Don't let the plateau get you down

See what I did there? Plateau? Down?

Alright, moving on.

As it turns out, weight plateau is a real thing. I kind of always thought of it as being once you get comfortable with eating healthier, and you start to let things slide a little bit, but that's not necessarily the case. Maura and I have adamantly gone to the gym (or some equally as healthy activity like taking the dog hiking), have cut out almost all carbs (sans the toast for our poached eggs, which we've gone from two slices of whatever to one slice of whole-wheat), and have generally been better about snacking less. But, we've both stalled. Neither of us has dropped another pound.

We're both feeling better, and both feel as though our clothing is fitting a little more comfortably, but there's just something about that number that's pleasing. So I decided to do some research on how to beat that plateau.

I'm a creature of habit. It's not the best, but it's true. I like my things they way they've been. I like my Domino's pizza on Friday nights and my church on Sunday morning, among other things. The same way that I like riding the stationary bike at the gym. But your muscles are smart, and they'll start to become complacent with the same work-out routine. It's important to mix things up, especially doing more weight training during a plateau. Weight training really jump starts caloric burn and is a great change-up to the cardio everyone seems to think is the only way to drop some lbs.

Another option to overcome a plateau is to adjust your nutrition. Changing your calorie intake by 200 for a few days (remember, never stoop below 1,200 calories a day-- no starvation tactics up in here) can help to train your body that you don't need quite as much energy to operate a smaller you.

I'm going to try to start actively doing some of these things. When I go to the gym next, which won't be tonight because I'm using my gym time to push-mow a half acre of obstacles, I'll do some arm strength training. In the meantime, I'll work on editing what I eat and cutting back a little more as to not fall into the trap of discouragement.

Cheers!