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Getting past a weight-loss plateau
Just because your weight loss has stalled, don't revert back to your old bad habits. These tips can help you restart your weight-loss plan.
By Mayo Clinic staffYou've diligently worked to improve your diet and exercise habits, and you've been rewarded by seeing the number on the scale continue to drop. But then for no reason you can see, the scale doesn't budge — even though you're still eating a healthy, low-calorie diet and exercising regularly. You've hit a weight-loss plateau.
Before you get too discouraged, you should know that it's normal for weight loss to slow and even stall. By understanding what causes a weight-loss plateau, you can decide how to respond and avoid backsliding on your healthy-eating and exercise habits.
What is a weight-loss plateau?
A weight-loss plateau occurs when you no longer lose weight despite continuing with your exercise and healthy-eating habits. Being stuck at a weight-loss plateau eventually happens to everyone who is trying to lose weight. At that point, losing additional weight becomes more difficult. Although hitting a plateau is common, most people are surprised when it happens to them, believing that if they just maintain a reduced-calorie diet, they should continue to lose weight. The frustrating reality is that even well-planned weight-loss efforts can become stalled.
What causes a weight-loss plateau?
The progression from initial weight loss to a weight-loss plateau follows a typical pattern. During the first few weeks of losing weight, a rapid drop in pounds is normal. When calories from food are reduced, the body gets needed energy by releasing its stores of glycogen, a type of carbohydrate found in the muscles and liver. Glycogen holds onto water, so when glycogen is burned for energy, it also releases the water — about 4 grams of water for every gram of glycogen — resulting in substantial weight loss that's mostly water.
A plateau occurs because your metabolism — the process of burning calories for energy — slows as you lose lean tissue (muscle). When you lose weight, you lose both fat and lean tissue. (The notion that overweight people have a slower metabolism is a myth. In general, the higher a person's weight, the higher the body's metabolic rate.) Your weight-loss efforts result in a new equilibrium with your now slower metabolism. This means that in order to lose more weight, you need to increase activity or decrease the calories you eat. Using the same approach that worked initially will maintain your weight loss, but it won't lead to more weight loss.
Next page(1 of 2)
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- Franz MJ, et al. Weight-loss outcomes: A systematic review and meta-analysis of weight-loss clinical trials with a minimum 1-year follow-up. Journal of the American Dietetic Association. 2007;107:175.
- Hensrud DD, et al. The Mayo Clinic Diet. Intercourse, Pa.: Good Books; 2010.
- Weight-loss plateaus. WeightWatchers. http://weightwatchers.com/util/art/index_art.aspx?tabnum=1&art_id=23561&sc=801. Accessed Feb. 11, 2010.
- Hensrud DD, ed. Mayo Clinic Healthy Weight for EveryBody. Rochester, Minn.: Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research; 2005:158.
- Hensrud DD (expert opinion). Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn. Feb. 11, 2010.
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