Busting a Weight Loss Plateau

Why does weight loss stop?

One question I get asked a lot is:

Why do people hit a plateau and stop losing weight when they are sticking to a set number of calories daily and doing the same exercise all the time?

Your body is a smarty-pants. It gets used to the same amount of calories in and calories out. If you are eating a set calorie diet, calculate how many calories you should eat for the week. Divide that by seven. Then play with the numbers.

• Vary the number of calories you take in. If you're eating 1,400 calories a day, eat 1,200 one day and 1,600 the next (just don’t go too low).

• Then, temporarily change the type of foods you eat. Try plant-based foods for a few days, lower carbs for a few days, lower fat for a few days, and maybe paleo for a few days.

• With exercise, don’t do the same thing every week. Try more cardio one week, less cardio and more strength training another. If you work out every day, take two days off.

Change things up. That’s how you bust-a-move (or bust-a-plateau).

Photo: Krakow, Poland