Have you been attempting to lose weight for a long time but the scale does not seem to budge? You may feel like you’re doing everything right, but the scale won’t move. Some people blame their age, while others wonder if their metabolism is too slow. If you are one of these people who just can’t lose weight no matter they do, this article is for you.
There is almost always an underlying cause to stubborn weight loss. Keep reading to know about the top 10 reasons why you can’t lose weight.
1. Wrong Portion Size
It may be hard to believe but a wrong portion size alone can be the reason why your body cannot burn fat. This is especially true in the U.S. where portion sizes have drastically increased over the years.
For example, studies suggest that the meal sizes in restaurants have increased three times since the 70’s. [1] The plates used to serve meals have also increased in size. At every turn, you are encouraged to eat more than you actually need.
In some instances, people are even found overdoing it on the supposedly “healthy foods.” Nuts, for example, are a healthy source of body fat and protein. However, the serving size of Brazil nuts, for instance, is limited to two nuts only. Yet, a lot of people are found eating handfuls it like its popcorn making it one of the reasons why they can’t lose weight. Nuts will cause you to fall in a fat oblivion.
How to Fix It:
The best way to overcome this problem is to reduce your portion size- eat half of what you are currently consuming. Prefer taking 5-6 meals throughout the day with a smaller portion size. Also, reading labels and being mindful of fats, carbs, and protein amounts in the food you consume will help you to better control your portion sizes.
2. Chronic Stress
People today are living fast-paced, stressful lives that can play a role in weight gain. Stress can elevate the levels of adrenaline and cortisol- stress hormones that trigger “fight or flight” response in your body.
Stress is perceived by your body as an emergency. The rise of cortisol and adrenaline is a survival response much like you jumping out of the way of a speeding. Once the event has passed, the levels of both adrenaline and cortisol return to normal. This is known as a healthy stress response.
Chronic stress can, however, create a havoc in your body by disturbing this response. The levels of cortisol, which normally rise during a stressful event, remain elevated constantly, dampening every attempt to lose weight. Sometimes, chronic stress can even cause unusual weight gain. [2]
How to Fix It:
It is always important to include stress management as a part of any weight loss or diet program. Practicing meditation, yoga, or breathing exercises helps to control your stress levels. Certain home remedies such as a relaxing hot shower or soothing essential oils can also reduce your stress levels markedly. In serious cases, a doctor may be contacted to get necessary medications. However, trying to control your stress levels on your own will be beneficial for the long run.
3. Sleep Deprivation
Studies show that a consistent lack of quality sleep can make it difficult for you to burn body fat and reduce weight. Sleep deprivation can cause a boost in the cortisol levels and accelerate the occurrence of insulin resistance. [3]
Science has even suggested that getting 30 fewer minutes of sleep than you should every week increases the risk of diabetes and obesity. Not sleeping enough has also been related to numerous other issues including high blood pressure, heart diseases, depression, accidents, and mood disorders.
How to Fix It:
Try regulating your sleep hours every day. Make sure to sleep for 6-8 hours per day. Increase the quality of sleep by making your environment more comfortable. Switch off the lights, turn on an essential oil diffuser, and use a blanket to sleep more peacefully.
4. Lack of Exercise
It is no secret that physical activity such as cardio vascular exercising or resistance training can help you lose weight. But if you are unable to get rid of the stubborn belly fat even when you are exercising, you are not doing it enough.
How to Fix It:
Experts suggest exercising for 60 minutes every day to maintain a healthy weight. This does not mean sticking to running, walking, and other aerobic exercises. Try strength training to burn more calories and speed your metabolism. What’s more, it can also help gain muscle mass allowing you to burn calories more efficiently.
If you are unable to exercise for an hour every day, try aiming for 20 – 30 minutes.
5. Inflammation
Systemic inflammation refers to your body’s immune response to all the substances it sees as foreign intruders. Over time, chronic inflammation can cause numerous heavy-hitting problems such as cancer, heart diseases, and even Alzheimer’s disease. It has also been associated with asthma, allergies, arthritis, autism, anemia, fibromyalgia, psoriasis, and a lot more.
Inflammation can make you feel lazy, bloated, and makes you feel pain in muscles or joints. It can cause headaches, high blood pressure, depression, and problems related to blood sugar.
If you are already struggling with obesity and can’t lose weight, inflammation can make the process even more difficult. It does so by controlling a hormone called leptin.
Leptin is a hormone responsible for regulating the body fat by controlling your metabolism and appetite. In normal individuals, the production of this hormone signals the brain to reduce appetite and speed up the metabolism. This causes people to burn more calories and feel less hunger.
Chronic inflammation, however, impairs the ability of your brain to receive the appetite-suppressing signals from leptin and increase hunger.
An increased hunger leads to overeating and soon enough, you find yourself eating so much that it becomes difficult to lose weight.
How to Fix It:
What can you do to reduce inflammation? Eat anti-inflammatory foods such as leafy greens, turmeric, olive oil, nuts and fatty fish. Here is a great resource for a list of foods that help to reduce inflammation.
https://www.womenshealthmag.com/weight-loss/g19988855/anti-inflammatory-foods/
Improve your lifestyle by exercising 3-4 times a week, performing yoga, and getting sufficient sleep.
6. Skipping Breakfast
Your metabolism is just like a car. If there is no gas in the tank, it would not run. Skipping breakfast is like not putting fuel in your body which helps ensure that your fat-burning metabolism never gets a chance to leave the driveway.
How to Fix It:
If you can’t lose weight no matter what you do, try having breakfast every day for a change. Experts suggest having breakfast one hour after waking up.
Consider having oatmeal with crushed walnuts and berries as a healthy breakfast option to boost your lagging metabolism every day. While having breakfast is not guaranteed to boost your metabolism, give it a try and see how it works for YOU.
7. Estrogen Dominance
A high amount of estrogen relative to progesterone in females can also be a reason why you can’t lose weight. This estrogen dominance may cause an increase in cravings and cause a decrease in metabolism.
If you are feeling an increase in cravings, specifically for sugar, it may be possible that you are falling into a loop where you would no longer have control over these cravings. This, combined with a slow metabolism will eventually lead to weight gain.
How to Fix It:
To manage a case of estrogen dominance, try eating a high-fiber, low-fat diet. If you are experiencing estrogen dominance, you want to AVOID foods that increase estrogen levels in the body. Some of these foods are:
- Coffee
- Soy Products
- Non-organic dairy products
- Farm-raised fish
- Non-organic meat
You may also want to supplement your diet with magnesium, vitamin B6, maca, or dandelion root. If these natural remedies don’t work, schedule an appointment with your doctor to explore more medical options.
8. Low Testosterone
Research has indicated that the level of testosterone in men drops with age. This can induce many problems such as cancers, heart diseases, increased body fat, and insulin resistance. While testosterone is typically associated with men, women have small amounts of testosterone as well and need to maintain healthy levels. Once you are overweight, testosterone levels drop, even more, making it difficult for you to shed pounds.
How to Fix It:
You can increase testosterone naturally by a number of home remedies. Eat healthy proteins, fats, and carbohydrates every day. Include exercise and weightlifting in your daily schedule and minimize your stress levels. Supplementation with vitamin A, C, and E and minerals such as zinc can also be helpful.
9. Toxic Overload
Every day, you are exposed to countless chemicals, heavy metals, pesticides, herbicides, hormones, and other toxins. These toxins are commonly found in cosmetics, food, water, household cleaning agents, plastics, and candles.
Once these toxins build up in your body, they may induce hormonal imbalances leading to weight-loss resistance. An increased toxic burden also suppresses leptin, a hormone that controls hunger and metabolism.
So, even if you are eating well and exercise regularly, body toxicity can make it extremely difficult to lose weight.
How to Fix It:
How to Fix It:
To get rid of body toxicity, experts suggest drinking vegetable juices and herbal teas while minimizing sugary foods and beverages. Start a prescibed and structured detox program to cleanse your body and lose those stubborn pounds quickly.
10. Insulin Imbalance
Insulin resistance means that your body cells are unable to use the glucose you get from food. This glucose stays in the blood and is detected by the liver which converts it into body fat.
Processed foods such a bread and pasta, sugary drinks, and even granola bars can cause insulin resistance. This can eventually lead to type 2 diabetes.
How to Fix It:
To control insulin imbalance, try avoiding foods with a high glycemic index such as bread, French fries, and donuts. Lean more towards eating non-starchy vegetable and high-fibre foods like brown rice and broccoli. Exercise on a regular basis to control insulin resistance and to begin losing weight and lower your risk of type 2 diabetes.
The Bottom Line
Losing weight may feel difficult but it is never impossible. Your hard work will definitely pay off. It is only a matter of figuring out any underlying obstacles and eliminating them. Explore every area one by one and put a place in place to start losing weight as soon as possible.
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