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how to break a plateau: a thread ੈ♡˳
↻/♡ appreciated
↻/♡ appreciated
DISCLAIMER: i do not condone disordered eating habits. i am pro-recovery. this is just an insightful thread on how to break plateaus. i am NOT a medical professional. CONTACT your doctor/nutritionist before making any drastic lifestyle changes
♡ why plateaus occur ♡
- plateaus usually occur after your body has become accustomed to your current dietary intake and activity levels. no this doesn’t mean that you need to immediately start restricting more and working out, if anything it most often means the opposite (1/2)
- plateaus usually occur after your body has become accustomed to your current dietary intake and activity levels. no this doesn’t mean that you need to immediately start restricting more and working out, if anything it most often means the opposite (1/2)
in simpler terms:
1. you lost weight so your body needs less energy (you need to adjust diet to be at calorie deficit again)
2. gained muscle
3. water retention / salt
4. adaptation (exercise levels)
5. user error (calculating calories deficit/mass incorrectly) (2/2)
1. you lost weight so your body needs less energy (you need to adjust diet to be at calorie deficit again)
2. gained muscle
3. water retention / salt
4. adaptation (exercise levels)
5. user error (calculating calories deficit/mass incorrectly) (2/2)
♡ how to break a plateau ♡
- now onto the actual how to, i’ll be explaining different methods and strategies that people use to break a plateau. i know we are all disordered so it’ll be hard to do some of these. only try them if you WANT to, please ALWAYS remember to STAY SAFE
- now onto the actual how to, i’ll be explaining different methods and strategies that people use to break a plateau. i know we are all disordered so it’ll be hard to do some of these. only try them if you WANT to, please ALWAYS remember to STAY SAFE
♡ calculating tdee ♡
- calculating your tdee is hard. some ppl will only do short home workouts and put “light exercise” as their tdee.unfortunately this doesnt count. our activity levels are usually far less than the activity levels the tdee calculator assumes we are at (1/2)
- calculating your tdee is hard. some ppl will only do short home workouts and put “light exercise” as their tdee.unfortunately this doesnt count. our activity levels are usually far less than the activity levels the tdee calculator assumes we are at (1/2)
the way that i suggest you calculate your tdee is by using sedentary level. this will show just how much your tdee is on a “non-active” basis. from this point forward just add the calories you burn from working out. i’ve attached an image with an example below (2/2)
♡ give your body a break ♡
- this is going to sound irritating at first but hear me out. it’s time to give your body a break. it’s already doing so much, your body can get exhausted from the constant exercise and restricting. when this occurs it’s time to just relax for (1/2)
- this is going to sound irritating at first but hear me out. it’s time to give your body a break. it’s already doing so much, your body can get exhausted from the constant exercise and restricting. when this occurs it’s time to just relax for (1/2)
a while. i suggest boosting your calorie intake & stopping all exercise for a bit. be careful when increasing your calories so suddenly, specially if you’ve been fasting/ extreme restricting. when i suddenly ate a lot after a long time, i felt really sick. try to increase (2/4)
your intake slowly. ex: 50-200 cals increase per day. personally i would boost my intake to 1200 or maintenance but if that’s too much for you then i suggest trying to boost it by atleast 300-400 calories (3/4)
so if you’re eating 1200 calories a day, try to eat 1500-1600 for 1-2 weeks. this should give your body the energy it needs to situate itself again. (4/4)
♡ track ALL calories accurately ♡
- as humans we tend to estimate our calories a lot. for this part, i suggest tracking calories more efficiently. i recommend using a food scale (if u have one) to weigh food as it’s more accurate or you can use (1/2)
- as humans we tend to estimate our calories a lot. for this part, i suggest tracking calories more efficiently. i recommend using a food scale (if u have one) to weigh food as it’s more accurate or you can use (1/2)
cups,spoons, anything you can use to measure basically. another thing i would say is to track all the calories you eat. whether it’s something small or not, it eventually does add up (2/2)
♡ protein ♡
- i’ve mentioned this in my preventing hair loss thread, protein is super important for your body. your hair AND your muscles are made out of it. sometimes to break a plateau you NEED to incorporate protein into your diet (1/2)
- i’ve mentioned this in my preventing hair loss thread, protein is super important for your body. your hair AND your muscles are made out of it. sometimes to break a plateau you NEED to incorporate protein into your diet (1/2)
to find your recommended daily amount of protein multiply 0.8 x your weight in kg. don’t worry if you can’t eat that amount daily! just make it your goal and try to reach it as much as you can daily (2/2)
♡ water ♡
- how much water do you drink in a day? no i mean seriously how much water do you drink in a day? you NEED to drink water. not only does it help you lose weight, it prevents bloating, clears your skin, AND it also helps prevent plateaus (1/2)
- how much water do you drink in a day? no i mean seriously how much water do you drink in a day? you NEED to drink water. not only does it help you lose weight, it prevents bloating, clears your skin, AND it also helps prevent plateaus (1/2)
when i had been plateauing hard for 4 months straight, i started to drink 6 bottles of water everyday. i broke my plateau in exactly four days. all it took was drinking more water. try to aim for 8-12 cups of water a day. that’s 4-6 bottles of water. (2/2)
♡ exercise ♡
- if you NEVER exercise and you’ve plateaued, this strategy will work for you. i suggest for you to use the calorie increase method i’ve mentioned before AND exercise. so either eat your maintenance level or boost your daily calorie intake by 300-400. (1/5)
- if you NEVER exercise and you’ve plateaued, this strategy will work for you. i suggest for you to use the calorie increase method i’ve mentioned before AND exercise. so either eat your maintenance level or boost your daily calorie intake by 300-400. (1/5)
for exercising it can be something simple like going on a walk for 20 minutes everyday. or you can start doing workouts at home from youtube (i’ll drop a thread of my fav ones soon). even the slightest bit of exercise helps. i’ve used this method before (2/5)
i was plateauing so i decided to eat 1200-2000 calories for three days. DISCLAIMER: this worked for me and may not work for you! do what YOU feel best. if you feel ill in any shape or form then please reach out to someone who can provide the appropriate medical care. (3/5)
when i did this method i was eating around 1000-1200 calories daily. so i decided to boost it slowly. the first day i ate 1300 calories, the second i ate 1600, the third i ate 2000. while eating this many calories, i worked out for 40 minutes for each of the three days (4/5)
i ended up breaking my plateau AND losing 2lbs. even if you don’t increase calorie intake, just adding any sort of exercise to your routine can also help. this method isn’t suitable for everyone, pls be VERY careful when trying it out & pls SEEK MEDICAL HELP IF YOU NEED IT (5/5)
♡ take measurements ♡
- for some reason sometimes you’re losing fat but the scale isn’t going down. when this occurs it’s time to take out your measuring tape. start measuring areas of your body where u want to lose weight. and see if the inches are going down every week. (1/2)
- for some reason sometimes you’re losing fat but the scale isn’t going down. when this occurs it’s time to take out your measuring tape. start measuring areas of your body where u want to lose weight. and see if the inches are going down every week. (1/2)
i know we all want to see the numbers on the scale go down, but taking measurements like this can bring a sense of reassurance. when i plateaued i took measurements, i noticed my thighs shrank 2cm and my waist 0.5cm, yes this happened even tho the scale didn’t change (2/2)
♡ alternate your calories ♡
- by this i mean not eating the same amount of calories everyday. alternative calories can help your body not get accustomed to a routine. ex: if your calorie limit is 1400, eat 1200 on two days, 1300 on two days, 1250 on two days, 1400 one day.
- by this i mean not eating the same amount of calories everyday. alternative calories can help your body not get accustomed to a routine. ex: if your calorie limit is 1400, eat 1200 on two days, 1300 on two days, 1250 on two days, 1400 one day.
♡ refeed days ♡
- try to incorporate some “refeed” days. refeed days mean that 1-3 days out of the week you eat at maintenance level. most people choose sunday as their refeed day. it helps prevent binges since they think “i can eat it on sunday” and helps your body (1/2)
- try to incorporate some “refeed” days. refeed days mean that 1-3 days out of the week you eat at maintenance level. most people choose sunday as their refeed day. it helps prevent binges since they think “i can eat it on sunday” and helps your body (1/2)
not adjust to a routine. or you can also try a refeed week. some people will restrict for two weeks then eat maintenance for a week then restrict again for two weeks. if you do plateau while having refeed days, then maybe try to switch up the day/week of your refeed. (2/2)
♡ sleep ♡
- as strange as it sounds, sleeping plays a big part in weight loss. it helps your body heal itself and burns calories. although the calorie amount you burn isn’t very high, it still counts! try to sleep 8-10 hours every night or take naps
- as strange as it sounds, sleeping plays a big part in weight loss. it helps your body heal itself and burns calories. although the calorie amount you burn isn’t very high, it still counts! try to sleep 8-10 hours every night or take naps
♡ sodium ♡
- try to eat less salty foods since salt can cause you to hold water in your body (leading to plateaus). if you use apps like lose it, you can check how much sodium you eat every week. BE CAREFUL WHEN DECREASING SODIUM AMOUNTS. it’s an important electrolyte (1/2)
- try to eat less salty foods since salt can cause you to hold water in your body (leading to plateaus). if you use apps like lose it, you can check how much sodium you eat every week. BE CAREFUL WHEN DECREASING SODIUM AMOUNTS. it’s an important electrolyte (1/2)
that your body needs to function. the recommended daily amount is 2,300mg. so please make sure to eat as close to that as you can. please stay safe if you try this! stop immediately and get medical help if you feel ill in any way possible!!!! (2/2)
♡ end thread ♡
- thank you so much for reading! i hope this thread is helpful. if you have any questions feel free to ask in the replies or dm me! please again remember to always stay safe and get proper medical help if you need it!!!!
↻/♡ appreciated
- thank you so much for reading! i hope this thread is helpful. if you have any questions feel free to ask in the replies or dm me! please again remember to always stay safe and get proper medical help if you need it!!!!
↻/♡ appreciated
