“Why I’m Not Losing Weight:” Three Big Reasons

Feb 26, 2014

Why I’m Not Losing Weight

“Why I’m not losing weight” is one of the top questions asked by the fitness community. The answer lies not in one simple solution. Instead, you have to make sure your diet, habits, macros (carbs/fat/protein) and fitness levels are in the right place for you.

Don’t expect your supplements to do all the work for you. Know how many fat, protein and carbohydrate calories you need per day. This is based on your fitness level and ideal weight. Losing weight comes from knowing all this, and having the right cardio and diet plans in place.

The three big reasons why you’re not losing weight are:

Diet
Habits
Fitness Level

To start, you need to know how much you should be eating.

Find out your BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate). (Get your BMR and daily requirements here with this calculator.)
Once you know your BMR, you can calculate your calories needed for the day here. (multiply your BMR by your fitness level).
Then, eat 15%-20% less calories than your maintenance level to lose weight each week.

Here Scott Herman talks about the three reasons to the question: “Why I’m not losing weight?”

The key points:

Make sure that you’re not starving yourself. But, at the same time don’t eat empty calories.
Balance your Macros (fat/protein/carbs) while being at a calorie deficit.
When it comes to Macros, the standard is to stay around 40/40/20 (carbohydrates/protein/fat).
Do more circuit training, instead of just working one or two muscle groups.
Cardio doesn’t have to be boring. Do a mix of steady state (treadmill around 3.5-4.0 for 45 mins) and interval training (10-15 mins of 1 minute all out followed by 30 secs of recovery speed).
Don’t let supplements try to do the work for you.

Don’t Lose Hope With Losing Weight

Don’t lose hope with losing weight. When it comes to weight loss, it takes time. Avoid that feeling where you give up because no matter how much you’re in the gym, you can’t lose weight. Don’t get stuck, or stay frozen, because you’ve lost hope.

Stop focusing on the goal, i.e. weighing yourself.
Weight loss is a journey that is meant to be enjoyed. (sounds crazy I know!)
Proper diet is what makes your body feel really good. (replace junk food with positive habits)
Getting more active is the key, and you can make it feel good.
Taking a walk after dinner is more fun than eating a sugary snack.
You are constantly making new cells–you decide what they’re made of–fat burners or fat stores.
The longest journey begins with a single step. Go for it!

Lose Weight by Creating an Energy Imbalance

Lose weight by creating an energy imbalance. The Law of Energy Balance says you must expend more energy than you take in. Creating an energy imbalance is imperative for losing weight. You can’t lose weight if your eating more calories than your body expends via exercise and muscle building. By creating an energy imbalance, you consume less calories than you take in. This forces your body to burn fat.

You must create a calorie deficit (imbalance) in order to lose weight. Body fat is a stored form of energy. So, you have to force your body to break down that extra body fat. Do so by expending more energy than you take in. Don’t go home and replace all the energy burned by eating more calories than you can burn.

It’s way easier to consume 400 calories via your diet than it is to burn 400 calories at the gym. So, use your calories wisely.
It takes an extra 45 minutes of cardio just to replace a couple snacks a day.
Know how many calories you should eat: (Get your BMR and daily requirements here with this calculator.)
Track your calories: Use a Calorie Counter app like My Fitness pal, My Calorie Counter, or WebMD’s Food-O-Meter.
Don’t go home and replace all your hard work with calories that you don’t even need.

Weight Loss: You’re Capable of Anything You Want

Realize that you’re capable of anything you want. When it comes to weight loss, there are certain “Do’s” and “Dont’s” that you need to take into consideration. Janice, in the video below, made a list for herself that changed her life.

She realized that weight loss is something your capable of. In fact, your capable of anything you want. You just have to set your mind to it. Janice got rid of many of the foods we eat in modernized, industrial life. In addition, she cut out a lot of dairy and wheat from her meals. Here is Janice’s list of “Do’s” and “Dont’s” for weight loss:

No Alcohol (start with once per month if you have to)
No Sugar (even artificial)
No Eating Out (or) A Lot of Food Before Bed
No Soda (even diet)
No Fast Food
No Food From A Box
No Excuses (your brain can easily trick you, stay motivated)
No Stopping At Your Goal (keep going)

Make a Weekly Meal Plan (and grocery list)
Eat Nutritious Food (veggies, lean protein, fruit)
Exercise and Strength Training (150 minutes of cardio per week)
Take It “1 Day at a Time” (or, one meal at a time, this gets rid of the overwhelming factor in weight loss)
Weekly Weigh-In (tracks your progress)
Stay Motivated (e.g., glitter your computer with motivational quotes from Pinterest)
Eat Breakfast (better to eat a lot in the beginning of the day)
Drink Lots of Water

Action Plan

There are 3500 calories per pound of body fat. It is up to you to determine how you’re going to lose weight. You can reduce your calories, increase your fitness level, or do both. Here’s an “Action Plan” based on the advice given above.

Find out your BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate). (Get your BMR and daily requirements here with this calculator.)
Once you know your BMR, you can calculate your calories needed for the day here. (multiply your BMR by your fitness level).
Then, eat 15%-20% less calories than your maintenance level to lose weight each week.
Track your calories: Use a Calorie Counter app like My Fitness Pal, My Calorie Counter, or WebMD’s Food-O-Meter.
Plan your meals well in advance, and see how many calories you’re eating by looking it up on the Calorie Chart Nutrition Facts.
Cardio doesn’t have to be boring. Do a mix of steady state (treadmill around 3.5-4.0 for 45 mins) and interval training (10-15 mins of 1 minute all out followed by 30 secs of recovery speed).
Take It “1 Day at a Time” (or, one meal at a time). Remember, you’re capable of anything you want!

Note: If the first 3 steps sound too complicated, just sign up at My Fitness Pal. It’s free. Once you create an account, you enter your height, weight and goals. They calculate everything for you!.