After starting a new weight loss program, most people reacha plateau of sorts in their progress.
When you start a new diet or fitness plan, you usually consumefewer calories but also burn more through exercise. Asyou’re expending more energy than you take in, your body burnsthose few calories for energy first, then you begin to burn storedfat quicker than before, when your calorie intake was higher.
Your body, like a finely tuned machine, settles into this newpattern of outgoing and incoming calories and gradually adjustsby burning fewer calories in order to safeguard its reserves. Theresult: Weight loss slows down as your body tries to retain fatstores so it can use its reserves as sparingly as possible.
It’s at this point that you’ll notice your eating and exerciseefforts aren’t producing results and that you can’t seem to shiftthe weight any more. In order to break through the plateau, youhave to do few things: 1) alter your eating habits and 2) alteryour exercise program in a way that challenges your body.
A wonderful way to boost your metabolism and breakthrough to the next level of weight lossis to incorporate aerobic exercise intoyour program, such as 30 minutes ofwalking three to four times a week.In addition, weight training with freeweights or machines several times aweek can help increase muscle mass,which in turn allows you to burnmore calories faster. Studies show thatweight training can increase your metabolismovernight by 5 to 10 percent,and increase your metabolism for up to21 hours after an intense workout.
Look out for hidden carbohydrates.
Sugar can lurk in the most unexpectedplaces such as ketchup, saladdressings, teriyaki and barbecue sauces.Also watch out for cornstarch, sugaror milk solids in many processed foods such as gravies, or sauceson frozen vegetables. Avoid “low–fat” foods where flavor isenhanced by sugar and other carbohydrates. Besides, don’t beafraid of heart healthy monounsaturated fats like those foundin olive oil, nuts, seeds, and avocado. The omega–3 fatty acidsfound in fish are quite beneficial as well. A little bit of fat willslow the entry rate of carbohydrates into your blood stream,keeping blood sugar stable and helping to reduce hunger, moodswings, and cravings.
Go high–protein, low carbohydrates.
Unless you are eating enough protein to maintain your leanmuscle mass, you are likely to have lost weight already from bothyour fat stores and muscle. Women need to eat approximately100 grams of protein a day in order to preserve their muscle tissueduring a weight loss program. If you have lost some muscleduring your weight loss program so far you will need to focuson protein so your body can build muscle, which requires morecalories to sustain, which will kick–start your weight loss again.
Drink to burn up
It’s vitally important to replenish your fluids by drinkingplenty of water on your weight loss program. An inadequatesupply of water in itself can slow down your weight–loss. Carrywater with you wherever you go throughout the day. For additionalweight–management benefits, add a high quality aloe concentrate to your water to help keep your digestion in top shape.Keeping well hydrated not only helps you burn fat efficiently, italso helps control hunger.
Change Exercise Methods
Another way to get past a plateau and force further gains isto simply do the already effective exercise, but change how youdo it or use different equipment. For example, if you have beendoing Front Shoulder Raise exercises with dumbbells, try usinga barbell to perform the same Front Shoulder Raise, or do thecable version of the Front Shoulder Raise. One important strategyis to keep switching the way you do each exercise.
So for example, if on Day 1 when you train your chest, youuse a barbell for the Bench Press, the next time either use dumbbellsor a machine to perform the same exercise. This is a greatway to add variety to an exercise you enjoy doing but still keepyour muscles “guessing”, forcing them to continue making greatgains.
Try New Exercises
The human neuromuscular system adapts to specific movementpatterns; it is advisable to changeyour training exercises occasionally. Ifyou have been walking for a long time,take up running or jogging. Chooseactivities that you genuinely enjoy, andexercise at an intensity that challengesyou.
Similarly, if progress comes to ahalt in the Bench Press exercise, theneither the Incline Bench Press, Flys, orDips can serve as excellent substitutesto “shock” your muscles and promotefurther progress. Although all of thoseexercises target the chest muscles, thedifferent movements require differentmuscle–fiber recruitment patterns thatwill stimulate further strength and development.
Maintain the right attitude
The final, perhaps most important, component of weightloss success is your attitude. Pay special attention to your mentaland emotional connections to food and exercise. If you findyourself sitting on the sofa, watching television and eating icecream rather than working out, ask yourself why. There has to besome benefit to it, some payoff that, at the time anyway, seemsgreater than your long–term goal of health and fitness. You haveto identify and acknowledge your fitness downfalls before youcan do anything to change them. Remember that you can’t continuedoing the same thing the same way and expect differentresults.
If what you’re doing isn’t working, make changes!
