The human body is truly miraculous.
After quite severe accidents it is often able to heal itself, and trained athletes can perform feats of endurance which quite simply defy belief.
These capabilities are in general very welcome - however there are some phenomena of the body which are less well regarded.
Among these is a physical reaction known as "weight loss plateau".
This describes a situation where weight loss tails off to zero after a particular diet has been followed for some time.
It occurs because the body adjusts its own metabolic rate as a consequence of the new diet, i.
e.
presented with less calories it ultimately functions more efficiently in an effort to prevent - ultimately - death through starvation.
This phenomenon, unsurprisingly, is ignored by most diet books.
It can however be counteracted to an extent.
Our metabolism is highly flexible and will with time adapt itself to a particular regime.
Therefore the best way around the "weight loss plateau" is to change eating patterns after an initial period of dieting.
After a period of time the dieter reverts to the diet, which becomes effective once more, the metabolism having been "tricked".
It is also possible to use exercise to overcome the plateau.
More exercise than usual, more extreme exercise, and exercise of different muscle groups can all help to accelerate weight loss for a time.
The most effective way to beat the weight loss plateau is to combine diet and exercise.
Other tricks include changing the intervals between meals - for example eating meals that are smaller but more frequent can often increase the metabolic rate thus boosting weight loss.
Each body is different, some of us have faster metabolisms than others.
Thus a method that works well for one person may work less well, or not at all, for another.
Those of us with slower metabolisms need to combine a restricted diet with an exercise regime, whereas those with naturally fast metabolisms may manage to lose weight simply by altering the frequency with which they eat (taking shorter breaks between each meal).
It is worth investing time in finding a system that works well for you.
After quite severe accidents it is often able to heal itself, and trained athletes can perform feats of endurance which quite simply defy belief.
These capabilities are in general very welcome - however there are some phenomena of the body which are less well regarded.
Among these is a physical reaction known as "weight loss plateau".
This describes a situation where weight loss tails off to zero after a particular diet has been followed for some time.
It occurs because the body adjusts its own metabolic rate as a consequence of the new diet, i.
e.
presented with less calories it ultimately functions more efficiently in an effort to prevent - ultimately - death through starvation.
This phenomenon, unsurprisingly, is ignored by most diet books.
It can however be counteracted to an extent.
Our metabolism is highly flexible and will with time adapt itself to a particular regime.
Therefore the best way around the "weight loss plateau" is to change eating patterns after an initial period of dieting.
After a period of time the dieter reverts to the diet, which becomes effective once more, the metabolism having been "tricked".
It is also possible to use exercise to overcome the plateau.
More exercise than usual, more extreme exercise, and exercise of different muscle groups can all help to accelerate weight loss for a time.
The most effective way to beat the weight loss plateau is to combine diet and exercise.
Other tricks include changing the intervals between meals - for example eating meals that are smaller but more frequent can often increase the metabolic rate thus boosting weight loss.
Each body is different, some of us have faster metabolisms than others.
Thus a method that works well for one person may work less well, or not at all, for another.
Those of us with slower metabolisms need to combine a restricted diet with an exercise regime, whereas those with naturally fast metabolisms may manage to lose weight simply by altering the frequency with which they eat (taking shorter breaks between each meal).
It is worth investing time in finding a system that works well for you.