Option 1. Slide down a cliff by regaining the weight.
Option 2. Try these tips first.
By. www.NutritionVista.com"I hate these last 4 kilos," declared Arjun as he walked into my office for his follow-up. "It was exciting when I started my weight loss program at a 100 kilos." He went on to moan, "losing the initial 11 kilos seemed so simple. What is going wrong now?" He was clearly demoralized as he had followed his diet diligently, done his exercises sincerely and been very positive throughout. Then why was he not shedding the last few kilos to reach his ideal weight of 85 kgs?
Well, technically speaking we call this reaching a
`plateau'. The main reason this happened to Arjun is that when his body weight went down, so did his Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR). Therefore he was burning calories more slowly. His body needed fewer calories to maintain his weight, and fewer still to continue losing more. To continue losing at the same rate, he needed to gradually reduce his caloric intake while increasing his energy expenditure through exercise.
Fortunately plateaus are very common and can be overcome by giving the body a little `nudge.'
NV tips to get past the plateau...- Understand: Your body weighs less now and burns calories differently. You must recalculate your daily energy needs (Recalculate Daily Energy Needs) and reduce your caloric intake by another 300 calories a day, and increase your exercise factor to burn an additional 200 calories during your workout.
- Change: Try a different exercise routine. For example, change your cardio routine by getting onto a treadmill or doing aerobics or even by swimming. Indulging in an active sport is also an enjoyable way to `shake' your body out of its balanced state.
- Bring on some protein: Studies have shown that replacing fat calories with protein calories can help preserve your BMR. But beware! The upper limit for protein is 22 percent. So don't overindulge.
- Smaller meals, greater gains: Eat 5-6 small meals a day. Eating smaller portions at 2-3 hour intervals will help keep your metabolism going. Opt for clear soups, crunchy salads & juicy fresh fruits that not only fill you up, they also decrease your risk of heart disease, stroke and cancer. This is an extremely useful tactic in overcoming your weight-loss plateau.
- Be honest: Keep an account of calories burned and calories eaten. Overestimating the former and/or underestimating the latter can lead to a false `plateau'. Maintaining a food and activity diary can help a great deal. Overindulging in so-called `health' foods can also pile on calories. So, remember the key word `Moderation' at all times.
- Pick up those dumb-bells: Weight training is doubly useful. It burns calories as well as builds muscle mass. This is turn, helps you lose body fat and therefore, can compensate for the decline in BMR induced by weight loss.
- Don't give up: You have come this far, be very proud of nearly reaching your goal. Even if you have hit a plateau, you may still be losing some weight, but may be a lot slower than when you started off. Giving up now would mean double trouble - low metabolic rate coupled with no exercise and a higher appetite. This may take you back to your original weight.
- The last straw: If right at this moment, you do not have the motivation to try that extra bit harder, give yourself a respite from trying so hard for a week or two, and simply focus on eating a healthy, balanced, nutritious diet that allows you to maintain your current weight. If you like to blog, seek out people who have gone through what you are going through now and will tell you how they won. Don't give in to the temptation of a weight loss pill.
Stay positive and make healthy living a life-time habit. Focus in, you are so close and just need to close the itsy bitsy remaining gap.
By, The Dietetic Team @ NutritionVista.comPost a Comment:
Weight Loss Plateau Blog
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