How to overcome a weight loss plateau

There’s nothing more frustrating than succeeding with your weight loss goals only to plateau before you reach the end. Learn what causes a weight loss plateau and how to start losing weight again.

By Ensure Fitness staff

There really isn’t any magic to losing weight. To lose weight you must create a calorie deficit so that your body must tap into its energy reserves to sustain itself. Calorie deficits can be achieved in three ways. The first is to take in fewer calories. The second is to increase expenditure of calories. The third is a combination of both and represents the most likely method of reaching your weight loss goals. As you lose weight, your calorie-intake to calorie-expenditure ratio begins to shrink until there is a one-to-one ratio between the calories you are consuming and the calories you are using. The result can be a weight loss plateau, one of the most frustrating aspects to losing weight.

What is a weight loss plateau?

Your body needs a certain number of calories to sustain itself. Even at rest, your body is burning calories to keep it functioning. When you create a calorie deficit to lose weight, your body still needs the same amount of energy to keep going. If you don’t take in the calories your body needs by eating food, your body must dip into its reserves which includes energy from fat and protein (muscle).

Essentially, your body is in constant movement toward equilibrium. Equilibrium is achieved when what you take in equals what you expend. As you lose weight but take in the same number of calories, you are slowly reaching equilibrium between the calories you taking in and the calories you are expending. A 200-pound person expends more energy on an exercise program than a 150-pound person on the exact same program.

A weight loss plateau occurs because you need fewer calories to sustain your body after you lose weight. As you lose more and more weight, your calorie-intake to calorie-expenditure ratio reaches equilibrium and you stop losing weight.

How to overcome a weight loss plateau

There are several ways to overcome a weight loss plateau. Each one offers several advantages. First, begin taking in fewer calories. To start losing weight, you need to create a calorie deficit again. However, your best chance for healthy weight loss is to gradually take in fewer calories rather than creating a sudden drop in calorie intake.

A second method for overcoming a weight loss plateau is to take some time off from your weight loss program. As strange as it sounds, your body may benefit from a break. Of course this isn’t an excuse to start binging on ice cream and chocolate. Take a week to gradually reduce your energy expenditures and then take a week off from any vigorous activity including exercise. This may be all you need to re-stimulate your metabolism and allow essential energy and proteins to build back up in your body. When you start exercising again, you body may be “shocked” back into weight loss mode.

A third method to overcoming a weight loss plateau is to start eating smaller meals throughout the day rather than three bigger ones. You may have heard the term “starvation mode” which is a way of saying that your body, sensing that it isn’t getting enough calories, is holding on to whatever it gets. Eating smaller meals throughout the day balances your metabolism so your blood sugar levels are not fluctuating as wildly. The result can be a healthier metabolism that is in better condition to burn fat and build muscle.

What else can you do about a weight loss plateau?

One of the reasons people quickly experience a weight loss plateau is because they are unaware of just how many calories they are taking in and expending. This is where you need to “do the math” and calculate your calorie-intake to calorie-expenditure ratio.

Take a week or two and keep track of every calorie you take in. Make sure you aren’t just counting mealtime calories. Everything you eat and drink must be on your calorie intake list. Then, calculate how many calories you are burning during both normal daily activities and during exercise. Subtract your calorie expenditure from your calorie intake and see just how much of a deficit you are creating. It takes a 3,500 calorie deficit to lose one pound. You may be surprised that your deficit isn’t as much as it was when you first started your weight loss program. With this information, you can make more informed decisions about how to overcome your weight loss plateau.

Don’t get discouraged by a weight loss plateau

Not everyone experiences a weight loss plateau in the same way. Some people experience it quickly after creating a calorie deficit and some people will not be affected at all by a plateau in weight loss. Don’t get discouraged by a weight loss plateau. In fact, it is just a sign that you are meeting your weight loss goals and that you simply need to make some adjustments to start losing weight again.