How to break through the weight loss plateau?
Find tips and suggestions to keep losing weight. It’s frustrating to diet day in and day out and not lose any weight.
You set out to lose weight with the best of intentions. You’re sticking to your diet – a few slips here and there, but nothing major that would result in the pounds not coming off. But, still nothing seems to be happening. You follow the weight loss program and still it’s been weeks since you’ve seen any significant weight loss. Is this a weight loss plateau? Many people who try to lose weight get hit with a weight loss plateau. Dieting can be difficult enough – getting stuck at the same weight for weeks is extremely frustrating. Here are some tips and suggestions to help break through the dreaded weight loss plateau.
- Many weight loss programs use a similar approach to what types of food groups you eat. For example, a common combination is 50% carbohydrates, 30% protein and 20% fat. For a short time – to get over the weight loss plateau – make an adjustment to these percentages. Lower the amount of carbohydrates and bump up the amount of protein.
- Keep moving - increase the exercise. If you’re struggling to get the pounds moving in the right direction again – either add exercise to your weekly calendar or increase the amount of exercise you do. Cardio exercises are excellent for burning fat. If you are already exercising – try adding five to ten minutes to your routine. If you aren’t currently exercising – adding even a small amount of exercise to your plan can have a huge impact on the amount of weight you lose. Give it a try!
- Check your calories. When you stared the weight loss program – whether you’re using a formal program or you’re doing it on your own – you took into consideration your weight and the number of calories needed to lose weight. if you’ve lost a good bit of weight already – you may need to reduce the number of calories you are eating now to continue to lose weight. for example, if you weighed 200 pounds when you began your diet and you want to weigh 120 pounds – you should eat 1600 calories per day. But, let’s say now you weigh 150 pounds and you still want to get down to 120 - now you should only eat 1400 calories per day. The Calorie Control Counsel [link - http://www.caloriecontrol.org/] has some great tools for weight loss.
There isn’t anything much more frustrating to someone trying their best to lose weight than a weight loss plateau. The good thing is realizing that this is an obstacle that most dieters have faced – so you’re not alone. And fortunately, there is a lot of information, tips and advice on how to combat the dreaded weight loss plateau.
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and stay centred. the easiest thing is to lose touch wtih your intention. you may also need some yoga, meditation or a centering/alignment technique like Conscious Movement. because you are going to have to work with yourself. and htink about selfdiscipline. this has been at the heart of yoga teaching for centuries. don’t just think yoga is for skinny, bendy people…it is for anyone who wants to control their mind and their body. anyone that wants to be in the driving seat.
Hi
Nice tips, and good motivation you have here. I have this small problem. I quit smoking (well…almost) and am gaining weight considerably as a result. I tried starving, and exercise, but it’s too darn difficult,with all the pressure both at home and work. Any ideas?
I’m pretty sure some people will not like it
Great tips on overcoming the plateau.
Another tip would be to vary the meals, eat the bulk of the ‘fuel’ food for breaky, morning tea and lunch…dinner stick to vegies and lean meat.
Lastly, vary the workouts periodically and make it challenging to work the body!
This might not work for everyone, but I find that it helps to forget about weight loss targets completely and instead focus on my success at maintaining a healthy eating plan for a period of time.
eg. I plan my diet and then set a target of sticking to it for one month, when I have done that I have a special ‘treat’ meal and then start another month target.
The diet may change to refelct circumstances, but the strategy seems to be working for me.
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Of course we all know that we have to exercise more to shift the weight. However, i’ve recently heard of a person who is doing a different diet plan each month to relieve the boredom. You know, high protein one month then low fat the next, then atkins, zone, cabbage - you name it. I think it makes sense because it doesn’t give your body time to get used to one particular diet. We all know that we lose most of our weight in the first couple of weeks.
As for me, the best desigion to break through the weight loss plateau is to start exercising more. Sometimes you should also reduce calorie consumption. But is you train more - you lose more calories…
I find changing the amount of calories for few days help. It’s like starting a new diet. Changing your exercises, not necessary the length of time you do them also helps.
I really need to find something that can work for me. I’m about 100 lbs over weight and just can’t seem to get it off. I struggle with what to eat and when. My heart doctor says we Americans eat an upside down triangle. Are base should be a big breakfast a light lunch and an even lighter supper. But we do the reverse. But I don’t know how to make the needed life style change.
Good tips, but you definitely need to break up your excecise routine, this wards off monotony and also shocks the body so to speak so you get more results from your effort.
There are many reasons why a plateau may occur. Hormone levels related to food metabolism, toxins, and biorythms may affect the outcome. Several weight loss programs deal specifically with these issues.
Thanks for these good tips.
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nice thought about over ovecoming the plateau.
I stopped counting calories ever since I was eating more than usual even if I was counting them. I prefer dinning out of a smaller plate and cover it with food. It gives me the impression that I ate a full plate. Every month I use a even smaller plate. This really works for me.
Good tips in this article. Portion control is crucial when losing weight. To lose weight, put the fork down before you’re satisfied; at a point where you could still eat more. Eat an early dinner too. That should help.
Thanks for the great weight loss tips!
Yup, we’ve all experienced that “rut” feeling on more than one occasion. My biggest problem is portion control as I seem to have been on that “See Food” diet for most of my life! Thanks.
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I think a reward is great for those who really want to lose weight. Personally I plan my diet and then set a target of sticking to it for 2 weeks, when I’ve done what I should done after 2 weeks, I will have a special ‘treat’ meal for myself. And start another new plan for another next 2 weeks, this method works for me
Sounds like you’re so serious about this that it should work.
nice thought about over ovecoming the plateau
Diyet, to overcome the plateau, you need to do something better than that. Exercises? What exercises? If you are talking about going to the gym, i can understand but if you’re talking about jogging, you need to change your habits.
Just want to add some infos, if you want to check your calorie intake and how much calorie you have burnt, you can check it via Weight-By-Date, totally useful for everyone. Remember that maximum calorie you can burn everyday is not more than 500 except your metabolism is above normal.
Good point! “Overcoming the plateau” can sometimes be the hardest thing for people. Increasing your exercise is probably the best way out of those three.
You know - if you change only one thing-just ONE thing in your food habit, then weight loss will be easy and possible!
Just reduce your carbohydrate cravings.
Stop consuming sweets, sugar, fizzy drinks, white flour and all that. All of them contain simple carbs and will get deposited in your body as fat and you won’t be able to lose weight. The longer you are able to restrain yourself from carb intake, the better. Of course, occasional treats at a friend’s party or during a vacation doesn’t matter, but try to cut down on your carb intake as much as possible.
Yeah i will the best and easiest thing you can do is to move more try do more things such as go up stairs walk to your job instead of taking a ride and stuff like that.
I always find when you are in a rut that it is best to add some variety to the regime. You are probably doing all the right things and your body has simply adjusted and you need a change. Break up the next week a little exercise wise, go and do a pilates class if you haven’t, swin…anything, just remind your body that there are different stimulus’s out there and that its going to need to work a bit harder. Breaking your routine up once every four weeks helps a lot, keep exercising and eating right, just do a few different things.
I’m very excited about some of the advice given here. GREAT POST!
The answer for reaching a plateau can perhaps be found in adopting a natural regime. Eastern philosophies have been very specific on achieving a balance of mental and physical healing.
The basis of all ayurvedic and natural therapies of ancient times were based on the simple principle of assisting and providing the body with natural and organic nutrients to stimulate the biological mechanism towards total healing instead of just addressing the symptoms. The role of various herbs rich in anti oxidants with healing properties cannot be over emphasized. The ancient system is an integrated system to create wholeness in body, mind and spirit. One without addressing the other aspects could only address part of the problem.