How to Get Past Your Workout Plateaus

Many people begin a workout routine to lose weight and do very well. If you are one of those people, then kudos to you! Congratulations on the success that you have shown thus far. Certainly the hardest part of a weight loss routine is starting. You've accomplished this goal with flying colors!

But what happens when you get down to those last 10, 20 or 30 pounds and you can't figure out what to do?

Every workout routine consists of three elements: diet, cardio and weight training. To get past any plateau, you must figure out which of these three elements needs to be focused on to see continued improvements in your efforts.

1. Diet: most people focus pretty well on their diet, but I'm going to discuss it here. First, did you cut your calories to get to this point? Well, obviously you did. What I mean is, you burned off more calories than you took in, so calories were cut in some way. But if you didn't focus on how much you were eating, now is the time. First, determine how many calories you need for maintenance. Write down what you eat over the next few days. Be honest and pick days that are reflective of how you normally eat. Once you know this amount, figure out how many calories it is by either searching online or referring to a book of food counts. Once you know your final calorie number, reduce it by 10%.

If you have already been playing the count-the-calories game, then you are well versed in recording how many calories you are taking in. Go through this process again anyway; it's good practice. But you, as the experienced dieter, might want to focus on what ratio your calories are coming in. What amount of macro-nutrients do you take in (fats, carbs, proteins)? Perhaps an adjustment of these percentages will begin the weight loss process again for you. Reduce your carb's somewhat (never less than 30g. per day or you will go into ketosis; see other articles by me on this topic) and adjust your protein intake. Never forget that overall calories burned is really what matters, but adjusting macro-nutrient intake can sometimes produce the changes you are after.

2. Cardio: what kind of cardiovascular training are you doing? Are you doing it enough days? Add another day. Is your intensity high enough? Try interval training: doing 3 minutes of steady state output, then 30 seconds of all out effort. Try this during the same amount of time you have been doing for cardio up to this point.

3. Weight training: what type of weight training have you been doing up to this point? If you haven't been lifting weights, you should be (check other articles by me on the topic). If you have been lifting weights, try cycling your training. Do two weeks of higher reps, then two weeks of relatively lower reps, then off a week (yes, time off from weights can help sometimes), then very high reps for two weeks, then repeat the cycle.

4. I know I didn't mention a fourth item above, but this bears mentioning: are you overtrained? Have you been doing too much? If you are getting sick all the time, you are listless, don't want to workout, tired all the time, then you might be overtrained. If so, take a week or two completely off. Do nothing. Keep your calories maintained, but no working out. Then, when you do begin working out again, you'll gain back any improvements you might have lost during those two weeks off plus you'll continue to improve at an amazing rate.

Overtraining should be avoided like leprosy. This state can set back your training by months, give you unnecessary injuries and otherwise cripple your efforts. Make sure you get enough food and sleep for sufficient recovery and improvement. Remember, you don't improve at the gym. You improve as your body recovers from the catalyst that the gym provides.

Using these tips and refocusing your efforts is a sure way to victory. Remember what I mentioned at the beginning: you've accomplished the hardest part. Now is the time to take that new found capability that you have and press onward to your goals. Just a few pounds more to victory!