Why have I stopped losing weight but I'm still working out and eating right?

iVillage.com: Your Most Annoying Weight Loss Issues Solved

Most weight loss plans recommend losing one to two pounds a week. But the annoying truth, Crome says, is that weight never comes off in a nice steady downward trajectory. Instead, if you were to chart most people’s weight loss there would be dips, the occasional spike upwards, and lots of plateaus. “The hardest thing for people I work with is that they’re doing everything right, they’re consistent, and the weight doesn’t come off,” says Crome. “But the fact is this: The body is going to give up the weight when it’s darn good and ready.”So don’t let a stalled scale make you lose hope. Just keep eating right and building muscle through exercise and eventually the weight will start coming again.

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I cut my daily c...

Simple: Your body is used to a certain amount of food, and when that amount falls drastically it doesn’t think, “Ah, it must be swimsuit season.” Instead, it assumes there’s a famine going on. And because your body cares more about keeping you alive than slimming your thighs, your metabolism (the rate at which you burn calories) slows down. “Imagine your metabolism is a fire, and food is what feeds that fire,” says personal trainer and registered dietitian Gina Crome of Lifestyle Management Solutions. “Without food, the fire dies down and so does your metabolism.” To optimize weight loss, Crome recommends you keep that metabolic fire at a comfortable burn by eating small healthy meals and snacks throughout the day.

The other culprit: Guessing. Unless you are weighing out all of your food portions and keeping a food diary of every calorie (including that milk in your coffee), there’s a good chance you’re actually consuming more than you realize. “People have a better sense of what they’re actually consuming when they write it down,” says Laura M. Rosch, D.O., who specializes in obesity and nutritional disorders at the Garrett Wellness Center in Chicago.

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My best friend c...

That skinny broad of a best friend likely has a higher metabolic rate than you do, says Dr. Rosch. Aside from gender (men generally have higher metabolisms), there are two other factors that control how your body uses energy: Age and muscle mass. If your friend isn’t younger than you, then she likely has more muscle and therefore a higher metabolism. “When you have a lot of muscle mass, you have a higher burning furnace that requires more fuel to maintain,” says Rosch. You can beat your friend at her own game by incorporating muscle-building weight-training into your workout.

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Between yesterd...

It’s enough to make you want to throw that scale into the nearest trash compacter, isn’t it? But the scale isn’t the problem -- it's our own bodies, particularly the digestive track. Ideally you should be having two “number twos” per day, says Alicia Stanton, M.D., author of "The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Hormonal Weight Loss." If you’re not, consider why. Are you routinely scarfing down a sandwich while battling rush hour traffic or sipping a smoothie while searching for Junior’s lost homework assignment? “Stressful eating slows down the digestive process because it diverts all the blood away from your intestines, where you need it to absorb your food,” says Dr. Stanton. “So you could have a colon full of food that’s not moving through because you’re so stressed out.” And food that lingers will add pounds on the scale.

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I weigh myself b...

First, stop weighing yourself so often! Stanton recommends no more than once a week, preferably naked, after using the bathroom in the morning. As to the night/day discrepancies, chalk it up to water. “When you’re at rest, your body is detoxifying, filtering blood through your liver and kidneys,” says Stanton. “That’s why you have to go to the bathroom first thing in the morning.” One liter of water can weigh 2.2 pounds, “and it’s pretty easy to pee out a liter in the morning,” she says. Nighttime perspiration can also account for lost ounces. So you’re not losing two pounds of fat; you’re losing two pounds of fluids and those are easily replaced by the beverages you consume throughout the day.

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I hate the scale...

A pair of blue jeans can be much more accurate than a scale, says Crome. “If your clothes are feeling a little snug, chances are you put on a few pounds,” she says. Also consider purchasing a scale that measures body fat percentage as well as weight. This will help you know whether you’re gaining muscle and losing fat even though your actual weight hasn’t changed. Women should aim for between 18-25 percent body fat, says Stanton.

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Is my menstrual ...

Maybe. “If you’re bleeding abnormally, spotting between periods or having heavy periods those could be signs that your hormones are out of whack, and that can contribute to problems with weight loss,” says Stanton. And then of course there’s good, old-fashioned bloating. Estrogen and progesterone fluctuations cause you to retain water, and that will push the scale upwards as far as four to five pounds. The other culprit could be those PMS cravings. Brain production of serotonin, the so-called “feel good” hormone, falls right before Aunt Flo’s visit. Eating carbs triggers the brain to produce serotonin, which is why that chocolate bar can be so hard to resist. But there are calorie-free ways to boost your serotonin. “Doing things that relax you and make you feel good will go a long way,” says Stanton. “Take a walk or a bath, read a book, daydream, talk to a friend or write in a journal.” If a long walk just doesn’t do it for you, indulge in the chocolate but opt for heart-healthy dark variety.

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When I was 25 I ...

Sleep, or the lack thereof, might be your problem. Remember when you were in your 20s you could stay out late and still dazzle at your early morning staff meeting? Now that you’re in your 40s, you need an entire weekend to recuperate from watching Jon Stewart in real time. Blame your aging body, which just can’t recover from emotional stress and sleep deprivation the way it used to. “I tell my patients all the time, ‘You cannot lose weight if you are not sleeping,’” says Stanton. “When you were in your 20s you could, because your body bounced back from the hormone imbalances created by lack of sleep. But if you’re in your 30s, 40s, 50s, you’re not sleeping and you’re stressed out, that weight loss is going to be very hard to come by.”

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I became a veget...

“The vegetarian diet is the healthiest way to eat, but you have to be a smart vegetarian,” says Rosch. In other words, don’t snack on spoonfuls of peanut butter (that’s 100 calories per tablespoon). Don’t slather your salads or stir fries with oily dressings. And to combat hunger and cravings, add belly-filling fiber to your diet and drink lots of water. Also, watch your carbohydrates. “Remember that half your plate should be fruits and vegetables and only a quarter should be rice or pasta,” says Rosch. Proteins such as beans or tofu should make up the other quarter of the plate.

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I work out three...

“Weight loss is about more than just working out,” according to Crome. If you aren't watching your portion sizes, eating well-balanced meals and healthy snacks then you'll probably just break even calorie-wise by the end of the day. “You may burn 500, 600 calories in an intensive workout,” says Crome. But, she says, “People don’t realize you can easily replace that with one burger.” So if the devil on your shoulder (or sitting on top of the dessert cart) entices with, “You worked out today; you’ve earned a sweet treat,” look to your inner skinny angel for help in ordering a bowl of fresh fruit.

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