7 Things To Do When the Scale Won't Budge

Every diet has its glory days and its bad days. It's easier to see results in the first few weeks, but sooner or later your scale will stop cooperating and you will reach the plateau effect. This is normal - just because you are not seeing the numbers drop like it did in the beginning, doesn't mean your body is not going through changes. Here are seven tips to help you through it:

1) Get some sleep
A study published in the American Journal of Human Biology found that the sight of junk food following a sleepless night triggered the brain's reward centers, making the food seem more appealing and tempting. This also works for the buffet line - sleepless nights could mean bigger portions of food, another study found. Get some rest and fill your plate with the necessary foods that will keep you full the first time around and you won't need to make the trip back for seconds.

2) Understand You Calorie Intake
Don't expect the pounds to melt away at the same rate as your partners'. Everybody is different, so when you start your program, a good rule of thumb is to divide your weight by 100 and that's how many pounds you should strive to lose each week.

3) Form a New Habit
Snacking in the middle of the night is a natural thing to do when your diet throughout the day is not enough to keep you satisfied. You will see that some habits are harder to break than others, but don't let it discourage you. Try switching your usual midnight snack of chips for Greek yogurt, for example. Once your lifestyle has changed, and you are eating a more fulfilling diet, your body will learn to live without the snacks.

4) Avoid Fat Free Products
The name sounds good, but it's actually terrible. Manufacturers remove the fat, but still pack the product with sugar. If you have to pick, go for the Low Fat version.

5) Weigh Your Portions
We constantly hear about portion control when we are trying to lose weight. That's because today's portion sizes are almost triple than what the USDA recommends. You can downsize the weight without giving up your favorite foods by using a scale in your kitchen. Rely on portion sizes in grams, or ounces, instead of tablespoons or cups.

6) Don't Stress It - Really, Don't!
Stress plays a profound role on weight loss. When you worry, your body will produce a lot of cortisol; it will, in turn, then produce more insulin to buffer the effects of the cortisol. Insulin is a fat storing hormone, and will cause you to store more fat around the waist and help you retain sodium.

7) Start Taking Measurements
The number one rule of weight loss is to always remember to take your measurements! Sometimes fat turns into muscle and your scale won't keep up with you. Your Body Mass Index and heart rate are also just as important as the number on your scale. Make sure to constantly check those numbers as well.