This is a question I get a lot – usually from people in the middle of a weight loss stall.
And the answer to whether weight loss slows down when you get near goal is: It depends.
A better way to put it is: SHOULD your weight loss slow down when you get close to goal weight?
No, it should not…PROVIDED you have the right goal weight for your body. (Which is a whole other discussion.)
If you’re near goal weight and your weight loss is slowing down, here are three common causes.
Reason #1: You’re getting sloppy with the foods and rules.
When someone gets near their goal weight, there are people who lose GREAT the week they reach goal – often several pounds.
Then there are people who slip into the “I’m close enough” mindset. They just wanna be done, so figure getting 10 pounds or 5 pounds from goal is “close enough.”
It’s not “close enough” in my book. Saying that is like running a marathon, stopping two feet short of the finish line, and going, “Eh, close enough.”
Reason #2: You’re freaked out about being at goal weight.
The thought of reaching goal weight is SUPER exciting for most people…and then, when they get within a few pounds, what I call “Now what?” syndrome starts setting in.
See, once you hit goal weight, you’ve gotta learn how to KEEP the weight off. That’s an area most people aren’t comfortable with.
They’ve spent so much of their life trying to “lose weight” that the thought of not being on that “I need to lose weight” journey anymore freaks out the part of their brain that prefers the comfort of familiarity.
Because of that, they start sabotaging themselves in ways they may or may not notice. Then they blame it on being close to goal.
In a way it is, but not in the way you think. It’s not physiological, it’s mental, because part of you is freaked out about no longer being that person who needs to lose weight. So you sabotage yourself into staying in weight loss mode.
Reason #3: You want it TOO much.
It’s funny how easy it is to forget that your mind and your body are not separate. Your mind is in your head, which is part of your body. It’s not like you’re walking around like the headless horseman, with your head floating around beside the rest of you! You’re all one!
Because your mind is part of your body, it has a lot more influence over your body than you may think. This is good news when you use your mind to work WITH your body. When you don’t, it’s a problem, including when you get close to goal.
I’ve lost count of how many people I’ve seen get within 2-3 pounds of goal and stay there for days, even weeks, because they want it SO badly. “I’ve GOT to get to goal, Cristy!”
That’s not quite accurate. What you’ve got to do is follow the program. Goal weight is a natural consequence of following the program and trusting the process.
Instead of putting that crazy-level pressure on yourself to “reach goal weight,” focus on following the program – as in 100% of the rules 100% of the time – and celebrating the journey.
When I say this to people who’re in that “gotta get to goal” pressure cooker, it relieves the pressure and most reach goal within a couple days.
One more distant possibility that could be responsible for why your weight loss slows down near goal is that you’ve picked a weight that’s too low for you.
It happens once in a great while, but it’s almost never the cause. Most people pick a goal weight that’s too high for them, not too low.
Bottom line: No, it is not physiologically “expected” for weight loss to slow down just because you’re near goal.
If that’s happening with you, the answer’s most likely one of the three reasons I’ve given you here.
Make sure you’re following the program 100% of the time.
Stay committed to goal weight, but don’t drive yourself crazy over it.
And when it comes to fear of keeping the weight off, being in weight loss mode forever may feel more comfortable for some part of you, but it’s also caused you a lot of grief. I get that being in maintenance is an unknown world to you, but it’s one we know how to help you with. You don’t have to figure it out alone, okay?