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Summary
On episode 353 of 40+ Fitness, Coach Allan breaks down how to push through a weight loss plateau, or any other kind of plateau, strength, mass building, or diet, using an acronym he calls POPP.
Plateaus happen because the body seeks homeostasis: once it adapts to a new intake and feels like it’s getting good nutrition without going hungry, it settles at what Allan calls its own happy weight, a balance point that isn’t necessarily the weight you want. POPP, patience, other measures, persistence, and progression, is the plan for working past that point without burning out or quitting.
Allan walks through each letter with his own numbers: treating health as a lifelong lifestyle rather than a temporary diet, tracking non-scale wins like waist size and sleep, staying consistent with the habits that are already working, and making small, gradual increases in training or small, gradual cuts in calories rather than drastic ones.
Links
- https://40plusfitness.com
Key Takeaways
- Plateaus happen because of homeostasis. Once your body adapts to a change in eating and feels it’s getting enough nutrition without being hungry, it stops releasing body fat and settles at what Allan calls its own happy weight, a balance point, not necessarily the weight you were aiming for.
- POPP is the framework: patience, other measures, persistence, and progression. Each letter tackles a different part of getting unstuck, and Allan says the same four steps work for a weight plateau, a strength plateau, or a plateau in cleaning up your diet.
- Patience means treating this as a lifestyle, not a temporary diet. The journey to wellness never really ends, so accept that you’ll hit several plateaus, your body’s own set points, on the way to where you want to be, and judge whether the lifestyle itself is still sustainable rather than expecting constant fast progress.
- Other measures matter more than the scale. Waist size, skin, sleep quality, digestion, and how your clothes fit are all signs you’re on the right track even when the number on the scale hasn’t moved, and a shrinking waist in particular correlates directly with lower cardiovascular disease risk.
- Persistence means sticking with what’s already working. Don’t let a stalled scale convince you the plan has failed; keep the batch cooking, the daily walks, and the low-sugar habits going, because the other measures prove the lifestyle change is doing its job.
- Progression should be gradual, especially with calories. Rather than cutting 500 calories at once, Allan shaves about 100 calories a day off his intake once he plateaus, keeping protein and carbs steady and trimming fat. A cut that small feels minor day to day but adds up to roughly 10 pounds over a year.
- Don’t sacrifice nutrient quality while cutting calories. Allan keeps eating high-quality whole food through a progression phase and adds a multivitamin, vitamin D, and fish oil as needed, especially in winter, so the body is never shorted on nutrients even as calories drop.
- Chasing one number can throw off the rest of your training. Allan describes getting singularly focused on pushing his deadlift toward 500 pounds while training for a Spartan race; his squat, overhead press, and bench press all stalled or dropped, and he ended up tearing his rotator cuff from the imbalance.
- Put all four pieces together into one plan. Patience keeps you in the game, other measures confirm you’re on track, persistence keeps the habits going, and progression provides the small pushes that move you past a plateau; the plan is having all four working at once rather than any one alone.
“Your body is going to find several of its own set points, its own happy weight.”
Coach Allan
Another Episode You May Enjoy
Episode 356 – Michele Stanford talks about food quality and health
