One of the most discouraging events in your weight loss plan is, when you reach–or, almost reach–a certain amount of weight loss, then, no matter how hard you try, can’t seem to get beyond this barrier.

This is definitely the case with my diet; welcome back to (week 28 of) Al’s Weight Loss Plan. I’ve almost reached the 30 pound weight loss mark. Yes, I said “almost.” For the last 6 weeks, my total weight loss numbers have been: 28.4, 28.4, 27.6, 29.4 28.2 and 28.8. It is frustrating.

The reason for this inability to lose more weight is obvious; it’s in the numbers. Reduce your caloric intake and increase your minutes of exercise. Easier said than done?

Okay, here’s what to do: every time you prepare a meal, make just a little bit less. If you eat out, don’t eat the whole thing. As far as exercise goes, add just a few more minutes each day to your workout routine.

Will this plan work? Stay tuned. Next week I will show the answer to this diet plateau dilemma…

This week’s frustrating numbers:

Calories

• Average calories: 2269/day

Exercise

• Avg exercise: 23 mins/day
• Avg “cals burned”: 100/day

Weight

• Last week’s weight: 261 lbs
• Today’s weight: 260.4
• Weekly weight loss: 0.6
• Weight loss 2010: 13.6
• Avg wkly weight loss: 0.5
• Total weight loss: 28.8

Oops, I gained some weight this week (1.2 lbs)! How is your diet going? Getting discouraged? Here’s a little “secret”: persevere. Yes, I know; it sounds simplistic. But, as you can see by my numbers below; overall, I’ve lost 28.2 pounds since I started this diet thing.

Which goes to prove: even if you have some “up” weeks, if you persevere, you will lose weight in the long run. Have patience, and don’t get discouraged if you slip up once in a while.

As a matter of fact, I’ve had 10 weeks of weight gain this year! It’s the 17 weeks of weight loss (or neutrality) that make all this hard work worthwhile.

Lesson for the week: perseverance is key. Keep track of your calories and exercise, then if you have a bad week, find ways to improve your numbers–and lose weight–the next week.

See you next week; hopefully a little lighter and a lot happier…

This week’s temporarily disappointing numbers:

• Average calories: 2315/day
• Avg exercise: 22 mins/day
• Avg “cals burned”: 135/day
• Last week’s weight: 259.8 lbs
• Today’s weight: 261
• Weekly weight loss (gain): (1.2)
• Weight loss 2010: 13.0
• Avg wkly weight loss: 0.5
• Total weight loss: 28.2

Okay, I’ve reached the halfway point in my weight loss diet (and exercise) plan this year! And apparently, I can still lose weight even at over 2000 calories per day.

Although, I can see room for improvement. How about you? How much exercise do you get? You see, even though this site only has “diet” in the name, you must exercise to lose weight fast.

How much exercise do you need? Well, for continued weight loss, you’ll need to get an average of 45 minutes per day–that is, about 285 exercise calories burned…per day. You will obviously burn more than that per day–the above number refers to actual exercise activities such as, walking (258 cals/hour), cycling (fast pace ~ 544 cals/hr), etc…

So, today’s lesson is: keep up with your calorie counting, but don’t forget to get enough exercise for continued weight loss.

See you next week…

This week’s so-so numbers:

• Average calories: 2186/day
• Avg exercise: 29 mins/day
• Avg “cals burned”: 163/day
• Last week’s weight: 261.6 lbs
• Today’s weight: 259.8
• Weekly weight loss: 1.8
• Weight loss 2010: 14.2
• Avg wkly weight loss: 0.6
• Total weight loss: 29.4

P. S. If you have any questions about the numbers above, or anything at all, email us at: www.quickdiethowto.com/email-us.html