Thread: Veterans Tell Me How You Broke A Stall

I have lost 31 pounds since July 4, 2004 on Atkins. For the last 5 weeks I have lost and regained the same 3 pounds over and over. I have done induction for a few days, I have increased my carbs. I have done EVERYTHING!! I am still drinking my water and I am still exercising. And, I have not cheated even ONE time since July 4th!!! And I follow the plan very closely eating only natural, Atkins plan foods! PLEASE, PLEASE share your stories with me as to what worked for you in the same situation! Thanks so much for all of your help!!!

Ive seen a lot of people have a high day or 2 of carbs and then go back to their lower number and this seems to help so many people. Im not sure how you are at eating something off plan, but if i eat something off plan at least once a month, i dont mean the processed so called low carb stuff i mean the real deal, well i have actually broken a stall like that.

Or maybe you should look at your workout routine, it has to be varied just as your diet should be.

Not to advocate cheating or going off plan, but i seemany people stall that do not cheat at all then ive probably seen of people who actually eat off plan every so often, just something ive noticed.

I stalled all summer--I jsut rode it out and kept doing what I was doing and 31lbs since July4 is a lot of weight. Your body may well just be catching up with itself--as I suspect mine was this summer. I did lose a few inches over the summer--very slowly, but boy did it make a difference in my appearance all the sudden when the weight started coming off again. I tried high carb off plan and only got a belly-ache, I tried very low--back to about 30, nothing, just time fixed it really. I started losing again in August and have lost about 15 since 10 Aug when school started back in session. I was 178 virtually all summer--well, somewhere between 175 and 180 all summer--jsut depended on the day!

Keep working out, keep eating on plan and keep drinking your water and just let it happen--sometimes there is nothing you can do to convince your body to give up more pounds til it is ready to do so. . .but giving up isn't the answer!

Last summer, when I had about 10 pounds left to lose, I kept losing and gaining the same 2 to 3 lbs over and over for several months. Finally, I was able to move on by recognizing that my smaller body needed less food than it needed when I was heavier. I left my carbs about the same, but started eating less of the more calorie-dense foods and more low carb veggies.

I still ate well, but I used my diet tracking software to monitor total calories as well as carbs. So, I had to start keeping a closer eye on portion sizes and total calories. I cut way back or even eliminated some higher fat foods and those addicting salty snacks (nuts and pork rinds, for example).

I incorporated more veggies into most meals. For example, instead of eating bacon or sausage with my eggs, I'd reheat left over zucchini with a little cheese or cauli mash to eat with eggs.

How are you tracking your food intake? If you don't keep a food diary, that may help you work your way past this stall. It can help identify hidden carbs or other trouble areas.

Thanks so much! You guys are great! Well, I ate some fried chicken AND some fried fish yesterday and a half of a homemade yeast roll! It was my Mom's birthday so I took the plunge! But I am right back on plan today and will weigh in a couple of days and hopefully this won't make me cry!! Anyway, I probably need to add another form of exercise I guess other than my stationary bicycle! And, I will watch my portions a little better focusing on my healthy veggies! Thanks for all the encouragement!!

Rhonda,

Teelbee said everything that I would have said. I especially want to emphasize her point about tracking. Try Fitday or another tracking program and keep up with both calories and carbs. Give your body time to "catch up" and settle in with this weight. You will start to lose again. They say it's not really a stall until you have gone a month without losing anything.

Some people are metabolically resistant to weight loss due to a sluggish thyroid (hypothyroid), PCOS, yeast, Hashimoto's, HRT, perimenopause, other medications, other conditions - and for those few, the Fat Fast a couple of days a week works wonders. It's a good idea to check that none of those conditions exist - if they do, address them, get treated correctly and the weight will be easier to lose after that.

Keep doing the right things - low-carb, lots of water, exercise - and in time the body will let go of the fat and become healthier. It is not usually an overnight thing for most women.

Low-carbing has been wonderful for me. I have Hashimoto's and am quite metabolically resistant to weight loss (blessedly I don't gain very easily either, as I'm very careful with my diet). Even after 5 low-carb cookbooks, my weight is in better control than when I was doing the diabetic cookbooks and I'm almost 50 years old. Go figure! 'Scuse the pun!

Thank you guys so much for all of the advice and encouragement! I did eat one day of higher carb food without going overboard and I did not eat any sugar or potatoes!! I had FRIED chicken and FRIED fish and one bite of a yeast roll!! But, viola!...I have lost 5 more pounds now and I have not been able to exercise plus, I have been having a low carb candy bar EVERY DAY!!!!! (something I have not been eating in the past at all!) I LOVE this WOE!!!!!!!!!

Here's something else to think about. If you are doing ANY LC wheat products, you might want to stop using them for about a week and see if that breaks your stall. See Maxibee's post here in the Atkins forum about it.

Also, I have a GREEN TEA Challenge going in the Challenge forums. Dr. Nicholas Perricone (a recent guest on Oprah) says to drink green tea for 6 weeks and lose 10 lbs. So we have a challenge going for this. Come and join us!!!!Here's a link to it I have finally broken a stall I have been suffering for about 8 months. And I started drinking the tea about a week ago and have lost almost 3 lbs since.

Barb, it's so great to hear that you broke your stall, but what is even better is that you did not give in! 8 months and you stuck to your LC plan. Your determination is outstanding!

Ed, this way of eating has become a way of life for me. So eating the way I used to is NOT an option. I may have a rare baked potato or an apple once in awhile, but I feel I'm pretty close to maintenance anyway, so I allow those maintenance foods once or twice a month. It gets pretty discouraging to have a stall last that long, but, you have to shift your thinking process and ride it out, maintain, re-evaluate and keep pluggin' along. PLUS, it helps to find treat type foods that fit in the plan, but that make you feel like you are not depriving yourself. I think that's the key, to not let yourself feel like you are deprived. I found the recipe section of this site up there at the top INVALUABLE for getting me through the beginning stages. Creative cooking becomes your ally. Have you caught any of George Stella's cooking segments on FoodNetwork? I hope they have him on more often. (I send feedback to their website whenever possible to make them realize that we ARE watching.) Check it out www.foodnetwork.com