For those of you who have had or are having the 3 week stall, I found a great article that explains the reason why this happens. It's about plateau's in general, but it really sheds some light on the 3 week stall. It doesn't use that exact phrase, but you'll know it when you read it. The author uses the phrase," the inevitable stall"....here is the crux of it.

"A "stall" a few weeks out is inevitable, and here's why.

Our bodies use glycogen for short term energy storage. Glycogen is not very soluble, but it is stored in our muscles for quick energy -- one pound of glycogen requires 4 lbs of Water to keep it soluble, and the average glycogen storage capacity is about 2 lbs. So, when you are not getting in enough food, your body turns first to stored glycogen, which is easy to break down for energy. And when you use up 2 lbs of glycogen, you also lose 8 lbs of water that was used to store it -- voila -- the "easy" 10 lbs that most people lose in the first week of a diet.

As you stay in caloric deficit, however, your body starts to realize that this is not a short term problem. You start mobilizing fat from your adipose tissue and burning fat for energy. But your body also realizes that fat can't be used for short bursts of energy -- like, to outrun a saber tooth tiger. So, it starts converting some of the fat into glycogen, and rebuilding the glycogen stores. And as it puts back the 2 lbs of glycogen into the muscle, 8 lbs of water has to be stored with it to keep it soluble. So, even though you might still be LOSING energy content to your body, your weight will not go down or you might even GAIN for a while as you retain water to dissolve the glycogen that is being reformed and stored."

http://www.dsfacts.c...or-plateau.html

For those of you who have had or are having the 3 week stall' date=' I found a great article that explains the reason why this happens. It's about plateau's in general, but it really sheds some light on the 3 week stall. It doesn't use that exact phrase, but you'll know it when you read it. The arthor uses the phrase," the inevitable stall"....here is the crux of it.

"A "stall" a few weeks out is inevitable, and here's why.

Our bodies use glycogen for short term energy storage. Glycogen is not very soluble, but it is stored in our muscles for quick energy -- one pound of glycogen requires 4 lbs of Water to keep it soluble, and the average glycogen storage capacity is about 2 lbs. So, when you are not getting in enough food, your body turns first to stored glycogen, which is easy to break down for energy. And when you use up 2 lbs of glycogen, you also lose 8 lbs of water that was used to store it -- voila -- the "easy" 10 lbs that most people lose in the first week of a diet.

As you stay in caloric deficit, however, your body starts to realize that this is not a short term problem. You start mobilizing fat from your adipose tissue and burning fat for energy. But your body also realizes that fat can't be used for short bursts of energy -- like, to outrun a saber tooth tiger. So, it starts converting some of the fat into glycogen, and rebuilding the glycogen stores. And as it puts back the 2 lbs of glycogen into the muscle, 8 lbs of water has to be stored with it to keep it soluble. So, even though you might still be LOSING energy content to your body, your weight will not go down or you might even GAIN for a while as you retain water to dissolve the glycogen that is being reformed and stored."

http://www.dsfacts.com/weight-loss-stall-or-plateau.html

Great article thx

That is a great article. Thanks for putting it out there for the newbies. Everyone's first stall is scary. Feels like you'll never lose again lol

Love the articel thank you.

So helpful, thank you for posting!!

I am stuck after two weeks its probably because im starving! I don't get my fluids and protein and I walk all day! I need to get my life! Question what is my calorie intake suppose to be 600?

Good article!

Yes, 500-600 cal per day