When you're eating less and the scale won't move, it's usually one of three things: you're judging your progress by single weigh-ins instead of weekly averages, your weekly average is closer to maintenance than you think, or you've been under-eating for so long that your body is stressed and holding on. For a lot of women, the fix is to eat MORE, not less.
"I've cut calories and done all the cardio, and the scale still won't move." I hear some version of that on almost every call I take. If that's you, there's nothing that you're doing wrong, we just have to work smarter, not harder.
Does one weigh-in tell me anything?
Not much. I've never seen a weight-loss graph that's linear, not ONCE. Your weight moves with sleep, salt, stress, hormones, and where you are in your cycle, so one morning tells you almost nothing.
To gain a pound of fat, you'd have to eat about 3,500 calories more than you burn. The two pounds that showed up after a salty dinner out are water and food that haven't moved through yet.
Your cycle plays into this more than most women expect. In my luteal phase I feel more bloated and puffy (and a little more self-conscious, too). That doesn't mean I need to go on a different diet or start running six miles a day. It's hormonal and temporary.
So with my clients, we look at averages, over the week and over the month. Weigh in, write it down, and zoom out. The daily number is mostly noise, and the trend is what we make decisions on.
How do I know if I've actually hit a plateau?
A real plateau is 2 to 3 weeks of high adherence with your weekly averages completely flat. High adherence means most of your days land within about 10% of your calorie goal, and that includes Saturday and Sunday.
The weekends matter a lot here. Plenty of women eat very little Monday through Thursday and a lot more on the weekend, and the weekly average ends up near maintenance anyway. When weekdays are that low, the weekend makes up for it almost every time.
Before I change anything for a client, I want to see what she's actually eating, every day, for a couple of weeks. Sometimes the answer is sitting right there in the log. A rough estimate on a crazy day is still SO much better than a blank one.
Can eating too little stop weight loss?
Yes, and the fix sounds backwards. For a lot of women, the next step is to eat MORE. I know. Have faith in me for a second.
If you've been under-eating for months or years, training hard and sleeping badly, your body is under a lot of stress, and stressed bodies hold on. Energy drops, hunger gets weird, workouts feel harder, sleep gets worse, and eventually the scale stops moving anyway. So you eat a little less, and it stops again.
I've had women come to me after a provider put them at 1,200 calories a day. When we bring food up to an amount that actually fuels you, protein first, energy usually comes back and the Saturday hunger settles down. My clients are always shocked when they start eating MORE and the scale finally starts moving in the right direction.
I lost 20+ pounds and Lindsey taught me how to lose weight by eating more! She's knowledgeable about what works and I am proof!Kaitlyn O., FitHer client
What should I do instead of cutting more?
Get the foundations consistent before you touch the deficit: calories, protein, fiber, 7,000+ steps a day, strength training 2 to 4 times a week, and 7+ hours of sleep when life allows. Calories are king for fat loss, and protein is right behind them because it keeps you full and protects the muscle you're working so hard for.
If you've been under-eating, we usually bring food up slowly, about 75 to 100 calories at a time, and hold at each step until you're consistently hitting it. I won't build a deficit on top of an under-fed body. Once you're eating ENOUGH and the habits are steady, we talk about a fat-loss phase, a conservative one with an end date, and then a reverse diet and real time at maintenance so the results stick.
Stop letting the scale be the only vote, too. Measurements, photos, how your jeans fit and what you're lifting all count, and I've watched plenty of clients lose inches while the scale barely moved.
When should I look at labs?
When the foundations are solid, you're eating enough, your averages have been flat for weeks, and something still feels off. Labs looking at thyroid, iron, insulin and cortisol may suggest what else is going on, and anything that looks medical goes to your doctor.
This one is personal for me. After my second baby, I was checking my boxes every day and kept gaining weight anyway. I found out later that my cortisol production was completely flatlined, and my labs said my body was 10 years older than I actually was 😅 That's what sent me into functional nutrition, and it's why the Labs add-on exists in FitHer.
Quick answers
Should I weigh myself every day?
Only if it helps you. Some of my clients weigh in every morning and some don't weigh in at all, and both are fine. If you do weigh daily, look at the weekly average and ignore any single number.
Why did I gain two pounds overnight?
Almost always water, salt, and food that hasn't moved through yet. A pound of fat takes about 3,500 extra calories, so an overnight jump isn't fat. Watch the 7-day average instead.
Will I gain weight if I start eating more?
The scale may tick up a little in the first week or two, mostly from more food and water in your body. We add calories slowly, 75 to 100 at a time, and judge it by weekly averages.
How long is a real plateau?
Two to three weeks of high adherence with your weekly averages completely flat. One high weigh-in, or a week where you were sick or traveling, doesn't count.
Written by Lindsay Clements
I'm the coach behind FitHer. I've coached 300+ women online over the last 5+ years, and I healed my own binge eating and postpartum metabolism issues before I ever coached anyone else.
Functional Nutrition and Metabolism Specialist · Certified Nutrition Coach · Certified Personal Trainer · M.S. in data analysis · U.S. Navy veteran (12+ years)
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