How to Break Out of a Weight Loss Plateau by Renee
Kennedy
What is a weight loss plateau?
You are on a diet, but you reach a period of time
(two or more weeks) where you can't seem to lose any weight. Your
weight may actually fluctuate 3lbs up or down, but you can't seem to
break below this range.
You can experience a weight loss plateau for
different reasons:
1. You are consuming too many calories for the
amount of calories that you are burning off. 2. You are not consuming
enough calories; your body defends itself by slowing down your
metabolism.
First, you need to determine if you are
experiencing a plateau or if your weight is in a state of normal
fluctuation. Weigh yourself once per week. If you have not lost any
weight after 3 weeks, you've hit a plateau. Remember, people lose
weight at different rates. If you've lost even one pound after three
weeks, you are still losing weight and probably don't need to change
anything. The closer you get to your goal weight, the harder it will be
to lose weight.
Second, if you are experiencing a plateau, look at
your current diet and exercise patterns. The NutriCounter can function
as a measurement tool to see how many calories you are consuming each
day. (http://www.nutricounter.com) It will also help you determine if
you are eating the appropriate amount of carbohydrates and protein each
day. You should also keep an exercise journal that will help you
determine how much exercise you are getting each day.
Here are some patterns that you may need to break.
(Note: before trying any of the methods below, get your doctor's
advice. This is especially important if you have special dieting
needs.)
1. You should be eating at least 1200 calories a
day if you are a woman and 1500 calories per day if you are a man. If
you restrict your calories too much your body will start stockpiling
fat because it thinks you are starving.
2. You may try to break a plateau by decreasing
the percentage of carbohydrates and increasing the percentage of
protein that you intake each day.
3. Another common recommendation is not to mix
your protein and carbohydrates. If you have a protein breakfast, wait
2-3 hours before resuming your balanced meals.
4. Generally speaking, you should be exercising no
more than 1 hour per day. However, ask yourself if your fitness routine
is intense enough? Simply walking around the block for 15 minutes a day
may not be enough for you. Each person is different. Also, walking
around the block may have been an excellent exercise when you first
started to lose weight, but it may not be enough now that you've hit a
plateau.
5. If you have recently added a fitness regimen to
help you lose weight, you may experience a slight weight gain for the
first few weeks, especially if part of that routine involves weight
lifting. This can be a very frustrating experience. If you are engaged
in an intense workout regimen, it may help to measure yourself with a
measuring tape, rather than the scale. You will be putting on muscle
and muscle will burn more calories than fat, but it's also heavier.
6. If you are already on a low calorie diet and
you are sticking to it, then it is not recommended that you cut out any
more calories. Increasing your activity is really the key to breaking
out of a plateau. However, if you are "supposed" to be on a low calorie
diet but you are not sticking to it, well, the answer is obvious: you
need to stick to it.
Come and visit the NutriCounter web site for more
information on how nutrition and fitness influence weight loss,
diabetes, pregnancy, heart disease and more! http://www.nutricounter.com
Please email renee@napuda.com
if you use the article. Please include the entire article.
