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- Can A Plateau Be Good?
Last week I talked about the day-to-day variance you can expect regarding your body weight, which I sometimes call your ‘Weight Window.’
By the way, your body fat %, water %, and other metrics you can measure on any at-home digital scale also have windows.
So, what about plateaus? Let’s dive in …
The Big Picture 🖼
Explain It To Me It Like I’m 5 🧒
Practice Makes Perfect ⚖️
Do I Need A Plateau? ⏤
Parting Zen 🧘♂️
The Big Picture 🖼
The traditional way of thinking about plateaus is:
You ‘hit a wall’ and stop making progress, either with losing weight (aka body fat) or perhaps in gaining muscle.
This is still valid, but it’s not the whole story.
After all, isn’t your ultimate goal a plateau?
Yes, it is!
Ultimately you want to get to a certain weight window and stay there.
That, by definition, is also a plateau.
Explain It To Me Like I’m 5 👦
Today’s topic, as simply as possible:
“Balance takes practice.”
Practice Makes Perfect ⚖️
This graphic should help:
Do I Need A Plateau? ⏤
Well, as I said, ultimately - yes, at least one.
However, you might need more than one if:
You have a lot of body fat to lose, such as more than 30 pounds.
Your life schedule dictates a less aggressive fat loss plan.
In other words, it’s not great for a person to spend very long periods of time in fat loss phases. The body doesn’t like this. 1-2 months at most is what I recommend.
Thus, time spent ‘breaking up’ periods of fat loss and in the ‘practice plateau/maintenance phase’ can greatly increase your chance of long-term success.
So what about those other plateaus - the ones you hit when you don’t want to?
Well, typically there is something else going on there.
Usually, it’s one of two things:
Your plan is no good.
You’re not adhering to the plan.
But, that’s a conversation for a future newsletter :)
→ Calling All Men: join my free men’s coaching group here and I will help you manage your nutrition, fitness plan, and stress for FREE.
Parting Zen 🧘♂️
A simple word, phrase, or thought to take with you:
If your body is stuck, it’s telling you something. Listen.
Be well,
Coach Matt
PS: Here are some other newsletters I recommend:
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PPS: My common-sense disclaimer …
The advice I offer is not medical advice. If you have any medical issues, please consult your doctor first. The advice I offer should be personalized to your needs. I can help you make those personalizations or refer you out. Reply to this email if you need help.
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