Stuck in a Rut

You decided to become fit. You're relatively healthy throughout the week; exercising and practicing healthy & nutritious daily dieting ('diet' being the foods you consume throughout the day, NOT restriction). You've noticed a positive change, you're proud of yourself. Then, one week you step on the scale or try on your skinny jeans and to your horror... You've gained! But you've been doing so well, but you've made so much progress....

When this happens, which it will, instead of crashing, look at your routines (diet&exercise) from the past few weeks. If you've kept a Nutrition Diary, compare weeks. What did you slowly add to your diet? How much are you consuming of each product and have your portion sizes increased? Even if you've added foods that appear healthy, check them out further. Some foods are great in moderation but can easily add to additional calories/fat.

Check your workout program. Have you increased your anaerobic (weight) routine and decreased cardio? Added muscle and no cardio could mean that you're building muscle, but not burning the fat on top, creating a larger frame. Build the muscle, perform long stretches, and continuously do cardio.

How about your cardio program? Have you found a favorite and stuck to that particular program for the past week or more? If so, you may have reached a plateau and need to switch up your routine.

The easiest rut to find yourself in is the nutrition rut. Be sure to compare weeks, note the different foods taken or added to, and recognize what may be causing the problem.

Everybody goes through ruts. The trick is to relax, identify the problem and with a clear mind create the solution. A clear mind gets you everywhere. A stressed panic leads you negatively.