So you have been sticking to your diet regime, not sneaking in those late-night snacks or ice-cream, switching from soda to tea, or possibly transitioning to a plant-based diet or veganism. You are mastering your workouts, completing your routine with ease and shedding off those pounds left and right - but then something happens. Something you get nervous about - you aren't losing any weight and your weight-loss has plateaued. What do you do now?
It is easy to feel quite discouraged or even unmotivated when you begin to not see that results with your body that you want to. More so, it may just be annoying that you cannot shed those extra 5 or 10 pounds to reach your weight-loss goal. If you keep questioning why that weight still lingers, there are some things you can do to overcome a weight loss plateau! Start by asking yourself questions first - such as are you trying to reach a weight that is simply just unattainable for your age and body type? If you simply plateaued, it can mean that your body is at a normal and healthy weight in which it wants to manage, often known as it's set point. While you can change or adjusted the set as point if needed, it often takes quite some time to get there.
As you are losing weight, it may be tempting to cut calories in order to shed pounds - and as we know, this can be rather unhealthy and you may actually start burning muscle more so than fat. If however, you are still convinced that you want to lose weight and change your set point weight, here are our ways to overcome a weight loss plateau.
Be Smart With Your Calories
It is rather important to maintain a healthy diet while exercising to ensure that you are losing your weight effectively and beneficially. As you lose weight, your metabolism can drop due to your body needing less calories or food to maintain its energy levels. When it comes to your calorie intake, start with the calorie intake that you initially had when you began your weight-loss journey. You will then need to adjust your intake to match your body’s current needs for weight loss. In your diet regime, know that the calories you put into your body also matter. Stir away from more heavily processed foods or manufactured products, opting for healthier alternatives such as whole-grains, fruits and vegetables, nuts or legumes, and beans. Lean proteins are also essential in helping you burn body fat as well as fruits that are high in fiber.
To overcome your weight-loss plateau, be aware of your calorie needs as well. Researchers have shown that people often underestimate the amount of calories most people have to burn during an exercise, while also underestimating the amount of calories they then need to eat. There are many ways to check this, such as using a basal metabolic rate calculator - learning how many calories you would need to burn if you did absolutely nothing but resting in a 24 hour period. You can then use your basal metabolic rate as a benchmark to subtract the approximate number of calories burned during activity. Keep in mind that the number of calories burned during activity can vary.
Rotate Your Routine
If you are slugging away on a treadmill daily and still haven't seen any results after you have reached your weight-loss plateau, it may actually be time to switch up your workout routine. If you are trying to get over a weight loss plateau, it may actually be smart to incorporate different routines and workouts into your weight-loss regime. Your muscles often become familiar with the same workout routine when repeated over-and-over, not getting the same affect as they would if you changed it up. To see a change in fat or weight, you need to bring yourself out of your comfort zone. For example, HIIT (or high intensity interval training) has been a proven and effective way to burn fat and gain muscle, helping you out of your weight-loss plateau. In most cases, HIIT is shown to keep your heart rate up while being able to burn more fat in less time. This is because a high-intensity workout increases the body’s need for oxygen during the effort and creates an oxygen shortage, causing your body to ask for more oxygen during recovery.
When it comes to HIIT workouts, there are a number of things in which you can do! Here are some of our favorites:
- Sit Ups
- Jump Squats
- Climbing Stairs
- Push Ups
- Split Jumps or Jumping Lunges
- Tricep Dips
Start by performing each exercise at 100% effort, with 30 seconds of rest in between. Then, repeat every other day with the goal of completing it faster each time.
Soon enough with these tips, you will never even think about a "weight-loss plateau" ever again! Share with us your tips on getting past a weight-loss plateau by following us on Instagram @itouchwearables and Facebook @itouchwearables and by dropping a comment and like. Also, be sure to check out our new articles published daily!
-Patrick
