SALT LAKE CITY — So you’ve changed what you eat, you're working hard in the gym, you’ve been losing weight and life is great. Then all of a sudden the weight loss stops and you’re still 10 pounds from your goal. Now you’re left wondering, what happened?

At this point, most people look to the extreme by working out more and eating less. Whatever you do — don’t fall into this trap. You might lose 1 or 2 more pounds but these actions could kill any hope of more weight loss in the future. You might actually become more susceptible to gain weight.

Restricting your calories by extreme amounts and working out even harder isn’t sustainable and could ruin your metabolism in the long run. Eventually, you might give in, you'll eat a little more, skip a couple of workouts and inevitably, your now slow metabolism will cause you to gain weight. That is when the yo-yo dieting cycle begins. If your only answer is to cut calories and workout more you can get stuck in losing and gaining the same 5, 10 or 15 pounds.

So what do you do?

Here is a checklist of tested truths if you hit a weight loss plateau:

1. Check your basics

• Are you hydrating properly? When you've been on a lifestyle change for a while you can often forget about how important it is to drink half of your body weight in fluid ounces of water. If your body is chronically dehydrated it's not going to be running efficiently enough to lose weight.
• Are you getting all your vegetables in? If you're not eating a minimum of five servings a day from a variety of colors, can you add a serving or two more each day?
• Are you eating well-rounded meals? Do you have a healthy fat, protein and fiber source every time you eat? Or are you leaving something out that is making you get hungry quicker?

2. Listen to your hunger and fullness cues

Eat when you are physically hungry and stop when you are full. It might sound easy, but it's not always the case. Many of us have conditioned ourselves to eat at certain times — breakfast when we wake up, lunch around noon and dinner when we get home from work — but are we actually hungry at these times? Try to listen for internal cues to determine when your body is actually hungry. Then stop eating when you are full, not overstuffed or past the point of being comfortable. Just at the point where you are no longer hungry and you have a comfortable full feeling in your stomach.

3. Check your portions

Is half your plate made up of veggies, a quarter protein and a quarter whole grains? Are you mindlessly eating the whole bag of trail mix rather than the half cup you used to eat? Yes, we want to tune into our hunger and fullness cues, but we also want to give ourselves a fighting chance by serving up typical portions. If you need a little more or a little less, then have at it. But keep in mind, you might not stop when you're full with a whole cake in front of you.

4. Mix it up

Change up your food and workouts. You should be enjoying your food, but if you're eating the same diet foods all the time you could lose the enjoyment. The same could apply when you're doing the same mundane workouts. If you're having a happy experience with food and workouts, then they are going to have an overall positive effect on your body. Giving yourself different nutrients and a different physical challenge could be just what you need.

Weight loss can be tied to when, not just what, you eat

If you are trying to lose weight and otherwise improve your health, you may already be mindful about what you eat during the day.

5. Set some short-term, non-weight-related goals

Try to get your focus off of the scale and onto some other lifestyle goals that you can achieve. Maybe you want to try to hit seven servings of vegetables a day or do a mini-triathlon. How about trying a new healthy recipe each week? Set some simple goals that you can easily achieve, feel good about and also get you closer to your overall goal.

6. Watch your liquid calories

Drinking your calories is an easy trap to fall into that can quickly sabotage your weight goals. No, you don't have to drink water all day, every day, but that smoothie that you have as a snack might not be as helpful as you think. Alcohol is also especially sneaky as the more you have, the easier it is to lose track of the calories you're drinking. That doesn't mean you can't enjoy a drink every now and again, but awareness is key. Try to choose water most of the time and compliment with other drinks occasionally.

7. Be mindful when eating out

When you eat out you're not fully aware of what is added to your food. Are they cooking those vegetables in butter or canola oil? Is the salad drenched in a cream-based dressing?

We might think we're making good decisions at a restaurant, but it's tough to know 100 percent. What we can do is stay very mindful with our meals. This means choosing something you'll really enjoy and making modifications that you might want, like extra veggies or half the fries. Then, eat your meal slowly and truly enjoy each bite. Lastly, sit a while after eating and savor the moment with good company so that you have a truly satisfying experience.

Overall, if you hit a weight loss plateau, I want you to remember two things: don't turn to extremes and don't overthink it.

Editor’s Note: Anything in this article is for informational purposes only. The content is not intended, nor should it be interpreted, to (a) be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition; (b) create, and receipt of any information does not constitute, a lawyer-client relationship. You should NOT rely upon any legal information or opinions provided herein. You should not act upon this information without seeking professional legal counsel; and (c) create any kind of investment advisor or financial advisor relationship. You should NOT rely upon the financial and investment information or opinions provided herein. Any opinions, statements, services, offers, or other information or content expressed or made available are those of the respective author(s) or distributor(s) and not of KSL. KSL does not endorse nor is it responsible for the accuracy or reliability of any opinion, information, or statement made in this article. KSL expressly disclaims all liability in respect to actions taken or not taken based on the content of this article.

Related topics