Losing weight is far from easy and doesn’t always go the way we plan. Even if you exercise regularly and watch what you eat, you may find that the number on your scales isn’t changing much or at all.

Weight Loss

Weight loss plateaus happen to everyone at some point and it isn’t necessarily a sign that you’re doing something wrong. You could be steaming along and losing pounds and inches at a good rate only to find that all of that suddenly stops, even if you haven’t changed your routine.

While this isn’t great for your progress, you shouldn’t let it get you down or make you give up, as simple and small changes could get you on your way toward your target again in no time. So if your weight loss has started to slow or you’ve already hit a plateau, here are some ways you can pick up the pace once more:

Assess your diet

You might think that your diet has stayed the same, but once you’ve been eating healthily for a while, bad habits can start to sneak into your routine again, which can have a real impact on your weight loss.

Whether it’s a couple of extra meals out with friends, a few sweet treats because you felt you deserved them or even just picking up a full-fat option rather than the low-fat food you usually do, these small slip ups can affect your weight loss.

It can be a good idea to start tracking your food or, if you were doing this previously, be strict about doing so again. This allows you to see exactly what you’re eating and encourage you not to stray from your diet plan, which could be enough to get your weight loss going again.

You may also want to look at food substitutions you can make, which will allow you to enjoy more of your favourite foods without straying too far from your diet plan. Check out our handy blog here to see what food swaps you can make.

Change your routine

Finding the perfect exercise routine is always great and helps you to feel like you’re really achieving something. However, when you stick to the same routine, especially when coupled with a food routine, it can mean your metabolism starts to slow down.

Doing the same exercises on the same day and at the same time can mean your body isn’t pushing itself, allowing your muscles just to coast and not really put much effort in. Switching up your routine every few weeks is the best way to keep seeing results and keep your metabolism running on high, allowing you to burn more calories.

Try a new form of exercise, run in the evening instead of the morning or start lifting heavier weights to keep your body and metabolism on its toes. Combine this with a change in your food routine, such as changing which of your meals is the largest or when you have your snacks, and you could see the number on the scale changing a lot faster again.

Work out your calories

As well as the types of food you’re eating, the number of calories you’re consuming could be partly to blame for your weight loss stalling. If you’ve cut down your calories a lot and have been doing a lot of exercise, it can make your body start working to conserve weight as a survival tactic.

This is a natural response but it isn’t great when you want to reach a weight loss goal. While you can look at reducing your calorie intake more if it is safe to do so — you shouldn’t be consuming fewer than 1,200 calories a day at any point — or, if you have already reached this level, try increasing your calorie intake slightly to get your body out of starvation mode.

It can also be a good idea to switch up your calorie intake from day to day. Rather than aiming for the same number of calories each day, have alternating days of higher and lower so your metabolism is always on its toes and working at a better rate. This could soon see you get back on track.

Stay positive

It is hard to put in all the work and not see the results, but sticking with it will pay off and you’ll soon find yourself hitting your target. Staying positive is important when it comes to maintaining your diet and sticking with exercising so don’t let a temporary weight loss plateau get you down.