There’s nothing quite so deflating as the dreaded weight loss plateau. It takes a lot of time, discipline, and raw effort to lose weight. Stepping on the scale and seeing no change can be a real heart breaker. So what do you do? Give up on your goals? As tempting as that may be, know that weight loss plateaus can be overcome!

In today’s post, I’m going to share with you the strategies that will help get you off that plateau and back to seeing results. Though it may take a little trial and error and a willingness to switch up your game, these tweaks have helped many of my patients and clients continue their weight loss journeys. So if you’ve ever found yourself staring down a scale that just won’t budge, this post is for you!

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. This means I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you when you shop with these links, which helps to make this blog possible. Thanks for your support!

So what is a weight loss plateau?

Before we get going, we’d better get our definitions straight. A weight loss plateau is a loose term, but generally describes a situation where after enjoying a number of weeks or months of steady weight loss, the scale comes to an unexplained standstill. Despite every effort to carefully follow your calorie and exercise plan, the scale just won’t budge and it hasn’t for a few weeks or more. Could anything be more exasperating?

One caveat I’d like to make at this point is to not confuse natural fluctuations in your weight and the occasional steady scale with an actual plateau. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had a forlorn dieter in my office lamenting their lack of results only to remind them that they actually have been losing weight, just not at the breakneck pace seen on many weight loss reality shows. Dropping 5 pounds in a month is not nothing. Don’t confuse your unrealistic expectations with a weight loss plateau!

But First, the Usual Suspects

Before we dig into how to deal with stalled results, let’s be sure to rule out alternative explanations. Sometimes you’re not really in a weight loss plateau but rather a discipline slump. It happens to most everyone!

Sticking to a weight loss plan for weeks or months (and for some, years!) can really take a toll on your motivation. So you start to skip workouts. And measuring portions goes by the wayside. Food journaling? You haven’t logged a morsel in weeks. In this situation, the solution is all about revitalizing your plan and getting back to the fundamentals. With most of my clients, a few fresh tactics and a renewed commitment to that food log gets their weight loss back on track. Here are just a few of my typical recommendations:

• Measure all portion sizes, especially ALL added sources of fat and sugar
• Food journal and track all calories (Consider an online app or website like SparkPeople or MyFitnessPal!)
• Limit restaurant dining and takeout
• Limit liquid calories
• Avoid excessive calories as a reward for working out
• Stay on track over the weekend

If you’ve loosened your grip on the reins in any of these ways, I’d heartily encourage you to start there first. Take an honest look at what you’ve been doing and see if there are areas where you’ve lost a bit of due diligence. Remind yourself of your goals, commit to making the necessary changes, and soon the scale will start to change, too!

Breaking out of a Weight Loss Plateau

But what if you’ve been faithfully following your plan and yet to no avail? You’ve been sticking to your guns, tracking calories, and haven’t deviated one bit–what then? Perhaps it’s time to consider whether you might be in a weight loss plateau.

Though a stuck scale can be extremely frustrating and disheartening, don’t let it stop you from chasing down your goals! Today we’re going to be looking at the strategies that will help you overcome this familiar hurdle and start seeing results again. By asking yourself a few important questions, you can solve the mystery of your weight loss plateau!

Are you on the right calorie plan?

It can be tricky figuring out the right calorie level for weight loss. Though online calculators can be extremely helpful, they aren’t precise for everyone. Sometimes finding the best calorie level can take a little trial and error. If the first calorie plan you pick doesn’t work, don’t give up! With a few tweaks, you can figure out what works best for you.

This is where keeping an accurate food journal becomes extremely helpful. If, for example, you’ve been carefully following an 1800 calorie plan and walking 4 days per week without results, you can use this information to formulate a revised plan. One solution might be to reduce your calories to 1600 calories per day and add 3 days of strength training to your routine. Continue to log your food and activity and then see what happens.

Those two changes might be enough to get the scale moving in the right direction. If not, continue to tweak and modify until you start losing weight. Remember, though, that weight loss doesn’t happen overnight. Give it a week or two before you decide that your plan isn’t working.

Generally speaking, most dietitians do not recommend weight loss plans less than 1200 calories per day, though there’s always the occasional exception. Such a low caloric intake is hard to sustain over time and leaves a person vulnerable to nutrient deficiencies. If you’ve ever tried sticking with one of those 800 calorie plans, you know what I’m talking about! You’ll find yourself constantly hungry and thinking of little else besides FOOD. That is not an equation for success!

How much weight have you lost thus far?

Once a person has lost a significant amount of weight–let’s say 5% or more of their starting weight–it’s very common to see their results begin to taper off. Despite being faithful to the plan, the scale just won’t budge. Why does this happen?

To put it simply, when you’ve lost a number of pounds, you are quite literally a smaller person. Given that metabolism is the ongoing building up and tearing down that’s constantly going on in the body, a person who weighs less has less tissue to support and maintain. Furthermore, you are also carrying less weight around–yet another source of caloric expenditure. As a result, when you lose a significant amount of weight, you don’t need as many calories.

So if you’ve lost 5-10% of your body weight but you’re no longer getting results with your plan, it might be time to reduce your calories (or increase your physical activity) to make up for the likely changes in your metabolism. Start by reducing your intake by 200-300 calories per day, log your efforts carefully, and check your weight every week or so. This adjustment might be just what you need to start losing weight again.

What do your macros look like?

For some people stuck in a weight loss rut, changing up their macronutrients (or ‘macros’) can be really helpful. Macronutrients are the three nutrients that provide our bodies with calories–namely, carbohydrate, protein, and fat. (Alcohol also provides calories but is not essential for health, so it’s not considered a nutrient.) All should be included in a balanced diet, but switching up your breakdown can really enhance your goals. Whether you’re a runner fueling for the next race or a mom who just needs energy to get through her busy day, the right balance of macros can make a huge difference.

If you’ve been following the same plan for a span of weeks or months and your results have come to a standstill, it might be time for fresh tactics. Our bodies have an amazing ability to adapt to our various behaviors (within limits), and that includes the way we choose to eat. Switching things up can be a great way to get the scale headed in the right direction.

If you’ve been food journaling, take a look at your nutrient breakdown. Are carbs eating up the lion’s share of your calories? Try reducing your percentage to perhaps 40% and increase your protein and fat percentages accordingly. Give it a few weeks and see if that makes a difference. Have you been following a very low-fat diet? Try increasing your fat percentage to 30% and see if that helps, again adjusting your other macros accordingly. It is okay to experiment with your diet plan to find what works best for you!

While calories are very much king when it comes to weight loss (it’s hard to beat physics!), macronutrients are an important–if not essential!–consideration when you’re trying to lose weight. If you find yourself stuck in a rut, switch things up! That might just be the catalyst you need to start seeing results again.

What’s the timing of your meals?

When it comes to how often you should eat, you’ll find a never ending litany of opinions!

• You should eat small, frequent meals to keep your metabolism humming!
• Avoid eating too often–you’ll only end up getting in too many calories!
• Don’t ever eat past 6pm!
• Never skip breakfast!
• Intermittment fasting is the best way to shed pounds!

Any of these sound familiar to you? When it comes down to it, there is no single right way to eat that works for everyone. I’ve had some clients who’ve had great success with small, frequent meals while others do much better with 3 square meals per day. Intermittent fasting has some great testimonials, but a lot of folks feel crummy when they go too long without a meal. You’ve got to find what works best for you.

If you’ve been following one particular eating schedule but the scale hasn’t moved for a few weeks, consider trying a new meal pattern! Have you been eating frequently throughout the day? Try switching to 3 main meals each day. Intermittent fasting no longer delivering results? Try eating every 4 hours (being sure to track those calories) and see what happens. Finding your best strategies is going to take a little trial and error–and that’s okay! Just be sure to measure those portions, track your calories, and keep an eye on your weight. Slowly you’ll begin to find the tactics that work best for you!

You can overcome a weight loss plateau!

I hope you’ve come away with some strategies that will help you on your weight loss journey. Though it can certainly be a bumpy ride, remind yourself often of why you want to lose the weight. Be willing to re-think your plan when it’s no longer working for you and get fresh tactics when you need them. Stay focused on your goals and don’t give up! You can do it!

P.S. How does exercise weigh into all of this? Check out this post all about how to get the most out of your workouts–whether you’re under the bar or on the scale!