So you’re on a roll!  You’ve been eating balanced meals every few hours and even kept your cheat meals to a minimum.  You’ve been exercising consistently and you’ve never looked or felt better. You know your “this close” to your goal weight, if only you could lose those last stubborn pounds!  As Nutrition and Fitness Experts we know how frustrating getting the last few pounds to budge can be.   Fortunately we have a few tricks to share to help you break through any plateaus and take your body to the next level!

Expert Tip #1-  Forget the “pounds” and focus on your body!

Perhaps in your mind, you have the perfect “goal weight” you’d like to be and to hit that number you must lose exactly 10 pounds.  Want our opinion?  Don’t worry about the number.  The truth is when your stabilizing blood sugar and working out correctly, you may lose pounds, while gaining a few pounds  of fat burning lean muscle and look even better than you ever imagined.  Focus on how you feel, the way your clothes fit and the changes you see in your body like more defined shoulders or leaner thighs.  These are the true indicators of success.  Remember, the number on the scale is just that; only a number!  Your weight can fluctuate between 5 and 8 lbs a day so focusing on the scale is never a solid approach to measuring your success.

Expert Tip #2- Eat cleaner.
 
If your already stabilizing your blood sugar by eating balanced meals, then you’re more than half way there!  The next step is to focus on eating clean, high quality, un-processed foods as often as possible.  These “clean”, natural foods stabilize blood sugar longer and help you to burn fat faster while allowing you to keep your calories up where they should be.  What exactly is a “high quality food”?  Think natural food items like chicken breast instead of processed deli meat, nuts as a source of fat in place of bottled salad dressing, or sweet potatoes as a carbohydrate instead of processed bread.  For a complete chart on the highest quality proteins, carbohydrates and fats, please see your Quality of Food Chart in your Member Handbook under your Help/Support Tab.  This chart is an invaluable tool for your success!

Expert Tip #3- Add intervals.
 
Did you know that your muscle is made up of 2 different types of muscle fibers; red (slow twitch) and white (fast twitch)?  Because we all have these different muscle fibers, it’s critical to learn how to train both properly.   If you’ve already mastered red fiber training (which is the basis of any great cardio program to burn fat), it’s time to add interval training.  Interval training, when performed correctly, taxes your fast twitch muscle fibers, boosts your metabolism and can truly take your physique to a whole new level.  For correct exercise protocol, please see your Exercise Tips in your  Member Handbook under your Help/Support Tab.

Expert Tip #4- Switch up your weight training routine.

Because your muscles adapt relatively quickly to exercise, it’s important to constantly challenge them with new moves and training techniques.  Whether you try free weights, cables, resistance band training, functional training moves, group classes or a new sport, switching up your routine every 4-6 weeks will shock your muscles enough to respond and change accordingly.

Expert Tip #5- Work on the basics.

Remember that adequate water intake, high quality and consistent sleep and good supplementation are critical to keep you body balanced and take your body from one phase to the next.   So often, we neglect the “basics” and can’t understand why our results have come to a stop.  Take a moment to review your customized plan and sleep, supplement and water parameters to ensure you have all your bases covered.  Your body will thank you for it!
To take your body to the next level, and burn that last bit of body fat, consistency, patience and a few go-to-tricks like the ones above are all you need.  Bathing suit season, here we come!

Our best,
The Venice Nutrition Team