7 Reasons You Are Not Losing Weight (Nothing To Do with Calories!)

You’re counting calories, you’re exercising and doing everything right, but for some reason, you’re not losing weight like you thought you would. What gives? We’re going to give you some insight on that in the video and text below! 

We have met so many women who are frustrated because they feel like they are doing everything right with their diet and exercise, but still not seeing results when it comes to weight loss. 

We are going to cover 7 surprising reasons why you may not be losing weight that have nothing to do with calories. When we were younger we could get away with not paying as much attention to these seven things, but unfortunately now we need to take these into account and make sure we are addressing each one for optimal health and weight. 

Let’s get this one out of the way as it’s a bit delicate – we see many women who think they are eating the right way, but when we go over their food diary we actually see lots of areas to improve. There is so much conflicting information out there and we get it, it can be confusing! So first and foremost, before you address any of the other 6 reasons, be sure your nutrition is truly in a good place!

2. Poor digestion.

You may not think of your digestion as having anything to do with your weight. However, if your digestion is not working properly, you will not absorb nutrients from food like B-vitamins, iron, magnesium or any of the other nutrients required to burn calories efficiently and keep your metabolism burning. The result is fatigue, excess body fat and many other health issues. You know the saying “you are what you eat”? It’s really you are what you ABSORB.

After 50 is also when we see lots of women struggle with constipation. A main function of digestion is elimination, and when you are unable to eliminate waste regularly or properly, your body will suffer from toxic build-up. Many toxins cause your body to retain body fat and excess water . The result is sluggishness, puffiness and difficulty losing weight. If you are not going at least once a day, with a full elimination, we consider that constipated. Anything less should be addressed. 

When you eat, you’re not only feeding yourself, but the good bacteria in your gut. These beneficial microbes have a role in your fat storage and how you metabolize food. People with healthier bacteria in the gut tend to have an easier time losing weight. Here’s a tip for you – fiber and color rich foods will nourish your good gut bugs, and sugar, processed and diet-type foods will feed your bad bugs! 

3. FOOD SENSITIVITIES.

This leads us right into food sensitivities. So often we meet with clients who tell us they do not notice any sensitivity to foods.  The problem is, when you are eating them regularly, it’s difficult to notice if you have a sensitivity to them. 

When we eat a food we are sensitive to, it causes an inflammatory reaction and release of cortisol, a hormone that contributes to belly fat/bloat and causes you to retain water.

Plus, some research is now showing that eating foods we are sensitive to can disrupt our metabolism.

Once people discover their food sensitivities and eliminate them, the weight can finally start to shift. We have seen this time and again with clients, especially those who go through our Mega Energy Breakthrough.  

4. Insulin Resistance.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2246086/

https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/CIRCRESAHA.119.315896

A diet higher in processed foods and sugars and lower in fiber, protein and healthy fats can lead to chronic production of our hormone insulin and eventually insulin resistance. In addition, after menopause, we are more susceptible to insulin resistance. This can make weight loss more difficult and also lead to  inflammation in the body. Any time you have inflammation, you’re more likely to gain weight or develop an inability to lose weight (as mentioned earlier).  

Since blood sugar is intimately tied to insulin production, it’s vital to make sure it is balanced for long term health, not only just weight loss.

5. Hormones.

This is a huge topic in and of itself, so we are going to just brush the surface right now. But we have to mention the role of estrogen as it relates to weight issues. When women enter perimenopause and menopause, the ovaries gradually stop making the hormone estrogen.

As estrogen declines, cortisol and insulin production may increase, which we know contributes to fat gain – in particular, fat around the midsection.  Not only that, but this decreases in the good form of estrogen (known as estradiol)  and can trigger insulin resistance.

In addition, when estrogen levels are lower, many feel an increased appetite for sweet and starchy foods. This is in part due to lower estrogen causing lower serotonin levels. And for those of who don’t realize this, sweets and refined carbs are one way to boost serotonin, so we unconsciously look for our “happy food”  (this is what happens short-term in the case of PMS cravings ).  But as we know, this isn’t the best way to increase serotonin. This circles right back to balancing blood sugar, which is vital for hormone balance! 

Another vital hormone that can affect weight loss is the thyroid hormone. Since the thyroid regulates metabolism, it cannot be discounted. 

6. Stress.

Okay, we know that stress is tough to avoid, but it can be a big factor that contributes to weight gain. Stress increases the hormone cortisol, which can add to fat around the midsection.

Cortisol often gets a bad rap. We actually need it to help us metabolize fats, proteins and carbohydrates, and we rely on it when we need to act quickly, like in an emergency. However our bodies does not know if we are encountering a true emergency or if we have a lot of stress at home or at work. Our modern lives have us so stressed out all the time that we find ourselves in a state of chronically elevated cortisol. That is when cortisol leads to weight gain. In addition, there is internal stress – stress on our bodies caused by food sensitivities or toxins.  

In fact, over time, elevated cortisol levels can lead to insulin resistance. Elevated cortisol levels are of particular concern to menopausal women, as the combination of high cortisol and low estrogen contributes to middle-of-the-body weight gain (aka the dreaded “muffin top”). 

7. Lack of good sleep.

Lack of efficient  sleep has also been associated with not only excess weight, but heart disease, diabetes, arthritis, inflammatory bowel diseases, memory and brain function, and anxiety and mood disorders.

There are so many reasons sleep can affect our weight loss progress, so we won’t get into all of them here, but we will mention a couple. 

For one thing, quality of sleep affects your hormones that influence hunger and fullness.

The hormone ghrelin’s most important function is to stimulate your appetite. It is known as “the hunger hormone”. In addition to appetite, it also promotes the storage of fat, and can slow down your metabolism. When you lack sleep, your ghrelin levels tend to increase. This explains why so many of us feel hungry after a poor night’s sleep! 

Leptin is the hormone that sends signals to the brain that allow you to curb your appetite. We call it the fullness hormone. Lack of sleep affects leptin by decreasing its production, which means we are less able to sense fullness. 

Then we have Human Growth Hormone, or HGH – 

This hormone helps not only in cell repair and regeneration but also in metabolism. A reduction in your HGH levels due to age or a lack of sleep can lead to weight gain. 

The production of HGH is at its peak when you are in a deep sleep. It follows that if you do not get enough quality sleep, then your HGH levels go down, along with your ability to lose weight.

So lack of sleep can be directly related to an inability to lose weight.

To review, If you simply cut the calories and do not address these lifestyle issues, it will be near impossible to lose weight and keep it off long term.

If you check even a few of these boxes and would like some expert guidance on losing weight and getting healthier, our Simply Nourished Solutions 12-week program is a proven system to help women not only shed weight, but retrain their brain so that they can keep it off for good.