Breaking Weight loss plateus

[Guest guest]

I know someone that has lost about 70 lbs on a 1200 kcal diet and

with exercise of about 2 hrs a day 5-6 days a week and she lifts 3

times a week. She has not lost any weight for the last 1.5 months.

She is concerned and she feels really bad that she is not losing

anymore. I have suggested to her to pump up her calories over the

next few weeks. Take a week off from her aerobic exercise and then

when she restarts to only go about 45 mins tops but go higher

intensity. I was hoping that someone has some good ideas and some

experience in overcoming such plateaus and what she should do to

overcome this and start losing her body fat at a good rate.

Tollison

Salt lake city, utah

[Guest guest]

Losing 70 lbs is no small feat and she should be

encouraged that she is among the few who have managed

to achieve this goal. She is obviously not at her

goal yet but she has to be patient. Her body is

adjusting to the new weight. Her metabolism has

changed. A weight loss of 70 lbs means that she need

400 less calories daily to maintain her present

weight. For survival reasons we unfortunately have

built in safeguards against losing weight.

Whenever a patient of mine comes with the complaint

that they are following a diet and exercising and

cannot seem to lose weight I ask them to keep a daily

diary of their food intake paying particular attention

to the number of calories. I also ask them to keep a

diary of their daily activities. How many hours of

rest (lying down) , how many hours are sedentary and

how many hours are light activity (standing or

casually walking) besides the time spent exercising.

In most cases if they keep a diary when they return

for their next office visit they will have lost

weight. Most of us tend to under estimate how many

calories we actually consume and we tend to

overestimate how many calories we burn in 24 hours.

Many of us would be surprised how much time we spend

in a 24 hour period either resting (lying down) or

seated. Studies have shown that individuals who are

lean burn on average about 300-400 more calories in

daily spontaneous activity , than individuals who are

overweight or obese. That 300-400 calories translates

to 30-40 lbs yearly.

You do not mention this persons age or her present

weight. As we age our metabolism slows down for many

reasons and it becomes more difficult (not impossible)

to lose the weight we have gained.

You did not mention what kind of diet she is

following. If she is following a low carb diet she

may have become hypothyroid. Studies have shown that

when you severely restrict your carb intake the

thyroid hormone becomes hypoactive. With low carb

diets the body uses protein to supply the necessary

glucose for the brain. The brain requires

approximately 90 grams a day to function. When this

is not supplied in the diet the body makes glucose in

the liver by converting protein to glucose by way of a

process called gluconeogenesis. The brain is the only

organ in our body that cannot use fat for its

metabolism.

I would suggest to that individual that she be patient

and encouraged by her remarkable achievement. That

she keep a daily diary for at least 2-3 weeks of all

her activities and calorie intake. And that she be

sure to take in adequate Carbs (in the form of fruits

and vegetables) as well as adequate protein.

Ralph Giarnella MD

Southington Ct USA

--- lehi53 wrote:

>

>

> I know someone that has lost about 70 lbs on a 1200

> kcal diet and

> with exercise of about 2 hrs a day 5-6 days a week

> and she lifts 3

> times a week. She has not lost any weight for the

> last 1.5 months.

> She is concerned and she feels really bad that she

> is not losing

> anymore. I have suggested to her to pump up her

> calories over the

> next few weeks. Take a week off from her aerobic

> exercise and then

> when she restarts to only go about 45 mins tops but

> go higher

> intensity. I was hoping that someone has some good

> ideas and some

> experience in overcoming such plateaus and what she

> should do to

> overcome this and start losing her body fat at a

> good rate.

>

> Tollison

> Salt lake city, utah

>

>

>

>

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

Ya'll probably would want to read The Ketogenic Diet by Lyle

Mc. I was surprised how detailed it is and backed up by hundreds

of references. Keep it in mind, it's nothing you'd expect. Think of it

as an advanced nutrition course for fat loss. Lyle advocates " free

meals " or " refeeding " depending on the individuals but nothing very

strict like those over hyped diet books you see on the shelves. It

should give you some ideas on how to modifiy the diet to keep the fat

progress humming. It might be a boring reading for some people though.

Lol. Like I said, it's like reading a textbook for advanced nutrition

class for fat loss. Impressive book though. I wished I bought it years

ago. At first, I thought it was just one of those gimmicks and it

turned out to be that's not the case. Oh well.

Louis Truett,

Arlington Tx

>

> >

> >

> > I know someone that has lost about 70 lbs on a 1200

> > kcal diet and

> > with exercise of about 2 hrs a day 5-6 days a week

> > and she lifts 3

> > times a week. She has not lost any weight for the

> > last 1.5 months.

> > She is concerned and she feels really bad that she

> > is not losing

> > anymore. I have suggested to her to pump up her

> > calories over the

> > next few weeks. Take a week off from her aerobic

> > exercise and then

> > when she restarts to only go about 45 mins tops but

> > go higher

> > intensity. I was hoping that someone has some good

> > ideas and some

> > experience in overcoming such plateaus and what she

> > should do to

> > overcome this and start losing her body fat at a

> > good rate.

> >

> > Tollison

> > Salt lake city, utah

[Guest guest]

Dr Gianella where did you get that the brain needs 90 grams of glucose daily?

Thank You

Serrano

Columbus Ohio

In a message dated 02/13/05 3:46:55 AM Eastern Standard Time,

ragiarn@... writes:

Whenever a patient of mine comes with the complaint

that they are following a diet and exercising and

cannot seem to lose weight I ask them to keep a daily

diary of their food intake paying particular attention

to the number of calories. I also ask them to keep a

diary of their daily activities. How many hours of

rest (lying down) , how many hours are sedentary and

how many hours are light activity (standing or

casually walking) besides the time spent exercising.

In most cases if they keep a diary when they return

for their next office visit they will have lost

weight. Most of us tend to under estimate how many

calories we actually consume and we tend to

overestimate how many calories we burn in 24 hours.

Many of us would be surprised how much time we spend

in a 24 hour period either resting (lying down) or

seated. Studies have shown that individuals who are

lean burn on average about 300-400 more calories in

daily spontaneous activity , than individuals who are

overweight or obese. That 300-400 calories translates

to 30-40 lbs yearly.

You do not mention this persons age or her present

weight. As we age our metabolism slows down for many

reasons and it becomes more difficult (not impossible)

to lose the weight we have gained.

You did not mention what kind of diet she is

following. If she is following a low carb diet she

may have become hypothyroid. Studies have shown that

when you severely restrict your carb intake the

thyroid hormone becomes hypoactive. With low carb

diets the body uses protein to supply the necessary

glucose for the brain. The brain requires

approximately 90 grams a day to function. When this

is not supplied in the diet the body makes glucose in

the liver by converting protein to glucose by way of a

process called gluconeogenesis. The brain is the only

organ in our body that cannot use fat for its

metabolism.

I would suggest to that individual that she be patient

and encouraged by her remarkable achievement. That

she keep a daily diary for at least 2-3 weeks of all

her activities and calorie intake. And that she be

sure to take in adequate Carbs (in the form of fruits

and vegetables) as well as adequate protein.

Ralph Giarnella MD

Southington Ct USA

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 1/25/2005 4:51:38 A.M. Central Standard Time,

lehi52@... writes:

I know someone that has lost about 70 lbs on a 1200 kcal diet and

with exercise of about 2 hrs a day 5-6 days a week and she lifts 3

times a week. She has not lost any weight for the last 1.5 months.

She is concerned and she feels really bad that she is not losing

anymore. I have suggested to her to pump up her calories over the

next few weeks. Take a week off from her aerobic exercise and then

when she restarts to only go about 45 mins tops but go higher

intensity. I was hoping that someone has some good ideas and some

experience in overcoming such plateaus and what she should do to

overcome this and start losing her body fat at a good rate.

Tollison

Salt lake city, utah

She needs to eat more and sleep more.

kson, CST

Minneapolis, MN

[Guest guest]

Although I am not a dietician, I am certified as a Lifestyle and Weight

Management Consultant by ACE, and I have been administering RMR tests for almost

a year (using indirect calorimetry with a MetaCheck), and I see this same

situation all the time. The initial reduction in calories leads to big weight

loss, followed by a plateau. Increasing exercise doesn't make an impact as the

body is conserving fat for long-term storage during the perceived " famine " .

You're on the right track telling your client to increase her calorie intake as

1200 claories is probably below her RMR, however in order to know how much she

should increase her calories, I recommend that you refer her to someone who can

test her metabolism. BodyGem, MetaCheck and New Leaf are a few of the companies

that sell RMR testing devices. In fact, Korr Medical, manufacturer of

MetaCheck, is based in Salt Lake City (http://www.korr.com/) If she doesn't

want to get an RMR test, you can estimate her RMR using the -Benedict

equation:

BW = body weight in kilograms, HT = height in cm, Age in years

Men: RMR = 66.473 + 13.751*BW + 5.0033*HT - 6.755*Age

Women: RMR = 655.0955 + 9.463*BW + 1.8496*HT - 4.6756*Age

Next, multiply her RMR by 0.3 (30%) to estimate the additional calories she

burns during daily activity. (It might be slighly more or less, depending on

her lifestyle, but 30% is a good ballpark number). Finally, add an estimate of

calories burned during exercise (there are many resources to estimate this).

The total represents her total calories burned per day. (Obviously, on days she

doesn't exercise, you would just use RMR plus .3 x RMR).

In order to estimate her optimum calorie intake, you need to use her RMR as the

minimum amount of calories. Eating below this level will not meet her body's

baseline nutritional needs. If she is below this level (which I suspect), get

her to *slowly* increase calories to her RMR. This will probably be scary for

her due to fear of regained weight, but I tell clients to add the calories

before and after exercise. This ensures they're getting adequate fuel for their

workouts as well as replacing lost glycogen afterwards. There's no set formula

to increase the caloric intake, but try 100 calories before a workout (1-3 hours

pre-exercise) and 100 calories afterwards (30-60 minutes). Gradually keep

increasing calories until she is at least eating her RMR in calories. It's

important to monitor body fat composition during this increase to ensure that

she's not storing additional fat. She may see a slight weight gain due to water

retention, but that should flush out in a week or so. Also, ensure that she's

eating complex carbs. If she's on a low-carb diet, she needs to start adding

more complex carbs. The next step would be to continue to add calories until

she's about eating 250-1000 fewer than her total calories burned, using the

above calculations, again no less than RMR. At this caloric intake, she should

start to see a loss of 1/2 - 2 pounds per week. Keep in mind that her RMR will

likely decrease as she loses more weight (she has less mass), so you can

re-calculate her intake if she hits another plateau.

As far as reducing her aerobic exercise, it might be a good idea for her to take

it easy for a week or two to let her body recover, or to try shorter bouts with

intervals, but studies show that people with long-term success in losing weight

and keeping it off burn about 2000 calories per week through exercise.

Best Regards,

Peggy Bowes

Mesa, AZ

www.meta-test.com

Re: Breaking Weight loss plateus

In a message dated 1/25/2005 4:51:38 A.M. Central Standard Time,

lehi52@... writes:

I know someone that has lost about 70 lbs on a 1200 kcal diet and

with exercise of about 2 hrs a day 5-6 days a week and she lifts 3

times a week. She has not lost any weight for the last 1.5 months.

She is concerned and she feels really bad that she is not losing

anymore. I have suggested to her to pump up her calories over the

next few weeks. Take a week off from her aerobic exercise and then

when she restarts to only go about 45 mins tops but go higher

intensity. I was hoping that someone has some good ideas and some

experience in overcoming such plateaus and what she should do to

overcome this and start losing her body fat at a good rate.

Tollison

Salt lake city, utah

[Guest guest]

By far the easiest and most accurate way to measure caloric expenditure is with

the Bodymedia armband devices. It's simple and easy to use and gives you actual

calories burned, calories burned through activity, steps taken, and a host of

other information rather than just RMR, which is only marginally useful at best.

Using the armbands is much more useful than any standard equations and they are

very affordable. Check out www.bodymedia.com for more information

son

Kirkland, WA

EndZone Athletics

Re: Breaking Weight loss plateus

In a message dated 1/25/2005 4:51:38 A.M. Central Standard Time,

lehi52@... writes:

I know someone that has lost about 70 lbs on a 1200 kcal diet and

with exercise of about 2 hrs a day 5-6 days a week and she lifts 3

times a week. She has not lost any weight for the last 1.5 months.

She is concerned and she feels really bad that she is not losing

anymore. I have suggested to her to pump up her calories over the

next few weeks. Take a week off from her aerobic exercise and then

when she restarts to only go about 45 mins tops but go higher

intensity. I was hoping that someone has some good ideas and some

experience in overcoming such plateaus and what she should do to

overcome this and start losing her body fat at a good rate.

Tollison

Salt lake city, utah

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[Guest guest]

Interesting product line but unfortunately at this time they won't even give

a person a PRICE! see the sites for details. They have a " shipment hold "

right now, apparently demand has outpaced their ability to produce these

units. If the claims are accurate then it may be of great use especially

when making weight class and other rather refined changes in body

composition.

The Phantom

aka Schaefer, CMT, CSCS, competing powerlifter

Denver, Colorado, USA

It was written:

>

> By far the easiest and most accurate way to measure caloric expenditure is

> with the Bodymedia armband devices. It's simple and easy to use and gives

> you actual calories burned, calories burned through activity, steps taken,

> and a host of other information rather than just RMR, which is only

> marginally useful at best. Using the armbands is much more useful than any

> standard equations and they are very affordable. Check out

> www.bodymedia.com for more information

>

> son

> Kirkland, WA

> EndZone Athletics

[Guest guest]

,

You must have gone through bodymedia site to the part where Roche is marketing

their online program, the armbands are still readily available through the

Bodymedia company directly and Apex has just launched their own version of the

program as well using the armbands, although personally I'm not the biggest fan

of Apex myself. Bodymedia sells the armband and a copy of their wearer software

for $599 I believe. There is also a company out of land working on a shirt

that you wear that records and tracks similar and even more data,

www.sensatex.com but it won't be released until the end of this year

son

EndZone Athletics

Kirkland, WA

Re: Breaking Weight loss plateus

Interesting product line but unfortunately at this time they won't even give

a person a PRICE! see the sites for details. They have a " shipment hold "

right now, apparently demand has outpaced their ability to produce these

units. If the claims are accurate then it may be of great use especially

when making weight class and other rather refined changes in body

composition.

The Phantom

aka Schaefer, CMT, CSCS, competing powerlifter

Denver, Colorado, USA

It was written:

>

> By far the easiest and most accurate way to measure caloric expenditure is

> with the Bodymedia armband devices. It's simple and easy to use and gives

> you actual calories burned, calories burned through activity, steps taken,

> and a host of other information rather than just RMR, which is only

> marginally useful at best. Using the armbands is much more useful than any

> standard equations and they are very affordable. Check out

> www.bodymedia.com for more information

>

> son

> Kirkland, WA

> EndZone Athletics

Modify/cancel your subscription at:

http://groups.yahoo.com/mygroups

Sign all letters with full name & city of residence if you

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