunch, 3 cup container packed with spinach, red & green peppers, cucumber approx 30-40 cals
2 ryvita toasts, 1 can tuna, 2 tb fat free miracle whip 230 TOTAL 270
Snack 2: small Tim's coffee 1 milk, 1 cream 50 cals, kashi dark choc coconut bar 130 TOTAL 180
Dinner: Santa fe chicken w 1/2 c cooked brown minute rice ( 200 grams chicken, peppers (about 3/4 of large pepper per serving, onions, 1/2 corn, tomato sauce) seasoning. topped with nacho chips(50 cals), sour cream (50) cheese (110 cals)= 720 (might be a bit high on calc)
1 cup steamed broc/carrots/snow peas 30 TOTAL 750
Thursday: 1525
B: eng muffin 130, egg 80, cheese slice 50 = 260 1/2 TB ketchup
14oz coffee 2tb 10% cream, 1tb milk = 50 cals TOTAL 310
Snack 1: 1/2 c yogurt (astro original 1% vanilla) 1/2c raspberries = 120
green beans 15
2 X Caffeine free herbal tea TOTAL 135
Lunch, 3 cup container packed with spinach, red & green peppers, cucumber approx 30-40 cals
leftover dinner = 350 cals TOTAL 390
Snack:
Snack 2: small Tim's coffee 1 milk, 1 cream 50 cals, kashi dark choc coconut bar 130 TOTAL 180
Dinner:
1.5 pieces leftover lasagna 510
Friday: 2055
2 slices sprouted grain toast 130, 1 TB natural PB 90, small banana 90
14oz coffee 2tb 10% cream, 1tb milk = 50 cals TOTAL 360
Snack 1: 1/2 c yogurt (astro original 1% vanilla) 1/2c raspberries = 120
2 X Caffeine free herbal tea TOTAL 120
Lunch: takeout - chicken souvlaki on pita with tzaziki and onions, greek salad with feta and onions, honey sticks (about 1/4 pita deep fried with honey) (guessing 220 for pita, 120 for chicken, 100 feta, 100 dressing, 150 for tzaziki. 150 honey sticks? = 840?? TOTAL?
Snack 2: small Tim's coffee 1 milk, 1 cream 50 cals, kashi dark choc coconut bar 130 TOTAL 180
Dinner:
3 hard taco shells 150, 4 ounces meat (x-lean ground chicken mixed with x-lean ground beef) 170, peppers, onions, 45 grams cheese 165, 2 tb sour cream 50, lettuce, 535
salad 20 TOTAL 555
Saturday: 1698
B: 1 C Shredded wheat with Bran + 3/4 C 1% milk 245 cals
8 oz coffee 1tb 10% cream, 1tb milk = 25 cals TOTAL 270
Snack 1: 1/2 c yogurt (astro original 1% vanilla) 1/4c raspberries = 105
1 med Tim's coffee 1 milk 1 cream = 90 cals
Lunch: Taco salad = 4 oz meat 180, 1 taco shell crumbled 50, 20 grams cheese 73, 2 TB sour cream 50 , 3 cups spinach, pepper, cucumbers 30 TOTAL 383
Snack: sugar snap peas 42, herbal tea TOTAL 42
Dinner (out): 808
1 onion ring - 60 cals?
7 oz sirloin 250
steamed broccoli and carrots 30
1 chicken finger 90, 1/5 of fries 78 (my steamed potatoes were GROSS!!)
Birthday cake - 4 X 2 inch slice guessing 300 cals??
Sunday: 1525
B: 1 C Shredded wheat with Bran + 3/4 C 1% milk 245 cals
14oz coffee 2tb 10% cream, 1tb milk = 50 cals TOTAL 295
Breakfast 2: 2 scrambled eggs w 1 TB milk = TOTAL 165
Lunch, 2 cups spinach, red peppers, cucumber approx 30
1 can tuna 120 , 2 tb fat free miracle whip 30 TOTAL 180
Snack: 1 coffee, 25, 1 chocolate muffin 110(yes, that's really 110 for a chocolate muffin)
Dinner
85 g smart pasta (310) 1/2c tomato sauce 70, 100g italian turkey sausage 100, 100g chicken 120, peppers and onions 20, steamed veggies 40 = 660
mini banana oatmeal muffin 90
TOTAL:750
Re: Help with weight loss plateau: food & exercise journal included
My thoughts:
What are you doing in your tapatas? Are you doing strength training? Strength training always helps me jump start weight loss?
I would try and add in more proteins. It looks like at breakfast and lunch you may get very little protein at times.
Are you weighing your foods or just estimating? It is pretty easy to end up with 2 C of cereal when you only intended to eat 1 C. What about extra calories? Salad dressings, butters,
Could you be over estimating your activity level? The Harris Benedict Equation always seems to over estimate calories for me. When I use BMR and add back in my exercise I get what seems to be a more realistic number.
Sometimes you just hit a plateau. 5lbs in 7 weeks is great and 2lbs a week is a difficult goal to achieve.
I would say just try to mix it up. I get stuck when I do the same activities and eat the same thing for a couple of weeks.
And ditto PP on the protein...looks like you could add some more. When I've plateaued I've broken it by changing the ratios of what I eat (trying to eat way more protein than I had been) and doing different exercises.
dup
You could give it a try. I don't think you need to eat less, it just seems like 2 lbs a week may not be feasible, but 1 - 1.5 might be a better goal. Also if you eat more protein you won't be as hungry during the day. You might end up eating a few more calories in your snacks, but it will probably help you from being hungry and lead to smaller dinners. And remember the actual math on weight loss doesn't always work out exactly as the numbers predict when you are monitoring calories.
It looks like you are on the right track!
More protein, more weightlifting.
I think that the combo of Tabata and a 5k is a lot (and I love working out 2x/day), but those are both pretty intense workouts.
I think you're time would be better spent doing a full-body split with heavy weights 2 x week, with 2-3 rounds of tabata as a finisher. The workout would be longer, but you could skip the pm workout.
Sunday tabata is a registered class. I have 6 more weeks and really enjoy it. Right now I don't have a gym membership aside from the tabata and kickboxing, but do have a treadmill and 7 pound weights at home - that's it. If there are any strength training exercises you can suggest with no equipment, I'm all ears!
The 5K that afternoon was probably a one-off I felt a surge of energy while my son was napping. I definitely didn't repeat it yesterday
Protein increse
I was talking with a friend who is at the end of a 140lbs weight loss. She was saying she thought the weeks where she wasn't losing were the weeks her body was readjusting itself, like she was still getting smaller, more toned... not sure scientifically if there is anything too that, but it made sense...
That does make sense to me. I know my body is changing. I can see it and feel it. I lost 45 pounds last year and also remember that there were chunks of time when I lost nothing for 2 weeks and then woke up to a 4 pound loss.