When weight loss stops

What to do when weight loss stops

Every now and then, your weight-loss progress may come to a screeching halt and it is enough to drive you insane.

I know how frustrating it is when your weight loss plateaus, and the sad truth is that it is very likely to happen while you’re on your weight-loss journey.

There are a few things that you can do to kick-start things on the scale again, and for starters you need to stop worrying about it. Seriously, stressing about weight loss can have the opposite effect on your goals all together, but I talk about that in the next issue. Let’s focus on what you can do instead to restart the weight loss.

Check your refined/processed carb intake

Your body is capable of storing huge amounts of carbohydrates and you can store at least 500 grams at a time. That might not sound like a lot, until you realise that one slice of bread is packed with 15 grams of carbs.

When you eat more carbs than your body needs, the leftovers are then sent to your glycogen piggy bank. Now for each gram of glycogen your body holds on to, you can also add about three to four grams of water too – this isn’t body fat but it shows up on the scale. It also makes you feel and look a little puffy.

• Avoid this from happening by cutting out refined and dense carbs like white bread, pasta and baked goods.
• Add more water-rich good carbs like fresh fruit and vegetables, and you can add brown rice, other whole grains into the mix or even popcorn if you’re really craving a snack.
• The more fluid or air per bite means that you’re eating fewer carbs to store, but you’re feeling just as full.

Cut back on sodium and salt

One of my favourite treat meals is snacking on salt-and-vinegar chips, but it dehydrates me so much that I end up chugging down masses of water afterwards. The same thing happens when you eat too much sodium, it attracts water like a magnet. That is why when you eat a little more salt than usual, you hang on to a bit more fluid. Two cups of water weighs around two kilograms, so holding on to any fluids will have an immediate impact on what’s happening on the scale.

• Shake those kilos by putting the salt shaker down. Instead, use fresh herbs and spices to season your food.
• Cut out or eat less sodium-laden seasoning by reading the ingredient labels carefully before adding it to your shopping cart.
• Add more fresh, unprocessed vegetables to your daily meals to help drop the water weight.

Naturally with any weight-loss journey, you need to be committed to the process and not slip too many cheat meals into the week. These small changes to your daily diet can help you shed a few kilos quite quickly and help get the weight-loss momentum going again.

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