5 REASONS YOU ARE AT A WEIGHT LOSS PLATEAU
Many times, after being on a weight loss program for a while, people begin to plateau with their success. The first weeks of a program are great! We make new habits that pay off in weight loss rewards. Soon, the weight stops falling, and we just can’t pinpoint what is wrong. Sometimes we just need to be patient, but most often we need to take a look at what new habits we are keeping and which new habits we are letting slowly slip by. Here are 5 common problems for weight loss warriors.
1. You lose focus:
When you start your health journey, you’re excited! You see the future, and it’s gloriously full of single digit jean sizes and muscular arms! After some time, your attitude changes from “striving to perfection” to “doing it pretty much right”. Daily life activities can get in the way of your fitness focus. When you first begin, you feel almost obsessed with the program. You write everything that you eat down, you time your workouts, you pridefully turn down dessert. Then you get busy. You stay up too late helping with a third graders book report. Everyone in your family gets sick, or your dish washer breaks. Suddenly you are looking down the barrel of a tube of cookie dough and decide that it doesn’t really matter. That one tube of dough won’t cost you the ten pounds you’ve lost. Unfortunately, this is how it goes. Life….is how you lose focus.
You must find a way to balance both the program and life. Life will always be there (we want it that way!). There will always be a dance recital, an anniversary party to plan, or homework to help with. If you consistently let daily obligations take priority from your health, your health will suffer.
2. You’re skipping workouts:
If you are like many of my clients, working out is the toughest change to make. Most of my clients are brand new to exercise. The nutrition aspect is different. They’ve been eating their whole lives, there is time to eat, they just need to change their choices. Often it’s more difficult to make time to exercise because they have to insert something new into their day. The beauty of exercise is the more you move, the more you want to move! Starting with a simple 5 minute workout and adding minutes every week is a great way to increase activity and strength. Exercise makes you feel better physically AND mentally. It provides clarity, decreases stress and anxiety, and boosts weight loss. Once you start, you will be amazed at how you love it!! Check out Oakland Fit’s Stacker program to find out how to build up to 30 minutes of exercise, 5 days a week!3. You make “exceptions”:
Much like in the first example you started your program with an idealized perception of what you “should” eat, or what is “allowed”. Everything you ate or did in those first few weeks was in your complete control. You went to parties with arrogance, scoffing at their queso dip and pridefully avoiding the Pinterest cookie dough dip. After a few weeks, you start to justify small “cheats”. A potato chip here, a 1/2 cupcake there….before you know it, you’re knee deep in Margaritas and the enchiladas are coming creating a carb and calorie parade. Argh! How do we avoid this slippery slope?Many trainers and nutrition coaches advise a “cheat night” for this reason. Giving yourself the opportunity to indulge a bit will sometimes help you to avoid daily poor choices that creep back into your life full time. Planning to have a dessert or a cocktail empowers you to own your choices. Therefore giving you the feeling of more control. You are deciding what and when to eat.
4. You allow others to deter your efforts:
Everyone has those friends. The well intended friends and family that say “OH PLEASE! You don’t need to lose anymore!” or “You’re no fun since you started losing weight!”. Granted, there are some instances when a very good friend will recognize that you just can’t see your success. We love those friends. However, for the most part, these well intended do-gooders are dealing with their own struggle and insecurities. They are jealous of how great you look and feel. They don’t mean to be saboteurs, they are just dealing with their own stuff right now. They generally want the same results that you’ve had, but just aren’t ready yet. There are two things that you can do for these friends. First, stay on target. They are watching you, they are learning from you. When they’re ready, they’ll come to you for help. Second, they’ll only come to you if you STOP TALKING ABOUT IT! They get it. They know you’re excited. They know you’re a tiny bit obsessed, but it’s possible that you’re driving them crazy. This may sound strange coming from a trainer. Trainers want to preach health and wellness! This trainer knows that the more you push, the more people who aren’t ready, will resist.
5. You get scared:
Being scared of failing can stop us in our tracks in any aspect of our lives. As we get closer to a goal that has never been achievable in our minds, we sometimes give ourselves an “out” without knowing. I was recently speaking to a 43 year old client who hasn’t been below 200 pounds as long as she’s been an adult. After a lot of hard work and dedication she is currently only 8 pounds away!! In our conversation, she started to say things like “I am so happy with how far I’ve come, if I never get below 200, that’s ok.” I quickly replied “Stop right there!” It is a HUGE deal that she’s about to hit that number. The mental strength that she is about to gain is something she’s never felt. She is giving herself a stamp of approval to stop. She’s reached “good enough” because she’s never seen anything past it. If this is you and you can’t see any further into the future, you will never get there! Take some time to be happy with your achievements and continue on with your new healthy habits. Do not start destructive self talk that will just inch you back up that scale. You can achieve what you set your mind to, but sometimes you may need to adjust your mindset.
Send me an email to tell me about your experience with your weight loss!!
