One of the worst but common problems people on weight loss had to endure is the dreadful plateau. That’s when after months of strictly following your diet and fitness routine, you come to a point when your weight loss comes to a complete halt. Don’t freak out!
Here are a few things to ask.
Are you keeping track of your calorie intake?
The most common complaint of many people who are trying to lose weight is they see no progress after a few months. One of the common reasons for this is the gradual increase in food intake, which goes unnoticed. In other words, you probably don’t realize you’re adding more food on the plate. That’s why as months wear on, you notice you’re losing less and less weight and eventually you stop losing weight. Worse, you are gaining extra pounds. This is why it’s very important to measure the food you’re eating. Don’t rely solely on your crude estimation prowess.
Are you getting enough sleep?
Lack of sleep wreaks havoc on your metabolism. Chronically sleep-deprived individuals tend to eat more because the body tries to compensate for the stress brought about by inadequate amount of sleep. People who sleep less tend to crave for unhealthy, fattening snacks. Also, they tend to perform less on their workouts. You want to make sure you’re on your way to steady weight loss? Check your zzz time and read up on tips for a better night’s sleep on sites like this one.
Are you starving yourself?
Crash diets may mean sudden loss of several pounds. They make you feel like you’re weight loss feats are extraordinary until you hit the dreaded point wherein your body just stops losing the pounds. What’s happening here? This is the bad effect of crash diets and severe calorie restriction. You think your body can go on with only 1200 calories a day? Doing that puts your body in starvation mode. It preserves the fat and burns the muscle. Worse, your metabolism drops to compensate for the little fuel you’re getting. That’s why you become weak and you stop losing weight.
Being on calorie deficit diet isn’t the same as starving yourself. It means eating a balanced diet, albeit in smaller servings than you previously were. Calorie intake for healthy weight loss rate varies from person to person. You have to know your total daily energy expenditure and subtract 500 calories from it. That means you get 500-calorie deficit a day or 3500-calorie deficit a week, which is equivalent to 1 pound of fat lost, the safe amount of weight you can lose a week.
Have you progressed on your workouts?
Whether you’re doing strength training or cardio, you should follow a program that increases in intensity. All workouts start from the basics. You start slow, and as the time goes by, you build up the intensity. For runners, it means covering more mileage in the same span of time. For weight lifters, it’s progressing to heavier loads or more sets and reps. For cardio enthusiasts, it means doing more intense circuits.
Staying in the same zone is a sure way to eventually hit the dreaded plateau.
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