by Dolores Moore

Created on: November 09, 2009

There is still a little more of the mountain to climb, before that achievement of your goal weight is reached and won. For some months, everything has run beautifully, starting with quite a few pounds off, then a steady two or even one each week, as the climb takes you closer to your ideal weight. Then, for no reason whatsoever, everything grinds to a halt, and two weeks pass with no weight coming off. This is the dreaded plateau in Weight Watchers, that, if not treated with a sense of proportion, can throw you off stride and send you back down that mountain. It will not happen, you will stand firm and get your breath, while applying a different strategy.

Nearly everybody who is following a weight loss program will reach a plateau at some point. It is not unusual, and nothing to get too upset or worried about, because the Weight Watchers points system allows for the flexibility that can help get you moving upwards and onwards again. There are plenty of actions to take that can and do work. The body gets used to a regular eating pattern, and metabolism can sometimes just become so accustomed to this that it slows a bit, hence weight loss stops.

The first thing to do is to check that, because of weight loss, you are consuming the right number of points. You may have begun at 10 stone 13 pounds and gone down to 9 stone 12 pounds. This means you have to reduce your points from 20 to 18 each day. Next, look at varying your food intake to include more "free" foods like salad and other vegetables and more spices. Cut down on the fats a little, while increasing the fiber intake.

What about exercise? You may be sticking rigorously to the right number of points each day and over a week, but a few more bouts of 30 minutes brisk walking will definitely get things moving, and you have discovered one good, healthy way of how to come out of a plateau in Weight Watchers.

Yet another, rather more controversial suggestion that has been known to work is - have a break, be naughty. Yes, have fish and chips or a Big Mac and large fries, on just one day, then go back to your points for the rest of the week, reducing them so that you meet the allocated number. This can be a real shock to the system, and quite a pleasurable experience, but it does work, altering the metabolism and the body's expectations, so that things start to move once more.

Finally, consider variety as the spice of life. It is easy to get into a routine eating pattern, once you have familiarized yourself with points values. Breakfast, lunch and dinner, each day of the week, always the same pattern of foods. This pattern is of course, based on good healthy foods and following the system, but as they say, "a change is as good as a rest." Try for different options, while still maintaining the correct number of points.

Most of all, when trying to come out of a plateau in Weight Watchers, do not panic and never give up. Keep on trying, add a little variation, and you will most definitely climb that last ridge and reach your goal.

Learn more about this author, Dolores Moore.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.