Some folks begin their low-carb diet with high hopes, enthusiasm, and a dedication to doing everything right. At first, the scale is usually kind to these folks as it displays a steady weight loss. After a few weeks or sometimes, a few months, weight loss slows down or even stalls for several days to a few weeks. A keto weight-loss plateau may seem unfair and frustrating, but you should know that this happens to the best of us because it’s entirely normal.
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Keto Weight-Loss Plateau Causes and Possible Remedies
Congrats! If you’ve hit a keto weight-loss plateau, you’re a real dieter now. That might sound like an extreme statement, but the Mayo Clinic says that almost everybody hits a stall during the course of their journey. Most people who have never tried to watch their macros assume that losing weight will be a linear process, but it seldom works out that way in the real world.
You Stopped Rapidly Losing Water Weight
A few so-called experts might talk about physics and how it’s impossible not to lose weight if you’re consuming a caloric deficit. However, your body has its own physical rules. For example, lots of us call the first week or two of a low-carb diet the “honeymoon period.”
That’s because your body will dump a lot of water along with stored glucose in your muscles, so you can enjoy quick results. After five or tend pounds of this, your muscles won’t hold all of the excess water, so this rapid drop on the scale stops, and you will mostly lose fat, a much slower process.
You Started or Increased Exercise
Intuitively, it seems like exercise should always encourage faster weight loss. After all, your efforts should burn more calories, right? Well, sometimes, your body will decide that it needs to retain more water to aid in muscle recovery.
Also, your workouts will help you build and maintain muscle. Muscle may take up less room than fat, but it weighs more. You might still make fantastic progress, but the scale may not budge as fast.
You’ve Hit Your Body’s Set-Point
An article published on the National Institute of Health website talks about set-point theory, or the idea that your body has a set weight that it will work hard to maintain. If you’ve been overweight or obese for awhile, your body’s set-point could be considerably higher than a person with a weight in the normal range.
Sadly, the theory says that the same mechanisms to prevent gaining weight appear weaker for overweight people than the ones that work to keep them heavy. That explains why so many people lose weight but struggle to maintain their loss.
Here’s the good news. You may need more time to break a stall, but your good diet and physical activities can help you break this cycle. If you’re sure that you’re doing what you can with no results, then you should definitely speak with a doctor who can suggest remedies. While you may need to consume calories at a deficit, you shouldn’t starve yourself.
You Need to Reevaluate Your Macros
Let’s say you’ve calculated your macros and successfully lost 10 or 20 pounds. This lost weight means your body has less of a burden to support, so you’re metabolism won’t require as much fuel as it did before. Your original caloric deficit of 10 to 20 percent has shrunk. This one’s relatively easy to fix as you can simply return to our handy keto calculator and reassess your macros with your new, lighter weight.
In any case, most people should not reduce their calories under about 1,200 a day. Shorter people may find that the calculator returns them with a low amount of suggested calories, even under 1,000. Try increasing your physical activity, and if that doesn’t work, schedule a doctor’s visit.
You’re Stressed or Not Sleeping Well
Both insomnia or extra stress can play havoc with your health in lots of ways, including weight fluctuations. For instance, both of these experiences may cause changes in hormone levels that may increase your appetite. If you stay awake longer, you will also have more opportunities to snack and fewer chances to enjoy restful recovery.
You could benefit from relaxation exercises, meditation, or learning to adapt better sleep habits. If the issues persist, you might consult with your healthcare professional. Just don’t lose sleep or feel stressed about your diet stall because it happens to the best of us and the rest of us.
You Need to Take Certain Medications
Certain medications may encourage weight gain or make it harder to lose. These could include antidepressants, antipsychotics, steroids, and blood pressure medication.
Of course, you need to work with your doctor to manage serious health conditions. If you work with your doctors, they might have alternatives or suggestions to improve your progress. You can still benefit from your healthier diet, but you may need to work a little harder.
You’re Not Tracking or You’re Cheating
After you’ve followed any weight-loss program for awhile, you will probably feel tempted to cheat. Alternatively, you might simply underestimate the amount of food you’re eating. For instance, a serving of nuts is about a handful. It’s so easy to sit down and eat half a can without thinking.
Check out our keto resources guide to look for apps you can use to help maintain your progress. Most people find that the longer they can stick to their low-carb diet, the fewer times they feel cravings for high-carbohydrate foods.
Don’t Let a Weight-Loss Stall Stop You!
Most of the time, these frustrating stalls don’t last more than a few days to a couple of weeks. In fact, many formerly frustrated dieters will experience something commonly called the “keto whoosh” when they wake up one morning to find themselves a few pounds down. During this time, you may find that your clothes fit more loosely and the tape measure tells you that you’ve lost inches, even if the lost fat doesn’t show up on the scale. This happens a lot when people start exercising more.
You may need to check your calorie consumption or exercise a little more frequently to regain your momentum. If you suspect a health problem hampers you, consult with your healthcare professional. Otherwise, you may just need to remain patient and proactive in order to deal with the non-linear progress of losing fat.