Sticking to Your Diet When the Scale Doesn’t Move

Wouldn’t it be great if your weight loss program never plateaued?

What if every week you lost those 2 kilos even if you cheated just a little?

Reshaping your body, losing inches requires some determination to stay on track. Whether you’ve tried several different diets, crash diets, or even tried wonder weight loss pills, your body’s metabolism needs time to heal. Every time you restrict calories, your body assumes you can’t eat again and it slows your metabolism. If you’ve been extreme in your diet, you may have severely damaged the glands that regulate your metabolism.

It can happen to anyone. One man who lost over 100 pounds actually had a plateau that lasted six months, before the pounds and inches started to drop again! (He was determined to stay on his plan no matter what). Most people will not experience such a stubborn plateau. Here are some tips to help you overcome
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Key point: muscle weighs more than fat! Especially if you exercise with weights as part of your routine, you’re building muscle. So you may see slower weight gain or loss, but your clothes fit better!

Look for other ways to measure your progress:

Inches/Body Measurements: Dress Size, Waist, Hips, Neck, Chest or Bust, Arms, Fit your favorite clothes. Are you starting to see some abs again?

Performance: more stamina during exercise, exercise at a higher level, jump higher, walk longer, run faster, play a sport better

Mood and attitude: rate energy level, rate attitude and outlook, track how often you feel very sleepy during the day, rate your confidence level

Health: blood pressure, cholesterol level, blood sugar level, food cravings, quality of sleep, skin tone, even the appearance of your nails and hair.

Intangibles: how you see yourself, the compliments you receive, how others respond to you. The self-confidence that comes from knowing you’re being proactive in your life and taking control of your health.

Some quick tips to break the weight loss plateau:

1) Don’t cut calories. It’s tempting when weight loss slows down to further reduce your calorie count. Whose! Cutting calories to a minimum will slow your metabolism down even more.

2) Vary your calorie count. Alternating days. If you’re eating 1,200 calories on Monday, eat 1,500 on Tuesday, 1,200 on Wednesday, and so on. Do this for 1-2 weeks. Your metabolic rate will increase.

3) Increase raw fruits and vegetables in your diet to 50%. This will help detoxify your body and “unclog” your metabolism.

4) Vary what you eat. If you eat mainly fish and chicken, try lean pork and beef. Try new vegetables. A varied diet is important.

5) Change your exercise.

No matter what, stay on the right track! Layups aren’t fun, but they are a good sign that your body is changing, healing, and rebuilding. A plateau means that your body is adjusting to become the new you! You are forming lifestyle habits that will keep you at a healthy weight. Spend time with friends who cheer you up. Avoid trigger foods. Be patient. The plateau will come to an end and the weight will begin to fall. You’ll always be glad you “fighted back” by overcoming the plateau.