Often times in your weight loss efforts, you may seem to reach a plateau – a time when you do not lose any more weight. How should you handle your weight loss plateau?
You go on a diet, and it starts out perfectly. You are losing weight, you feel healthy and energetic, and are proud of your achievement. Then you stop losing weight, even though you are still following the exact same diet you have been on when you were shedding excess pounds.
Naturally, you get frustrated because you do not understand what is going on, and why your scale has been telling you the same thing for the past month, despite all your hard work.
But do not get discouraged! Everyone passes through this phase, and many throw in the towel and go back to their old eating habits which eventually makes them put on the weight they had lost. So what should you do when you get to this stage? Follow these tips when you find yourself in this situation.
- Abstain from alcohol: aside from being high in sugar and calories, alcohol also affects your metabolism, making it slower and thus reducing your ability to digest food. In addition, it cuts your motivation to exercise, so it is best to just say no to alcohol.
- Go for healthy carbs: refined carbs such as white pasta, white bread, white rice, etc. contain more sugar than their whole-wheat counterparts. Switch to those, especially before a workout, and watch your waist get slimmer.
- Change your workout: if you always do the same exercises, it can make you hit a plateau. By varying the types of exercises that you do, like taking a class or lifting weights, can help you regain your ground.
- Seek support from loved ones: some people in your life might be contributing to your weight gain unintentionally, either by putting you down directly or by simply eating unhealthy foods when they are around you. Watch out for the little things and ask your friends and relatives to support you in your diet. You can ask your sibling to join you in the gym or suggest healthy activities when you go out with your friends.
The most important thing is to never lose hope or faith in yourself. Look at all the progress you have made already, and go the extra mile to reach a healthy weight.
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