If you’ve ever tried to lose weight or are working on it now, you know all about weight loss plateaus.
They’re that annoying period when the scale won’t budge.
It happens no matter how well you stick to your plan.
Plateaus happen for a reason.
Scientists have recently found that they’re the brain’s way of protecting us from famine. This may have been a help to cavemen, it does little to help us when we’re trying to lose weight.
It can lead to frustration that makes us give up.
The best way to handle your brain stopping you from burning fat is to know why it’s happening.
How Your Brain Responds to Your Diet
Weight loss happens when our bodies burn more calories than we take in.
There are a couple of ways to approach that:
- we can eat healthy foods that ramp up our metabolism
- we can exercise
But a recent study out of the University of Cambridge proved that when we take in fewer calories, our brains actually slow down the rate at which the body burns them.
This makes it harder to lose weight.
The study showed that the neurons in our brains that make us hungry actually shut down when we cut back on food.
TweetThat is great if we’re starving – it helps to keep us alive.
But if you’re actually trying to lose weight, the mechanism is working against us.
According to scientist Dr. Clemence Blouet:
“If food is available they make us eat, and if food is scarce, they turn our body into saving mode and stop us from burning fat. While this mechanism may have evolved to help us cope with famine, nowadays most people only encounter such a situation when they are deliberately dieting to lose weight. Our work helps explain why for these people, dieting has little effect on its own over a long period. Our bodies compensate for the reduction in calories.”
What Can You Do About the Brain and Fat Burning?
There are a few steps you can take to counter this effect. Exercise is a great first step, as it can burn more calories and make you feel better too.
A good workout will rid you of stress and help you focus on the good you are doing rather than the scale not moving.
My best advice is to ignore the scale and focus on the changes you feel and see in your body.
Eat…EAT…EAT!!
It may seem crazy when you want to lose weight but the key is to eat 6 small meals a day so your brain doesn't kick into starvation mode.
That works against you.
Eating frequent meals and snacks is how you make your brain and your body work for you! This often comes as a great relief when people ask how they can boost metabolism to burn more fat.
Your Brain is STILL Your Most Powerful Weight Loss Tool
Oh, the irony! Your brain may be working against you when you don't eat enough BUT…It's still THE MOST POWERFUL weight loss tool you have!
The other BIG thing you can do to stay focused and keep your eyes on the prize is to visualize a better, slimmer, fitter you.
By looking at yourself in the mirror and imagining the you that you want to be, you can focus on the positive and give yourself the mental boost you need to get past the plateau and keep working towards your weight loss goal.
When you look to the future, you keep yourself from dwelling on a single day’s disappointment.
Yours in health and happiness,
Danette
P.S. Share this enlightening info. with your friends and I want to hear from you too! Just drop me a line in the comments below.
