How To Break Weight Loss Plateau? 3 Effective Ways To Shed The Pounds Again

After spending hours at the gym and eating only salads every day, you still don’t seem to lose weight. Frustrated, you lose motivation and give up all the progress you made so far. This leads you to start binge eating as you wonder where you went wrong, and it is adding to your stress. In a few weeks, you are exactly back where you started and wondering what to do all over again. You sit at your desk in your office wondering whether you will ever be able to get back on track again.

If this scenario explains the state you are in, this article will help you out. You may blame your slow metabolism or genetic factors for your lack of progress, and you are partly right. But research shows that the number of calories you consume, which is surely under your control, plays a far greater role in your weight loss than genetics or metabolism.

Why you are not hitting your weight loss goals

You may work out on schedule every day, but sometimes it is what you do outside of the gym that matters more for your progress too. Are you taking the stairs or using the elevator when you get to your office? Are you mostly seated throughout the day or are you moving about? After a long day in the office, do you come home and crash on your bed or do you do some small chores around the house? This is where your problem may lie.

The subtle movements you make with your body throughout the day have a tremendous impact on your result. This will help you use up more calories throughout the day when compared to just working out at the gym and calling it a day. This is the issue that most beginners have when they start their weight loss journey.

In fact, a study from the NUTRIM School of Nutrition shows that the number of calories burned can vary significantly between people who are moving about all day, compared to people who are just sitting or lying down.

The other problem is that your gym workout itself is not intense enough to help you make any excellent progress with your weight loss. Many studies have shown that your body adapts to the work you put in the gym and that reduces the rate at which you lose weight. This means that while you may have been losing about one pound every week when you started working out, your weight loss per week may have come down to about 0.7 pounds in a matter of a few months, or even a few weeks.

Now that you know what is stalling your progress, here are a few ways you can get back on track once you notice your progress has plateaued even if you have a busy work schedule.

1. Walk for 10 minutes for every two hours of sitting

A short walk when you are on a break gives your muscles the movement they need to keep your metabolism firing. It can also help you achieve better focus and feel less exhausted mentally during long work hours. The effects of a walk break can stay with you throughout your workday and even after you get home. It will leave you feeling energetic and ready for more.

One study showed that people who took walking breaks have lower insulin levels and reduced insulin resistance. They felt less sleepy during the day and had lower blood pressure related to stress. Walking a few minutes every day can do wonders for your body and complement your workout well.

You can use the Cronometer app as your companion to check how many calories you have burned throughout the day. The app lets you log all your exercises in and track your progress. Whether it is in the gym or doing daily tasks such as walking, cooking or mowing the lawn, you can check how many calories you have burned doing these tasks. Sign up on the Cronometer app now for free and stand a chance to get 10% off on a gold membership to take your workouts to the next level.

2. Get a personal trainer

A personal trainer can teach you the proper technique with every exercise. Proper technique can boost your gains significantly. A personal trainer can guide you in the right direction with the way you conduct your workout and help you make minute corrections to the way you lift weights or hold your posture while doing cardio. Trainers will also help you come up with a program that suits your daily schedule and body needs. Personal trainers can advise you on the right kinds of diet to follow too.

FYT helps you find a fitness trainer near you so you can stay on course during your workout schedule. All you need to do is enter your zip code, choose your fitness goal and FYT will connect you with thousands of trainers who live as close to your neighborhood as possible. You can choose any of those trainers who you think will help you reach your specific goals.

You can also choose whether you want your trainer to come to your home, you want to train outdoors, or whether you want to work out in a gym. FYT has trainers who fit all these criteria. Join FYT now and get two weeks of personal training free that is customized to your goals. You can also sign up to free fitness text messages from FYT and get $20 off on your fitness training fee.

3. Track your calories accurately

Logging your food intake is important because it helps you understand how many calories you are consuming and compare them with the number of calories you have burned. This study shows people constantly report lower calories than they consume. You must log not only the main meals that you eat but also any small snacks or condiments you have consumed throughout the day. This also includes small things like ketchup, dressings, added sugars and spices that you may add to the food to make it taste better. They may seem small to begin with, but they can quickly add up and contribute to your overall calorie intake.

The Cronometer app can help you achieve your calorie tracking with ease. You can download the free app and track your diet. You can also create custom food recipes with their nutritional information to record foods that may not be available on the app. Cronometer helps you track up to 82 micronutrients such as vitamins and minerals, so you don’t fall behind on these important parts of your diet too.

With these small steps, you can make a giant leap towards reaching your fitness goals.