I could not count the number of women I have seen over the years who have been convinced that it is their age/stage of life which has accounted for their weight gain and seeming inability to lose that extra fat.

It’s generally not the case. When I look at their food diary and enquire about their lifestyle I can normally see where the problem lies. If you are perplexed about why you have gained weight, have a look at this checklist and answer honestly.

• How much alcohol do you drink each week? Your body prioritises alcohol as it’s first source of fuel, so if you have alcohol onboard, you are slowing down the fat burning process.

• Are you eating enough of the right things consistently, i.e. is half of your lunch and half of your dinner comprised of lower carb veggies? Check out the fibrous vegetables list here.

• Protein has the highest thermogenic effect of all the nutrients. It is essential for good health and protein is also your friend for fat loss. Aim to include protein with each meal and snack. Protein is also super important for your immune system.

• Are you eating processed foods? Foods in packets with lots of ingredients? Fake foods? Your liver is your biggest fat burning organ and it performs a myriad of critical functions, including detoxing. The more ‘crap’ you put in your body, the harder your liver has to work.

• Are you drinking plenty of water each day? Try multiplying your scale weight by 0.034 and the number that pops up is a guide to how much water you need in a day. I bet you will be surprised!

• Are you drinking diet drinks/sugared drinks/coloured drinks? Try to drink more water and teas and less of the above.

• Are you getting in regular exercise each week? Regular as in doing something most days of the week.

• Are you aware of portion size? Even if you are eating good quality food, too much may not be the best idea.

• When you have time on your hands, are you snacking mindlessly? Try recording everything that you eat and drink for a few days – you may be surprised at what you see. You can print a diary here. A diary only works if you honestly record 100% of what you eat, every nibble counts! If you bite it, write it.

• Are you eating out frequently?

• Do you buy takeways regularly?

• Are you a late dinner snacker?

When you read the above checklist, can you see where you might be going wrong? If so, then it’s pretty certain that you can drop body fat, you just need to tweak some of the unhelpful behaviours. I can help you with that! Having a personalised nutrition plan, with what to eat, how much to eat and the options really makes a difference. It stops being guesswork and it becomes a plan of action.

Perfection vs Perseverance

Any person who has lost weight and kept it off will tell you that it is a long term commitment to making better lifestyle choices, most of the time. It is not about being perfect.

It’s easy to fall into the trap of ‘all or nothing’. You know how it goes. You’ve got a few really good days under your belt and then something happens and you have a blowout. You then think it’s all over and throw in the towel. It’s really not the detour that matters, it is what you do AFTER the detour that matters. Simply acknowledge it happened, move on and get back on track as soon as possible.

Are you weighing yourself too often?

Some people are obsessed with jumping on the scales every day, then when they see a gain they freak out and feel despondent and think what is the point. When you weigh yourself, you are weighing 100% of your body, not just the fat content, so it’s absolutely normal to see your weight vary from day to day, including a gain for no obvious reason, tough as that is. If you can handle seeing the ups and downs on the scales, fine, but if seeing a gain when you don’t think it is deserved upsets you, don’t get weighed more than once a week.

What is a healthy waist measurement?

Ideally, your waist measurement should be no more than half your height. i.e. for a 168cm woman your waist measurement should be no more than 84cm – if it is, you are likely carrying more visceral fat than is ideal.

Visceral fat is the fat inside your abdomen, sitting around and infiltrating your organs. This type of fat causes inflammation in your body and is implicated in Type 2 diabetes, heart disease and various cancers. Inflammation is bad news.

You get back what you put in: Effort = Reward

If you have read this far, then hopefully you will have some clues as to why you may not be losing weight when you think you should. Like most things in life, you generally get back what you put in and the old saying that you can have results, or you can have excuses, generally applies.

If you feel like you need some inspiration, check out the success stories on my website. Real people with real results.

Accountability works

Nearly every weight loss client who comes to see me for help tells me that they need accountability. That doing it on their own doesn’t keep them accountable and without some kind of accountability they simply fall by the wayside. It’s true, when you have to check in with someone it helps you to rein yourself in.

Appointments

This year, with the likely increasing cases of Covid, my diary may become a bit of a moving target, with clients having to cancel and self isolate, or perhaps they are not confident about coming out. We can still work together either online, by phone, or any way that helps keep you accountable. Please feel free to contact me for help with your weight loss goals.