Huge Deficit Stagnation/stalling weight loss

Georgiepecker

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So for the past month I have averaged around a 1800-2000 caloric deficit....I used a fat burner as well, which made it very easy. Unfortunately, the past week I have not lost nearly any weight (maybe .75-1lb) yet up to this point I have lost around 15 lbs over the 3 weeks prior to this last week. So what do you think has changed and what should my next steps be? Take a break and eat 10% under maintenance and then eat at maintenance for a considerable time....then try cutting again? Or just reduce deficit to maybe 800 calories vs 2000? Thanks ahead! I usually burn around 3500-4000 calories a day according to Fitbit.
 
paul56778

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If it is only one week, this is normal, weight loss / fat loss is not linear it also could be down to retention of water or build up inside body if you have not been regular.

I normally just accept it when this happens and i am in the same boat running a massive deficit due to being PSMF.

Stay on course with your diet if you can and let a full week pass, if the same thing happens next week then on the day you weight go up to around maintenance calories or 500 below and re-feed ensuring fat is kept under 50 grams for day and protein can be as high as 1g per lb of lean body mass, but i just do low protein low fat and moderate to high carb on these days, i find i get real hungry when doing this but it results in greater weight loss for the following weight in, it is only one day and is not excessive on calories so will not set you back.
 
APC80

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Imo huge calorie deficits aren't a good idea as you're metabolism will just slow down so much that when you start eating again the fat will just pile back on it's the reason so many people struggle to keep fat off and end up back at their original weight only to repeat the process. Yo-yo dieting is extremely bad for a bodybuilder. Fit bit is only a guide and will only give a good idea of calories burned if your metabolism is healthy. No doubt you've lost muscle as well which only makes the situation worse. As Paul says you could try a refeed but in your case I'd stretch it to 3 days just slightly above maintenance.
 
Georgiepecker

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Imo huge calorie deficits aren't a good idea as you're metabolism will just slow down so much that when you start eating again the fat will just pile back on it's the reason so many people struggle to keep fat off and end up back at their original weight only to repeat the process. Yo-yo dieting is extremely bad for a bodybuilder. Fit bit is only a guide and will only give a good idea of calories burned if your metabolism is healthy. No doubt you've lost muscle as well which only makes the situation worse. As Paul says you could try a refeed but in your case I'd stretch it to 3 days just slightly above maintenance.
I'm still not sure how this is possible though if it's still a eat less than you burn and you won't gain fat theory...are you sure those people don't just binge eat after their diet is over?
 
Georgiepecker

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If it is only one week, this is normal, weight loss / fat loss is not linear it also could be down to retention of water or build up inside body if you have not been regular.

I normally just accept it when this happens and i am in the same boat running a massive deficit due to being PSMF.

Stay on course with your diet if you can and let a full week pass, if the same thing happens next week then on the day you weight go up to around maintenance calories or 500 below and re-feed ensuring fat is kept under 50 grams for day and protein can be as high as 1g per lb of lean body mass, but i just do low protein low fat and moderate to high carb on these days, i find i get real hungry when doing this but it results in greater weight loss for the following weight in, it is only one day and is not excessive on calories so will not set you back.
ok I will stick it out. I switched up the chicken I've been eating and it contains a good amount of sodium, which could account for water retention
 
APC80

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I'm still not sure how this is possible though if it's still a eat less than you burn and you won't gain fat theory...are you sure those people don't just binge eat after their diet is over?
Your body will sense there's a shortage of food when you restrict calories too much, it's a mechanism that kept our ancestors alive when food wasn't plentiful like it is now. They had to go weeks and months with very little food and if they kept burning the same amount of calories they'd waste away and die very quickly. This isn't something I'm making up mate it's a well established fact. The other part of severe caloric restriction is you're body will burn a lot of muscle tissue as well as fat for energy as survival is more important to it than having muscle. If your goal is to look like you've just walked out of a concentration camp then work away.
 
Georgiepecker

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Your body will sense there's a shortage of food when you restrict calories too much, it's a mechanism that kept our ancestors alive when food wasn't plentiful like it is now. They had to go weeks and months with very little food and if they kept burning the same amount of calories they'd waste away and die very quickly. This isn't something I'm making up mate it's a well established fact. The other part of severe caloric restriction is you're body will burn a lot of muscle tissue as well as fat for energy as survival is more important to it than having muscle. If your goal is to look like you've just walked out of a concentration camp then work away.
Some of my lifts went up within a few days of being back in the gym after taking a month off and that is with eating maybe 75% of my body weight in protein daily. Maybe I'm an exception or I got rebound gains very easily? Either way that was with an 1800-2000 caloric deficit and losing around 15 lbs in 3 weeks. On top of this, I've not found any scientific research backing up the theory BESIDES once you reach EXTREMELY slow body fat %
 
APC80

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Some of my lifts went up within a few days of being back in the gym after taking a month off and that is with eating maybe 75% of my body weight in protein daily. Maybe I'm an exception or I got rebound gains very easily? Either way that was with an 1800-2000 caloric deficit and losing around 15 lbs in 3 weeks. On top of this, I've not found any scientific research backing up the theory BESIDES once you reach EXTREMELY slow body fat %
That's interesting that you don't seem to have lost muscle tho I do suspect the threat of muscle loss when cutting is encouraged more by supp companies to sell their products.

Don't get me wrong I'm talking about extended periods of severe caloric restriction I've seen it myself with a guy I used to work with he rebounded between looking like the Michelin man to looking like a heroin addict constantly he just kept ****in up his metabolism and hormones. I didn't realise you were only doing it for a month.

What bf were you at roughly and what did you end up at?
 
paul56778

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I'm still not sure how this is possible though if it's still a eat less than you burn and you won't gain fat theory...are you sure those people don't just binge eat after their diet is over?
of course, binge eating + lowered metabolism from deficit = rapid water retention and fat rebound / gain, this is why reverse dieting is essential because your new maintenance after a harsh deficit is going to be lowered.
 
Georgiepecker

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That's interesting that you don't seem to have lost muscle tho I do suspect the threat of muscle loss when cutting is encouraged more by supp companies to sell their products.

Don't get me wrong I'm talking about extended periods of severe caloric restriction I've seen it myself with a guy I used to work with he rebounded between looking like the Michelin man to looking like a heroin addict constantly he just kept ****in up his metabolism and hormones. I didn't realise you were only doing it for a month.

What bf were you at roughly and what did you end up at?
Well I basically started at 180lbs about 15% bf but still had visible abs. I had just ran about 8 days of Msten but got injured and couldn't lift for an entire month. When I got injured (sliced my hand pretty bad) I began just dieting and taking Hydroxy Elite to help me. After a month off (I had hit legs 3 times that month however) my bicep curl still remained the same (45x9 with proper form), my cable flys actually went up significantly rep wise, and my back exercises stayed the same aswel. I am still dieting now but would say I'm anywhere between 11-12% now and I have a log up if interested
 
APC80

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of course, binge eating + lowered metabolism from deficit = rapid water retention and fat rebound / gain, this is why reverse dieting is essential because your new maintenance after a harsh deficit is going to be lowered.
Reverse dieting is brilliant for resetting your metabolism to be able to cut on higher calories, cut too hard and the opposite happens you end up needing to starve yourself then you pile fat n quickly again when you go back to eating normally.
 
APC80

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That's great progress for one month mate I'm about the same bf% as you in your starting pic sitting at 180lbs now, what height are you? About 5'8"?

Starting my cut tomorrow was meant to be Monday but went to a football match on sat, all day drinking, and I'm covered in bruises from falling on sat night lol haven't been able to hit the gym this week yet as I'm smashed up.
 
Georgiepecker

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That's great progress for one month mate I'm about the same bf% as you in your starting pic sitting at 180lbs now, what height are you? About 5'8"?

Starting my cut tomorrow was meant to be Monday but went to a football match on sat, all day drinking, and I'm covered in bruises from falling on sat night lol haven't been able to hit the gym this week yet as I'm smashed up.
I'm 5'10 but couldn't have lost the fat I did without a fat burner tbh people expect the fat burner to melt your fat but you must out work in to get results! I've had a few cheat days too probably 5500 calories on those days haha. Best of luck
 
APC80

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I'm 5'10 but couldn't have lost the fat I did without a fat burner tbh people expect the fat burner to melt your fat but you must out work in to get results! I've had a few cheat days too probably 5500 calories on those days haha. Best of luck
Cheers mate I'm actually thinking of starting a log with progress pics just for extra bit of motivation I'll be using s4,osta, gw and code red fat burner. May cut cut harder than usual after seeing your results cos I'm an impatient ****er.
 
Georgiepecker

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Cheers mate I'm actually thinking of starting a log with progress pics just for extra bit of motivation I'll be using s4,osta, gw and code red fat burner. May cut cut harder than usual after seeing your results cos I'm an impatient ****er.
With that stack you shouldn't have a problem doing an aggressive cut I'd imagine. Especially the osta
 
Georgiepecker

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I think we're getting back on track I quit using the fat burner as well since my blood pressure to to 144/75 and I'm going to just keep cutting at a 500-1000 deficit
 
APC80

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I think we're getting back on track I quit using the fat burner as well since my blood pressure to to 144/75 and I'm going to just keep cutting at a 500-1000 deficit
I started yesterday on a 500 deficit and woke up 4lbs lighter this morning, I know it's only water weight but it feels good to see the scale move. From past experience I reckon I'll drop around 8lbs the first week then level off to 1-2 p/w. Makes it harder people that don't understand saying I'm not fat and asking why I'm on a diet. Hopefully with the SARM stack I'm on I'll not lose strength in the gym. How likely is it I'll gain some muscle and strength in a deficit? Heard of people doing it but dunno if it's just internet bragging or what.
 
Georgiepecker

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I started yesterday on a 500 deficit and woke up 4lbs lighter this morning, I know it's only water weight but it feels good to see the scale move. From past experience I reckon I'll drop around 8lbs the first week then level off to 1-2 p/w. Makes it harder people that don't understand saying I'm not fat and asking why I'm on a diet. Hopefully with the SARM stack I'm on I'll not lose strength in the gym. How likely is it I'll gain some muscle and strength in a deficit? Heard of people doing it but dunno if it's just internet bragging or what.
I mean with what you're taking it's very likely in my opinion you can gain some, definitely won't lose strength though
 
APC80

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I mean with what you're taking it's very likely in my opinion you can gain some, definitely won't lose strength though
Hope so mate I mean I was fine yesterday actually gained a couple reps on OHP but I'm feeling a bit weak today I generally don't do well on low calories hope it's just my body adjusting tho. That's why I'm on this stack I lose strength when cutting and it frustrates the hell outta me. Guess I'll find out later when I hit the gym. I HATE cutting lol
 
Wimsicle

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Try refeeding a day to reset leptin levels? Idk why your macros are to offer input but could try.
 
larrybailey

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This is why I only weigh every two weeks! Lol ok, try intermittent fasting, fast for 16 hours and eat your 1800 calories inside of a 8 hour window. Your body will burn Stored fat 8 hours after your last meal. So the 16 hour fast works great!
 
paul56778

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This is why I only weigh every two weeks! Lol ok, try intermittent fasting, fast for 16 hours and eat your 1800 calories inside of a 8 hour window. Your body will burn Stored fat 8 hours after your last meal. So the 16 hour fast works great!
This is what i do, only i eat 1100 calories, PSMF diet. start eating at around 12:45-1:00pm and finish before 8 normally. sometimes it works out more like an 18 hour or 19 hour fast followed by a 6 or 5 hour eating window.
 
Georgiepecker

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Try refeeding a day to reset leptin levels? Idk why your macros are to offer input but could try.
my macros were pretty bad overall I just worried about calories being much less than what I burned, so I was able to cut around 15lbs without losing much strength. I think I'm going to call it quits on my diet after 30 days. Eat maintenance for a while and see if I want to try to cut a little more body fat or not as I'm happy to have lost what I did.
 
diggyroxx

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APC80 gets it. Plus you will be a boneless, tired, blankshooter.
 

hambone2493

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"I usually burn around 3500-4000 calories a day according to Fitbit."
Fitbit isn't even close to accurate. It can only measure heart rate and try to guess how many steps you've taken. It has no idea how much muscle you have or your diet, so I wouldn't really pay much attention to the it's calorie statistics.
 
Georgiepecker

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APC80 gets it. Plus you will be a boneless, tired, blankshooter.
i did lose 15lbs in one month without suffering in my lifts however, though I know some of the weight was water weight of course. I was surprised with how much energy I kept and how my lifts didn't decrease. The fat burner stimulants help in that regard though
 
paul56778

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i did lose 15lbs in one month without suffering in my lifts however, though I know some of the weight was water weight of course. I was surprised with how much energy I kept and how my lifts didn't decrease. The fat burner stimulants help in that regard though
Only lifts which i ever find suffer are benchpress and squats.

I feel it is relative strength though and due to topped up glycogen stores when bulking, also the fact that joints, knees, elbows and shoulders feel better when not very low on calories and deep into a cut.
 
Georgiepecker

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Only lifts which i ever find suffer are benchpress and squats.

I feel it is relative strength though and due to topped up glycogen stores when bulking, also the fact that joints, knees, elbows and shoulders feel better when not very low on calories and deep into a cut.
Yeah I agree my lifts that require a massive amount of force and strength as it is are the ones that did suffer unfortunately. I haven't tried to max what I did on bench before or go too heavy yet, but I don't feel as explosive that's for sure.
 
APC80

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My last cut I dropped a 35kg dumbbell on my chest doing incline db presses I lost power completely in my right arm and it just missed my face. Luckily got away with just bruising but this time I'll be more careful going to failure on presses.
 

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