Plateau's and the Break Through Menu

Melanie
Jul 22, 2017
2 min read

Plateau’s can be common on a weight management program and there are no known causes for this. One of the most common reasons though is that you may have returned to a weight which your body is accustomed to - a comfort zone weight - and you need to push a little harder to break through this set-point.

The following menu plan can be helpful to break through the plateau. However, there are a few things to consider first before you change your menu to see if you are really in a plateau or just experiencing an internal adjustment.

Are you in ketosis?
If you are not losing weight but you are in ketosis than you are not in plateau.
If you are not losing weight & you are not in ketosis then it could just be that you are consuming too many carbohydrates and/or not moving enough. Consider doing one or two protein days first before resuming your menu days.

Is it water retention?
This is usually the most common reason and some of the causes of water retention are:
Fluctuating hormones (especially in women at varying times of the month and in life e.g.. Menopausal);
Elevated stress hormone levels - Adrenal & Cortisol - If your body is producing too much of either of these hormones, it will affect your weight loss;
Consuming too much sodium (check your foods for added salt content);
Eating too many carbs. Make sure you are recording everything you eat and checking the nutrition labels for correct carb count. Seemingly low carb foods can be actually high when you look at your overall daily intake.

So, you may want to try these things first:

Reduce your salt intake
Add more potassium rich foods (bananas, spinach, yoghurt, salmon etc)
Increase your water intake
Increase your exercise - sweat will help your body rid both excess water & salt
De-stress! - Meditate, deep-breathing and get enough sleep
Ensure you are ‘regular’ - try a natural diuretic (like flaxseeds/chia/warm lemon water) to get things moving again.