That Dreaded Plateau

Most of the time when weight loss stalls, it's because of mindset. Often my clients come to a "magic" number--a goal weight, a multiple of ten pounds, the number they weighed before pregnancy--and suddenly hit a plateau. Whether it's fear of success or fear of change, they begin to sabotage themselves.

It doesn't take much--a cookie here, some M&Ms there. After all, it takes less than one minute to eat a 150 calorie cookie. It takes 15 minutes of dedicated exercise to burn those calories. That handful of M&Ms goes a long way to holding you where you are.

Rarely, the plateau is physiological--hormones, et cetera, play their part. But most of the time, when we stall out physically it's because we stalled out mentally. But the great news is, we put the pounds on ourselves and we have the ability, always, to take them off as well.

What to do? Take a break and take a look at what's going on. Are you at a "magic" number? If so, what is going to happen when you cross that imaginary line? Will people expect different things from you if you are successful at weight loss? Will people treat you badly out of jealousy? What is the deeper fear that is blocking you?

Begin tracking your food again. Meticulously. Every bite that goes into your mouth. Figure out what you are doing to block your own progress. Likewise, review your exercise habits. Are you letting things get in the way of the 20 minutes on the treadmill?

Even if you can't or don't want to identify what your own pitfalls are, you can change something. Add five minutes to each workout. Increase the weight you are lifting (or start lifting weights now--strength training is the secret weapon to true, long-lasting, successful weight loss). Get a heart rate monitor and try to maintain exercise in your target heart rate zone.

Then, wait. When it comes to changing your body composition, weight is often the last thing to go. It can take four, even six weeks to see a change on the scale, even though your pants are getting looser and one of those extra chins melts away. This isn't a plateau, this is a normal transitional process. Trying a change for only a few days won't cut it. You must plan on focusing for three to four weeks, at least.

One of my favorite children's books is about a family going on a bear hunt. They hit obstacles (mud puddles, grassy fields, caves). Each time, they realize, "We can't go over it, we can't go under it, we can't go around it, we have to go through it."

The same is true for the slow, solid process of losing weight. There are no shortcuts. No tips, no tricks. You simply go through the process, one day, one exercise session, one cookie (less) at a time. But ultimately, exercise and food management will always work for you when you work for it.