How to Break a Weight Loss Plateau

It can be extremely frustrating when you experience a weight loss plateau. This is not surprising, as your body can experience a weight loss plateau for months! The good news is that a weight loss plateau does not mean you are doing something wrong, such as eating more calories than you should or being lazy at exercising. It is important to understand why your body stops dropping the weight before you can learn how to break a weight loss plateau.

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What is a Weight Loss Plateau?

When your body stops dropping the pounds and you are sticking to your diet and fitness plan as usual, this is called a weight loss plateau. It generally occurs when you have lost about 10 percent of your initial body weight. Your body is complex and has amazing abilities; however, this is one of those things that you likely would rather it did not do on its own.

When your body starts to lose the weight, hormone levels begin to change that regulate the energy balance. Your body will try to adapt to these changes the declining weight causes by giving itself a break. This is your body protecting itself from the decisions you are making that you don’t completely understand how they affect your body. During a weight loss plateau, your body is building muscle and it needs the increase in calories to do this. You lose muscle when you lose weight. It is important for your body to build up the major muscle groups and the heart and diaphragm muscles for optimum health.

Stay Motivated

Staying motivated can be difficult, but is critical for your weight loss success. If you become discouraged because of a weight loss plateau, then all of your hard work will have been for nothing. You must think of a weight loss plateau as your body taking care of itself so that you can continue on with your weight loss plan. Give your body a break and allow it to take care of you for a while. However, this does not mean you can stop your weight loss routine.

Tips on How to Break a Weight Loss Plateau

While this is a time for your body to rest and catch up with the many changes it is experiencing, there are some things you can do that could help speed up your weight loss plateau. The absolute worst thing you can do is to stop eating. This will simply decrease your metabolism and throw your body into starvation mode. When this happens, your body simply starts storing fat. This is the opposite result you are looking for. Not only that, if you stop eating, you are increasing your risks of serious health issues. Here are some tips on how to break a weight loss plateau the healthy way:

Increase Calorie Intake – That’s right! You must increase your calorie intake to maintain the weight you are currently at. Try adding 200 to 400 calories per day. Make sure the calories you are consuming are of high quality proteins and carbohydrates.
Increase your Exercise Intensity – It is possible you are experiencing a weight loss plateau because your routines are not intense enough, increase the intensity of your workouts ! You do not want to push yourself until you are in pain, but you should feel warming in the muscles. Try doing as many reps of an exercise as you can comfortably, and then the last reps should be a little less easy to do. However, they should not cause you intense pain.
Allow your Body to Rest after Exercise – During a weight loss plateau, your body needs to build up the muscle it lost. When you do not allow your muscles to rest, it causes stress on them and can result in injury. If muscles are not able to heal during sessions, they cannot grow and be strengthened. Wait until all soreness is gone before exercising again, approximately 24 to 72 hours. However, this does not mean you have to wait three days before exercising. It does mean you should not exercise these specific parts of your body until they are healed.
Alternate Routines – You may be able to avoid a weight loss plateau altogether if you mix up your exercise routines. Your body needs a challenge in order to grow and become stronger. Doing the same routine day in and day out for months will not challenge your muscles to grow stronger. Make a change every 4 to 6 weeks. Some ideas to try are: kickboxing, swimming, yoga, core strengthening, weight training, etc.

Remember, that a weight loss plateau is not a bad thing. It is your body protecting itself so that is can continue on with what you have planned for it. Do not become frustrated. Instead, embrace this time to learn how to maintain your weight for when you have finally reached your weight loss goals.

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