Started C25k and weight stall


(Marion O Brien) #1

Hi All, Im new here so please bear with me.
I have had weight problems for the last 12 years (since I had my kids) and because of my Thyroid I have always struggled to lose weight. I started Keto last October and since then I have lost 20lbs so Im thrilled!
I have always exercised in some form Walking, Running or, in the last 2 years HIIT x 3 times a week.
I am thrilled to be down so much weight but I have at least another stone if not 1.5 to go - I am 10 stone 12 at the moment. My problem is, I started C25K 3 weeks ago, and my weight has stalled ? Now, before anyone jumps on me and tells me about Non-Scale Victories, I totally understand that, but is it normal for a TOTAL stall (even up 2lbs!) - has this happened anyone else ? Is there anything I can do to kickstart things again ? Its not like Im running marathons - in reality my running speed is probably very close to my fast walking speed lol! Any advice appreciated! Thanks


(David Cooke) #2

Congratulations on starting a C25K program!
Personally I don’t look on running as a weight loss method, more as a method of keeping fit. You won’t be doing more than a few kilometres daily, and so I doubt if that will help you expend more than a few hundred calories.
I’m sure that you have read that initial weight loss on Keto is “only water” - doesn’t matter, a loss is a loss. And I’m sure that you have read that many people stall on Keto after a few weeks. Are you eating three meals a day? Try two meals, possibly combined with a weekly or monthly 24 hour fast. That kind of thing gets easier when you are in ketosis, hunger should be diminished.

Good luck


(Polly) #3

How tall are you @Marion_O_Brien?

I am 5’8” and I would be ecstatic to weigh 10 stone 12 pounds. I find weight shifts much more slowly post-menopause but as I am teetering around the 12 stone mark, these days and feel fitter and better for this way of eating I can live with the slow progress.


#4

3 week stalls are normal. Unless you eat significantly more, I wouldn’t worry at all, be patient.

(I don’t understand what’s wrong with running marathons at a fast walking speed :slight_smile: Some participants are very slow. That’s still a marathon. Even walking that distance would be good for my fat-loss but it takes too much time. But I should do it again, now and then, with elevation, of course, there are nice little mountains around there. A short run helps less but still may matter even regarding fat-loss. Even my tiny walks matter a bit but eating can easily overpower it.)


(Windmill Tilter) #5

The guiding principle of keto is “eat to satiety”. Exercise scrambles satiety signals for many people. There is no reason to imagine that making yourself excessively hungry on a calorie dense diet would result in weight loss. When I scaled my exercise back to a single 20 minute session a week, my weight loss became pretty effortless. Finding the balance between exercise and weight loss is tricky and very individual because the extent to which exercise scrambles satiety signals varies significantly from person to person.

Consider reducing exercise until you find the point where weight loss begins again. Start by cutting your exercise in half. If you track calories, monitor what effect exercise cessation is having (but always continue to eat to satiety). You may be among the metabolically lucky and exercise doesn’t inhibit weight loss in the least; the only way to find out is to experiment. The right balance will depend on your metabolism and goals.

In your case you have a wonderful goal. A couch to 5k is pretty admirable and exciting. It may be that this goal is more important to your overall health than weight loss for you right now. Given that you’re 5’8", you’re getting pretty close to your ideal weight. There is nothing wrong with getting in great shape while you’re motivated to do so. The pounds will still come off, but they might do so a little more slowly, and that’s ok. At the risk of a pun, it’s a marathon not a sprint!


(Marion O Brien) #6

Hi All, thanks for your comments. Im 5ft 5 so I am still a stone to 1.5 stone overweight. I would be happy to just get another stone down. @cooked I currently do 16/8 and eat 100g Protein, less than 40 of Carbs and Fat. I was losing steadily until I started the running. Before that I was doing HIIT twice a week with walks mixed in and I was losing 1.5lbs on average per week. Like you said, @Shinita, maybe its just a stall… but I find it very demoralising. Only thing is, Ive signed up to a 10k at the end of Feb so have to keep going. Hope I can stay motivated tho. Like you said @Polly1, if i was losing even 1lb a week I would view that as progress and it would motivate me! I hope @Don_Q is not guessing right (and what I am afraid of too!) that the jogging is stopping the weightloss and therefore I need to stop it and go back to what I was doing (HIIT). We’ll see how it goes… thanks eveyone for your input… as wide and varied as it is, lol!


(Windmill Tilter) #7

Well, if you’ve signed up for a 10k, you’ve already made your decision! No big deal, that’s just a few short weeks away. Making a challenging goal like you did and seeing it all the way through is awesome. There is no better feeling in the world than doing that. I’m excited for you! The weight loss can wait, and for all you know, you might be gaining muscle while losing fat without realizing it.

Moving from brief & intense HIIT to long duration low intensity cardio could have been such a big shift that you’re body responded by deciding to build some leg muscle. The only way to know for sure is to take your waist & booty measurement once a week with a sewing tape measure. It’s by no means uncommon for folks to drop inches while maintaining weight, especially after such a big switch in exercise.

My two cents is to forget about the weight, give your 10k training 100%, and enjoy the race. After the race is done, you can tackle the last stone with an iron will, and a new sense of confidence that you can accomplish anything you set your mind to. :+1:


(Marion O Brien) #8

Thanks @Don_Q, thats such an positive and awesome reply!! You are right, I need to put the scales away and stop stressing. My body is probably after getting a shock and is storing so if the scales is mentally beating me Ill put it away!
Thanks everyone for the advice :ok_hand:
Mar :grin:


(Bob M) #9

I’ve done this many times. So much, that I stopped using the scale. Years ago.