You might have been doing all the right things to get fit like Counting Calories, Avoiding Junk and Processed foods, Exercising Regularly but still “ The Stubborn Weighing Scale” doesn’t seems to move.
Losing weight is not less than a battle you can’t succeed all the time. At first, you were dominating, dropping weight every time you stepped on the scale. Then, the numbers began to slow, and now they’re completely stagnant.
You’ve hit the dreaded weight loss plateau
What do you think could be the REASONS BEHIND WEIGHT LOSS PLATEAU? Let’s find out….
1. Drastic Calorie Reductions:- You have started your journey to weight loss with a low calorie diet and exercise. Initially you did lost a good amount of weight. And Of course you will cause you are eating less and burning more. But still a weight loss plateau occurs. And you are unable to figure it out why? It’s because you have drastically reduced the calories and you cannot reduce the calories further and so your weight is stagnant.
- Lack of varieties in Diet :- Your diet is good but if you don’t give variations to your diet. It will bring you to this stage of “WEIGHT LOSS PLATEAU”. Now you”ll might be wondering why do we need varieties in diet? For Eg:- If You are following a diet say for 3 months and you are getting good results but now the results has stopped because your body has adapted with this same diet routine. So you need to give a kickstart to your routine by implementing variations in your diet.
3. Stress:- Yes you heard it right. Stress can be a hurdle in your weight loss journey. Too much cortisol( stress hormone) slows metabolism. Excess amount of stress also causes fat to be stored in the abdominal area where it is harder to lose. It also triggers the fight-or-flight response, which is an appetite stimulant. “In addition, it steps up the production of a certain brain chemical, which increases cravings for carbohydrates which in turn can inhibit your weight loss.
4) The Same FAD Diets won’t work always :- Have you ever felt in any situation ?Like you are following a keto diet or any other FAD DIETS to lose weight and initially it did work for you. So you tried again the same diet but this time the weight loss was slow and after somedays you again tried the same diet and this time there wasn’t any change in your weight. What do you think? Why it must have happened. It’s basically not the same diet will work again and again.
These factors can really bring us to a WEIGHT LOSS PLATEAU..There might be certain medical conditions also for not losing weight You can get it checked by your doctor,
After discussing the reason it’s also important to know is there any way we can overcome this WEIGHT LOSS PLATEAU?
Yes we can.” Nothing is impossible”. “The word itself says I am Possible”
Keep reading to find out “HOW TO OVERCOME A WEIGHT LOSS PLATEAU”
1) Good Quality Protein:- You might be having a low Kcal diet but you might have forgotten to track your protein intake. A diet low in protein might hinder your weight loss whereas a diet rich in protein will make you lose weight by preventing muscle loss and metabolic slow down. The slow your metabolism is, the more difficulty you will find in losing weight. Good quality protein will rather increase your metabolism thereby leading to weight loss.
2) Timings Of Meals:- You might be thinking. How timings will help to overcome a weight loss plateau. Your body is like a alarm clock which is almost functioning at the set time. For Eg:- Wake up @ 6 am, Lunch in Office break@ 12 pm, Sleep at 11 pm, etc. It’s a routine you have set for yourself and body has also adapted to this lifestyle. So if we are not making an effort to change to our lifestyle. Why will our body also make efforts to lose weight? It’s simple as that.
What I mean to say is make trick your body. Like changing your meal timings and then your body will make some effort to adjust to this new lifestyle thereby making you lose weight.
3) Variations in Your Diet:- Your diet might be perfect but what if it lacks variations.Yes Variations is the “KEY FACTOR” to weight loss. It’s like you cannot repeat same clothes to different occasions similarly you cannot stick to the same diet. Give variations to your diet by changing the food items, trying new healthy recipes, including different superfoods. You need to break your monotonous diet to overcome your weight loss plateau.
4) Avoid Empty Calories:- Empty calories are the calories which provide you with unnecessary calories, sugars and fats and they don’t contain nutrients.
Why to have such foods which are not providing you with any nutrients just providing empty calories. Those foods includes Sugar,cake, cookies, sweets, candy, soft drinks, fruit-flavored sweet beverages and other foods containing mostly added sugars (including High-fructose corn syrup).
5) Increase the intake of “ Negative Calorie foods”:- Negative Calorie Foods are those foods which are not only low in calories but while consuming them we also burn our calories. Let’s not stick to the standard way of losing weight. Find out different ways for weight loss and Negative Calorie foods are one. Negative Calorie foods include Celery. Containing barely 16 calories per 100 grams, celery is ranked high among negative calorie foods. Other foods include Grapefruit, Carrots, Tomatoes, Cucumbers, Watermelon, Apples, Zucchini, broccoli, lettuce
6) Eat more fibres:- How does fibre will help us to overcome our weight loss plateau. Research shows that filling up on foods with fiber can boost your health, keep you from overeating, and help you lose weight. The High Fibre Foods are Oats, Beans, Wholegrains, Fruits, Veg, Nuts like almonds and Walnuts.
7) Spice up your meals:- Spices not only adds taste to our food but also helps in weight loss. In addition they do not add calories to your diet. So spice up your meals without any fear. Spices for weight loss are Ginger, Mustard, Turmeric, Cinnamon, Blackpepper, Cardamom, Cumin. There are various ways we can include spices in our diet.
8) Take Probiotics:-So what are probiotics and how does it help in weight loss or to overcome a weight loss plateau? Probiotics are live bacteria and yeasts that are good for your health, especially your digestive system as it not only improves your digestion but also helps you store less fat.
9) Variations in workout:- Not to forget along with diets “ Workout or Exercise” also holds importance. Do give variations to your workout. Only Cardio exercises will help you to lose weight but won’t help you overcome your weight loss plateau. Do alternate day Cardio and Strength training. You can also add functional and Endurance training to your workout routine.
10) Consume Green Tea:- It’s no more a secret that Green Tea helps in losing weight. Here we are providing with a remedy to overcome weight loss plateau. Prepare Green tea and store it in a bottle. Keep consuming it the whole day in between meals.
11) Water intake:- We all are aware that the normal water intake should be around 2- 3 litres. But do you know? We can also include Vegeatable or fruit juice in our water intake.
12) Avoid Hidden Calories:- Foods which claim to be low in fat might actually be high in kcal. Always check the food labels properly.They might replace fats by carbohydrates, sugars. Beware of Diet Coke, Diet Biscuits, Diet products. Do have a look at their nutrition content before purchasing.
13) Cooking Techniques:- Yes Cooking Techniques do help a lot when it comes to weight. Use oil sparingly.Instead Of Sauteing use Seasoning technique wherever possible. Try to cook veg and dals together so the intake of oil is reduced. Avoid heavy Salad dressings.Instead Of deep frrying try baking the foods.
So that were 13 different ways to overcome WEIGHT LOSS PLATEAU.. Do try this out and let us know how it goes with you. If you wish to add any other points feel free to share it..
“Weight loss is not a magic it’s a science” remember that always.
Also let me know in comment section Do you find this article helpful?
~ Ayesha Ghadigaonkar