Despite your best efforts to control your calories and keeping
your exercise routine, sometimes, you just cannot lose any
more weight. When you can weight loss stops, despite your efforts,
this is called a plateau.
Have you experienced a plateau? You are not alone. Plateaus
are the result of the body’s natural response to changes in
your routine. Once you understand how your body adjusts to
your dietary and fitness changes, you can put your plateaus
behind you.
The first step for conquering your plateau is
to take a look at your mental preparation for fitness. Is your
exercise routine becoming too dull? If you are doing the same
3 sets of this, the same 20 minutes of that, and aren’t finding
ways to improve your condition, you are probably plateauing.
Look for things to change. Work on increasing the intensity
of your workouts. Get more work out of each of your reps. If
you are doing pushups, for instance, you can easily make them
harder.
When you extend your arms, really push hard against the ground.
Try to pop body off the ground. Squeeze at the top push. Then
lower your body in a controlled slow movement.
Second, try taking a week off of your workout routine. Try
low-intensity exercise. Give the diet a bit of a break. Sometimes,
your metabolism needs time to adjust. Your body may just need
a few days to recover from your new routine. You should take
a break from your routine every 5 to 10 weeks. Exercise, just
do something a little different.
When you return from your “break” do a completely new routine.
Add different types of resistance. Enjoy the good weather,
if it’s the right time of year, and go for a mountain bike
ride, swim, hike, play sports.
Finally, add variety to your eating habits. If
you are eating 2000 calories a day, eat 2200 calories one day
and 1800 the next. If you are eating three meals, eat less
for your meals, and eat more snacks. If you are eating more
than three meals, shift to three.
