Getting through a weight loss plateau
By admin on Jun 10, 2010 in Health and Fitness
Q. Help! I've lost 26 pounds since last October but I seem to have reached a plateau. How can I continue losing weight?
A. First of all, take a deep breath and congratulate yourself for a big accomplishment! Losing 26 pounds in eight months is a big deal. It's also exactly the way we would suggest that you go about weight loss: slow and steady. Good for you! But now you've reached a plateau. Let's see if we can help.
You don't say how close you now are to your goal weight (5 more pounds to go or 50?), which might be an important key. Nonetheless, I've asked each of our experts to offer some suggestions on breaking through weight loss plateaus:
Weight loss coach Elaine Murphy points out that your caloric needs change as you lose weight. That is, as you get smaller, it takes fewer calories to maintain your weight. To continue losing at the same rate, you'll need to gradually adjust your calorie intake downward. You might want to check back in with the Daily Needs Calculator to see how many calories it takes to maintain your new weight. To lose one pound a week, you'll need to create a deficit of approximately 500 calories per day.
Basically, there are two ways to increase your calorie deficit: one is to eat less and they other is to exercise more. The best of all worlds is to combine a little of each. (See Monica's post on different ways to create calorie deficits.)
Registered Dietitian Dana Lilienthal suggests that it might be helpful to keep a detailed food log, if you're not already doing this. (Nutrition Data's tracking tool is perfect for this.) A detailed analysis may reveal some surprises about your diet–such as hidden sources of fat and calories that you may not be aware of.
For example, Dana says, you may be taking in more fat than you realize if you are not choosing lean cuts of protein. If your meal plan includes a serving of chicken, for example, choosing dark meat instead of white can add 6 extra grams of fat and 50 extra calories (even if you avoid the skin)!
When you had more to lose, these small differences might not have mattered as much. As you get closer to your goal, though, you may need to tighten things up a little more.
Elaine Murphy also recommends that you:
"Check your portion sizes by actually measuring and weighing your food for a few days for real accuracy. Do I hear more complaining? It can be an eye opener. Studies have proven that most people under report how much they are actually consuming by 40%!(Heymsfield SB, the Calorie Myth, Measurement and Reality. Am J Nutr 1995:62)"
Our exercise expert, Steve Cabral, suggests that if exercise is not currently a part of your weight loss efforts, adding exercise is a great way to break through a plateau. If you're already exercising, Steve suggests that, instead of doing more of what you are currently doing, you should:
"throw your old program directly out the window. You have to switch things up and force your body to keep up with your new routine. This means that your mind and body are going to have to figure out how to handle the new weights, exercises, reps, tempo, or all four. By literally shocking your body with new techniques you're going to burn more calories and speed up your metabolism.
For example, if you're someone who is used to do long cardio sessions on the treadmill or elliptical, then hop off and start doing some shorter sprints. Better yet, get your heart rate pumping by including some squats, deadlifts, lunges, or step-ups to burn calories, boost your metabolism, and tone your muscles all at the same time.
Lastly, if you switch up your program every 4 weeks you'll be far more successful at never hitting a plateau again!"
Finally, it may be that your body (not to mention you) might benefit from a brief respite from active weight loss. Take a few weeks to allow your body to adjust to the weight you've lost and stabilize, without trying to lose more weight. Use the Daily Needs Calculator to estimate the number of calories you need and simply focus on eating a healthy, balanced, nutrition diet that allows you to maintain your current weight.
This would also be an ideal time to take your fitness program up a notch as you will have a little more food energy in your diet to fuel your workouts. After a few weeks of stabilization, launch the next phase of active weight loss by cutting back on calories and increasing your calorie deficit.
Whatever you do, don't give up! You've come a long way so far. With a little patience, you can and will reach your goal! Log in to the Nutrition Data Diet and Weight Loss Center for a daily dose of expert advice, inspiration, tips, recipes, and support.
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