No one wants to think about it, only a few ever plan for it, yet, if you have more than a few pounds to lose, it is a virtual certainty that sooner or later you will have an unsolicited “date” with weight loss plateau.
If you are married, dating could be fun. Okay, this was a really bad joke, but even after a moderate weigh loss of 10 to 15 pounds many people stop losing weight. When this happens, some people run to a store to get a new scale thinking that theirs must be broken.
Weight loss plateaus happen for different reasons. As opposed to dating while being married, weight loss plateaus are generally harmless. Your body simply needs some time to catch up and adjust to the changes it is going through.
There is only one problem – it often breaks your motivation to continue losing weight. You worked so hard to lose all that weight, you are excided about your progress, you want more of it, and you want it now. All of a sudden, bam, you are standing on that scale and cannot believe your eyes – your weight has not changed since your last weighing a week ago.
Now is not the time to give up, but for many people, this is exactly the point at which they lose motivation to continue with their diet and exercise plans. I am not going to dwell on intricacies of motivation. If you are interested in this subject, I highly recommend Steve Pavlina’s writings.
He is one of the most genuine and prolific writers on this subject. In a book format, his work could easily top Amazon and New York Times best-seller lists. In my opinion, he is that good. Here are a few examples of his recent masterpieces you may want to check out: Motivation for Smart People and How to Set Goals You Will Actually Achieve.
With or without plateaus, the loss of motivation is common during weight loss. So what can you do? Well, there are many elaborate solutions out there, and while they may help some people, in my experience, people always came back asking for something different.
Here is what I recommend. Let’s assume that you already lost 25 pounds and need to lose 25 more. Take a sturdy backpack and fill it with 50 pounds of weight. You can use sand, padded weight plates, etc. Secure the backpack on your back, find a flight of stairs, and take them a few floors up. Repeat a few times, quickly take the backpack off, and climb the same number of stairs again. That is it.
If you do not have a backpack, or if you do not want to put a significant amount of weight on your back, you can hold a dumbbell in each hand. If you do not have dumbbells, you can use shopping bags instead; just make sure they are sturdy enough to hold the weight.
Some people get creative and use alternative weight sources such as plastic jugs filled with water, melons, books, etc.
So why does this technique work so well? For the same reason some people become addicted to drugs. It feels so good that you want more of it, and you are willing to do anything to have that feeling again.
Only in this situation, there are no drugs involved. Yet, you actually feel what it is like to be without all that weight. Although this feeling of lightness is acute, it is a powerful motivator to continue following your diet and exercise plans.
Now, carrying that much weight on your back could be dangerous, so be smart about it, do not hurt yourself, and before attempting something like this always consult with your doctor.