“At first, it was easy to lose weight. The fat was melting away! But after a few months that came to an abrupt halt – I hit a wall.”

 

What is “The Wall?”

“The Wall”, the obstacle standing in the way of you getting leaner, is your body fat set point. Your set point is your body fat percentage that your body has become adapted to overtime.

If you have been carrying around significantly more weight than you are used to than your set point has increased. Your weight gain, like most individuals, can be attributed to chronic overeating and a lack of physical activity.

You have decided that it is finally time to lose the extra weight and get back to a happy and healthy lifestyle. You decided to give CrossFit Good Life a try (and loved it!) several times a week. You are determined to keep calories low by eating “clean” and avoid all processed foods. In the first few months you are trilled at the weight loss and you are fitter then ever! Unfortunately,  the weight loss has come to an abrupt halt and you have now hit a wall.

How Do I Break The Wall?

Your wall is in response to chronic under eating and excessive physical activity. If you have been on a caloric deficit for months or even years while undergoing extensive physical activity your body had created adaptations that will prevent you from losing fat.

When this happens the majority of people will further reduce their caloric intake and increase their physical activity – most by increasing cardio – which actually increases your set point.

Do not become a victim of this approach! Instead of working harder work smarter.

How Do I Lower My Set Point?

To lower your set point, or body fat, you must understand that you cannot be on a caloric deficit 365 days of the year. Every few months or so you need to ‘reverse diet’.

What Is Reverse Dieting?

Simply put, reverse dieting is the process of increasing how many calories your metabolism can process with the goal of minimal body fat gain. The main goal of a reverse diet is to slowly increase the amount of calories your metabolism can handle without storing the excess as fat. This process is an investment in your metabolic health and will position you to be able to lose weight and body fat more effectively in the future. During your reverse diet your goal is NOT to lose weight or body fat, it is to maintain close to your current weight while gradually increasing your caloric intake.

Notice you are going to slowly increase calories not have a free-for-all binge eating weekend – that is how you go from decreasing body fat to increasing your body fat very very quickly (not good)! You can start by adding 100-200 calories each week while monitoring your weight. If you weight stays stable you will stay on this path, if you can gain 1-2 pounds in one week you will stay at those calories until you weight is constant again. Once it is constance you will start adding calories back in until you reach your maintenance.

After your weight has stabilized with more food, you want to stay at that caloric intake for a period of time to allow your body to adapt.

Let The Fat Loss Begin!

After you have successfully increased your caloric intake and have been maintaining for a few weeks/months you can start to diet down again. You will slowly decrease your calories, just like you increased them. Everyone will eventually hit a wall – it is important to remember what to do when that happens and to overcome the plateaus!

For More Information:

If you are ready to begin your weight loss journey we are ready to help! Give us a call at 912-481-0564 or email us at kait@crossfitgoodlife.com to see what CrossFit Good Life can do for you!