WHY AM I NOT LOSING WEIGHT?

FROM THE SERIES “ASK THE TRAINER”

By Monika Tarkowska-carter, CPT, LWMC, HLC 2

How well are you eating? Are you cheating? How many cheat days/meals do you honestly have?

How many times a week do you work out? What kind of workouts are they? Only cardio? Weights? Maybe some intervals?

What’s your activity level outside of the gym – do you sit in the office and car all day or are your daily activities forcing you to be up on your feet for many hours a day?

Are you on medications? Are you under stress? Are you sleeping enough? Do you have heavy metal toxicity? Maybe you eat a lot of fish and seafood, which is full of toxic mercury these days or live in a polluted area, or eat foods loaded with chemicals?

Are there some emotional, unresolved issues in your life that could be contributing to so-called "stuck energy"? All of these factors will play a role to a degree and determine how well and how fast your body will respond to weight loss, fat loss and/or lean body mass gain. If your body is stressed for any reason it will fight off the effort you’re trying to put it through, simply because fat burning is a very energy consuming process and the body has to prioritize what’s more important for your health.

Under ideal circumstances (excellent diet and intense, consistent workouts) it usually takes your body about 2 weeks to start responding to improved nutrition in a meaningful way, and about 6 weeks to see visible results in your body shape and muscle tone. Remember, however, that these are just averages. An obese person will not likely “see” results so quickly, while a fairly lean and fit person might be able to look a lot leaner in a matter of 2-3 weeks. Your starting point, as well as level of commitment will determine the results.

If you are interested in all the different reasons why you might be having a hard time losing weight, please visit my earlier blog: "Weight Loss - Smooth Sailing or an Obstacle Course".