Diet Nutrition Physique Women Articles & Resources

So, sure, you're in better shape now than you were before, but you want to keep improving. What's a girl to do?

* WAIT IT OUT

Before you do anything drastic, make certain you're really on a plateau to begin with. Do a mood check. "Pay attention to your energy, concentration and strength levels throughout the day," Sassin suggests. "If you're feeling super-good, sleeping well and looking forward to your workouts, there are probably some positive internal changes happening." Though you may have stopped seeing immediate results on the outside, you may be under construction on the inside.

If this is the case, before long you'll again begin to see changes in your outward appearance. Notes Sassin: "They may be slower in coming than those you saw initially. But stick to it and you'll eventually see the results you desire."

* DIETARY DOWNSLIDE

On the contrary, if you're feeling lethargic, irritable or insatiably hungry, you're likely the victim of dietary derailment. "Almost 100% of plateauing can be attributed to poor nutritional history," Sassin points out. "While most women have a good handle on the weight training and cardio portions of their fitness regimen, they lack solid nutritional knowledge, and will go to extremes to attain the body they desire."

Many of these frustrated femmes opt for a quick-fix diet, restricting their calories or starving themselves. "If you drastically cut calories or carbs, or skip entire meals to lose weight, your body thinks it's starving and goes into survival mode," warns Sassin. "It starts breaking down muscle tissue for fuel, and storing fat as a defense mechanism. If you're eating up your muscles, you may be losing weight according to the scale, but you're actually inhibiting your ability to burn bodyfat." Your body is now working against you, and the fat-loss results you fancy move further and further out of reach.

But don't panic. With just a few improvements in your training and nutrition habits, you can rekindle that fat-burning fire. So step away from the phone, toss that fad-diet-of-the-week brochure into the circular file, and try these nutritional tips to help pop you off your pesky plateau.

(1) Scale down: The first thing to do is realize that you want to lose fat, not weight. "Your scale weight consists of bones, ligaments, tendons, organs, muscles, Eat and water," Sassin explains. Women can fluctuate as much as 10 pounds in water weight depending on the time of the month, their stress levels and their sodium intake. Weighing yourself during these hyper-hydrated times gives you an inaccurate and discouraging impression of your progress, or lack thereof.

So step off that scale and have your body composition checked instead. "Pay attention to fat loss all over your body and not just in that area you hate," says Sassin. "People lose fat at an even rate all over their bodies, and you may be losing it somewhere you aren't paying attention to, like your back or arms.

(2) Breakfast is beautiful. Even though you were sleeping peacefully all night, your body was hard at work repairing and rebuilding tissues. You wake up rested, revived and ravenous! Sassin reports: "If you skip breakfast, your metabolism slows down and you're fighting a losing battle against low blood sugar all day long. When you finally do eat, it's going to be virtually impossible to make the right meal choices. That basket of bread and butter looks awfully good, and those chips and salsa suddenly become irresistible."

Eat within an hour of rising to kick-start your fat-burning engine, replenish nutritional stores and set up your metabolism for a day of alimentary success. Sassin warns that doing cardio before breakfast maybe a bad idea. "If your blood sugar is already slightly low in the morning, doing cardio on an empty stomach can deplete you to the point of no return." If the idea of eating in the am, makes your stomach chum, she suggests a whey protein shake with a banana and some peanut butter, or a small nutrition bar--anything balanced that gets your blood sugar out of the negative zone.

(3) Frequent feedings. Skipping meals or waiting too long between meals causes blood sugar levels to fall, leading to an increase in appetite, sugar cravings and desire to binge. So after breakfast, keep your metabolism revved and running by eating smaller meals every 3-4 hours until bedtime. This provides your body with even, continual sustenance, therefore inhibiting muscle tissue loss while promoting fat mobilization for use as fuel. "Meal frequency is key to losing bodyfat, and the number of meals you eat isn't as important as their timing," says Sassin.

(4) Calories per meal vs. calories per diem. Your body resorts to fat storage either because it thinks it's starving or because you're eating too many calories. To avoid either excessive or deficient caloric intake, shoot for 350-400 calories per meal. "The amount of calories you get in one day is less important than how many you get per meal," Sassin notes. "You could easily ingest all your daily calories in one huge meal, but your body will take only the 400 calories it needs right then, and will store the other 1,000 as fat to be used later! Totally counterproductive if you're trying to lose bodyfat."

(5) Check your balances. Each meal should have a solid nutritional balance of about 25% protein, 55% carbohydrate and 20% fat. Pay attention to your nutrient ratios to get just the right amount of each to feed your brain, repair your muscles and fuel your metabolic systems--no more, no less. "If you're getting everything you need nutritionally in the correct ratios, your body isn't likely to store fat," states Sassin. "In fact, it's more likely to use fat for fuel when your brain and tissues are nutritionally sated."

(6) Feed on fat ... Contrary to pop-culture claims, eating fat doesn't necessarily make you fat. "Dietary fat is not the same as bodyfat, and it won't go from your mouth to your hips, although it may seem to!" laughs Sassin, Fats and fatty acids are essential for metabolic function and nutrient absorption. Consciously include a little bit of unsaturated fat in each meal; natural peanut butter, nuts, olive oil and flaxseed oil are all healthful, cholesterol-free options.

(7) ... And flee from fat-free. Although they sound utopian, fat-free foods are your foes when eating to get lean. Sassin points out: "These foods are fat-free--until you eat them. Most of them contain high amounts of sugar, which causes your body to overproduce insulin, which may drive you to store that excess sugar as fat." So if you absolutely have to have that sweet treat, have a small portion of one that's fat-full.

(8) Write now! Keeping a food journal will help identify any glitches in your daily dietary regimen. For each entry, write down the day and date, time of the meal, what you ate and the amounts of the foods. Be honest in your journaling, and over time, you'll be able to identify what's working for you and what isn't, and you can evaluate where you can tighten up your program.

* DON'T FORGET THE OTHER HALF

Food is only half the fight. Check your training routines to help troubleshoot what's causing your fat-loss plateau. Strength training helps increase your lean body tissue, your metabolic rate and your fat-burning potential. Lift at least 3-4 days a week, and change your program every 6-8 weeks to prevent boredom and keep your body from adapting. Always use proper positioning, full range of motion, and slow, controlled repetitions for all exercises. And don't skip the cardio; three to four 40-minute sessions per week will keep the fat furnace burning.

When all is said and done, remember that food is your friend. So shake hands, play nice and set your sights once again on forming a phenomenal physique. Wise nutritional choices and dietary consistency will give you energy, strength and focus, and buy you a ticket on the plateau-busting bus out of fat city.

RELATED ARTICLE: PLATEAU CHECKLIST

Ask yourself the following:

* Am I making good food choices?

* Am I eating every four hours?

* Am I getting the right amount of calories per meal?

* Am I getting the proper nutrient ratios per meal?

* Am I doing three to four cardio sessions per week at 40 minutes each?

* Am I lifting weights consistently?

Making improvements in just a few of these areas can help you continue to see improvements in your physique.