Fitness Class
For the brain
Class is in Session
Why You Aren't Losing Weight
Not losing weight? Here’s why.
In this article we are going to be talking about the main reasons you’re not losing weight and how to fix it.
A quick side note, there could be medical reason or hormonal imbalance as to why you are not losing weight. Refer to a doctor if you feel this is the case.
Everyone wants to feel good and look good in their own skin, so weight loss will always and forever be a part of our world.
In addition to looking good, losing weight improves your overall health, mental health, improves your sleep, increases energy levels, lowers risk of diseases and enhances your overall quality of life. The odds are, at some point in your life, you are going to want to lose weight. But what if you have tried and nothing seems to be working or you just don’t know where to start.
Your Excuses
If you talk to 100 people who lost weight, you’ll probably hear 100 different stories, but there will be one underlying theme. That theme is what we are about to address.
But before we jump into the reasons you’re not losing weight, let’s destroy the excuses you’ve been using.
- It’s My Genetics: While genetics play a large part in your body composition, it doesn’t get the last word. Your environment and decisions are the ultimate reflection of your choices. As the saying goes, your genetics load the gun, but your environment pulls the trigger. Maybe your parents are overweight and all your siblings, aunts and uncles. But how many of them have ever tried exercising and sticking to a routine consistently? How many of them have ever seen what their bodies are capable of? People tend to take on the habits and personalities surrounding us. Improve your environment and improve your quality of life.
- I Don’t Have Time: Ahh, the old “time” excuse. Well, on the positive side, exercise takes very little time and making better choices takes, well, seconds.
- I just don’t have the motivation: You don’t have the desire to move is what you mean. But here is the list of things we created that truly make humans motivated to move. Dig into this and find your reason. Once you decided what’s most important to you, use that as motivation.
- I’m so stressed: You’re right, in that high levels of stress can lead to lack of focus, distractions, foul mood, etc. Whether it stems from work, personal relationships, financial concerns, stress can feel overwhelming. So, while you may cite stress as the reason you skipped your workout to help manage your burden, you’re actually doing yourself a disservice. Contrary to your belief, exercise can be one of the most effective tools for combatting stress. Exercise is a stress-management tool if nothing else. In addition, stress isn’t holding onto your fat. You’re not losing weight because you’re stressed. You’re not losing weight because you’re still eating too much.
- I’m too tired: Well actually, you’re too tired because you don’t move enough. Your sedentary lifestyle (AKA not getting enough physical activity) is actually making you feel more tired. Regular exercise boosts your energy levels by improving cardiovascular health, increasing endorphin production, and enhancing overall stamina. Exercise and you’ll feel more energized throughout the day.
The Underlying, Overarching Theme for Weight Loss
The journey to weight loss can be confusing and overwhelming due to the plethora of diets, fads, workouts, and advice available. Amidst this confusion, is one central theme: creating a caloric deficit!
It doesn’t matter what workout you do, what diet plan you are on, what approach to fat loss you take, it will be 100% effective as long as you have created a caloric deficit at the end of your day/week. In other words, burn more calories than you eat and you will lose weight. If you are not losing weight then you are eating too much food. There is no other explanation. Understand this concept and you will lose weight. If you want to believe otherwise, good luck.
When you go on a diet, you change the way you eat, you are more mindful about what you are consuming and make healthier food choices. This decision is likely to create a caloric deficit over time, causing you to lose weight.
When you exercise regularly (run, walk, bike, lift weights, swim, dance, etc.), you burn calories. Burning calories creates a caloric deficit. Assuming your diet is decent, an increase in physical activity will cause you to lose weight … because you have increased your caloric deficit.
When you do intermittent fasting (an ever-trendy approach to weight loss), you don’t eat for 16 hours, 24 hours, etc. This creates an eating window during your day. For example, with a 16-hour fast, you stop eating at 8PM and don’t eat again until 12PM the next day, giving you an 8-hour eating window. This approach is very effective … because you have put structure into your diet, causing you to eat less calories during the day/week, creating a caloric deficit and burning body fat.
Weight Watchers, Juice cleansing, Carnivore, Keto, Whole30, Paleo, Vegan, Noom, Nutrisystem, etc. all have one thing in common. You eat within a certain structure, be cognizant of what you eat and results follow … because when you eat within a structure, you’re more aware of what you’re eating, staying consistent with your diet, making better food choices and EATING LESS CALORIES, thus creating a caloric deficit.
We could go on and on and on, but you get the picture. Losing weight requires one thing: a caloric deficit. How you get into that deficit is up to you. You can diet and eat less, you can increase your daily activity by exercising, you can exercise more frequently or for longer periods of time, you can workout at the gym, you can workout at the gym with more intensity. There is no wrong way to burn calories or get into a caloric deficit. What matters is that you understand this principle and apply it to your fat-loss approach.
Listen up
One more time. You aren’t losing weight because you are not creating a caloric deficit. You aren’t trying hard enough, you aren’t moving enough, you are eating too much, you’re not putting in enough effort. The only way this changes is if you start to care a little more, and your desire to change overrides your desire to snack more and move less.
Suggestion
If you really want to change and are struggling to make progress, let us offer you some suggestions.
- Create a food log: Yeah, sure, it requires effort, but it’s only temporary and you will gain a powerful stronghold on your diet after doing this. Log for two weeks. Track your meals every day, recording the total calories and adding them up after each week. Compare the two weeks and see which week was better and how it influenced your weight.
- Understand your diet: After tracking your food, you will, then and only then, truly know how much you’re actually eating. People (basically everyone) grossly underestimates the amount of calories they consume on a daily basis … and unless you are tracking, you have no frickin clue. Track, learn what you can and can’t get away with eating and what you should remove from your diet. This will be a massive step towards hitting your goal.
- Move more: Make this nonnegotiable with yourself. Moving more will unquestionably create a bigger caloric deficit. If you don’t exercise, start. If you walk 30 minutes a day, start walking 45 minutes. If results are lagging, you need to do more to create a caloric deficit.
- Turn every excuse you’ve ever had for not working out into reasons for why you should be working out (see Excuses section).
- You NEVER have to be perfect, but you ALWAYS have to be honest with yourself. Eat what you want as long as you don’t eat too much. Move often and stay consistent. Continue to apply this approach long term and results will follow. If you are not seeing results, reassess your approach and see what you are doing wrong. Move more, be aware what you are eating and stay true to yourself and your goal. The only thing that will stop you are the lies that you tell yourself. You never have to be the strongest, fastest, smartest, prettiest, tallest, etc. All you have to do is be the one that shows up the most often. Consistency is the only attribute that is undefeated.
Now you know. Good luck.
P.S.
Another great approach is resistance training. Start squatting, push-ups, working with dumbbells, etc. and do that 2-3 times a week in addition to other exercises. You’ll change your life completely.
P.P.S.
Oh yeah, and have a cheat day. Designate a day per week where you eat whatever you want and don’t have to think about it. It won’t mess your diet up or offset your goals. Four cheat days a month is still 87% eating well. Last time I checked, that’s a strong B and you’re passing the test.
OKBYE,
LYLAB/LYLAS
