Weightloss Question - Last 20 Pounds

[MouseEarsJenny]

Why can't I lose the last 20 pounds so I'll be considered "normal" weight??

I don't understand the science of weightloss. I mean, I'm aware of the whole "burn more calories than you eat, and you will lose weight" thing. And for the most part, that's worked for me.

I started my weight loss journey after my Disney vacation last year. DH had a serious chest pain situation in Animal Kingdom and I told him that we weren't coming back to Disney until he lost 50 lbs. Fact of the matter was, I needed to lose more than 50 myself, so we both started working seriously on our health.

Both of us knew we'd never keep the weight off if we eliminated our favorite foods. So we adopted the strategy of eating what we wanted, but in moderation. We also started eating Lean Cuisines for dinner, healthy food for lunch and breakfast, and having a small or shared portion of something we enjoyed for a treat a few times a week. So we still ate tiramisu, but we'd share one. We still drank coffee, but switched sugar for splenda, etc.

33 weeks later, I had lost 72 lbs. My dh had lost an unbelievable 100 lbs. (and suffered for it when he had to undergo gallbladder surgery which led to horrific complications). But even with that setback, we were closer to our college weights than we had been in 13 years.

Still, I'm 35 lbs. over my college weight and 20 lbs. over my "normal" weight range. At 5'6", 175 lbs., I fit into a size 12. And I still need to lose 20 lbs. to be at the TOP end of normal.

I have been stuck at 175 - 178 for 10 weeks. I've tried eating less. (Down to about 1200 calories instead of 1500). I've tried eating more. (Up to about 1800 calories for a week.) I've tried exercising more.

Why do the same techniques that helped me lose more than 70 pounds not work to lose this last stupid 20 pounds? And how will I ever get back to my college 140???

Anyone have any advice? We have another vacation planned in June, and I still can't face buying a swimsuit, even with my much improved self.

 

[ancestry]

What types of exercise are you doing and what is the frequency and duration? Are you doing any weight training in your exercise program?

What types of foods are you eating? Sometimes you get to the point where what you eat is just as important as the number of calories you are eating.

 

[MouseEarsJenny]

What types of exercise are you doing and what is the frequency and duration? Are you doing any weight training in your exercise program?

When I tried increasing my exercise, I used Beachbody's Power 90, which is a Cardio/Strength Training alternate 6 days a week. Used it a few years ago successfully and lost quite a few pounds, but gained them back. During this ten weeks of plateau, I tried Power 90 for about two weeks and gained weight DAILY. (On a 1500 calorie or below diet.) The program is 35 minutes or so in length. Stopped doing Beachbody and the weight went right back to plateau.

Before that, I was using the WiiFit. Worked for most of my weight loss this time. Then I just plateaued. That was some yoga, mostly running, lunges, and step aerobics. Would usually work out about 30 minutes 5 days a week.

What types of foods are you eating? Sometimes you get to the point where what you eat is just as important as the number of calories you are eating.

See, no offense intended, but this is what I don't get. Every doctor, the Mayo Clinic, the CDC, all the research I've found says that if you burn more than you eat, you HAVE to lose weight. So why does the TYPE of calories matter?

But to answer your question, here's a typical day:

Breakfast:
Coffee w/ Splenda
Bagel or Cereal Bar

Lunch:
Turkey Sandwich (Turkey, Bread, Tomato Slice, Spinach)
Popcorn
Fruit (I like pears. But apples, bananas, grapes, occasional clementines.)

Snack: (Cause I'm dying of hungry when I get home from work.)
2% String Cheese Stick

Dinner:
Lean Cuisine plus whatever vegetable I'm serving my kids cause the LC's are so pathetic on veggie servings.

And like I said, half a decadent dessert a few times a week, or a Skinny Cow frozen treat other days.

 

[ancestry]

See, no offense intended, but this is what I don't get. Every doctor, the Mayo Clinic, the CDC, all the research I've found says that if you burn more than you eat, you HAVE to lose weight. So why does the TYPE of calories matter?

I don't know but it makes a HUGE difference to me. I can eat 1500 calories a day of mainly carbs made with white flour - breads, pastas, etc and I will not lose a pound and will even gain.

I can eat 1500 calories a day with no white flour, with whole grains, fruits, high protein, low fiber and the weight comes off nicely and consistently at about 2 pounds a week.

For me what I eat definitely makes as much of a difference and I would even argue at times more of a difference, than how much I eat.

 

[KarenAylwood]

I don't know but it makes a HUGE difference to me. I can eat 1500 calories a day of mainly carbs made with white flour - breads, pastas, etc and I will not lose a pound and will even gain.

I can eat 1500 calories a day with no white flour, with whole grains, fruits, high protein, low fiber and the weight comes off nicely and consistently at about 2 pounds a week.

For me what I eat definitely makes as much of a difference and I would even argue at times more of a difference, than how much I eat.

I recently saw a study on this (I'm sorry I can't remember where- google would probably help) that some women respond well to cutting calories (like WW teaches, without necessarily a focus on what you're eating) and other women respond much better to "low carb" diets. Low carb meaning no refined sugars but whole grains, etc like described above. It has something to do with your genetics

I can say I'm much the same as the above. The more pasta, bread, etc I eat the more I'll gain. I do better with high fiber, high protein, veggies, etc. I'd likely gain weight with the meal plan posted.

 

[Dreams83]

When I tried increasing my exercise, I used Beachbody's Power 90, which is a Cardio/Strength Training alternate 6 days a week. Used it a few years ago successfully and lost quite a few pounds, but gained them back. During this ten weeks of plateau, I tried Power 90 for about two weeks and gained weight DAILY. (On a 1500 calorie or below diet.) The program is 35 minutes or so in length. Stopped doing Beachbody and the weight went right back to plateau.

Before that, I was using the WiiFit. Worked for most of my weight loss this time. Then I just plateaued. That was some yoga, mostly running, lunges, and step aerobics. Would usually work out about 30 minutes 5 days a week.




See, no offense intended, but this is what I don't get. Every doctor, the Mayo Clinic, the CDC, all the research I've found says that if you burn more than you eat, you HAVE to lose weight. So why does the TYPE of calories matter?

But to answer your question, here's a typical day:

Breakfast:
Coffee w/ Splenda
Bagel or Cereal Bar

Lunch:
Turkey Sandwich (Turkey, Bread, Tomato Slice, Spinach)
Popcorn
Fruit (I like pears. But apples, bananas, grapes, occasional clementines.)

Snack: (Cause I'm dying of hungry when I get home from work.)
2% String Cheese Stick

Dinner:
Lean Cuisine plus whatever vegetable I'm serving my kids cause the LC's are so pathetic on veggie servings.

And like I said, half a decadent dessert a few times a week, or a Skinny Cow frozen treat other days.

to me it looks like to many processed foods like leancuisne and popcorn and alot of grains i would do more fruits and veggies and less grains i would do whole grains in the early morning and keep the evenings to lean protein and fruits and veggies.

 

[KarenAylwood]

I found the article I mentioned in the Wall Street Journal here.

I just checked the link and it only gives the beginning, but when I googled it, I got the whole article. Try googling it if you can't see the whole thing.

 

[FlightlessDuck]

This is the frustrating thing about losing weight. I don't understand why it matters what type of food a person eats. It's all physics and chemistry. The reason people gain weight is because they eat more calories than they burn. In order to lose that weight, you have to burn more calories than you consume.

If I am burning more calories than I eat, it shouldn't matter that I am eating a lot of grains or processed food. Calories are calories.

And since this diet has worked for this long (MouseEarsJenny has lost 72lbs, I've lost almost 100), I don't understand why it would stop working now that we only have a few lbs left to lose.

Could the problem be that our base metabolism burns less calories now that we lost weight? I'm not sure if I can eat 1000 calories or less without going crazy