- 944
- 1,810
What’s up y’all, I need some help/advice...
I recently (3 months ago) decided to start working out and loose some weight as I had hit my heaviest. I’m 5’5 and weighed about 230lbs. Currently on my 4th month and down 30lbs. I workout 5 to 6 days a week with moderate lifting and cardio 2x a week. My diet isn’t bad but not perfect. Now for the problem that I seem to be having is I have plateaued. For the past 3 weeks I been stuck at 200lbs and can’t seem to get past that. i did fall off the wagon a bit for those past weeks which could be the problem but nothing crazy. I’m still within my calorie intake/deficit but no change in weight.
any advice is appreciated.
I’m not to familiar with macros but as far as my diet and calories go, I usually consume between 2 to 3k calories a day.
For breakfast I usually do oatmeal, not the healthiest kind. For lunch I usually do chicken, fish or steak with some rice and veggies. When I don’t pack and buy lunch, I usually do pollo loco, chipotle bowl, wabba grill, subway, Jersey mikes etc. Dinner I will usually do a protein shake with a bunch of fruits and veggies. Snacking in between is where I usually screw up the most, but like I mention in my previous post, the past 2/3 weeks haven’t been the best and I kinda been eating anything and everything but still trying to stay witching my calorie intake of 2/3k calories.
Thank you both for your replies and advice, I will definitely be taking that into consideration and will be making some changes. As far as muscle gain and appearance I can definitely see a difference in the mirror and also in the way my clothes fits. I dropped from a size 38 waist to a 34 and went from a XL to a M it’s just frustrating and some what discouraging to see no change in the past few weeks.
IMO the hardest part of weight loss is the calorie tracking and intake. To make it easier I find my BMR (the amount of calories my body needs for basic function) and subtract 200-500 calories to make sure I am at a caloric deficit. 2k to 3k is wide range as far as calorie intake and very easy to go over as far as your end of week balance goes. Use this link for reference : https://www.calculator.net/calorie-calculator.html
I would suggest using a calorie tracking app( I use MyFitnessPal ) in order to plan your day of eating or keep track so you don't go over too much. The apps can take account of your macros too.
Typically macros are your carbohydrate, protein, and fat intake and where different "diets" or nutrition plans are going to be based off. For example Keto is going to be a high fat, moderate protein, and little to no carbohydrates diet. I find what my protein intake should be then adjust everything else around that number. Typically I use .08g - 1.2gs of protein x current bodyweight.
Calorie numbers are going to change as you lose weight and need to be adjusted accordingly. Your calorie deficit at 230 lbs might be your calorie maintenance at 200 lbs resulting in a stall. The amount your body need to function at 200 is going to be much less than at 230.
AND don't let the scale kill your confidence. Not you personally But I see a lot of people get discouraged because they aren't losing weight like they believe they should be and start to fall off. Generally when people decide to workout again after a long period of not doing so the body will go into a recomposition phase, meaning you're losing fat BUT gaining and building muscle so the scale won't change as much.