Weight Loss Plateaus - Can You Combat Them?

Definitely! Weight loss plateaus are just little humps in your quest to shed pounds from your body. Just think about it - there will always be little humps, challenges, setbacks in life. This is just another example of such "downs" in life.

Some of you might be wondering what exactly does this phrase means. When a person experiences a weight loss plateau, it means that he or she has successfully lost weight before and now cannot seem to lose anymore.

It is during this stage of your journey in losing excess pounds that you must not give up, but instead, focus on some tips and strategies that can help you to combat this problem.

Lack Of Challenging Workouts

Exercise helps you to burn away the stubborn fat from your body, but if you have not been working on increasing the intensity of your workout, then you are bound to hit a weight loss plateau.

Perhaps you run three times a week, for one hour each time. This is a great form of cardio for your body and it will burn fat when you first start out.

However, as time passes, your body becomes adjusted to the level of intensity of this particular workout and therefore, it doesn't have to work as hard anymore. This effectively means that your body is not burning through as much calories as before, putting you on a weight "slump".

Challenge yourself for future workouts. Instead of jogging at a constant pace, run a bit faster for 5 seconds, then go back to your usual pace for a minute, before picking up speed for another 5 seconds.

If you're home doing push ups and can do so comfortably for 3 sets of 20 reps, why not increase it to 3 sets of 25 or even 30 repetitions? You will make your muscles work overtime, and therefore burn more fat.

Having Inappropriate Meals

You started out wonderfully - diligently choosing proper foods, having loads of protein, eating plenty of fibre, fruits, vegetables. Now, your turkey breast meat is stone cold in your freezer and you've developed a bond with potato chips.

You have lost weight, but not paying attention to what you eat means two things. You will either not be able to lose any more weight, or worse, put on the pounds that you've worked so hard on losing.

To combat this, have a food diary, or a workout journal where you discuss what you eat every day. Sometimes, it's very hard to keep track of what you eat, especially if you have snacks lying around the house.

A food diary can help you stay focused, and once you notice that you have been having one too many cookies, you know it's time to start jogging to burn what you've put into your system.

After all, if what you take in is more than what is burned, you are going to gain weight!

Motivation Burnout!

One major reason why you might experience weight loss plateaus is because of a dwindling motivation. You used to be fired up about exercising and keeping fit, but now that you have lost some weight, it doesn't seem so important.

You don't seem as motivated to have healthy meals or spending time to run anymore.

There are lots of different ways of combating this, but the best in my opinion would be visual boards. Basically, take some photos of yourself before you lost weight and paste them on a nice piece of cardboard.

Add some photos of you now, and photos of a celebrity, a friend or colleague who has the figure that you have been striving for. Or you could add a photo of a beautiful evening gown that you want to fit into.

The possibilities are endless. The important thing is, to have pictures that remind you of why you are working so hard to lose excess fat from your body. When you have completed your visual board, hang it somewhere prominent, but away from eyes of visitors, since this is YOUR private goal.

This helps remind you to always work hard, to keep clocking hours, even minutes of workout per day so that you are on a positive journey of weight loss, health and long-term fitness.

Combat Stress

Overeating or snacking on unhealthy food can be due to stress from work or home. You need to find ways to manage your stress so that you won't feel the temptation to snack often.

This is important as snacking means that you're bound to hit a weight loss plateau as you are putting on additional calories!

Some may choose to do yoga as studies have shown to help you calm yourself and relief feelings of stress. You might also want to consider meditation or listen to meditation tapes.

However, engaging in physical activity and exercise is a sure-fire way of keeping stress levels low, so as long as you are having a moderately active lifestyle, you will be fine. Remember, when you feel like ripping your hair out, the best answer is to exercise.

It sounds strange, but it really works wonders. Trust me, I've been there myself! :D

Final Words From Azri

Weight loss plateaus is something that you can combat. It just takes a little determination and perseverance.

The important thing is to not give up and go back to unhealthy habits of eating just because you cannot seem to lose weight. As long as you push yourself harder when it comes to exercising, you're bound to lose weight.

Some people also wonder why they cannot lose anymore weight despite intense workouts and proper nutrition. In such cases, I strongly believe that they have removed as much fat as possible, and their bodies consists of lean muscles.

At this point, you should remain active and eat well, you will be fine. However, if you are still worried that you are fat, you might want to check with a doctor to get professional advice, or you could be suffering from poor self-esteem.

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