I am in the dreaded place I have longed not to be in - Plateau
Land. I have tried to find ways to be active and lose weight over the last
several years. With limited resources, I always turned to running because it is
essentially free. Then the dreaded winter comes and you can either spend a ton
of money for a treadmill or tons of money for winter running gear. I typically
would put the weight back on over winter. We did have a treadmill in the house
but this activity very quickly become mundane and I had no drive to continue
with the process. I finally decided to try Insanity. I have done Insanity 3
times and only finished it one time. This work it out is insane!!! The last
time I did the program I incorporated clean eating and BAM – results!
I have progressively and slowly lost pounds and inches over
the last 6 months. I started eating clean and making this an important part of
my lifestyle change. Although, I have allowed myself to indulge around holidays
and worked in cheat days. I completed another home program Les Mills Combat,
which had significantly less impact than the first one. I completed an extra
month of that workout and this has brought me to the point where I am now.
I loved both programs! They were convenient for my
lifestyle! The biggest part of my transformation was eating clean. I have
recently realized that I have platueaued. I am not seeing muscle tone like I
crave so badly and I am no longer losing inches or pounds. As I reflect back on the last 6 months I see a few things I
need to change to achieve the next goal – muscles!!! The programs I did were
largely cardio. As we know, cardio is very important to shed unwanted pounds
quickly. I need to move on to the next step which is lifting weights. I know
that by lifting weights I will essentially burn even more calories with the
muscles I build and see the definition I so strongly crave.
The biggest part of creating stellar abs, killer legs, and bangin arms is my eating style! I have
been very cautious to keep our kitchen clean of sugary items. As I reflect on
the last few weeks, I realize we have progressively had more junk food in the
house. There has been 3 birthday parties (my son had 2), and a procession of
guests in our house which has led to bad eating choices. I realize this is only an
excuse but one that I need to correct.
My solution for breaking this plateau is as follows:
Start a food journal and count my calories. If I
can start writing down everything I put in my mouth then I can truly see if I
am eating well or not. I am guilty of
tasting, snacking, and grabbing which can add up! Keeping track of the food
will really put my calorie intake into perspective.
Find a program or join a gym that I can “pump it
up”! I will never see muscle definition if I continuously do cardio and duh,
don’t lift weights!
Mix up my routine every couple of months. The
body can accommodate very quickly. If you do the same thing over and over your body will get used to this process and change will not happen. I have to keep my body on its toes to
continue to see results.
This is my plan to break my plateau and finally reach my
goal of wearing that elusive bikini again with confidence! What do you do to
mix it up? What suggestions do you have? There is never one formula that works
for everyone – what works for you?
