Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with Plateau

How can I break the weight loss plateau?

icollectpurses — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 10:03:14 -0800

I am not seeing results of personal training/working out, what can I do differently? I have been working out 'regularly' since early May. Because I've hit a plateau near the end of May, I got a personal trainer and have been working out 3x a week with her and working out by myself 30-60min a day the rest of the week. I am eating healthy 5-6 small meals a day of fruits, veggies, good protein. I do cheat a bit, with chipotle and a bagel or so, and, I am not seeing any results, neither in inches or lbs.

My personal trainer is telling me that it takes a good month to see the results, and it's been almost 4 months since I started training. I am getting discouraged and think it's a waste of my time and money.

I've read up on some stuff on plateau and what to expect, but it's been about a month and a half since I hit my plateau and I am working out more than before, doing more cardio, and diverse weight training.

Am I missing something? Has anyone experienced the same? What can I do to break the cycle? I have lost 10-15lbs in the past several times (yo yo effect), and this time I was able to do it in 2-3wks, and I think it's just harder to lose after that.

Anyway, if you have any suggestions, I'd appreciate it.

Weight, weight, don't tell me...

Unicorn on the cob — Mon, 22 Oct 2007 15:06:53 -0800

Cardio isn't doing it for me. The diet change is working verrry slowly, but I want to lose 10 pounds. Problem is, I can't lift anything heavier than 15 pounds, so is weight training even an option? Long story short: I was born with a hole on either side of my spine around where my shoulder blades are. My father and grandfather also have this same defect. I used to do Golden Gloves boxing when I was 21, and hurt myself pretty badly by straining a muscle one day. Because of the holes, when I strain a muscle in my shoulders, it swells INTO the hole, not outward, making a squeaking noise every time I move. The pain is excruciating and it typically (in the two times I've stupidly managed to do this) takes 2-3 months to heal. Bonus: I'm allergic to painkillers of all kinds, except Darvocet, and even on that I wake at night crying from the pain when I'm "squeaking". So definitely, absolutely NO free weights larger than small dumbbells for me. The doctor said specifically that I am banned from lifting ANYTHING heavier than 15 lbs. above my head... ever.

I keep hearing and reading that weight training plus cardio is the only effective workout. I've been doing hours upon hours of cardio for almost a decade now and can't seem to break a certain weight barrier. I regularly work out for up to two hours at the gym doing the elliptical, stairs, rowing machine, treadmill, stationary bike, even a few of the weight machines. I've cut back my calories, but want to build muscle in order to help break my fitness plateau. What do I do? Kettlebells? Resistance bands? Help! I'm fairly destitute, so cheaper is better (i.e. a video workout and implements are yay, classes are boo). My main goal is to avoid hurting myself and improve my overall fitness, so if you have a DIY method, even better.

(Calorie) Burning Man.

mykescipark — Sun, 29 Jul 2007 20:42:40 -0800

I'm taking a week off from working out to break a plateau. Should I dial down my eating as well or maintain my workout-level intake? I don't necessarily think this needs [more inside], but I suppose I'll add some context anyway. 30, male, 5'10, 175, fairly lean (I'd guess around 10% body fat), extremely active. I lift 4-5 times a week, bike everywhere (Boston), run an additional 1-2 times a week (6-8 miles each).

I'm leaning up for this year's Black Rock City endurance test, but I've hit the damn plateau just three weeks before Playa time. I've been getting my body primed and ready for two weeks in the desert, but I'm afraid I need to take a week off to cool my jets, as I've been training fairly intensely since last November and I just can't seem to get past a certain point over the last few weeks.

Dietarily speaking, I've been hitting the protein shakes daily for as long as I can remember; piling on the lean meats and the raw fruits and veggies; and allowing myself some wiggle room with snacks (granola bars, hard-boiled eggs, and the odd fistful of baker's chocolate in my weaker moments). In general, I'm probably diligent to a fault in strategizing my food intake.

It may seem like an easy question (possibly covered before, so blame my Google-fu), but should I adjust my eating accordingly if I'm going to cut out the exercise? I've always "worked out to eat," and I need some guidance on how to adjust. Do I keep up the high-volume eating in order to facilitate muscle repair? Should I tweak my caloric intake if I'm doing nothing more than the requisite amount of exercise to get around town? Your thoughts to the green mailbag, MeFites...

Help me change my exercise routine.

2or3whiskeysodas — Tue, 29 May 2007 05:27:59 -0800

While I'm still super enthusiastic about exercise, both my motivation and fitness level have plateaued. Suggestions? I've been running for 30 minutes at a time fairly consistently for years and still enjoy it greatly. I moved from weight training at home with a bench and some cheap dumbbells to a wonderful gym last year. Since then, I've mostly been doing variations of the 3 Day Split Workouts found here. While I haven't seen any huge muscle gains, I'm fairly happy with the results. But the amount of weight I can lift hasn't increased in I don't know how long, and I'm starting to feel just a little burned-out.

So obviously, a change is needed, and I'm open to just about anything. Ideally, it would be something that would build some muscle and/or help me break through the walls I've hit when I return to the sort of weight training I've been doing. A friend has recommended the Bodypump classes offered at my gym, but I'm not much of a believer in low-weight/high-rep stuff, which is what this sounds like. And I've meant to take swimming lessons for a long time.

Making friends in a new neighbourhood

jchgf — Mon, 10 Jul 2006 14:18:21 -0800

Looking for a brainstorm about tips for a shy, semi-square kind of guy to make friends with locals in a cool neighbourhood. I recently moved in the Plateau Mont-Royal in Montreal, Canada from Griffintown, a remote no-man's land on the edge of Old-Montreal. I would like to immerse myself in the hood and make friends with locals, but so far I find most residents seem to have large networks of cool friends and are not particularly outgoing to lone strangers. I also am not very used to the european Dolce Vita vibe of the hood, though I am very much attracted to it, and I wonder if my american (as in North American) semi-squareness isn't clashing with the local sensibilities. To put it another way, it seems like everyone around here has so much more "soul" than I do, and I am intimidated by this.

Thus, my challenge in the next year will be be to develop an active social life in the neighbourhood, and I would like to hear suggestions on how to realize this.

About me: I am 27, was born and raised as a lone child by a single mother in the northern suburb, and was pretty much a loner as a kid, teenager and well, as an adult too. I know the basics of social interaction (Carnegie, etc) and I am pleasant and interesting in short interactions, but I have always found it difficult to develop solid, long-term friendships.

I am a native french speaker and am not affected by the language barrier.

I moved in with a roommate who is very much like me, and new to the hood too. We've been bar-hopping this week but were not successful in making contacts so far.

I am looking to make friends with people 20-35 (or +) with extensive social life. I feel like this is the kind of people I need to meet at this point in my life, to help me get a real life, not a substitute from TV, movies or the workplace (which is outside the hood, but I am contemplating getting a job here).

So far on my own, I have considered:

- Getting a second job in a café or bar, though I have no experience in the service industry area.

- Hanging out in coffeeshops, but being shy, I don't find it easy to initiate contacts, and besides most people seem content in their own world.

- I have been looking for community activities, haven't found anything striking my interests. Perhaps I need to find hood-specific ressources (do you know of any?).

Would like to hear more thoughts from you! Thanks in advance.

Renting a Montreal Apartment

Succa — Thu, 30 Sep 2004 08:17:51 -0800

Renting an apartment in downtown Montréal [plus à l'intérieur] Is the rental market as bad as people say? I need to find a one-bedroom place by the end of October, preferably in the Plateau area, or somewhere within walking distance to the Peel metro station. I've been fed a lot of anecdotes about the place -- that it's impossible to find a lease starting on a date other than July 1, that the apartments in the Plateau are mostly crappy, that French landlords sometimes don't rent to the Anglos, demand in the Plateau is extremely high -- and am wondering which of these are true. Also, neighbourhood recommendations are welcome. Thanks.