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Nov 16

7 healthy ways to break through a weight-loss plateau – Now To Love

Lose Weight Safely Comments Off on 7 healthy ways to break through a weight-loss plateau – Now To Love

Feel like you've been working hard, eating well but all of a sudden the weight doesn't seem to be budging anymore? Here are seven expert tips to help you break through that weight loss plateau.

By Anya Truong-George

Our bodies are very good at adapting, so while during the first few weeks of change if you've suddenly introduced regular exercise and a healthier diet you likely saw weight drop easily off as your body adapted, however, once your body got used to the new normal, it started to get comfortable, resulting in a weight loss plateau.

So how do you get unstuck?

Here, Mandi shares her top seven tips to help you work through your plateau and it could be as simple as drinking more water.

The study also showed the body prioritises metabolising alcohol before any food you've consumed, "which means that until the alcohol has burned, no other food will be," Mandi explains.

Adding, "Because alcohol lowers your inhibitions and alters decision-making, we tend to overeat when drinking. All these things are working against your weight loss and contributing to your plateau."

Mandi suggests cutting back on your carb intake and instead loading up on fibre-rich veggies, making them around 75 to 80 per cent of your daily food intake.

Then, add in some protein, healthy fats such as coconut and olive oil and avocado, and round it out with smaller servings of grains like brown rice and quinoa.

As mentioned above, your body is incredibly adaptable and can quickly adjust to new forms of exercise or a new diet if you repeat it for long enough, so the trick is to change things up, in particular, your fitness routine.

Mandi suggests a combination of strength training and cardio to "maximise your time and optimise your fat burning and muscle building."

She says you want each workout to be just as challenging as the first workout was even as you become stronger.

While you may think you're keeping to your healthy eating regime, there may be a few extra spoonful's of things that slip through the cracks, Mandi says.

She suggests keeping a food journal of everything you eat, but most importantly, what you're thinking or how you're feeling at that moment.

"I have my clients write down what they were thinking or feeling when they went to reach for the chips or the chocolates," Mandi explains.

"It doesn't need to be a lot of writing, just a one-word feeling. The most typical answers I hear are: bored, stressed, frustrated, overwhelmed, sad, lonely, and felt obligated socially."

For example, going out to eat and everyone else is eating dessert, or that they felt obligated to prepare unhealthy food because of an obligation to family.

"Lack of sleep causes your body to release extra cortisol (stress hormone), and has been proven to slow your metabolism and leave you at an increased risk of obesity and metabolic syndrome," Mandi says.

In turn, a spike in cortisol signals to your body to conserve more energy in your waking hours therefore, your body will hang on to fat instead of using energy to burn it.

Mandi adds, "A lot of times we'll think we're hungry when actually we're sleepy. This is often the culprit in the evening."

Mandi says when working with clients she's found that as they stop snacking at night and stick to earlier bedtimes, weight loss naturally kicks back into action.

Not only does water help us feel fuller for longer, but it is also a natural weight loss aid, Mandi says.

"Additionally, your body is made up of 75 per cent water," explains Mandi.

"When you are even slightly dehydrated, your body will pull water from nonessential functions, like digestion, to utilise it for essential functions like lung, liver, heart and muscle function.

"So if you're dehydrated, you're not losing weight."

Just as a lack of sleep spikes your cortisol levels, so too does high stress, fast-paced lifestyles, which also affects your body's ability to respond to insulin, a hormone which helps keep your body's blood sugar levels from getting too low or too high, and uses sugar from carbohydrates (glucose) to use as energy or store for future use (as fat).

So, if you're stressed for long periods, your body will be more likely to hold onto fat, resulting in that weight loss plateau.

Cortisol also prohibits the release of oxytocin, explains Mandi, which is the feel-good hormone that helps us shift into the 'rest and digest' parasympathetic nervous system.

While there are plenty of tips to help you push through a plateau, Mandi stresses that "it's always important to remember that the best way to lose weight naturally and keep it off permanently is to inspire your body to shift metabolically by getting yourself very healthy through foods, activities, thoughts and lifestyle choices.

"Weight loss then becomes a natural result," Mandi says.

That's why it's always important to remember that as long as you're getting plenty of movement in and eating a fresh, balanced diet and getting plenty of sleep, you're likely already on track to a happier, healthier you.

The Ministry of Health recommends talking to your GP before undertaking any major changes to your diet.

See the article here:
7 healthy ways to break through a weight-loss plateau - Now To Love

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