I can't stop smilin and doin' the happy dance! Yippee, yahoo, hot-diggity day!
What did I do to get things moving again? Nothing different. Absolutely nothing different. I think our bodies must be awfully smart...and things are going on inside that, once accomplished, they're ready to let go of more weight.
We can force them to do what they know better than to do, and end up paying the price in the long run. I have a perfect example of that to share.
The first week of May I started a program that I've used before, about 10 years ago, and it worked in terms of getting some weight off quickly. I knew from experience it would work, but what I didn't realize is how low the calorie count was...right around 800-900 a day.
I was feeling great during that first week, eating all whole foods, very low fat, no added salt or sugar, working out every day, all the signs of a healthy diet (except the very low fat, I think we do need a bit more). But, a couple weeks later my big toe on my left foot began to hurt really bad. It was painful to the touch so much so that even a sheet on top was enough to make me cry mercy.
My feet have been giving me fits anyway, but this was different. Very different. Like a pain that just wouldn't go away. After a few days of self treatment I went to the doc. Long story short, my uric acid levels had shot up due to that quick weight loss the first week of May. Those uric acids levels were so high that they formed little crystalized particulars in the joint of my big toe causing.....gout. OUCH.
If I had just been patient with my body, this would not have happened.
NOTE: Other effects of high uric acid levels are, ready?....kidney stones. DOUBLE OUCH. I didn't get any of these, but if the pain in my toe is any indication of the pain of kidney stones, I'll just stick with being patient from now on!
Moral? You don't want to lose weight too quickly unless you are being supervised by a medical professional. It just ends up backfiring, and in my case, it put me on the couch for a good two weeks until the pain resolved.
So, what do you do when you hit a plateau? Should we wait it out knowing that we can't continue to do the right things and get no results or should we jump start in some way?
Cheryl
Photo courtesy Creative Commons
Woo hoo for you! Sometimes when I am stuck for a long time I mix up what I am eating. Change things. Vary my calories over the week. I hate plateuas but at least they aren't a gain.
ReplyDelete@Karen Yes, was thinking of plateaus contrasted against hills or mountains i.e. gains! Puts it in an entirely different light!
ReplyDeleteHey girl! Great news! I broke my plateau too. I gained 5 pounds OUCH! However, this week is different. I will be joining you at next weeks weigh in with lower numbers for sure! :o)
ReplyDeleteGreat work lady!
@Heidi - I saw that Choose You thing on Jen's blog...pretty cool idea! Let's get this tobaggon sliding down the hill again! Keep it healthy, sane and consistent!!!
ReplyDeleteGood for you for recognizing something wasn't right and congrats on busting that plateau. By giving the body some more food, it probably felt it was okay to let go of a little bit of fat. Well done!
ReplyDeleteWow! I don't go the low, low calorie route, but this is good information. Congratulations on getting past the plateau.
ReplyDeleteI haven't really hit one yet. There were a couple of weeks where I stayed the same weight, but that was my own (un)doing. I just try to do different things so my body doesn't know I'm trying to "trick" it into losing fat. But when I do hit that plateau, I will probably try a different exercise routine, maybe riding my bike more.