Breaking Stalls and Plateaux Part 3

So, you’ve been on your diet or a while now – but the weight is no longer coming off.

It’s OK… You just stalled or hit a plateau

Whatever you do don’t worry as in nearly every case, it is avoidable and in all cases it is possible to overcome the stall, plateau or whatever else you want to call it.

In the last part of this three part series, I’m going to give you a checklist of things to go through and outline the three most effective ways of kick-starting your diet and getting you back on track to phenomenal fat loss. Guaranteed!

Do go through Part 1 and Part 2 first as you do need to know which one – or more – of the many different things that can halt weight loss is affecting you personally

Marks Check List

Things to do when the weight loss slow down.

Don’t give up.
Be positive. At least there is no three-fold gains
(weight, measurements and volume) and if you are in ketosis, you are still losing fat
Stick to your plan. It’s there for a reason, don’t ‘do it my way’
Check EXACTLY what you eat. Don’t use net carbs – it’s a marketing con – so count them all
Check labelling for protein content and remember the law allows up to 140% error – also check portion size. It might relate to only one square of chocolate not the whole bar.
Always allow a few days for change to take effect.
Change or begin exercise routine
Take supplements.
Check calories. Do make sure you are not eating too much and not eating too little.
Get enough sleep. A rested body works far better than a tired one.
Don’t cheat. Ever.
Are you staying in ketosis (Well derrr)
Eat little and often to even out blood sugar levels and stop insulin rebound
Avoid alcohol. There are a surprising amount of carbs even in spirits, and don’t forget alcohol stimulates the production of insulin
Reduce carbs even further. This has been mentioned in the text.
Check mineral levels.
Make sure you have adequate levels of salt, potassium, zinc and copper. Enough to allow your body to work properly, but not too much as to cause water retention.
Avoid food additives – like the plague. These are known to cause a number of reactions interfering with the smooth working of the body. This can lead to a difficulty in losing weight.
Cut down/cut out tea and coffee and caffeine added drinks like cola, red bull etc. These stimulate the release of insulin which as you know is the ‘get fat’ hormone
Cut down or quit smoking – Smoking may reduce your appetite but it also uses up vitamin C and stimulates adrenal gland
Take note of your calories.
Check your Fat, Protein and Carb ratio. For many low carb diets this is typically 33:55:12% by weight.
For the zone diet it is 40:30:30. Whichever diet you are following you should know what this is. (Note Atkins does not use this, particularly during induction)
Make sure you are having enough fibre.
Check for general health problems and especially yeast infection, candidas etc
Are you eating enough different lowcarb foods to keep your interest high.
Check that you are eating enough protein and fat and in the right proportions
Check you are not eating transfats or otherwise hydrogenated fats.
Take MSM supplement to make the transfer of fat and water out of the body more efficient

Stall Buster 1

It could not be easier – Just go back to induction levels. It’s very simple and works for many folk like a dream.

Stall Buster 2 (Condensed version)

Do these in the order they are given:

Make sure you are following the plan and not doing your own thing
Change how you eat – Eat little and often by dividing your intake into 4 – 6 servings spread throughout the day.
Check your Carb Intake properly. Account for and include anything you would normally not include, like fibre. Do NOT use net con carbs – use the actual carb amounts.
- This will give you a true picture of the real amount of carbs and calories you are eating.
Using the accounting method above, adjust your carb intake to 15 – 20 gm below your critical carb amount (if you know it) or better to the same level you used for your induction phase.
Check you calorie intake.

Work out how many calories you are consuming using the following table.
Compare these against your gender and activity level to see if you are consuming too many or too few. There is a more comprehensive online calculator on the Low Carb and Atkins Monthly website.
www.lowcarbandatkins.com
As a very approximate guide, use the following: Simply multiply your weight in pounds by the relevant multiplier

Food Type	Quantity of food	Multiplier	Total each line
Amount of Protein	grams	X4
Amount of Fat	grams	X9
Amount of Carbs	grams	X3.75
Amount of Alcohol	grams	X7
	Total Calories

So, for example, if you are male weighing 170lb having moderate exercise your calorie intake would need to be around 2635 per day for maintenance.
If it’s too high either reduce carbs more or change to eating more protein and fat but without eating too many calories for your body type and activity level.
If it’s too low, increase Protein and fat proportionally to get the level of calories you need.

	Multiply Your Weight by the figure below
Activity Level	Women	Men
Sedentry	12	13
Light Exerciser	13	14
Moderate Exerciser	14	15.5
Mod to Heavy Exerciser	15	16.5
Heavy but Regular Exerciser	16	18

Note: Calorie needs will vary greatly according to many things, including: gender, age, height, level of activity, body fat percentage and type of food eaten. This is just a simple guide to see if anything is amiss.

In addition to the above:

Take exercise opportunities like using the stairs instead of the elevator etc.
Do muscle building exercise.
Earn your appetite by before dinner walks etc.

Stall Buster 3

The MFP. Meat, Fish and Poultry Regime.

This is a very simple diet. For two weeks eat only Meat, Fish and Poultry, and a few high fibre veggies. BUT make sure it is home cooked or in the very least additive and carb free. Don’t use processed meat from the deli as this is full of sugars, fillers, additives and other nasties.

You may want to prepare some snacks a day or two prior to starting, such as home cooked chicken or turkey pieces. When they are cooked, cut them into snack size pieces and leave in a suitable package in the cooler. Also, make up some home made mayo. Divide it into three portions, have one as natural, add curry powder to another and crushed garlic, salt and pepper to the last one. Keep these covered and use them as dips on your meat etc.

The fish should be un-breaded, cooked according to any of the many recipes suitable for induction.
You can allow yourself one or two (max) eggs each day too. Again you could hard boil some in advance for ease when the munchies come.
If you’re not already in ketosis, make the first few days high fat days. (Meat cooked with lots of butter sauces etc to encourage your body to go into ketosois a little quicker.)
Make sure you take proper mineral, Vitamin (and fibre if you need it) supplements for your body’s needs and above all drink lots of fluid – water preferred.

So hopefully, even from this short resume of causes and solutions you will understand that any stall, plateau or slow down in FAT LOSS is not the end of the world. In fact it’s just a call to action for you to take charge of your health once again.