Why Can’t I Lose Weight

Sometimes losing weight can seem impossible.

You may be watching your calories and carbs, eating enough protein, exercising regularly and doing all of the other things known to support weight loss, yet the scale won’t budge.

This problem is actually fairly common and can be extremely frustrating.

YOU’RE NOT KEEPING TRACK OF WHAT YOU’RE EATING

Awareness is incredibly important if you are trying to lose weight. Many people don’t have a clue how much they’re really eating. Studies show that keeping track of your diet helps with weight loss. People who use food diaries or photography their meals consistently lose more weight than people who don’t.

YOU’RE SKIPPING MEALS

Decking the halls can take a lot out of you, but don’t become so frazzled that you start skipping meals. But forgoing food isn’t healthy, and it can actually lead to weight gain. When you skip a meal your blood sugar decreases, which causes interruption in your ability to think straight. The brain uses glucose to run efficiently and if there is not enough glucose for the brain to use, your body does not function at 100 percent. Low blood sugar causes people to feel irritable, confused and fatigued. The body begins to increase production of cortisol, leaving us stressed and hangry. Skipping meals can also cause your metabolism to slow down, which can cause weight gain or make it harder to lose weight.

YOU’RE NOT EATING ENOUGH PROTEIN

Protein is the single most important nutrient for losing weight. Eating protein at 25–30% of calories can boost metabolism by 80–100 calories per day and make you automatically eat several hundred fewer calories per day. It can also drastically reduce cravings and desire for snacking. A high protein intake also helps prevent metabolic slowdown, a common side effect of losing weight.

YOU’RE NOT EATING WHOLE FOODS

Food quality is just as important as quantity. Eating healthy foods can improve your wellbeing and help regulate your appetite. These foods tend to be much more filling than their processed counterparts. Keep in mind that many processed foods labeled as “health foods” aren’t really healthy. Stick to whole, single-ingredient foods as much as possible.

YOU’RE NOT SLEEPING WELL

Good sleep is one of the most important factors for your physical and mental health, as well as your weight. Studies show that poor sleep is one of the single biggest risk factors for obesity. Adults and children with poor sleep have a 55% and 89% greater risk of becoming obese, respectively.

YOU’RE NOT DRINKING WATER

Drinking water can benefit weight loss. In one 12-week weight loss study, people who drank half a liter (17 ounces) of water 30 minutes before meals lost 44% more weight than those who did not. Drinking water has also been shown to boost the number of calories burned by 24–30% over a period of 1.5 hours

YOU’RE NOT ACTIVE ENOUGH

You may be working out 5-6 days a week for one hour per day. But what about the other 23 hours in your day? Of course, at least 8 hours should be spent sleeping! But the activity that you’re doing, or not doing, for the remainder of your day, may be hindering your fat loss. Most of us, even if we work out consistently, tend to have a sedentary lifestyle due to an office job that has us sitting down behind a computer or driving and sitting in the car all day.