Beating The Weight Loss Plateau

Among diet experts, there is a rarely mentioned adaptation of the body that prevents a diet program from achieving the maximum results. This adaptation, the weight loss plateau, can be tackled in a variety of ways, most of which involve changes to the training or diet regimen of a person. While circumventing the metabolic rate can be a difficult process, it can be done.

The typical human form is capable of achieving a number of incredible feats that seem to suspend or defy the way science tells us things work. Athletes, through sheer willpower, can end up lifting something that their bodies should not be able to without suffering anything worse than muscle spasms.

People can adapt to extreme physical trauma caused by a car accident and defy predictions that they'll never walk again. While, in general, these amazing feats are useful in a number of situations, there are physical reactions that some people look upon with quite a bit of disbelief. Among these is the dreaded weight loss plateau, when attempting to lose weight.

Essentially, the plateau is a term used to describe a situation where the body has become incapable of losing any further weight, usually due to developing a tolerance for the weight loss pills and methods being used.

Essentially, the plateau is hit when the body develops tolerance for the regimen's limitations and practices, thus allowing the metabolic rate of the body to adjust to whatever weight loss pills or techniques were being used. Most diet books decidedly ignore the existence of the plateau, primarily because it can be seen as negating the purpose of the diet and is, therefore, bad for marketing.

There are, however, ways to counteract the human body building a tolerance for training regimens and weight loss pills.

The human metabolism, when presented with a pattern, will eventually adapt to that pattern. It is this natural adaptability of the human body that can cause the weight loss plateau, particularly if the person's diet and eating habits have been altered for weight loss.

As such, changing the pattern will, once a sufficient amount of time has passed, allow your diet plan or weight loss pills to become effective again. This trick essentially involves confusing the human metabolism, and is often taken as a rather drastic way to get the body back in the diet mode.

There are, of course, several ways to effectively alter that pattern without causing the body permanent harm.

Adding strength and weight training and modifying one's exercise program can also help someone get past the plateau, in most cases. The body will still burn through nutrients during physical activity, though the digestive system's metabolic rate can adapt such that more weight is retained rather than burned during exercise.

Increasing the difficulty of the exercises, or changing the movements to target less-developed muscle areas, can effectively force the body to re-adapt. While the body is busy adapting to the changes, it can also start losing weight again. This method is best used with alterations to the person's diet, however, to maximize the effectiveness.

Another trick used to circumvent the problem of the plateau is to make changes to the time frame between meals. The internal clock that the human body's digestive system operates on can be altered to suit one's purposes, provided one executes the proper alterations to one's diet and eating habits.

A simple action like altering the schedule of the meals, such as adding more meals but reducing the bulk of each, can have an appreciable effect on altering the metabolic rate. The key concept of this method is to fool the body into burning the food faster, thus getting one's weight loss program and diet back on track.

When considering the options, it is helpful to keep in mind that what works for one person may not work for another person. Some slower metabolisms may require combination of diet program and exercise regimen modifications, while others can get by with merely shortening the break between meals. The critical point is to find a method that works and is effective for a specific metabolism, which can be a time-consuming process.

1 Pound Of Fat

There are 3,500 calories in one pound of fat. Thus, if you cut back or work off just 3,500 calories, you will lose an entire pound of fat.

While it is possible to cut back on your calorie intake and increase your exercise regimen in order to lose pounds quickly, it is important to note that doctors recommend that you lose no more than 2 pounds of weight per week in order to ensure that your body properly adjusts to the weight loss.

Here are some tips to help you safely drop 3,500 from your regular routine:

Run

Running for about 1 hour at a slow pace will help you lose approximately 350 calories, depending on your body type, speed and terrain. Thus, if you run for one hour five days a week while maintaining a consistent diet, you will safely lose one pound.

It is important to understand that many people who just begin running will eat pasta and other foods high in carbohydrates in order to compensate for the exertion. They think that because they worked out so hard, they deserve a treat. After all, they justify, the pasta will help to keep their energy levels high.

However, what they may not realize is that while they are justified in thinking that the carbohydrates will infuse their workout routine with energy, they are not actually setting their bodies up to lose weight. When you burn 350 calories but intake 450 over a high-carbohydrate pasta dish, you are adding more calories to your body than you otherwise would have.

Running does, however, help to boost our metabolism and change your muscle tone so that you burn calories more efficiently. Instead of inhaling a pasta dish after a run, select instead to have a large salad and splurge for the carbohydrate-rich croutons.

Eat In

When you eat out at a restaurant, not only are you subjecting your body to an array of high fat, high calorie foods, but you are also tempting yourself to eat a larger portion than you might normally eat.

Therefore, what could be a simple 500 calories meal can easily turn into a 1500-calorie fat fest. In order to lose weight by cutting calories, it is essential that you are aware of exactly what you are putting into your body. Especially in the beginning of your new routine, it is important that you prepare your meals and monitor your level of hunger.

When eating out, generally you are in a social situation where food is not a priority, whereas spending time with your friends is. For this reason, people tend to eat more than they normally would. Non-dessert eaters often even spring for the extra round of calories. If you must eat out, help yourself avoid temptation by selecting a salad rather than a plate of pasta or burger. You will be amazed at the difference in the amount of calories you intake when you make simple choices such as meal option.

By reducing your overall calorie intake and increasing your level of physical activity, you will be able to lose those 3,500 calories without much trouble. Make sure that you stay focused, motivated and on task. You will shed unwanted weight in no time!

See also Diet -vs- Exercise.

Learn How To Use Your Mind To Change What You Crave, And Lose The Weight

Are cravings controlling your eating habits? Well, they don't have to anymore. Cravings are overrated. Learn how to use your mind to change what you crave, to help you lose weight.

If I were to ask you which foods temp you, most likely they would not be ones that are very healthy. I bet they would be ice cream, potato chips, pizza, or something along those lines. In fact, in your mind right now as you are reading, you are probably thinking about a food that is not healthy.

Well, are you? Stop for a moment and think about it........ The point Im going to make in this article is that you can change what you crave by changing how you think.

Every new customer that I speak to about weight-loss has a craving problem. But I don't see it as a problem at all. I see it as a solution. Cravings are over-rated in my opinion, and we don't have to feel tempted by ice cream, cookies or 20-ounce prime ribs. Instead, we can be tempted by watermelon, pineapple, oranges or apples; foods like that. Think that sounds crazy? Well its not and you will see why.

When I first speak with customers about their eating habits, I gather everything I need to know about exactly what they eat and how they eat. The culprit to their weight problem always boils down to snacking, picking, and eating foods that are unhealthy or just plain over-eating. Then I ask what fruits and vegetables they like. I have yet to come across someone who hates fruit or hates every vegetable under the sun. Finally I ask them how often they eat fruits or vegetables and it's always a lot less often than the unhealthy stuff, thats for sure.

After Ive gathered my arsenal of information, we do our thing. I next help in directing their mind to a peaceful place, and within minutes they are relaxed like never before. Then I start talking about their favorite fruits and vegetables. I ask them to imagine taking a bite of their favorite juicy, ripe fruit and to feel the juices tickling their taste buds. I say to their mind, from now on anytime you have a craving for food, you will think of a juicy, ripe piece of fruit. And bingo!!!

Next thing you know these are exactly the kinds of foods they start desiring. Why? Because anytime you close your eyes and bring yourself to a calm, relaxed place, your subconscious mind emerges, and it is this part of the mind that controls what you crave. Change your thoughts and you will change what you crave. Simple.

Lets look at this from another perspective. Let say pineapple is your favorite fruit. Now, if you were sitting with me right now and I gave you a juicy chunk of it, you would enjoy it thoroughly. And you might want more, right? Of course. Now, lets say I reached into my refrigerator, whipped-out a piece of chocolate cake and said, choose one. Most likely you would opt for the pineapple because you just had a teaser-piece, which would make your mind want more. The fact of the matter is this: you enjoy your favorite fruits just as much as you enjoy your favorite junk foods, you just believe otherwise.

Again, cravings are over-rated. The mere mention of that devilish word always seems to conjure-up images of high calorie, high fat foods only because these are the foods you are most exposed to in our media driven world. Your subconscious gets accustomed to this and do not know any better. Change your minds images and you will change your cravings. Here is a quick 5 minute mental exercise you can begin doing now to help you start changing the way you crave food.

Step 1: Find a comfortable, quiet place where there are no distractions. Begin breathing deeply until you are quite relaxed. Next, count backwards from 10-1, slowly. With each count, imagine that your mind is drifting deeper and deeper.

Step 2: After you have finished counting, imagine that you are relaxing by yourself in your favorite place. A secluded beach or a log cabin in the woods will do the trick. Imagine yourself feeling so very relaxed and peaceful.

Step 3: Next, imagine a basket full of your favorite fresh picked fruit sitting right next to you. See it clearly in your mind, the color, the feel, everything about that fruit. Imagine taking a bite of that juicy fruit and enjoying it like never before.

Step 4: Repeat the following suggestion to yourself 10 times: From now on, anytime you think of eating junk food, you will immediately feel a craving for fruit.

Step 5: Count from 1 to 5, slowly, and when you reach 5 open your eyes.