And suddenly, everything stops.
The scale is no longer your friend, but turns into a daily frustration.
All I can say, nothing has changed. You've been eating well, exercising frequently (maybe even after his regular routine of the "T") and keep portions under control. But something has changed: they have stopped growing. And that makes you mad. Worse, it discourages it.
Welcome to the dreaded plateau: The bane of all athletes, fitness models for the average person just trying to lose your gut, get ready for a holiday cruise or fit into that pair of skinny jeans.
Plateau does not discriminate: Everyone has to deal with it eventually, and not just for weight loss, but a whole series of other things, like how much you can lift during resistance training or weight, the amount of muscle you can increase the body - or if you are a runner or biker - the distance or speed.
And what makes the board particularly frustrating is that usually strikes when you when you feel most unstoppable.
Weight loss plateaus: What is the cause?
Weight loss plateaus are typically caused by one of two things (and sometimes a combination of both):
1. Metabolic adaptation to diet and exercise therapy Current
2. Accumulated changes in your existing exercise routine is causing foods to eat more or burn less calories with exercise, even if you are not aware.
Take a look at both of these reasons in detail.
The metabolic adaptation: It 'in the genes, and wants you to remain unchanged!
What is this metabolic adaptation All About?
All biological systems have a penchant for "balance". In biology, this is called "homeostasis." Homeostasis is basically just a fancy word science to describe the body's preference for "staying the same."
Like most people, the body does not really want change, and when he realizes that he has "changed", do not want to do more of it. He wants to keep everything nice, smooth, and the same thing. This is more efficient - and in the case of things like blood pressure, respiration and heart rate (which are also homeostasis) - more secure.
There are some very good reasons to change the body will not change.
Changes, first of all requires energy ... and the Department wants to save energy, not sacrifice. He loves to store energy (in the form of the body too fat calories) for a rainy day - (. That was very common in all of human history), or, more specifically, the famine
For some time it gives the stored energy to burn fuel, but will end up being "skeptical" and then decide that maybe you really do not need to burn all the fuel, after all, and begins to recover.
The result is that the body releases signals to slow down your metabolism (or the rate at which energy or calories), and you find yourself standing on the ladder and are not the same results as you were before.
However, the adaptation of your body your health and the environment.
Remember, if you eat fewer calories than you need to maintain your weight (which is a state of homeostasis), your body will eventually understand this and decide that something is out of whack. His response is to trigger a cascade of complex chemical process, designed to slow the loss of extra weight, because if weight loss continues unchecked, you will eventually wither and die. Understand that your body always put self-preservation first. He will do anything and everything in its power to not to starve - including the brakes on the speed at which you burn your energy reserves (kropsfedt.)
In other words, you can fool the body of the time, but you can not fool all the time - and rarely you can cheat on it for a long time. And when it comes to you (and it is always at the end), you can run smack into the DAB homeostasis ... and the plateau.
Diet and exercise-induced weight loss plateaus
The other type of plateau is caused by small changes in your routine diet and exercise that build up naturally over time. For example, it is rare that even the most disciplined students to start over or portions to believe that exercise at an intensity that is greater than they really are.
This means that during a period of several weeks or months, can have many more calories than they really are on fire and burn less calories with exercise than is necessary to compensate for that. Each of these factors can cause fat loss and weight to a standstill, but when combined, can cause a "double whammy."
Consider, for example, if you were to eat 100 calories more each day as your goals for fat loss and exercise at a level that has burned 100 fewer calories at each sitting (assuming a three-day training ). Over seven days, an additional 1000 calories on your target, which in the course of a month could add up to about 1 pound of body fat. Thus, the trays are built.
A concrete example of a weight loss plateau
We will try to make the concept of "homeostasis" and the plates of the actual weight loss and true for everyone.
Meet "Sarah". Sarah is currently a 2300 calorie diet, despite only need 2000 calories to maintain his weight (his point of "homeostasis" or balance.) As part of a diet plan fat loss, Sarah drops his caloric intake to 1500 calories a day. In one week, she lost a pound of fat.
Sarah's body is confused. He said that "I normally eat 2300 calories ... it must be a temporary situation. "Then he starts to leave a stores energy in the long term in the form of body fat being" liberated "in energy, until the" temporary "state is fixed and Sarah again eating 2000 calories.
So a few weeks, see Sarah keeps her body to remove fat percentages that the brain learns from his body to give up this stored energy. But when he begins to understand that this is the "norm" and it pulls down to beat body fat for energy. It will always burn fat as fuel, but not so much. When Sarah is still to eat less energy than you burn, it does not necessarily add body fat, but it may stop the losing.
It 'really the Plateau? Understanding the Balance Versus percentage of body fat
There are some cases where you might think that we have reached a plateau when in reality they have. It is important to recognize these situations before reacting to a plateau in weight loss.
It is not uncommon for people to see the scale weight will remain stable or even rise, to become lighter. This is especially common when a person starts before resistance training or weights, because they are typically put on more muscle (sometimes faster than they are able to begin to strip fat) due to their new routine.
In these cases, you will see your weight scale are the same, even if you work your butt off in the gym, or in some cases, was horrified to see up.
Remember that, after all, your goal should not be lighter, but thinner. Thinner means they have increased their proportion of lean mass (muscle) body fat. So even if you have not lost a single pound of body fat, but gained five kilos of muscle, which is still considered "poor" when it began. This is because the percentage of your total body weight, percentage of fat has been reduced.
It is very important to understand this concept because they do not want to jump to the conclusion that it has reached a plateau of weight loss, if you are really progressing very well. In fact, it is actually an ideal situation to be in. If so, keep doing what you do.
Overcoming the Weight Loss Plateau: Ten Proven Plateau Busters
So suppose you really have reached a plateau in weight. How do you get past it?
Plateau Buster # 1: Fat Start Body Control, not just the weight of scale
Remember, this is not really about losing weight, but fat loss. The key to recognizing the true fat loss plateau is to monitor both the scale weight and body fat percentage.
Start measuring and monitoring body fat percentages and weight, and monitor changes in the proportions of muscle to body fat, not only the weight of the scale. A couple of body fat calipers Accu-measure are very inexpensive (under $ 10) and after their fall, easy to use at home. Take measures percentage of body fat every two weeks. As your body fat percentage is down, you can be sure that it has reached a plateau of weight loss.
If you did not lose the excess fat in 2-3 weeks, try another weight loss plateau busters below.
Plateau Buster # 2: re-calculate your calorie needs
If you have not recently re-calculated calorie needs, they do.
As people lose weight or fat or gain muscle, their daily caloric needs change as well. This is especially important if you have lost a significant amount of body fat or weight since the last time you made this calculation. As your weight drops, so can your daily calories. This may mean that you eat more food than you need for your new weight. This can cause your fat and weight loss progress is stopped.
Similarly, if you add significant muscle since the last calculation of calorie requirements, can actually be malnutrition, which can make you lose hard earned muscle.
In both cases, it is a good idea to re-calculate your calorie needs at least once a month (and attempting to use a formula that calculates these requirements is based on muscle mass, not mass total body.) Use this new number to adjust your daily caloric intake based on your goals. If you still have a tray, keep reading.
Plateau Buster # 3 in the scientific world with your diet
Every time someone says that hit the "plateau of weight loss," one of the first things I suggest is to be very careful about diet and meals.
We are a nation of Super-Size Me, and it is difficult for even the most disciplined person to get a real idea of rations - and especially - to support the long term. You may think your diet and the portions are the same as two months ago were shedding body fat like crazy, but is it really the case now? If your sense of portions gradually increases, the extra calories add up ... And who can say they will lose body fat more slowly.
So get really careful about diet for a few weeks. So it goes:
1. Subscribe to a food, calories and exercise tracking free sites like The Daily Plate.com; Fitday, DietTV king calories or spark people.
Buy a second digital food scale, and in two weeks, weigh your food portions so you can see exactly what you actually eat every meal in calories. Enter this information in the food tracking tools.
3. Adjust the dosage and the dietary habits based on what you learn on the register of food
This usually should not be a permanent policy (even though I know a lot of athletes, fitness models, and serious fitness junkies who do not - including myself), is really just intended to help you get the hang of your actual consumption of food, if you are really eating more than you thought, and then not lose fat or weight.
After following your calories for a few weeks, you find that you eat more food than you would a fat loss or weight loss goals. If so, adjust your calories down to bring it into line with your goals. If it appears that you eat exactly what you should be, but not lose fat, then move to the next tactic.
Plateau Buster # 4: Check your exercise routine, and activities
Just as models diet, exercise and activity, may also be affected. Intensity can fall, you get busy and start cutting the goals in your workouts short, it becomes cold outside and you'll become a little 'less active. Over time, these reductions in activity can begin to chip away at how many calories you burn each day, really.
Even reducing the extra 50-100 calories burned in activity can be long-term fat loss and the effects of weight loss. More than 30 days, ending the day up to 50 calories a workout in less time, or may lead to the sale of a pound of fat per month.
The trick is to use the same approach to training and we talked earlier about the diet. Monitor activity and exercise:
1. Sincerely history of your weight and resistance training exercise and cardiovascular exercise a day
Consider a second digital pedometer or step counter or as FITB Bodybugg to keep better track of your actual activity throughout the day
3. The transfer of data feed and website monitoring exercise (ie, the daily plate, Fitday, etc)
4. Check if you are still coming in or around your goals objectives of fat / weight loss.
While you keep track of your workouts and daily activity is a practice I always recommend to every day if it is a little too close to your liking, just do it in two weeks as a reality check and recalibrate your workout routines based on what you find.
Plateau Buster # 5: Change your cardio exercise and strength
Change the type of heart may also help to break the weight loss plateau.
If you have been used to achieve a longer duration, distance or solid-state cardio, you might consider changing your routine to include a shorter, more interval training or HIIT intensity. HIIT can help start your metabolism, increase fat loss while discouraging the catabolism of lean tissue and even improve your overall VO2max.
On the other hand, if you are already a devotee success, try turning off some HIIT training a lower intensity, long duration of the heart, which also has the advantage.
Too, can change the type of cardio exercise you do also boost fat loss and help break a plateau. For example, if you run usually try to go cycling, swimming and even skating, which emphasizes the different muscles and can help break a plateau. Or if you're used to some cardio at the gym, try some new machines for a change, including rowing machines, steppers and elliptical stairs instead of the usual treadmill or exercise bike.
Plateau Buster # 6: More Resistance / Weight Training
If you are not accustomed to normal weight or resistance training, which is missing the boat.
Just add 2-3 days of resistance training or weight, in addition to regular cardio training can not only help break a plateau in fat loss, but also add muscle, which is metabolically more active than body fat. Over time, this can help you burn more calories (even at rest) and keep body fat under control.
It 'also a wide range of health benefits, including increased bone density, reduces the risk of injury, when life and improves insulin sensitivity. Not to mention the lighter you look and feel stronger.
Plateau Buster # 7: Start your Metabolism: Eat More
Okay, now we have beaten all the main non-adaptive causes a weight loss plateau, we will get serious about fixing what we call the "adaptive" or "metabolic" causes fat and trays weight loss.
The first approach is to eat more.
Yes, it is true, if you stop losing fat, then I want you to eat more. I know it sounds counter-intuitive, but remember that the body wants to balance. If all things in your diet and exercise routine is actually remained the same, the cause of your fat loss has stopped, the body does not want to lose more fat.
Then it's time to throw a curve ball your body and know it's normal to build fat reserves.
The way is to eat more calories in a short period of time. We're not talking large amounts of extra food consumed days or weeks. Instead, gradually increase your calorie intake to a level that is just above your maintenance level (100 to 150 calories) for about 1-2 weeks. Take measures body fat and weighed to see if you have lost all body fat.
To illustrate this, let us return to the example of the real world "Sarah", as we discussed earlier.
Sarah ate 1500 calories daily diet, which led to about a pound of fat lost per week. However, he came to a halt. So the week, Sarah adds her eating 2100 calories a day. Remember, your maintenance calorie level (the amount of food they need to eat just to maintain his current weight) is 2000. So he took his food as part of the surplus area of about 100 calories a day.
While Sarah is eating a little more on the needs of her body, she is surprised when he enters the ladder and take measures body fat, actually lost weight despite eating more food.
Incredible? Well, yes, more or less. Except once you think about what the homeostasis of the whole, it starts to make sense. Keep the body guessing and not be able to stay on as a platform for the long term.
Plateau Buster # 8: Eat more often
If you're still stuck on the idea to eat three "square meals" a day, you may want to reconsider the timing traditional breakfast, lunch and dinner dining.
People who eat smaller meals more often every 2-3 hours is less likely to overeat, and usually use calories more efficiently the energy and muscle recovery, compared with the storage of excess body fat. Consider taking your meal in the day to see if it helps to shock your system tray.
Plateau Buster # 9: Cycle your calories
Calorie-cycling is a way of eating calorie days alternating with days of lower calories to keep the body guessing and avoid weight loss plateaus to develop first. This type of bike calorie is also known as "zig-zag" or "exercise calories."
Calorie cycling works because on average during the week, goes into a deficit of energy is sufficient to cause fat loss you need. For example, if you need to create a weekly caloric deficit of 3500 calories to lose one pound of fat a week, spread as evenly distributed in seven days.
Say you're on a diet of 2000 calories (the calories you need to eat to maintain your current weight). This is what could be daily calories as calories in a periodization program or zig-zag:
* Monday: 1800 calories
* Tuesday: 1500 calories
* Wednesday: 2000 calories
* Thursday: 1300 calories
* Friday: 1700 calories
* Saturday: 1600 calories
* Sunday: 2000 calories
This is equivalent to 2100 calorie deficit per week. We are still at 1400 calories, so instead they take the food, we increase our physical activity to burn 200 calories more per day.
You get the idea. Sometimes it is not even necessary to make any major fluctuations in calories - small changes in the range of 100-200 calories up or down is often enough to keep your body guessing and you will be out of weight loss plateau.
Plateau Buster # 10: Change of macro-nutrient ratios
Sometimes breaking a plateau of weight loss is as easy as changing your daily macro-nutrient ratios (protein, fat and carbohydrates).
Some people, for example, find that they lose more body fat with a higher protein, higher (healthy) fat diet that is lower in carbohydrates, while others seem to do well with a more high in carbohydrates, moderate in protein and low fat diet.
The body of each person may react differently to the macro-nutrients, so when you hit the plateau of weight loss, moving around the relationship between fats, carbohydrates and proteins can sometimes be useful.
You can also experiment with how much time the macro-nutrients (eg, to reduce non-fibrous carbohydrates in the evening.) Again, the key here is to track your daily food and nutrients then when you start to see body fat drop again, you know what worked.
Coping with long-term weight loss plateaus: Check Your Head
Whether this is your first weight or fat loss plateau, or your fifteenth, you can expect to encounter more of them in the future - especially as you get closer to your body is "ideal" weight. The leaner you get, the more your body wants to hold over the last reserves of energy the body fat, so removing those last few pounds of body fat can be a challenge even for the very fit .
The key here is to not let you get too obsessed. You are probably his worst critic, and sometime the difference between 9 percent body fat and 11 percent is not worth the trouble, unless of course you are involved in competitive bodybuilding, figure, or physical modeling . Even then, the maintenance of low levels of fat in the body for long periods of time is extremely difficult.
At some point you will reach fat loss plateau, because the extra fat and losing weight would be unhealthy. When you approach that point, check your head and go to maintenance mode, and congratulate yourself with a job well done.
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