10 Reasons You’re Not Losing Weight

You’ve been on your diet for a while now and it’s not going well. You’re just not losing weight (at least not enough weight, or not fast enough). And you can’t work out why, you just can’t. You’re doing everything right, and it’s still not working. You’re at the end of your rope now, fed up with the whole thing. You just CANNOT work out where you’re going wrong.

Here’s 10 possible reasons why it’s not going according to plan:

1 You’re eating too much sugar

You might be ‘on a diet’, or think you have switched to a ‘healthy diet’, but if you are letting sugar sneak into your body on the sly you’re undermining your own fat-loss efforts.

This could be happening because you’re wavering in your determination to stick to a decent diet and having the occasional piece of chocolate cake, or maybe a sugary snack now and then. Maybe you’re even drinking soft drinks, which (c’mon, be honest) you know darn well are stuffed full of sugar, not to mention various additives, most of which (if not all) you’d be far better off without. Even so-called low-fat foods often have high amounts of sugar in them, so it’s always worth checking the label.

Simple carbohydrates (e.g. pasta, bread) can be cut back, and if you have a Spiralizer you can even substitute courgettes (spiralized) for spaghetti. Try to include more complex carbohydrates in your diet (e.g. fresh veg, whole grains, beans, etc). They’re a much healthier alternative, and a more attractive one in terms of fat loss.

2 You’re not eating enough protein

People who are eating a diet that’s low in protein are missing out on a treat. Protein helps build muscle tissue and as a result it will help you burn calories. That’s right, just by you being a little more muscular you’ll actually be burning more calories every day (because muscle is productive tissue and burns calories at the drop of a hat, while fat just lies there, completely useless).

Good sources of protein include milk, eggs, meat, poultry, fish, beans and nuts. You can also add a scoop of high quality protein powder to a smoothie.

3 You’re overtraining

Exercise is great for losing weight, but if you overdo it there’s a chance it can actually work against you due to over-production of cortisol. Cortisol raises plasma glucose levels at times of stress and provides the body with the energy required to handle problems like injury, infection or illness. So it has a valuable role to play, but it can also work negatively. Too much cortisol for too long can cause tissue breakdown and increase abdominal fat. It can also adversely affect libido and fertility. You really don’t want that.

We have a very limited view of stress, but the body’s view of stress is more general and includes exercise (or at least exercise taken to an extreme). Consequently, it can cause the body to produce more cortisol that we would consider ideal. This is likely to happen if, for example, you’re training for over an hour (even at a fairly low intensity, e.g.jogging).

Best to take regular breaks from intense training and make sure you’re fuelling your body properly with an adequate and well-balanced diet.

Oh, and if you’re overdoing it, there’s also a very real risk of injury … and then you won’t be training at all, at least for a while. Bummer!

4 You’re getting your portion sizes all wrong

You might think you’re doing everything by the book but when it comes to putting a meal out you might be misjudging the portion sizes (not purposely, of course, perish the thought!). And once it’s on the plate it’s such a shame to waste it, isn’t it? Mmm?

Listen carefully … stop it! Be strict about portion sizes and don’t go back for seconds. Just don’t! Got that? Good!

5 You’re not including strength training in your routine

You might be exercising regularly and really putting in the hours (if it’s literally hours, by the way, you’re probably overtraining — see above).

Regardless of the type of exercise you’re doing, you’d be well advised to include proper strength training in your routine. Lift weights, use exercise machines (at the gym), work with resistance bands, anything to ensure your muscles are put under strain. This promotes muscle growth, which in itself will burn calories, but will also, in turn, crank up your basal metabolic rate (BMR), i.e. you will be burning more calories even when you’re just relaxing. Nice!

6 You’re not relaxed or in a good state of mind

If you’re feeling stressed or anxious this can have a disastrous effect on any fat-loss venture. Stress (or anything the body perceives as stress) can cause the body to produce more cortisol (see above), a steroid hormone which can cause you to crave exactly the kinds of food that you really don’t want, the sugary kind. Short-term production of cortisol is necessary to help cope with danger or stress, but if it’s more than just short-term it can also increase the amount of fat you store in your belly … aaarrgh!

7 You’re slouching when you could be burning

You could be burning calories more or less all day long if you had your wits about you. The whole day is sprinkled generously with opportunities to do a little more movement of one kind or another (and movement, remember, equals calories burned).

Park a little further from the supermarket and walk a hundred yards or so. Use the stairs instead of the escalator. If you’re walking the dog, play a bit more actively with him/her. If you’re watching TV, stand instead of slouching on the couch, and do a few air squats while you’re at it. Or a set of burpees. You’re not strictly confined to your exercise time, y’know, you can throw in a little extra here and there. It’s allowed.

8 You’re being impatient!

Burning fat off is a slow and tedious process (unless you go on a very strict diet, and that’s probably not the best route to go). If you think this is going to be over in a fortnight I’m sorry but you’ll have to think again. You’re exercising as you should, you’re eating the right foods, and in the right amounts, and you’re careful not to get stressed, but you have to accept that this is still going to take weeks and months to see the results you’re after. Sorry, but you just have to be realistic.

Going on a fat-loss diet for two or three weeks and then ditching the whole idea because you can’t see a huge difference is just unreasonable. Give it time. It will work. It just won’t work very quickly, that’s all.

9 You’re not eating enough!

I know, sounds ridiculous. But if you think crash dieting will work, you’re probably mistaken. It can result in fat loss, at least short-term, but there are problems with crash diets.

First, they’re tough. Nobody likes to reduce their food intake drastically, and specially for an extended period. So it’s only natural that, with the best will in the world, you’ll just give up after a short while.

Second, they can give your body the wrong idea. The body can only go by what happens, not what you think or what you intend, or what you write down in your journal (“I definitely WILL lose ten pounds of fat this month!!”). It just takes note that food suddenly seems to be scarce and automatically switches into survival mode, making it very, very difficult to lost any fat. Countless thousands of years of hard times have taught the body to cling on to its fat reserves when famine strikes. And it ‘thinks’ famine has struck when you suddenly start living on 750 calories a day instead of your usual 3,250! Can you blame it?

10 You’re eating out of boredom

You may be snacking purely out of boredom, and if you’re really bored it can be hard not to give in to temptation. Make sure you have activities planned for the entire day, even if it’s only things like doing a crossword or walking the dog (again!). Don’t find yourself listening to that little voice in your head that’s whispering “I’m bored, feed me!”.