Weight Loss Slowing Down: Why It Stopped and What You Can Do

As your body weight decreases, your calorie needs automatically decrease because there's less mass to maintain. On average, after 5 kg of weight loss, your daily energy expenditure drops by 50-100 calories. The calorie amount that previously created a deficit may now be maintenance level. Your body also adapts to dieting by reducing spontaneous movement (NEAT), so you burn less during daily activities. That's why you need to regularly recalculate your calorie needs and reduce intake if weight loss stalls.

Metabolic adaptation is your body's defense mechanism when it reduces energy expenditure during a calorie deficit. This is more than what weight loss alone would explain, potentially an extra 100-300 calorie reduction. Your body slows certain processes, lowers body temperature, and makes you less active in spontaneous movement. This is an evolutionary survival mechanism protecting against starvation, but it makes long-term weight loss harder. Refeed days, diet breaks, and a protein-rich diet can reduce this effect, but it can't be completely avoided.

Yes, inaccurate calorie tracking is one of the most common causes of weight loss stopping. People underestimate calorie intake by an average of 30-50%, especially after weeks of dieting. Cooking oils, sauces, drinks, and snacking can easily add 300-500 extra calories daily. Weekend looser eating can override the deficit achieved during the week if you're not careful enough. Weigh everything in grams for one week and record every bite to find out if you're truly in a deficit.

Water retention often masks real fat loss, especially in women during the menstrual cycle. High cortisol levels from stress, lack of sleep, or overtraining also cause water retention. After high carbohydrate intake, glycogen and water storage can mean 1-3 kg of extra weight. Inflammation after workouts also retains water in muscles during recovery. Don't just watch the scale, but track body measurements, photos, and strength levels too, as these give a more accurate picture.

If nothing changes on the scale or body measurements for 3-4 weeks, first recheck your calorie tracking strictly. Reduce daily intake by 100-200 calories and watch the results after 2 weeks. Increase NEAT activity by walking more, taking stairs, or standing while working, which can burn 100-300 extra calories. Incorporate a weekly refeed day when you eat at maintenance calorie level, this helps normalize hormones. If nothing happens after these steps, consult a doctor, but in most cases the problem is inaccurate calorie estimation, not hormonal disorder.