What to do when you're in the midst of a fitness challenge, and that spark that once was...is no longer?
Plateaus can come in the form a weight loss plateau... where the number isn't budging and you feel like you have stopped making any body composition progress.
If this happens, here are a few tips to help you get over the hump:
1. Don't rely on the scales or naked eye completely
Seems simple enough, but many of us are easily disheartened when the number on the scale doesn't shift as much as we thought it would given how much effort and work you've been putting in.
Something to always remember is that when you begin exercising regularly, you may be experiencing muscle gain at the same time as fat loss. So the numbers may not change dramatically, but the way you look in the mirror certainly is!
Another thing to remember is to rely on your visual progress through recorded snapshots in time. You see yourself everyday, and may not notice the visual changes as obviously as a side by side photo like below.
Ambassador Jess is actually the same weight in the second photo, through weight training and nutrition she has completely changed her body composition.
2. Limit your stress
Stress can cause you to lose sleep - and sleep is one of the most important factors in your progress. Adequate rest and recovery are key to even contributing to fat loss. Sleep is required to repair damaged and torn cells from exercise that repair themselves during rest to build muscle.The stress hormone cortisol has also been linked to weight gain through an increase in appetite! Just another reason to work on self love and taking the time to reduce your stress.
Some ways to combat stress could be scheduling in a 'me-time' activity once a week such as a beach walk, listening to a podcast, a bath and face mask, a yoga class or baking your favourite BOD recipe as a treat!
3. Track your energy output, and food consumption.
Sometimes a plateau in weight loss can arise from complacency in exercise. That means just going through the motions, rather than giving it everything you've got. Ensure you follow THE BOD's percentage recommendations, re-test every 6-12 weeks to ensure your working weights are suitable for your potential, and always give 100% in a session!
If you aren't flexible dieting, it may be helpful to also track even a week of food to confirm you are eating as much as you think you are. By recording your portions including any extra drinks and bites of food, you may learn you are consuming more than the amount of energy you're expending day-to-day and during exercise! A great app to track your food is MyFitnessPal.
Plateaus can also come in the form a mental plateau... where you don't have the same drive to stick to your nutrition and training that you did on Day 1.
Here's what you can do:
1. Change up your meal plan
New food is always a good idea! Sometimes all you need is a new menu to make things more interesting. Try this macro-friendly Cinnamon Nutola from THE BOD's latest recipe book THE BOD Fuel.
2. Lock it in your diary
Thank your past self and schedule in training sessions with a friend that your future self will thank you for. Other ways to motivate the future you include placing your gym outfit laid out on the ground next to your bed for the next day, leaving your gym bag in the car so you can go straight from work or creating your ultimate 'pump up' playlist. Look up "THE BOD Restart" on Spotify to hear ours!
What have been some of your fail-safe ways to overcome a plateau? We would love to share with your #BODSQUAD!
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