How To Beat A Weight Loss Plateau

The first month of the year is coming to an end, the first few weeks of the new year are often filled with weight loss goals and plans. A plateau is a normal part of any weight loss journey and can often be present around the 3-4 week mark.

 We wanted to help anyone stuck as It can be a frustrating situation, particularly when you’re closely following a nutrition or training plan, but there’s usually a reason behind this and you can get yourself back on track.

Discover what could be halting your results and how you can beat that weight loss plateau.

 

What are the signs of a plateau?

Despite what you might think, there’s more than one sign of a weight loss plateau. Despite eating and moving well, signs of a dieting plateau include:

• Weight loss stalled or an increase in weight
• Feeling hungrier
• Low energy levels
• Poor recovery and/or sleep quality

 

What Are The Causes Of A Weight Loss Plateau?

Weight loss plateaus are usually a result of your body’s ability to adapt to diet and exercise. The most common reasons why our body doesn’t respond as expected or plateaus occur is due to the following reasons.

• Undereating or not having the right balance of macronutrients
• Overtraining and/or lacking variation in your exercise.
• Not enough rest: when we don’t get enough sleep our bodies produce cortisol, which leads to fat retention and storage, lethargy and irritability.

When most people embark on a weight loss diet they usually change their diet to have a caloric deficit either by increasing exercise or decreasing food intake. Through this deficit, you begin to lose body mass – and when muscle mass declines, so too does your metabolism. So over time your body can be accustomed to this and halt weight loss. This doesn’t always mean you need to eat less or work harder as that can be a slippery slope to unhealthy habits so read on to find out how you can get back to results.

 

Keep Your Body Guessing

Mix up your meals. Do you have the same meal at the same time every day? Try carbohydrate and/or calorie cycling of higher, moderate and lower days.

For example, try a higher carb day when you have a tough workout session. Rotating food choices helps prevent your metabolism from becoming too accustomed to a specific diet regime.

 

Prioritise Protein

Protein is a macronutrient that has a higher thermic effect than fats and carbs, so your body has to work harder to digest it. So increasing your protein intake or incorporating a source of protein into each meal might also assist your plateau.

 

Shake Up Your Exercise Routine

When it comes to exercise if you’re only doing cardio that could be the reason you’re experiencing a plateau.

When it comes to weight loss it’s important to not only lose fate but also to build muscle, especially because muscle helps your body burn more calories at its resting state, helping you maintain your results.

Generally, strength training helps people shed more fat than cardio while boosting their metabolism by increasing muscle mass. Aim for a minimum of two to three strength sessions each week. If you already strength train, mix it up by using circuits to keep the intensity of your sessions high.

 

Don’t Forget About Rest

If overtraining is the cause of your plateau, it may be time to rethink your workout schedule and include a lower intensity week into your schedule. Also, make sure you’re prioritising sleep to give your body adequate time to rest and repair itself.

 

Is This Really A Plateau?

Before making any major changes it’s important to consider whether you have truly plateaued in your weight loss journey. If you feel you’ve reached one consider whether this might be your ideal weight. The numbers on the scales may have stalled, but that doesn’t mean you aren’t improving on areas of your strength, fitness and mindset. Try using a combination of how your clothes fit and measurements to track and re-check your progress. After all, the scales are just a number and muscle weighs more than fat.

 

Rapid Loss Is Here To Help You On Your Journey

Formulated by leading food and nutrition technologists, Rapid Loss shakes are calorie controlled, containing 25% of your daily RDI of vitamins and minerals. They are also high in fibre and this combined with the level of protein help to create a feeling of fullness that can help satisfy your hunger cravings.

Shop our range of shakes here