How to Break a Weight Loss Plateau
Healthy eating has become part of your life, but you’re still 10 or less pounds short of your goal weight. Don’t worry. This happens to most people. It may be that your body likes the weight you are at and does not want to give up anymore fat. Every "body" has a set point. You can change this if you really are adamant about reaching your original goal weight.
Here are lists of things to change that will jumpstart your weight loss again:
1. Make changes to your weight training routine. If you have been doing a full body workout you should switch to a split routine. Do your upper body one day and your lower body on your next weight training day or work your muscles in groups (ex: Day 1 – Legs / Day 2 – Chest & Triceps / Day 3 – Back, Shoulders & Biceps)
2. Change the type of exercises you are doing for each body part. For instance, if you have been doing the Seated Chest Press and Pec Deck for your chest, switch to a Flat Bench Press and Dumbbell Flyes. You will actually see better results if you use free weights instead of machines.
3. Change the type of cardio you are doing. Your body gets used to the same routine after about 4 weeks. If you have been doing the treadmill for your cardio workout for more than 4 weeks, switch to the stationary bike, the elliptical or the stair stepper.
4. Make some dietary changes. For a short while (6 weeks or less) you can remove the starchy carbohydrates from your last 2 meals. Replace the starch with vegetables. Never remove all the carbohydrates from your diet.
5. Zig Zag your caloric intake. Eat low (1400) calories for 3 days in a row, and then have one higher calorie day. Increase your calories by 25% for your high calorie day. (1750 calories).
6. Make sure you are eating ONLY whole-grain, unprocessed carbohydrates. White flour and processed carbohydrates such as bread can cause an insulin spike, which in turn promotes fat storage. Eat foods low on the Glycemic Index to help avoid insulin spikes.
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7. If you eat dairy, make sure it is fat free. Since dairy is processed, is it best to keep it to a minimum, especially cheese. There is also evidence that the protein in dairy products may leach calcium from your bones. The best sources of calcium are plant sources such as green, leafy vegetables and soy products like tofu and soy milk.
8. If you’ve reached a plateau, maybe it’s time to try something totally different. Instead of your regular cardio plan, sign up for a martial arts class or a boxing class. They will not only get your heart pumping but also help to make you mentally disciplined. Try martial arts or boxing classes as your only form of cardio 1 or 2 days a week. Continue with weight training at least 3 days per week. For your "Off Days", take a nice long leisurely walk.
Making just a few of these changes can help you break that dreaded plateau and re-start your fat loss.
Aimee Deak is a certified personal trainer, nutrition analyst and author of the book, “Every Body Loses”, an easy-to follow, step-by-step guide to fat loss.
You can find more information about fat loss and exercise on her website aim4nutrition.com
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Weight Loss Tip ? The Importance of Lowering Your Body-Fat!
When you hear a doctor or a personal trainer say, "Your body fat is too high, or you are borderline obese, what do you think? Does it matter to you? Does it motivate you to lose weight? Or are the numbers on the scale more important?
Most people will always have a love – hate relationship with the scale in their bathroom. However, with the dramatic increase in diabetes and obesity cases in America the importance of keeping your overall body fat down becomes the most important issue to ones health.
What does it mean to be obese? This means that thirty percent or more of your overall body weight is fat. When this occurs, your body has already begun to shut down in many areas. Things that are affected by high levels of body fat are; blood pressure, cholesterol, bone density, energy levels, immune systems and on and on. This is the direct reason for the increase in heart disease, diabetes, and strokes in America.
What is happening behind the scenes is this; muscle burns more calories than fat. If you have less muscle then you are going to burn less fat in day. In addition, aging promotes a decrease in muscle mass naturally. The goal is to slow that natural process down. How do you do that? I call this, "Having synergy in your workout and eating plan."
Having synergy in your workout plan is accomplished by incorporating all areas of fitness into your weekly activities. The four main areas are; good eating habits, heart exercising (cardiovascular), strength training (weights) and flexibility training (stretching). When all four areas are working well, you can not help but lower your body fat.
When you lower your body fat levels your; blood pressure, stress and cholesterol levels will lower and your strength confidence and stamina will naturally increase.
Are the numbers on the scale important? To your brain and ego maybe, but in the greater health of things, not as much as lowering your body fat levels.
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