How to tell if your fat loss has really stalled

Is “starvation mode” why you stalled?

No. Eating less doesn’t switch fat loss off. Your expenditure falls as you lose weight and some adaptive thermogenesis happens, so loss slows over time. In a real deficit, it doesn’t stop.

It’s also why the “7,700 kcal per kg” rule overpredicts long-term loss. The deficit you started with shrinks as your body gets smaller.

Check the boring explanations first

Before you change anything, rule out the usual suspects.

• Water: glycogen, salt, a new training block or your menstrual cycle can hide a week or two of fat loss on the scale.
• Logging: weekends, cooking oil, drinks and unlogged snacks. Under-log consistently and your intake looks lower than it is.
• Time: a trend shorter than two weeks is mostly noise.

What a real plateau looks like

Say your goal pace is −0.4 kg a week. For 16 days your trend averages −0.18 kg a week, and you logged food completely on most days. That’s not missing data or one bad weigh-in. It’s a reason to review the plan.

What to change when fat loss stalls

The smallest useful change is usually a modest calorie cut on some days, then another two weeks of data. Laroa keeps any proposed target above about 1,200 kcal a day for women and 1,500 for men, and never more than 30% below maintenance. Lower intakes belong under medical supervision.

That 30% limit is Laroa’s own conservative policy. It isn’t a guideline number.

When to ease off instead

Persistent fatigue, falling performance, frequent illness or injury, or lost or irregular periods during a deficit are warning signs of low energy availability. They’re a reason to ease the deficit and talk to a clinician. Never push harder.

What Laroa does when you stall

Laroa compares the rate you planned with the rate you measured. If the gap holds with complete logs, it proposes one change, like “Rest days 2,180 → 2,030 kcal”, with its evidence and a date to check again. You apply it or keep your plan.