Health
Habits
Food
Weight 
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Home Court Habits: The Secret to Effortless Weight Control
10 Reasons You Aren’t Losing Weight When You Think You’re Doing Everything Right
How To Burn More Calories Without Breaking A Sweat
The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Foodists
10 Reasons You Aren’t Losing Weight When You Think You’re Doing Everything Right
Photo by EverJean
Weight loss can sometimes be very elusive, even for a foodist. You already know that dieting will never give you the long term results you want, so you focus on eating real food and going to the gym.
So why are you still overweight?
There could be any number of reasons you aren’t reaching your goals and the best way to troubleshoot is to tackle it like a scientist. Generate a hypothesis, collect data on yourself, and test different solutions until you find what works, because the answer will be slightly different for everyone.
The good news is that there are several common (but easily overlooked) mistakes that may be holding you back. Start here and your issues may resolve more easily than you think.
Whatever you do, resist the temptation to go back to restrictive dieting, which makes it harder––not easier––to achieve your goals.
10 Reasons You Still Aren’t Losing Weight
1. You’re still sedentary
This one has been difficult for me in the past, despite the fact that I’ve been working out regularly since I was 12 years old. If your job involves sitting at a desk or using a computer all day, chances are that even if you go to the gym daily you are still leading a sedentary life.
Solution: Use a pedometer
Fortunately the solution doesn’t require more gym time, just a bit more standing and walking. Making sure that you reach 10,000 steps per day is a simple way to burn more calories without noticing. Track your activity with a pedometer like a Fitbit to be sure you’re hitting your daily goal.
2. You’re misjudging your portion sizes
Humans, especially dieters, are notorious for misjudging portion sizes––specifically large portion sizes. Research has shown that while we are decent at judging the calories in smaller dishes, we vastly underestimate the number of calories in larger portions and as a result overeat much more than we realize.
Solution: Keep a food journal
With practice you can get better at judging portion sizes. Even if you think you know how much you are eating take two weeks to track your food intake with a food journal and measure out and document your portion sizes. While I don’t recommend keeping this up forever (life is too short to be so neurotic), it is a great way to recalibrate your expectations of what appropriate portion sizes should look like.
Most of us can feel completely satisfied eating 20% less food, and some of us can eat less than even that without noticing. Using smaller plates can help as well, but with the huge portions of food most of us are served outside the home it is better to get good at judging portions without relying on your personal dishware.
3. You aren’t tracking your habits
Despite our best intentions, it is surprisingly difficult for us to be honest with ourselves about our behaviors. You may believe you don’t eat much bread every week, cook nutritious and diverse foods at home on a regular basis, and stick to a reasonable number of cocktails when you go out on weekends, but it is easier than you think to slip into a rut and neglect your home court habits for days or even weeks on end.
Solution: Keep a habit journal
The more I track my habits using the Way of Life app, the more I realize how fluid my regular habits can be. What is scary is that even though I am well aware of how important habits are to my health, without regular tracking I would honestly have no idea how my habits evolve and wouldn’t be able to adjust as rapidly when mindlessness gets the better of me.
What’s nice about Lift is that it doesn’t feel obsessive, like calorie counting or portion measuring. I’ve created dozens of interesting habits I try to maintain in my healthstyle including trying new foods, eating fermented foods, meditation and shopping at the farmers market. Simply checking them off my list each day has been an incredibly powerful way to stay on track. Lift has also made me more mindful of healthy habits I didn’t realize I have and wish to continue to cultivate. Why is it so easy for me to forget that mushrooms are awesome? Turns out there’s an app for that.
4. You’re insulin resistant
If you have more than 20 pounds to lose and have not had much success despite eating relatively healthfully, you may have some degree of insulin resistance or even metabolic syndrome. When you are insulin resistant your body is more inclined to store the calories you eat as fat rather than burn them as fuel. This means you can gain weight eating types and amounts of food that a person with a healthy metabolism could eat without consequence. Such a bummer.
Solution: Try the Foodist Recalibration
Fortunately, insulin resistance can usually be improved with a low-carbohydrate diet and exercise. Though I do not recommend restrictive dieting as a long term solution for weight control, the temporary Foodist Recalibration for 2-8 weeks can help restore insulin sensitivity and improve metabolism. For the full explanation of the recalibration and how to transition to life-long weight maintenance check out my book, Foodist.
5. You’re working out too much
Back in the day before I became a foodist, I had a serious working out problem. I’d wake up at 5am every school day and go to they gym for two hours before heading to class, then I’d spend countless hours on “long runs” every weekend trying to burn more calories. The problem is that while exercise definitely improves health, it also promotes hunger. Too much exercise can therefore be a barrier to weight loss for some people, because it makes it nearly impossible to control your appetite.
Solution: Chill out
I absolutely recommend making time for exercise, even formal gym time and weight training, as part of your regular healthstyle. However, if exercise is taking up a huge amount of your time and you still aren’t losing weight, try chilling out a bit and focusing more on walking 10-15K steps per day rather than spending more time in the gym. I imagine you will enjoy it.
6. You don’t chew
Practicing mindful eating is still the best way I’ve found to slow down, eat less, and enjoy my food more. The problem is that it’s really hard to do. One way to address this issue is to focus on something concrete that forces you to pay attention to the food in your mouth. This is where mindful eating can help.
Solution: Take the Mindful Meal Challenge
I created a free 5-day Mindful Meal Challenge to teach you how to eat mindfully. “Trying” to eat mindfully is a recipe for failure, but since this is what most people do it’s easy to believe mindful eating is too hard, too time consuming or that you are mindful eating when you really aren’t. It took me years to figure out how to turn mindful eating into a real habit, but now I can’t imagine my life without it. The MMC starts every Monday. Sign up here to join the next one.
7. You aren’t sleeping enough
Our brains and bodies rely tremendously on a variety of hormones that regulate when we eat and sleep. Because of these circadian rhythms, we function optimally when we eat our meals, sleep and wake at the same time each day. Similarly, too little sleep has been associated with weight gain.
Solution: Prioritize sleep
Getting on a regular schedule and getting enough sleep is a key component of your healthstyle. Developing good sleep habits and prioritizing sleep may help you get back on track.
8. Your diet is too strict
Telling yourself you can’t eat this or that particular food is one of the most effective ways to guarantee you’ll overeat it in the future. Not even Adam and Eve could handle the pressure.
Solution: Have it later
Research has shown that telling yourself you can eat something later is far more effective than outright denying yourself a pleasure. To your brain, having it later is almost as good as having it now. Try it, it works.
9. Your diet is too limited
As powerful as psychological cravings can be, biological cravings are still a real thing. Eating a nutrient dense and diverse diet helps ensure that your body is receiving a wide range of micronutrients and has everything it needs to function optimally.
Solution: Eat new foods
One of my favorite healthstyle habits is regularly trying new foods and building diversity into my meals. Not only is this incredibly fun, it has also helped me reduce cravings for sugar, flour and other less-than-healthy foods that used to plague me.
10. You believe health claims on food labels
Yes, foods that tend to be higher in fiber, protein, vitamins, calcium, omega-3s and other trendy nutrients tend to be better for you, but that doesn’t mean that artificially adding these things to junk turns them into health food. Even worse, health claims on foods create what is known as a “health halo” that encourages people to think foods are healthier and less filling, unintentionally convincing us to eat more.
Solution: Focus on ingredients
Avoid the hype by ignoring health claims and turning directly to the ingredient list. Focus on real food and real ingredients to avoid being duped.
Did you solve a weight loss plateau? Tell us how in the comments.
Originally published June 17, 2013.
I make pretty much all of those ten mistakes. Thanks for the reminder!
Yet you look amazing
Good call on the working out too much. I work out an average of 2 hours a day when I have the time and I can tell you for a fact that I eat a lot because of it. Luckily, I have always been skinny and all that food literally goes to the recovery process. However, if I had to loose weight I could not do it.
Unnecessary reply. The piece was for people who are having problems cutting weight even when dieting and exercising regularly, and not for those who “have always been skinny.”
Agreed. Why post a comment boasting how you dont struggle with the weight gain from working out too much when this article or that portion of the article is targeted to those that do? Way to make so many readers feel awful and worse than they probably already do. Think before you post.
Calm down, it’s a comment section—people are allowed to comment just as you are. He was sharing how he sees that too much exercise can lead to overeating…sounds on topic to me.
@Jules and we’re free to comment what an insecure idiot he is for providing no value and commenting just to make himself feel good about his social shortcomings 🙂
#1-9: you’re eating too much;
#10: what you’re eating (too much of), is probably garbage.
Thank you, Darya. I love how you not only summed up the most common pitfalls, but you offered realistic solutions.I’m going to share this with my clients!
Good reminders, great post – thanks!
This is a fantastic post!
Lol @ even Adam and Eve couldn’t handle the pressure…. But Jesus in the wilderness did….
Great post! I just need to be assured that I’m indeed doing everything right…
Huh. Never saw the recalibration thing. That sounds like a great idea, thank you. I have adult onset asthma, (asbestos is bad for you) which I have begun to treat naturally, which is working great, but you know what would REALLY help me breathe is losing the weight I gained on the meds they put me on previously. It’s slow going and my metabolism is clearly a bit wonky at this point, so hey, I’ll give that a shot.
But apart from that, I have a question for you, Darya. You mention biological cravings as separate from psychological ones. Can you explain that or point me to an article? I have long argued that if you’re craving something, you must actually need something in it, and should have it then. This belief has even caused fights with friends who think I’m excuse hunting. Except that I crave things like grapefruit, and I hate grapefruit. Just every now and then I MUST eat one. My desire to eat ice cream is much more ignorable than the whole grapefruit thing. So I have figured desire for enjoyable foods, at least in me, is an entirely different phenomenon than a full on craving. Is this true?
I think there is something to what you’re saying, but it is difficult to untangle it scientifically since there is so much variability among individuals. There have been documented cases of pregnant women eatings dirt and sand [http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18693477], likely due to anemia (iron deficiency). On the other hand, people crave cigarettes and alcohol because they are addictive, not because of a deficiency.
I think it is easier to tell what is going on in yourself when you are very in tune with your food and your body. I’ve noticed a difference in my own body’s responsiveness to different foods since becoming a foodist. Grapefruits contain a unique molecule that blocks the breakdown of certain drugs in the liver, but that’s not really an explanation of why you want to eat a food you don’t like. At any rate your friends should lighten up 🙂
Thanks for your reply. If it helps, the grapefruit makes me feel energized and good once I’ve eaten it. I really wish I liked them. I’ve tried a variety of approaches.
I agree that being in tune with your body is key. Paying attention to that has steered me towards large amounts of veggies and a lot of evening walks, as well as instilled a strong inclination to stay home when ill.
I’ll tell my friends you said so. 😉
And oh look… an M&Ms banner ad. I don’t like M&Ms any better than I like grapefruit so I know it’s not my browser history.
Already asked for them to be taken down. Hopefully they’ll be gone soon.
Put the fork down between bites. Yup, I can do that! I’m totally the girl who’s already reaching for the next bite before finishing the first, so this is great advice. Thanks, Darya.
I thought this was a great article and I picked up on several habits I need to change.
But Darya, I am a weak person and the Twix and M&M ads on the right side of the page were distracting me the whole time I was reading the article. I am now having a powerful biological Twix craving!
Was there seriously a candy ad? Really?
Yep. Twix and M&Ms all on the right side navigation bar. Apparently they rotate with the Tide ads. I took a screen shot but I don’t see a way to attach it here.
I use the Adblock Plus addon in Firefox and never see ads on the net anywhere!!
Funny, my daughter just had a tonsillectomy and now she’s got ads on her Facebook for prescription drugs!
First of all thanks for sharing the information Darya. I follow every aspect to lose weight effectively. I have a few questions for you. I’m on a weight loss program and been doing workouts with diet plans. Though my diet isn’t that restrictive, when getting bored, I try small portions of desserts and chocolates to satisfy my cravings. Also I take energy drinks for recharging after the workouts. Are these things good to be follow? Kindly help
merci darya pour le rappel et les conseils,ma femme et moi ainsi que ma fille ainée,on est en surpoids,et on est entrain de suivre un régime pas trop sévère,surtout le soir,en évitant de manger sucré et en limitant les rations de pain tout en se b&asant sur les salades de légumes.
I really enjoyed this post. I think I’m going to have to give the food journal thing another try but like many habits, I get lazy to keep at it. Plus I’m afraid to admit how much of a serial stacker I am… Even if the snacks are healthy!
This is great information! I think you’ve really hit the nail on the head (several times) with respect to mystery weight gain. Being aware of the details of what we are doing in terms of exercise and eating is key to reaching our health and wellness goals.
I loved #10 especially and would take it even further (you might have in your hyperlinked post). I’ve learned from experience that when I focus on eating foods that are closest to their natural state, I can pretty much eat what I want and in whatever quantities I want, and my weight regulates itself. Add in things that come in packages with health claims and even if I’m counting calories, I slowly gain weight. Apparently nature knows something. 😉
Thank you for this. I have insulin resistance for a while now. I have been looking for what foods are inflammatory, and this is the first time I have read anything about it. I sometimes feel sick like everything in my body is swollen. I am going to try your recalibration. I hope it helps with my weight loss and the pain. I hope more people start talking about this.
I love the reminders about mindful eating, but cannot imagine how anyone has time to walk 10 -15 K steps or spend two hours a day in the gym, plus shop, cook, clean up, spend any time at all with your family, do your laundry and get 8 hours a night unless you are unemployed or don’t commute to work.
I am trying Fitbit to incorporate more activity into my normal day, but I think setting that kind of exercise goal is just unrealistic for anyone who has a family and the responsibilities that go along with it.
If you think 10K steps a day is unrealistic, then there’s no need to hold yourself to it. It’s what works for me and many others, but someone more pressed for time might have better luck with interval training or kettle bells, that only take a few minutes a day.
OK, I hate to mention this but it is all about eating too many calories, people. Weight loss is all about creating a caloric deficit. I know that counting calories and weighing your portions seems like an OCD drag but it works. It’s not so much about what you eat or how much you exercise but how many calories you are shoveling into the mouth. If you are not losing weight you are eating at maintenance. Great, if you don’t need to lose weight. But if weight/fat loss is the goal you need to be more precise in your eating intake. Particularly if you are a smaller woman. Most calorie recommendations are too high. I’m sure I will get hate mail but counting calories precisely as possible works. It works for maintaining too.
Mindful eating and getting off your butt is great but there are lot’s of overweight folks who claim to eat healthy and “clean” and all that. Plus I see lot’s of overweight people pounding away on the treadmills at the gym like crazed hamsters with no visible results.
Myself and thousands of my readers have lost weight and kept it off without having to do math every day. Certainly that method can work, but this site is for people who want more out of life.
Darya, I totally agree with that notion and in fact lost over 40 lbs not counting calories. I did a lot of intermittent fasting. Granted lots of people are not going to do that. It does work to reduce mindless eating though and is just one of many tools that can help reset the “hunger” habit. Most of what people think is hunger is not real hunger.
However, a very large number of people have NO clue about how much they eat and how much they should eat to lose weight and even maintain weight loss. Without getting a grip on that people yo-yo up and down and become frustrated that they are doing all the “right” things (exercise, eating healthy foods) and are not losing weight. The problem is that they are just eating too much (too many calories) to create a deficit needed.
I was always skeptical of calorie counting since it seems a bit like nailing jello to a tree. However recently I got one of those nutritional data scales with a phone app on a sale and decided to give it a try. It works.
I am very small and lean but I was able to drop 6 lbs of fat pretty easily doing that. For those who are stuck it a rut it may help to shed those last 5 lbs. So that’s why I mentioned it. Sometimes it helps to get the mindful eating process in gear and really have some reality checks rather that deluding oneself into thinking they are eating less than they are.
Totally agree. Thanks for the clarification. I even recommend in Foodist that people get a food scale and get realistic about how much they are actually eating. It’s the math I don’t trust.
So basically I’m all about keeping track and journaling (especially if you’ve never done it before), but prefer a slightly more holistic method. Here’s a summary: http://summertomato.com/7-reasons-keeping-a-food-journal-is-better-than-counting-calories/
Thanks so much for the reference to Lift. It is a terrific resource which I doubt I would have found without your mention.
This is a great article Darya – making conscious choices to change is a big part of the journey to creating healthy habits. Going beyond the diet and taking things such as sleep patterns and exercise into consideration is a very important aspect of healthy weight management and is often overlooked. Thanks for sharing!
I believe your suggestions only work for those who are pre-menopausal. Most women under the age of 45 or 50 have a metabolism that operates optimally — and when it doesn’t, simply tweaks like you offer will fix the problem. This changes as we age.
After menopause, many women (maybe most) are not only dealing with insulin sensitivity as well as metabolic syndrome (as in #4) but also unbalanced hormones and major gut/digestion issues that require a specific protocol to heal the gut before they can lose any weight at all.
I followed a low-carb diet for years thinking this would do the trick. I’m 66 yrs old and started menopause at 50. For the record, I was never a junk-food junky. I totally removed sugar, dairy, wheat and alcohol, but I can’t rid myself of 30 extra lbs (mostly in my gut) to save my life.
It’s only recent that I learned about how hormone balancing and gut issues affect older women. For 15 yrs I blamed myself for not trying hard enough — believing I ate too much. So I would starve myself. I would lose 3 lbs, and gain 5 back within a week. I read websites like yours telling me that I need to eat less or eat more, move more, less carbs, bad timing, more fat, don’t eat at night, eat a big breakfast, fast intermittently, sleep more, less fat, no fat… the list goes on
f o r e v e r . . .
I am a woman who typically takes care of herself. I try to stay current with the latest health info. I exercise, eat clean animal protein and organics, take supplements, drink 2 qts of water daily, etc. I’m sure you have the picture… I’m also a flight attendant who was hired in the 60s when we were rigidly assessed for our appearance. I always took pride in my appearance. I was slim and weighed 117 lbs. Today I weigh 157.
Needless to say, while I have attained much wisdom over the years I am not so proud of my figure. Sixteen years is a very long time to battle with weight.
I have since found a physician who practices Functional Medicine, and is dedicated to women’s health. She targets female genetic factors, particularly hormones, weight issues and the gut. For the first time in a long time, I look forward to seeing results.
+1 at Donna’s comment from ‘another Donna’ experiencing precisely the SAME scenario…(minus the stewardess position…I was rejected after 4 interviews because of height issues (155cm/5ft 1.5?!)…I run 5 days per week…Always walk to the marché (moving self rather than vehicle)..etc…and I really believe that age and hormones can become the ultimate, seemingly insurmountable barriers to re-finding weight/body satisfaction. When one is seemingly doing everything ‘right’ it is SO frustrating. Would you perhaps know the term for what is considered a physician “who practices Functional Medicine”? I live in France and wonder if this could mean a naturopath?…holistic ? Thank you so dearly for any insight from across the pond.
My 2 keys to breaking a plateau that have worked for me are: Changing up what I am eating, sometimes we get in a rut of eating the same things, and second, eating some fat… again because sometimes I have a tendency to shy away from fat because well it is – ‘fat’ but our bodies need that too…
when you say dont restrict? are you reffering to junk and greassy food? i dont think i cant loose weight if im stuffing myself into bakery and chocolate, so i dont eat that, but is that restriction?
It’s about your mindset. I don’t eat “junk” at all, but I don’t consider it restriction because I don’t enjoy it. I’ve learned to become VERY picky about what I consider a truly worth it indulgence and have learned to LOVE fresh, seasonal foods. That means my default is healthy eating, and things like sweets are a rare indulgence. No willpower required. Make sense?
Hi Darya. My friends are telling me that I’ll be soon 60kgs and teasing me fat pig. Last year, I’m working out so hard. But I didn’t notice that after I workout, I eat food. It’s hard to discipline myself. What kind of exercise do I have to do each day? Please reply.
I’m so sorry to hear that, Maury. Working out very hard and trying to be disciplined are two ways to actually make it harder to lose weight. I recommend to stop worrying too much about what your friends think and focus on just being an active and healthy person. Try to walk 10,000 steps per day, do some harder exercises a few times a week, eat lots of vegetables and be careful with sugar and flour. If you haven’t yet, my book Foodist will probably help you a lot.
I’m so sorry to hear that, Maury. Working out very hard and trying to be disciplined are two ways to actually make it harder to lose weight. I recommend to stop worrying too much about what your friends think and focus on just being an active and healthy person. Try to walk 10,000 steps per day, do some harder exercises a few times a week, eat lots of vegetables and be careful with sugar and flour. If you haven’t read it yet, my book Foodist will probably help you a lot.
I’ve been told that muscle weighs more than fat — and you are developing more muscle by working out, so maybe you shouldn’t think in terms of how much you weigh. Instead, think of how much stronger you are. Also, tell your “friends” to stop bullying you about your weight — bullying doesn’t help anybody.
This comment makes me crazy. Muscle doesn’t “weigh more” than fat. One pound is one pound.
One pound of feathers equals one pound of rocks. But the feathers will be a much larger pile than the pile of rocks.
A pound of muscle TAKES UP LESS SPACE than a pound of fat – so you can weight the same but lose inches.
Please people – stop spreading this stupid comment.
Hello.i have a litle confusion.The past few days i have been working out and eating the calories that i always ate but my weight doesn’t go down in fact my weigjt has increased a little.I am close to my goal.I only want to lose 1 kilo.Could you possiby tell me What am i doing wrong
Hi Anna,
Exercise doesn’t burn calories as much as changing your diet and eating less does. It’s 90% what you’re eating and how much, and 10% physical activity. Also, I recommend eating foods in their natural state, simple foods, boiled eggs, fish, tons of vegetables, citrus fruits namely grapefruit, berries, cheat once a week, butter your vegetables, drink water and tea, yogurt for your gut bacteria, fermented food, BUT EAT. Teach yourself how to eat good foods again and to heal your body and your gut with foods. Don’t give up!
I gained 60 pounds in three year’s time by simply being put on gabapentin and having a underactive thyroid. I eat carefully and rarely eat junk. I wish the article included medical reasons.
#4 is the most common issue I encounter as a nutritionist. High hormone levels is rampant among young women. Thank you for this post!
I write about healing from chronic diseases with nutrition.
[link removed]
Very inspirational writing!
The chewing your food tip is the best. My mama taught me that as I’m sure all mamas do. But we easily forget that. IN a hurry to wolf down our food we most times neglect that. Unchewed food is difficult to break down by the digestive juices in our stomach. Eating your food should be an elaborate ritual, not the mad dash that we have turned it into these days.
I find that a lot of my bad eating habits are due to boredom and wanting to chew on something. I was chewing a lot of gum, but Im sure thats not healthy either so I am going to try chewing cinnamon sticks.
What is research on aging and weight. I teach nutrition. I eat whole unprocessed food. I cook. I have a regular exercise routine. I am even more careful now about portions and random calories. But I gained 10 pounds in the last year. For 10 years before, I was pretty stable and i was probably more out of shape than in the last 3 years. I gained 5 in the last 3 months. I am now officially overweight. I am 43. I made an appointment with my doctor to have myself checked out. But your thoughts on whether this is reasonable for age related weight gain?
That sounds young for randomly gaining 10 lbs. I’d definitely talk to your doc.
Hey . I have taken a lot of good notes from your tips here . I appreciate it a lot but. I’ve been doing a lot of exercise not excessive amounts but enough and dieting on a near enough zero carb diet ? It’s been 4 weeks exactly and I feel great but I’m not looking any different . I’m 23 years old and hate how I see myself . I have no deadline so it’s no rush for me but I need to see some progress here .my diet consists of grilled fish . And. Chicken breasts marinated mainly with lemon and garlic . I eat fruit often and I’ve learned to enjoy healthy foods now as you said in another comment . I genuinely would take a slice of watermelon over a bag of sweets . I have a cup of chickpeas every other day (not for any reason apart from I just love them). Do hiit sessions at least twice a week with 6 days of other exercise. I don’t want to bore anyone here and I know its an old post but If anyone can give me advice . How can I be sure to succeed here with weight loss. It’s starting to bring me down if I’m honest . Thanks
Hi Ric, there are certainly changes taking place. Be patient, you are on the right track.
I have tried losing weight all summer. I exercise every few days, so as not to hit a plateau, and I drink only water or AZ Green Tea a few times per week, and 1 chocolate milk every couple days because it’s the only way to down my food grade DE, without gagging. I stayed pretty much at 160 all summer! I just went to the doctor for my right ear (which has plagued me all my life), and I have a cholesterol granuloma,and I’m also prone to cholestiatomas, as well, and not sure, but may possibly have that, as well. I don’t know that he could have seen that with a CT scan, if the cyst is in the way. Anyway…I’m wondering if that is my problem?! I only eat maybe one big meal per day (usually a small banquet meal), maybe a bowl of cereal, and snack a bit during the day, so as not to restrict myself, but I don’t eat much, at all, really. I don’t think a bag of chips once a week will harm anything (but I have cut it out). I buy a a four-pack of twix, and split it with my son. I never eat an entire fast food meal (usually half, if that much), and I don’t eat that every day. I’m wondering if this is affecting my thyroid or pituitary. I guess I’ll find out after my surgery next month. I’m tired of not being able to lose weight!
Hi Darya,
Thank you for sharing this. It seems just like me since I always work and sit at one place. And I should start a better eating habit as well. I should have a journal for myself as well. Your advice is absolutely helpful.
Hello Darya, Great piece of information over here. I’m completely agree with you. Sleep deprivation is one of the main cause that you are not losing weight. Not getting enough sleep, less that 7 hours per night can reduce the benefits of diet. Lack sleep also pushes you in in the direction of food you know you should not eat.
This information is so useful because I have cut back on calories but still not losing weight. However,I have not been getting enough sleep lately. I want to add that not being sufficiently hydrated can sabotage weight loss efforts.
When you said that you worked out too much and gained weight, was it because you over ate? I think I might exercise too much, but when I restrict my calories my weight goes up and I have no energy, and when I put my calories back at my normal intake my weight goes down for a day or two, but then it will go back up again. Am I not eating enough or am I eating too much? or just exercising too much? :/
Yes, I think overeating and too much cardio. I’ve had much better luck alternating long cardio days with shorter HIIT training and strength training.
Hi, Darya the 10 reasons you provided regarding failure in losing weight are quite genuine. I too experienced couple of them
I am 49 and female and recently struggling with unexplainable weight gain. In the last 6 months I gained 9 pounds, not changing what I’ve been eating for years. I noticed pants getting tight and got on a scale and was schocked i gained so much weight so quickly. I recently started tracking food intake and reduced calories to 1200 per day per recommendation for my age and weight. The first 2 weeks I lost 3 pounds and was really excited that it was working. However the next week I only lost .5 pound then the following week i gained 3 pounds following the same caloric intake and similar foods. I don’t understand what’s happening and am really frustrated. Should i seek medical advice or is this normal? This doesn’t seem to add up with no change in food or activity level. I don’t eat junk food, fast food or fatty foods.
Definitely talk to a doctor and have hormones and thyroid checked.
I have always been really bad with portion size till i started using MyFitnessPal. Only then i realised how bad it was