Saturday, January 13, 2007

This is the Plateau that Never Ends...

It just goes on and on my friends...

My weight has been "145-ish" for over a year now. The first time I was under 145 was October 27, 2005. Since then I've had spikes as high as 152 (post Maui) and dips as low as 139.50 (then I stopped eating artificial sweeteners...). But over all in 2006 my weight was basically 145-ish.

Click to enlarge.As you can see in my weight loss chart - I lost nearly 50 pounds in 2004, about 25 in 2005, and 2006... I broke even. Even though I didn't lose any weight in 2006, I know I got healthier! :)

I never realized how stubborn those "last stubborn pounds" are!!! Luckily, as if they knew my dilemma, MSN's Diet and fitness section had an article titled "Fat Chances."

The article said that the closer you are to a normal body weight, the more your body will resist losing weight. Then it gave advice on how to get those last few pounds to finally budge!!

"...you’ll need to increase your level of exertion and endurance. Make sure you’re eating enough to sustain your workouts. If you reduce calories, don’t drop them too drastically. If you’ve greatly increased the number of calories you’re burning while dramatically reducing calories that you eat, you could have triggered your body to be extra-resistant to weight loss."

Fat is your body's "emergency energy stores" and it does NOT want to give up that safety net! In order to lose those last few pounds you need to increase your fat-burning arobic activity. You also need to increase your calories so your body doesn't feel like it is being "death-marched." You still need to have a slight calorie deficit to keep losing weight.

So I have switched to doing intense 30-minute programs on the stationary bike, 2 days on, one day off, and my calories are now about 2000 calories a day. This gives me close to a 250 calorie deficit daily, or about half a pound a week loss - In therory. I really hope is works in practice!

I was 144.25 this morning. At half a pound a week, I could be under 140 in about 8 weeks!!

I gotta head out now. I have to go to a Birthday party, and a Chili cook off. I am entering my award winning chili!

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

How did the chili cook off go? Chili, YUM!

Do you know your BMI? how will you know when your weight is "right" for your body, vs. a plateau?

You rock. I'm figuring some "head" stuff out, and making some progress.

Unknown said...

I got lots of comments saying "Your chili is so good, but it doesn't have meat! So, I had to give it a lower score."

The Cook-off was held in a little "townie bar" where I guess meat is required to win... So next time I'll add meat and win!"

I was 145.50 this morning. My Current BMI is 23.66, which is in the healthy weight range. I would like to have a BMI of 21.00, which is about 135.00 pounds.

Unknown said...

Sounds like a good plan to me!! :-D

I stay motivated by setting little goals with big rewards! You can also try doing "little kid stuff" like making a chart to put on the fridge with foil star stickers for good days. 10 Stars = Reward!

You just need to find what moves you, and stick to it! :)

I find that bribing myself like crazy keeps me on track! :) Don't beat yourself up if you fall of the wagon. Just think of each day as a clean slate and keep going! Don't look back! :-)

Anonymous said...

I use sirloin in my chili. I cube it and then braise it to make it "fall-apartable", and then make the chili. It's purty good!

(and, when I add beans and tomatoes, it's still pretty healthful for a bowl with a side salad!)

I will be in the healthy range someday too, on the BMI. :)

Unknown said...

That sounds perfect! I'll be sure to add some Cubed "fall-apart-y sirloin for next years winner! :D

I have not ate red meat since the 90's though... Doesn't mean I can't use it in a chili cook-off! :D