Over the Plateau!

So, despite waking up this morning with a blistering swore throat, I did wake up to some good news--I'm over my weight-loss plateau!!! Since September, I have lost 40lbs, but then for most of half of December and all of January, I was on a plateau, as these things happen. I decided not to weigh for a couple weeks, kept up the diet and exercise and this morning I weighed and I have lost another 3.6lbs!!! So, hopefully, I won't hit another plateau for another 36.4lbs (tee-hee, I know that's not likely), but come on body, at least give me another 20lbs--I promise to do the work. So, that picture? Its supposed to be a plateau, ominous, right? Well, plateau's end--even if it takes six weeks. Concentrating on following a "healthy lifestyle plan" rather than a short term diet is what got me through it. I have decided to only exercise at a level that I can maintain while balancing other aspects of life. Maybe if I did do the biggest loser type exercise routine I would have come out of this plateau earlier, but I don't think that I could maintain that on my own. What I can do is go to the gym 2-3 times per week and integrate home exercise, like a long walk or pilates, along with a structured yoga class once per week. I can workout 4 times per week, sometimes three, sometimes five, but seven days a week for four hours is not something I can or will do, so why make weight-loss habits unsustainable? It just leads to a feeling of failure. Instead, I have set up a reasonable goal for myself and met it. I was patient these past few weeks and now its paid off. Also, I should mention that because of the 40lbs loss, I had a little hair thinning which freaked me out. I had my vitamin levels and protein checked out by my doctor and I'm fine. She said that losing 40lbs is a shock to the body and that thinning is normal, but should subside. My hair is no longer shedding excessively (and it wasn't really really bad, just noticable in the shower and on my sweater). The shedding and plateau co-insided, so my body needed a break so that's why I didn't freak out during this plateau. I needed to listen to my body, concentrate on nutrients, proteins and vitamins and just be patient. I'll probably not weigh for at least another week because too much weighing increases my neurosis--I know that some people weigh everyday--but for me, I want to listen to my body in other ways, while still having some idea of the number on the scale. I knew that it was probably okay to weigh this morning because my jeans were getting loose again, if they felt tight, I probably would have waited another week so as not to discourage myself. Also, the elliptical is getting easier again, so adding a little weight there for a better work-out is also an indicator that perhaps weighing is safe again. Anyway, I hope to be able to report another pound or two next Friday.