Are you counting every single calorie, clocking many hours in the gym and eating as clean as you can but yet the scale barely moved? If that's what you are going through right now, you are at the right place, right now. Through my own personal experience and years training my clients, I've put together the most common reasons that causes plateau, and also a few tips that I've been using to check in with myself from time to time to keep myself on track.
#1 How Well Is Your Soul?
Are you emotionally drained from counting calories, battling your food cravings and constantly thinking about food? Well, if any of the above resonates with you, you are on your way to an emotional wreckage in time to come. You are at a space where your motivation and discipline is running dry, your body is starving and you are questioning why you are doing this and how long more can this sustain? The next moment you know you are onto a binge-eating disaster. What I've just describe was just a common process that my clients and I went through on the surface, but what goes on deeper inside is an emotional roller coaster. This mental battle is actually causing our bodies to be in stress-mode.
Stress hinders weight loss, big time. It causes our bodies to be in constant flight or fight mode. Think about it, if your body is on survival mode, how is your body going to function normally as it should? Adding on that women are already infamously, emotional creatures, just imagine how this additional anxiety can knock us off along with the hormonal changes that we have to deal with monthly? :/
#2 Are You Sleeping Well?
There are numerous reasons that can interrupt your sleeping patterns. Point #1 might also be one of the reasons that you might consider too. "Are you sleeping well?" may seemed like a very casual and common question, but what lies underneath the question is actually asking, "How is everything in your life doing?" This is one of the question that I check in with myself from time to time if I catch myself derailing towards a downward spiral. Emotional traumas, unheard feelings, kids' education or work related stress can be part of the many reasons of interrupted sleep. To acknowledge what is going on in life physically and emotionally in full honesty, can be a very powerful healing tool. This is because by acknowledging what's hindering you, you are making a choice to embrace what's going on in life even for things you can't control, and to believe that even if all things don't seems to work well now, this too shall pass.
So now, honestly ask yourself, "Why am I not sleeping well?"
The first few answers that pops out in your mind right away is usually the root cause, so don't try to run away from it. Embrace, breathe and move forward from here.
#3 Are You Moving Well?
Does your body feels constantly sore or every move you make feels like a chore to you? If this is what you are feeling, you probably have overworked your body. I mean, I'm all in for exercising - I'm a personal trainer, right? But too much of a good thing is a bad thing too. If you are constantly engaged with high intensity training, you are putting a lot of stress on your body. Thus, if you are not taking the time to stretch out those heavily worked muscles, you are doing more harm than good to your precious body. Our bodies are not machines, even machines take a break too, so should you.
Take a step back and think about it. Why do you exercise? One of the main reason is probably so that you're able to move well, do what you want to do, whenever you want to. But if your current state doesn't allow you to, is it time to review the type, frequency and intensity of exercise you are doing currently is right for you?
There are many reasons that causes us to hit a plateau in our journey and the above is just a common few that I see very often in my experiences as a trainer. If any of the above resonates with you, I hope they help shed some light for you. Stay tune for the upcoming article on how to overcome them! Well, if none of the above resonates with you and you are still wondering why you are plateauing, don't give up just yet! Health is a journey, every one of us figure out what works for our bodies individually along the way. So don't rush and trust the process, listen to what your body needs and it will show you the way.
All my love,
Ashley