still unable to break through weight plateau

A couple of years ago (???), I posted a note about not being able to break through the weight loss plateau. I've tried all the things mentioned in the replies and more. Still nothing seems to work.

Briefly, I'm an Asian male, 54, 145 pounds, 5 ft 5 in, been on the heavier side all my life (endomorph? ayurvedic classification kapha-pitha variety), and a marginal diabetic (under excellent control).

I walk 4-8 km every day (3-5 miles) at a speed of usually 3.5 mph. On alternate days, I do about 30-45 min of yoga stretches; other the other three days about 30 min with dumbbells.

Meals are entirely vegetarian, mostly salads (protein through sprouts, nuts). Drink lots of water (often half a gallon a day).

Came down from 172 pounds to 145 in a couple of months after becoming diabetic five years ago. Since then, weight has almost always been at this mark. I tried varying the kinds of exercise, their intensity, then increased food quantity for a couple of weeks (weight went up to 150 but now back at 145).

Friends say there's no way I can reach the 130 pounds I was in my mid-twenties and that my weight of 145 pounds is ok for my age. Your comments?

Mon. Jan 11, 11:06am

Ayurvedic... nice. :)

Ever try heavy weigh lifting? Works for me for weight loss. I've been losing 1.5lbs a week for about 10 weeks now. I also do cardio and eat very clean. Heavy weights cause micro tears in the muscle that force your body to burn extra calories over the next 48 hours to repair the damage.. make sense? Worst case scenerio you stay the same weight but add muscle which will make you a healthier 145lbs.

Monday, January 11, 2010, 11:57 AM

Me again..

Hey, last poster again.

I'm reading "Eat for Life" right now. Even though it's not for me I'd recommend any vegetarian to read it. You can definitely learn a lot from this guy..

Monday, January 11, 2010, 11:58 AM

Well, according to the charts I looked at, 130 for your height and being male would be underweight. What's your frame structure? Are you small, medium, or large framed? Those are also factors. 145 is actually right in the middle of "normal" for a medium build man and at the low end for a large framed man.

Monday, January 11, 2010, 12:03 PM

You're near the top of your normal weight range, assuming you have a large bone structure. Considering the marginal diabetes, would cut back a bit on calories for aditional weight loss.

Monday, January 11, 2010, 4:02 PM

Thanks for the postings. Yes, I am a large-boned person, which makes 145 the higher end of the height-weight chart for this kind of body.

I use 8-pound dumbbells for most of the exercises and 4-pound ones for some. Have been doing many of the weight training exercises while sitting,lying on an exercise ball to make it more challenging.

Tuesday, January 12, 2010, 10:55 AM

Actually, OP, 145 for a large boned man is the low end of your height / weight chart, not the higher end. You're at a good weight based on every chart I could find.

Tuesday, January 12, 2010, 11:00 AM

Where there's a will there's a way! The question is should you and do you even want to?

I fall within the weight range for what's normal for my height, but I clearly look better at the lower end of the range vs. just a few more pounds at the upper part of the range. So, it may not be unreasonable the OP to shoot for the lower end of his range. And, I'm not satisfied with looking 'okay' (I mean, I am, but I prefer to look great!) So, again, the goal of looking better than 'okay for my age' may not be unreasonable or unrealistic.

That said, back when I was 20 I, too, weighed about 15 pounds less than I do now. I also know there's no way in HELL I want to work THAT hard to get back there, where I'm unlikely to stay for more than 5 minutes! :) Not that it can't be done, mind you. I just don't want to do what it takes to get there. I'm happy to work hard, eat well, get to the higher end of my 'I look great' weight range and call it a day.

OP - it's hard to really give good advice as to what you need to do differently without really knowing the details. You say you eat vegetarian, but that doesn't automatically translate into being weight loss friendly. And you work out a lot, but that doesn't mean you're really challenging your body.

Sounds like what you are doing is maintaining. If you want change you've got to do something differently. How about turning those walks into runs?

Or, accept that you look good at 145 and enjoy life!

Tuesday, January 12, 2010, 12:53 PM

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