You’ve been putting in the work. You either lift, do cardio, or both, yet nothing seems to be working. Unfortunately, the number on your weighing scale doesn’t seem to go down, no matter how hard you’re trying. Don’t worry. You’re not doomed.
There are many reasons you may be keeping an ineffective weight loss program. If you’re maintaining a consistent exercise schedule, that’s one less thing to worry about, so what else could it possibly be?
1. Not Maintaining a Calorie Deficit
Figure out how many calories you need a day with online calculators. If you’re not maintaining your calorie intake below what your body needs to keep its current weight, you won’t lose weight. It’s as simple as that. Achieve calorie deficits by eating less, exercising more, or a combination of both.
2. Lack of Sleep
Lack of sleep can create hormonal changes in your body that make it more difficult to lose weight. You’ll see this most likely in lowering your leptin hormone. Leptin is the hormone that regulates your appetite, tells your body when you’re full, and helps eliminate stored body fat. Decreased leptin levels can not only make you eat more than you would otherwise, but it makes your body hold onto fat, too.
3. Improper Hydration
Not drinking enough water can compromise your body’s ability to regulate itself. You’ll see this in irregular bowel movements, migraines, low energy, and a slower metabolism. We recommend drinking four liters of water a day for men and three liters a day for women for sufficient water consumption.
4. Horrible Diet
This is the obvious one. You can work out all the time and not see the results you want if you’re not eating a healthy diet. Make sure your diet is primarily composed of fruits, vegetables, lean proteins, whole grains, and healthy fats. Minimize or eliminate processed and junk foods as they can contain too many calories per serving.
5. Too Much Alcohol
Alcohol can be a major trap for dieters. It’s packed with calories, you’re often unaware of how much you’re actually having. This is why it’s easy to consume multiple drinks quickly. Worse, it slows the body’s ability to process sugar, which can cause massive amounts of sugar to spike in your bloodstream. This can lead to a decreased metabolism and an increase in fat storage.
6. Gaining Muscle
Proper diet and weight lifting may make it look like your diet isn’t working. However, you’re probably gaining muscle, and that’s a good thing. As your body recomposes itself to lose fat and gain muscle, there will be a time when both these numbers will cause your weight to fluctuate. Keep at it and watch your weight numbers drop once you build enough muscle as your protein intake allows.
Conclusion
You may not be seeing the results you want from your diet and exercise routine, but it’s not always an immediate reward. Once you figure out what exactly is going on, you can more effectively make changes in your daily regimen to achieve the results you want. Remember that what’s most important is consistency and nutrition. Take your fitness one day at a time, and take pictures! It’s nice to look back every now and then to see how far you’ve come.
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