Frustrating Weight Loss Plateaus and How to Get through Them

You’ve shed a lot of weight but suddenly the scales won’t move and you aren’t seeing any results. You feel instead like you’re going backwards. N…

You’ve shed a lot of weight but suddenly the scales won’t move and you aren’t seeing any results. You feel instead like you’re going backwards. No stress. For most people who try to lose weight there comes a time when their weight loss stalls, despite the fact that they’re still following their diet.

If you happen to be in this situation, we’ve got a few tips on how to get through it:

1. Compare yourself with your old photos

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Witness your body’s transformation by comparing your photos or selfies, taken in front of a mirror. It’s the ultimate motivation to get you going. Check your old photos and see how much you’ve changed. If your waist, thighs or arms are smaller, you must have been doing something right. Give it a try. Stick to your plan for a few more weeks and see if you notice any differences.

2. Be honest with yourself

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Have you gone back to some harmful old habits? Ask yourself how intensely and for how long you were active this week. Do you only track some of your meals and snacks in Lifesum, thinking that 200 kcal here or there won’t make any difference? We tend to underestimate how much we’ve eaten. First, we tend to forget what we eat, especially food we’ve eaten between normal meals. Second, we get the portion sizes wrong. Usually they are bigger than we think. Third, could you have forgotten to track all your drinks — juices, coffees with milk and fizzy drinks? These calories add up. Why not try a diet to make sure you’re feeding yourself good food? Lifesum offers a great keto diet app!

3. Think over the calorie goal

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If you deprive your body from calories in food it goes into defence mode, slowing down your metabolism. Your basal metabolic rate lowers as your body mass decreases. Your body requires less energy to do the same tasks. If you want to continue losing weight, add some exercises or lower your daily calorie goal. Eating just a little bit less can get you over the weight loss plateau and help you start dropping pounds again.

3. Change your exercise and diet routine

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Your body can have become accustomed to your exercises and diet so it is time to give it some shock. Change the order in which you perform exercises, the sports you do, the muscles you train during your workouts or number of sets. Choose another diet. If you’ve been eating the same foods, try decreasing your caloric intake just slightly, or why not have one or two days break and ease up on your diet? This should set your body on a reset mode.

4. Remember why you started

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Losing hope or tempted to give up? If it is hard for you to stay on track as the plateau hits, get a picture of your former self or even a photograph of something you want to achieve. Look at the picture and give yourself a boost of determination.

5. Drink more water

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Drinking more water helps you curb your appetite and increases your metabolism, helping you burn more calories and end a weight loss plateau. Remember to drink a glass of water before each meal as it suppresses your appetite naturally. Water removes the excess sodium in the body, which can sometimes be the reason for the weight loss plateau.

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All of the content and media on Lifesum is created and published for information purposes only. It is not intended to be used as a substitute for medical advice or treatment. Users should always consult with a doctor or other health care professional for medical advice. If you have or think you are at risk of developing an eating disorder, do not use the Lifesum app and seek immediate medical help.