How do I combat the weight loss plateau?

I have been working at losing weight for about 7 months now, I exercise 5-6 days a week rotating 3 workouts, a 5-6 mile walk at 4-4.5 mph, a 60 minute pilates style stability ball workout, and 50 minutes of jogging on a mini trampoline. I eat lots of fruits and veggies, whole grains, fish, chicken, turkey, and keep pork and beef to a minimum. I don't drink sugary drinks, sticking to water, but I do allow myself treats every once in a while, maybe twice a month or so. I have lost 48 pounds and now weigh 188. I have built quite a bit of muscle and have no problem making it through my workouts, but I can still feel the burn. I have hit a major plateau and have, on the advice of a trainer for a high school football team, tried eating more protein, upping my calorie intake, etc., in order to break this plateau. I have lost no weight in almost 6 weeks now. My clothes don't fit any different or if they do I don't notice it. I have tried eating less carbohydrates, more protein, shocking my body with a day of having a cheeseburger and ice cream, eating 5-6 small meals a day, you name it, I've tried it and I cannot break this plateau! It is now getting onto winter and with the holidays coming I am afraid that I will become even more disillusioned and eat in a way I know I shouldn't. I do find that I am tired during the week at times, and have at times, had dark circles under my eyes. I am wondering if this tiredness is because I am not eating enough calories, (I usually take in about 1300 calories and burn off about 500) I am a busy person and don't usually sit down until about 9:30 pm, going to bed at 11 pm and getting up at 6:45 am. I am 27 years old. I need some advice on how to break this plateau, how many calories I need to eat and how much protein I should take in. Thanks

Over the past seven months you’ve been losing more than 3 kilos’ a month. That’s more than 25,000 calories of fat you’ve burned off each month up until the last six weeks. Your body will let you crash diet for a while but most diets are starvation diets or have a distorted nutrient balance. Low calorie diets slow down your metabolism, making it progressively difficult to lose weight and keep it off. Anytime the body is fed less than the minimum amount of calories necessary to provide more than fifty nutrients we need daily, the body struggles to survive the ordeal and activates hormones and enzymes that encourage your metabolism to slow down and store fat. I am pretty sure that’s why you’re feeling so disillusioned right now.

The bottom line is this, you cannot cover your nutritional needs each day on a mere 1300 calories. Exercise on top of a nutrient poor diet and you are further depleting your body. Don’t give up. Based on your current weight you can easily lose a kilo of fat a week if you walk for an hour each day and keep your calories at 1700 daily. Rather than spend extra money on trainers or gyms, spend some time with a nutritionist to learn how to put a 1700-calorie plan into place that is balanced, complete and enjoyable. Get your body composition measured every two weeks to check that you are losing fat, not muscle.

A good nutritionist will adjust your plan based on your results and metabolism. Most importantly you will learn how to fill in the gaps in your diet. Fibre, iron, zinc, iodine, Vitamin D, B vitamins and essential fats all play an important role in weight loss, not just protein. We would also address sleep issues and stress, as they play a role in weight management too. Because you work a long day it would be best to divide your calories over 5 or 6 meals for better digestion and blood sugar control. Include lean red meat three times a week, red meat contains more iron and minerals than chicken and take a good professional multivitamin whenever you are dieting.