Just curious - how do you personally define a stall? A few days with the scale not moving? More than a week? Two weeks? A month? A loss of less than a pound a week? I have a feeling people define it differently and I'd like to hear your thoughts.

For me, it is nothing happening for at least a week in spite of a noble effort to stay with your program.

My rule is no weight loss for a week. My Water intake goes up and down, plus the salt in my food can all contribute to keeping as much as a 1lb difference in my weight - daily. But if things are the same for 5+ days in a row, then I figure it's a stall.

But in my first year, I ate almost the same thing every day, and I could see my weight dropping in a consistent basis. So with no changes to my diet, my weight loss would come to a screeching halt, sometimes for weeks.

I eventually learned that if I just stuck with my diet and exercise, the weight would start falling again. If it was working before the stall, just stick with it. Sometimes you just gotta wait it out.

Keep Pimpin' That Sleeve!

Edited December 31, 201411 yr by joatsaint

I'm not sure about this as I am 9 1/2 weeks post op and have been losing consistently since surgery. I am interested in everyone's answers.

The stalls are all in different stages. The first stall was 3 weeks out and that lasted about a week. The second one was about 3 months out and that lasted about 2 weeks and now my last stall (with a few in bettween -- little ones) was last month, it's now been a month and I have not lost anything but have not gained either. I'm ok with it though, I stopped walking as I am sooo busy with work and the holidays but I know it will continue to drop. Happy New Year!

I refuse to stall!

Edited December 31, 201411 yr by Trever

Interesting to see the different responses here. I think a stall is when there is no weight loss after 2 weeks (especially for women who may have hormonal changes).

Mines started at 3 weeks....stuck at the same weight...but i kept walking...going to the gym and double up on the teas and protein...

One week of no weight loss is "sad" and two weeks of no weight loss is a "stall"

I kid, but I think an official stall where your body is taking time to readjust is usually a couple weeks or more. I'm at the end of a week long no-loss and haven't figured out yet if it's a stall or hormonal changes. I do think it's easier to see if you are stalling when you weigh daily because your weight usually bounces back and forth between one our two pounds steadily. That being said, it can be very frustrating! Whatever we call a stall, it's important to focus on how we feel and appreciate how far we've come. And make sure not to panic :-)

I never considered it a stall unless it lasted more than 2 weeks. That means I only had one official stall between surgery and goal (actually gained 3 pounds and sat there for 4 weeks). Since I only weighed 2-4 times/month, I wouldn't have even known about shorter "stalls". Don't let the numbers rule your life! ????

I weigh daily mostly because I use fitness pal to track my progress. When you do that, you have to not allow yourself to get upset if the scale doesn't move because that will happen along the way. There have been many days where I remain the same or even gain a pound back. Now of course I realize that many things can cause that but it is surely not my diet or lack of excercise because I follow the pla and the plan works!

I did however have a stall that lasted 3 weeks and that I would call a real stall. I learned by talking to my nutritionist and trainer that I was not eating enough and working out too much so my body went into starvation mode. I made a quick adjustment and within a couple of days my stall broke.

Never in my life have I been told to eat more and excercise less! LOL

What it taught me was that your body is a funny thing and it requires you to change things up. If you do the same thing or eat the same things everyday it gets stagnant and you end up in a stall.

I notice if I have a week with no loss I change up my excercise program a bit and change the foods I am eating a little and then I am back on track.

Thanks for your responses. I also think that one week of no loss doesn't mean a stall. There's too many factors that could account for a couple of pounds in either direction over that short of a time. For example, if I am just constipated, that can easily make 2-3 lbs difference!

My nutritionist said that at this point (8 weeks post op) it is realistic to expect 2-5 lbs of weight loss a week. However, I've only lost 5 lbs this past month! Very frustrating to be losing so slow, but I am still losing SOMETHING every few days or so (sometimes only a half a pound) so that probably isn't a stall even though it is definitely maddening!