Disrupt the Rut
Is your determination and ambition to lose weight and get healthy losing its momentum? Are you deep in doubt and short on patience – willing the scale to move even the tiniest bit – wishing you had an extra bit of material so your favorite pants will fit once more?
Plateaus in weight loss and fitness goals are common. One minute you’re motoring along – the weight seems to be melting before you eyes – that extra block whizzes by – you fly through your day with energy to spareâÂ?¦.then voila! Everything you’ve worked so hard for seems to crash down upon your head! The scale has frozen dead – that extra step is agonizing – and by the end of the day you feel wiped out and drained.
This may be the most crucial time of all for you to muddle through! Sure it’s downright disappointing when the plateau strikes, but it’s not the end of the road – nor is it uncommon. In fact, depending on how much weight you wish to lose you may experience several plateaus! The trick is to revamp and revitalize!
Let’s face it, as much as plateaus are a part of weight loss and fitness goals, so are it’s breakdown! Plateaus actually give you the chance to reevaluate your objectives. Maybe you’re aiming too high or working too hard – perhaps you’re simply ignoring an important piece of the overall wellness puzzle!
First ask yourself, why – to lose that extra weight? To be more healthy? To be able to keep up with the younger crowd? To live longer? Make sure weight loss and fitness goals are selfish. You can’t reach your goals if you’re doing it for someone else – it has to be for you. You are responsible for your health and you need to be happy with yourself. If you’re trying to lose weight to please your significant other then you are setting yourself up for failure! If you’re trying to get fit to hang out with your younger friends you’ve missed the point!
Once you’ve established your goals are strictly for you and you alone, then it’s time to reevaluate them. A goal of losing fifty pounds – or running in a 5 K marathon are honorable, but can seem like impossible feats. Try breaking down your ultimate goal into smaller, more manageable pieces, like losing one pound per week or five pounds a month. Try running one mile and walking one mile or adding a few blocks every week.
Don’t be afraid to take a mini break from the grueling routine you set for yourself. Of course, you can’t go hog-wild or you’ll wipeout all the good you’ve already done. Take an active break. Instead of keeping up your structured routine try a leisurely walk or play a game of tag with the kids. Go get a massage to work out all those kinks and pent-up frustrations.
Mix it up. Sometimes all you need is a little change in routine. Add resistance training to your work out routine to tone muscles and burn fat. Try interval training or cross training. Use free weights instead of the machines or try rowing instead of walking. Attend a fitness class like yoga, martial arts or kickboxing. Changes in routine surprise your body and force it to adapt.
Take a look at your diet. If you’re constantly hungry perhaps its time to closely monitor your food intake and increase the good stuff, after all, starving yourself only brings more health hazards! If hunger is not the problem, perhaps its depravation – go ahead, treat yourself to that indulgent snack – just keep it in moderation!
Watch for hidden enemies of weight loss. Extra sodium makes your body retain water and gain weight. Things like extra carbohydrates in condiments like ketchup can stall weight loss. Low carb foodstuffs are actually high in calories and fats. And eating carbs right before bed triggers the production of insulin, which inhibits fat burning and causes your body to store fat instead.
Caffeine poses another risk to diet and exercise plans. Though it is a stimulant and can be found in many commercial weight loss formulas, caffeine can actually perpetuate the factors contributing to weight gain. Caffeine elevates stress hormones like cortisol, which increases fat storage in the abdominal area. It also leads to overeating as it stimulates appetite. And though caffeine is a diuretic, the only thing you’re losing is water – not fat. But water is important. Not getting enough water hinders the breakdown of fat, so nix the coffee and switch to water!
Remember losing weight and beefing up physical fitness are ways for you to increase your overall wellbeing. And things like adequate sleep should not be ignored. Lack of sleep causes your hunger hormones to kick into overdrive while impeding the hormones that make you feel full and satisfied.
Fitness and weight loss goals are overall goals and every aspect of your day may need a closer look. Starving yourself only forces your body to hoard fat -stagnant exercise routines don’t force the body to react – stalking your scale is not a true measure of weight loss.
Remember even the smallest of changes can make a difference. The key is perseverance. The longer it takes to take that extra weight off the better the chances it will stay gone! That scale and tape measure will move again – that extra block will not always seems so far – and those old pants are outdated, so go buy something new and stylish that shows off all your hard work!
