Have you been working out, eating as well as you can, and still not losing weight? The truth is those words are very relative and have different meanings to different people. I'm sure if you truly are honest with yourself there can be some improvements in your behavior while on the journey towards attaining your goal. Being healthy and fit is a lifestyle. It doesn't happen in a month while getting ready for a beach vacation. It can be as simple as never weighing yourself, enjoying an activity you love to do, and eating good food. It doesn't matter what gender you are, if any, what color or what religion you practice. Here are a few real reasons why you’re not losing that fat even if you think you’re working hard at it.
If you’re working out and are not losing weight, the gym is not the problem, your kitchen or should I say Uber eats is. You are No Eating Good Quality Food. People focus their energy on burning calories but don't consider fueling their bodies. Sticking to natural foods is the secret. Read the ingredients on packages. If there are more than five ingredients or you don't understand the word, don't eat it. Stick with whole fruits and vegetables, grains, potatoes, good fats, and quality meats. Nothing packaged would help a lot.
Cutting out one of the food groups in your diet is a recipe for fat gain. If you do this…You Are Not Eating the Right Balance of Food. Carbohydrates are the number one macronutrient people tend to eliminate. The biggest lie is that carbohydrates make you fat. Carbs don't make you fat, an abundance of carbohydrates will. If you don't utilize carbs for energy, they will be converted to sugar and that will be bad, very bad. You cannot deprive yourself, it will lead you to binge. Reach for healthy, complex carbs like sweet potato, quinoa, oats, and whole-grain bread. Keep sweets for your cheat meal maybe 1-2x a week as a treat. Starchy carbs and over-processed ones will digest slowly and will release glucose into your bloodstream more slowly, especially if you pair them with a protein or fat.
Those of you who truly are "eating clean" may pose yet another problem. You May Be Eating Too Much. For your body to shed weight you need to be in a calorie deficit. This means you need to burn more than you consume. You don't have to deprive yourself, there is a balance. We tend to miss meals and become ‘hangry’ and impossible to handle. Then you gorge on everything in sight. Space out your quality meals and don't go without eating for more than 3-4 hours.
The number one thing I learned the hard way was Doing Too Much Cardio. Yes, cardio is important for your heart boosts metabolism, and gives your skin a glow. However too much cardio will break down your muscle mass. And you need muscle mass to keep your metabolism high and burn fat. You become "skinny fat" Great in clothes and horrible without. Not for me. You tend to store fat to reserve fuel and my friend that doesn't look pretty.
So obviously the next reason you’re not losing weight is that You’re Not Lifting Weights. For the same reasons I mentioned above, you will be skinny fat and tend to reserve fat. If finding time is an issue you can always do some interval training. This combines weight lifting with a burst of cardio between sets. Fast and furious and a strong hot body, even without your clothes.
Some of us think we are doing our best, but are you really giving me your best! You Are Not Working Hard Enough. Yes, I said it, you're not. You can take pictures, or watch tv, or read, or drink your venti cup of coffee, and chitty chat while training. No, No, No! Your head needs to be connected to your body and your mouth needs to be shut. Always do that extra set, extra rep, whatever it takes. Don't spend hours at the gym and tell people you’re training for 2 hours. You are not. Set yourself time and get as much in as you can, break a sweat! Raise the intensity, not the time. The harder you work, the less time it takes to train.
Not Taking Time To Recover, is my biggest problem. Sleep, Stretch, and sometimes just go for a walk. Believe it or not it is at those times that the body heals, and actually does most of the fat burning. but you can't take off without actually putting in the work, with intensity. Your body will tell you when you need a day off and do something light.
Stress is another reason you’re not dropping weight. When you have a healthy balance of exercise-related stress and recovery time, your body will lose fat. But if you don't give your body enough rest you will raise your cortisol, the stress hormone. Cortisol is important and normal to have while training. it gives the muscles the energy they need to get moving. But if you are exposed to increased cortisol for too long it will begin to have an adverse reaction. It will keep the stubborn fat in the areas we don't want like our stomach, hips, and thighs. Mental stress can also raise cortisol. Keep your emotional and mental health in check. Meditate, read, or even talking to a professional can help.
Lastly, you have Plateaued. You can't keep eating and training the same for months and years. Your body will become get used to it and stop burning fat. You need to change it up a bit. Use the stair climber instead of thread mill, do upper body one day and lower body the next instead of doing full-body 3x a week. Do cardio and a different time than your workout. Eat different foods. Try intermittent fasting where you eat for 8-10 hours and then fast for 14. Do something different. In fact, you should change things up every 6 weeks to 3 months.
The main thing here is to be honest with yourself. Are you really doing your best with your eating and training? Be consistent, be determined, have a plan, a goal for your life not just for a couple of months. don't let the scale lead you. I weigh 20 pounds more now training with weights and eating 4-5 meals in a 10-hour window than I did 6 years ago, but still wear the same pants size. And back then I trained for hours nearly 4-6 hours a day and now I only do 1.5 hours including cardio. It's not hard. The hard part is starting and being true to yourself.
Stay healthy and happy my friends and always LIVLIFE.
Dr. Livia Valle, Mom/Chiropractor/Health and Wellness Coach
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Eric J Outcalt