Any suggestions - 19 Mos and stalled!! Help

Hello Cali Forum!  I wanted to know if anyone has any suggestions on how to get the scale moving once again.  A little history:

I am 19 months out and 5'3 144lbs.  I started out at 262 lbs and I am grateful to have lost as much as I have.  I have a goal in mind and that is to be in the normal ranges of the weight chart that hangs on my doctor's wall, lol and I need to get to 130lbs.  That is 14 more pounds.  I have been tiring everything and can't for the life of me get below 142.  I keep bouncing back and forth for that past 5 months and it is frustrating.

I don't want to do the fad diets or liquid only cause the weight will come back, I want to just lose those last few pounds and maintain it.  I am doing cardo at least 3 times a week and weight training (mild) 1-2x a week.  I eat decently but no different than I have for the past year. 

Does your body just stop and refuse to move at some point?  Did I stretch out my pouch and am eating more than I think?  (I can eat a 3in subway sandwich at one sitting)  I am worried and hope I haven't done something to my pouch. 

I would appreciate any suggestions for people who are at least 1 1/2 yrs out and have lost after that...WHAT DID YOU DO AND DID IT STAY OFF.

Thanks family!

Val

Hey Val,

I started out at the exact same weight as you (262) and I've been holding steady at between 121 and 125 for the past year.  I also experienced a stall at about 2 years out.  You didn't go into detail about what your daily diet is like, but I found that if I was working out a lot (like you seem to be doing) and I wasn't eating enough, that I held on to the weight longer.  Seems counter-intuitive, but our metabolisms seem to want to hold on to weight if we don't give them enough calories to burn.

In my case, I upped my intake of protein significantly (by using shakes and protein bars, as well as good proteins like cheese, tuna, avocados, peanut butter) and really trying to cut down on any kind of carbs.  I also have reactive hypoglycemia, so cutting down on carbs helped that as well.

Maybe try keeping a food diary for a few weeks to get a good idea of what you're eating.  And try to up your calories a bit by eating good, clean proteins. 

I'm sure others will chime in with their ideas as well, but hopefully my suggestions will give you a starting point.  I know it can be really frustrating to stall out - especially after the majority of the weight has come off already.  Just know that you've done REALLY well so far and try not to let it get you down. 

Sorry I didn't have more advice for you.  Good luck!

Thank you so much for your reply, you have done awesome yourself!!!  I eat decent but I am sure there is room for improvement.  I thought if I were working out so hard it would counter act the occassional slip up but I guess there isn't much wiggle room.  I will begin to log what I eat, I have never done that and make sure to clean up the carbs & get all my water in.  Those are very good suggestions.  Thank you. 

Val

There were several things that you can do, one is to start the 5 day pouch test, you can do a web search on it and get all the details.  You could do what Cindy said, no breads, no snacks, go back to your protein shakes, and really cut down on what you should not be eating, intake more proteins, up your water intake, and exercise more and more.  Or you can just say, the heck with it, no doctor is going to tell you that you are fat because you are 14 lbs off what a chart tells you that you are.  For your body, it may be just very happy where it is at and you may just be done.

Good luck, Diane

Thank you, I have cleaned up most of my eating but I am sure, I could increase the water and cut off the snacks.  Thank you for your response.  I knew the last 10-15 would be difficult, but damn, I am working my butt off and its not moving.  I will give the pouch test another go.  Thank you Diane C.