The Science of Weight Loss: Why It’s Hard

Weight loss occurs when you burn more calories than you consume, creating a calorie deficit. While this sounds very simple in theory, the human body is a complex system designed to resist weight loss. Let’s explore why.

1. Your body fights against weight loss

When you start losing weight, your body perceives it as a threat to survival. Biologically, the body is programmed to store fat during times of abundance to survive periods of famine. As a result, when you cut calories, your body activates mechanisms to protect its fat stores. This includes:

• Slower metabolism: Your body adapts to calorie restriction by burning fewer calories at rest.
• Increased hunger hormones: Levels of ghrelin (the hunger hormone) rise, making you feel hungrier.
• Decreased satiety hormones: Leptin, which signals fullness, decreases as you lose fat, making it harder to feel satisfied.

2. Plateaus are inevitable

One of the most frustrating aspects of weight loss is hitting a plateau. As you lose weight, your body requires fewer calories to function because there’s less of your body to maintain. This means that the same calorie deficit that initially helped you lose weight may no longer work as effectively. Adjusting your strategy becomes essential as you progress.

3. Psychological and emotional factors

Food is more than fuel. It’s often connected with emotions, habits, and social interactions. Stress, boredom, and emotional triggers can lead to overeating or cravings for high-calorie comfort foods, derailing your progress. Additionally, many people find it hard to break long-standing eating habits or resist temptation when dining with friends or attending celebrations.

Challenges in Maintaining Weight Loss

Even after achieving your goal weight, maintaining it can be just as difficult, if not more so. Here are some reasons:

1. Biological resistance

After weight loss, your body wants to return to its previous weight. This phenomenon, often referred to as the “set point theory,” suggests that your body has a preferred weight range, and it will fight to stay within it. Hormonal changes that occurred during weight loss may persist, making it harder to maintain your progress.

2. Old habits resurface

Sustaining weight loss requires long-term lifestyle changes, but old habits can creep back in over time. For instance, if you relied on a restrictive diet to lose weight, you might struggle to maintain those restrictions indefinitely, leading to weight regain.

3. Environmental triggers

We live in an environment that promotes overeating and sedentary behaviour. From fast food to oversized portions and constant advertising of unhealthy snacks, temptations are everywhere. Without a strong support system or self-discipline, it’s easy to slip back into unhealthy patterns.

Common Myths About Weight Loss

The weight loss industry is rife with misinformation, making the process even more confusing. Let’s debunk a few common myths:

Myth 1: You just need more willpower

While self-discipline plays a role, weight loss is far more complex than simply resisting temptation. Biological, psychological, and environmental factors all influence your ability to lose weight.

Myth 2: All calories are equal

While it’s true that weight loss depends on calories in versus calories out, the quality of those calories matters. For example, 200 calories from a candy bar won’t have the same effect on your body as 200 calories from lean protein or vegetables.

Myth 3: Cardio is the best way to lose weight

While cardio burns calories, strength training (such as weight lifting, gardening, and activities like digging and shovelling, climbing stairs, hill walking, cycling, push-ups, sit-ups and squats) is equally important for weight loss. Building muscle boosts your metabolism, helping you burn more calories even at rest.

Practical Tips to Overcome the Difficulties in Losing Weight 

Now that we have explored the reasons behind why it’s difficult to lose weight and maintain it, let’s focus on actionable strategies to overcome these challenges.

1. Focus on Sustainable Changes

Crash diets and extreme workout regimens may yield quick results, but they’re rarely sustainable. Instead, aim for small, realistic changes that you can maintain long-term, such as:

• Reducing portion sizes.
• Drinking more water.
• Adding more vegetables to your meals.

2. Prioritise protein and fibre

Foods high in protein and fibre help you feel fuller for longer, reducing the likelihood of overeating. Include lean proteins like chicken, fish, and legumes, and load up on fibre-rich options like fruits, vegetables, and whole grains.

3. Practice mindful eating to overcome difficulty losing weight

Pay attention to what and how much you’re eating. Avoid distractions like TV or scrolling on your phone during meals, and listen to your body’s hunger and fullness cues.

4. Incorporate strength training

Building muscle not only makes you stronger but also increases your resting metabolic rate. Aim to include strength training exercises, like weightlifting or bodyweight exercises, at least twice a week.

5. Get enough sleep

Sleep deprivation disrupts hunger hormones, making you more likely to crave high-calorie foods. Aim for 7-9 hours of quality sleep each night to support your weight loss efforts.

6. Manage stress

Chronic stress can lead to emotional eating and weight gain. Incorporate stress management techniques like meditation, yoga, or deep breathing into your routine.

7. Track your progress

Keep a food journal or use a fitness app to track your calorie intake and exercise. Monitoring your progress can help you stay accountable and identify patterns that may need adjustment.

Seek Professional Help to overcome difficulties in losing weight

If you’ve tried multiple strategies and still find it difficult to lose weight, consider consulting a healthcare professional. I would recommend you obtain “My Optimal Body – A practical guide to sustainable weight loss”, an ebook written by a board-certified nutritionist. A registered dietitian or nutritionist can help you create a personalised plan that suits your lifestyle and health needs. In some cases, medical conditions like hypothyroidism or insulin resistance may be contributing to your weight struggles, and addressing these underlying issues is crucial.

The role of nutrition in weight loss

Nutrition plays a central role in weight loss. While exercise is important for overall health, you can’t out-exercise a poor diet. Focus on consuming whole, nutrient-dense foods and minimising processed, high-calorie options. Here are some tips:

• Choose whole foods: Opt for foods in their natural state, like fresh fruits, vegetables, tubers, roots, and whole grains.
• Avoid or minimise sugary drinks: Beverages like soda and sweetened coffee drinks can add hundreds of empty calories to your day.
• Plan your meals: Meal prepping can help you avoid unhealthy last-minute food choices.
• Limit alcohol: Alcohol is calorie-dense and can lower your inhibitions, leading to overeating.

The psychological aspect of weight loss

Weight loss isn’t just a physical journey; it’s a mental one too. Many people struggle with the emotional aspects of losing weight, such as:

• Body image issues: Even after losing weight, some people struggle to feel confident in their own skin.
• Fear of failure: Past unsuccessful attempts can create self-doubt.
• Social pressure: Friends and family may not always support your weight loss journey, either intentionally or unintentionally.

To overcome these challenges, focus on building a positive mindset. Celebrate small victories, practice self-compassion, and surround yourself with supportive people who encourage your efforts.

Conclusion

The journey to losing weight and keeping it off is undoubtedly challenging, but it’s not impossible. Understanding the biological, psychological, and environmental factors at play can help you approach weight loss with more patience and resilience. Remember, the goal isn’t just to lose weight but to create a healthier, more sustainable lifestyle.

By focusing on small, consistent changes and addressing the root causes behind why it’s difficult to lose weight, you’ll be better equipped to achieve your goals and maintain them over time. Stay committed, and don’t forget to celebrate your progress along the way.

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Unfortunately, weight gain is associated with some physiological complications beyond your control such as your gene, sex, and age. However, you can control your lifestyle such as your eating behaviour, and physical activity which to a very large extent influence your health.

The following are the reasons why you could regain weight after weight loss.

An unrealistic Diet makes you regain weight after weight loss

If the dietary regimen you used in your weight loss program is too rigid. This is often the case with the diet plans that prevent the intake of some foods or an entire food group such as starchy food or beans and legumes. This approach is not sustainable. Your body soon starts to crave those foods, and it is a matter of time, you see yourself going back to eating them, but this time with no consideration to portion size. Besides the fact that restricting certain foods or food group in weight loss program is unsustainable, it is often discouraged because it can result into the inadequate intake of essential nutrients.

Unrealistic workout or exercise fuels weight regain after weight loss

At the beginning of your weight loss programme, you are very enthusiastic and determined to pay the price. Out of your desperation to lose weight fast, you set for yourself a 6-day exercise plan at the gym or on the treadmill at home, or in the countryside/park jugging. While these are laudable efforts, however, sustainability is often a problem. The vigorous exercise regimen will lead to weight loss within a short time which often coincides with your inability to continue the momentum. Realistic dietary and exercise plan for a sustainable weight loss is discussed in My Optimal Body, a resource designed to guide you through effective weight loss programme.

To maintain your new weight, you only need to reduce the exercise regimen while balancing with your calorie intake. Stopping the exercise regimen or decreasing it to a lower level that creates a positive energy balance will lead to you regaining the weight.

Sedentary Lifestyle

Most people have a sedentary lifestyle. A sedentary lifestyle is a type of lifestyle that involves little or no physical activity. This often means sitting for most of the day at the desk at work, working on the computer or other electronic device for much of the day. Movement from one place to the other using one form of transportation or the other. If this is your typical lifestyle, it is a matter of time that you will regain your weight.  Additionally, sedentary behaviour can cut down your metabolism, making it easier for your body to store fat.

It is advised not to sit or be immobile for more than 1 hour at a time. Instead, break up long periods of sitting by standing and take a little walk before coming back to continue your work.

Inadequate Exercise

Inadequate physical activity is another reason why you could easily regain your weight. You need to intentionally commit to an exercise plan that you enjoy doing consistently. This includes about 60 minutes of moderate exercise on most days of the week.  Everybody requires a different amount of exercise, depending on gender, age, weight, body composition, fitness level, and genetic makeup. Moderate physical activities will do, and these include a brisk walk, walking the stairs, jumping jacks, gardening, jugging in place, and many more.

Conclusion

It is possible for you to easily regain weight after achieving weight loss. If your weight loss strategy was faulty from the beginning, this sets the stage for the unsustainability of the new status. Furthermore, a sedentary lifestyle, as well as inadequate physical activity, will lead to you gaining the weight that you struggled to drop. Unrealistic dietary plans and exercise are not encouraged in weight loss programmes. Also, a lifetime commitment to a realistic exercise plan and healthy eating with modest portion size will help you to overcome weight regain.

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When you experience stress, your body produces a hormone called cortisol. Cortisol is a steroid hormone that controls a wide range of processes in the body, such as the inflammatory response, metabolism, and immune response. It also plays important role in the body’s response to stress. It is often referred to as the stress hormone because it is released when you are experiencing stress.

Though cortisol plays many important roles in the body, it can become harmful when it is in excessive amounts. It could lead to slowing down bodily functions including your metabolism.

The question about whether excess amounts of cortisol can lead to weight gain remains an issue to be clarified from research evidence. However, there are pointers to how weight gain may result when your body produces a high amount of cortisol due to stress.

How weight gain results from the body’s response to stress

When your body experiences persistent stress, leading to excess cortisol, ghrelin, the hormone that enhances appetite can be stimulated. Also, excess cortisol can reduce the body’s sensitivity to leptin, the hormone that regulates hunger. These actions in your body can increase appetite leading to unnecessary cravings for foods especially high in sugars, fat, and salt.

Reduced metabolism makes you gain weight

When you experience a surge in cortisol level because of stress, your basal metabolism could reduce. This will in turn reduce your body’s ability to utilise energy effectively, thereby resulting in excess calories which your body will store up as fat. More information here. If this situation continues over time, and your food intake does not change neither your activity level, you will inevitably experience weight gain.

Why prevent weight gain from stressful situations

The weight you gain due to a spike in cortisol level often occurs around the abdomen. The fat that accumulates around the waist area can lead to the development of cardiovascular disease, and type 2 diabetes. Beyond weight gain, other health issues including fatigue, depression, high blood pressure, and depressed immune system could result. For these reasons, you need to control your responses to stresses.

Positive responses to stress for preventing weight gain

You can control your response to stressful situations by wilful determination based on what you now know. The following tips will be of immense benefit to you.

1. Eat healthily. Ensure you eat varied foods and in moderate proportions that would provide your body the right amount of nutrients. When you crave food, eat the right kind of foods such as low-calorie vegetables like cucumber, carrots, etc. Check here for more information
2. Exercise regularly: Ensure you have not less than 30 minutes of physical activity every day. This may be simply walking to the nearest shops, treadmill, brisk walk, or walking the stairs.
3. Relaxation: Ensure you give yourself a good time to relax. People have different ways of relaxing such as meditation, warm foam bath, spa treatment, window shopping, listening to soothing music, breathing relaxation, and many more.
4. Engage in activities that helps you in dissipating negative energy. The use of anti-stress ball is a good example.

Undesirable weight loss due to stress

A stressful situation can also lead to undesirable weight loss through several changes in the body and how the gut digests food. These changes may result in unhealthy situations such as bloating, swallowing difficulty, heartburn, abdominal pain, nausea, diarrhea, constipation, and more. Decreased appetite would naturally follow these situations and consequently loss in body mass to a dangerously low level. Excessive weight loss below the minimum healthy weight (18.5Kg/m²) increases a person’s risk of diseases.

Conclusion

Cortisol is associated with stress; it plays a role in metabolism and links with the hunger hormones. Therefore, it is important to follow a healthy lifestyle to regulate your cortisol level. By improving your diet, engaging in regular exercise as well as finding time for relaxation, you can control your cortisol level to delivering maximum benefits for your body and not the harmful effects.

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We all know that it is not an easy feat to achieve weight loss. After achieving the desired weight, it is even more problematic to keep off unwanted weight permanently. It is common to see people losing a large amount of weight only to regain more weight one or two years later. It is found that when you use calorie restriction approach only to achieve weight loss, your body will experience a drop in the rate you burn calories. Consequently, this makes it difficult for you to lose weight over time. Furthermore, this lower rate of burning calories would make it difficult for you to maintain the weight you struggled to achieve.

As a result, the use of low-calorie diets alone to achieve weight loss is not advisable, so also is rapid weight loss over a short time. Bodyweight loss of not more than 2 to 4 Kg (4 to 8 Pounds) depending on your initial weight is considered healthy by experts. More importantly, a commitment to long-term lifestyle changes is what you require for successful long-term weight loss. To assist you in achieving this, grab your copy of the resource, “My Optimal Body”.

The following reasons explain why you may find it difficult to maintain weight loss over time.

Difficulty in maintaining weight loss due to lack of commitment

Firstly, I like to challenge you to count the cost of weight loss to you and see if it is worth you committing to it as a lifetime endeavour. Make a list of the benefits and the sacrifices that go with weight loss endeavour and maintaining a healthy weight. Also, make a list of the pleasures and the associated health risks that go with keeping an unhealthy weight. Be honest to yourself, weigh your options especially in the long run. This will help you in establishing your commitment to the sacrifices that go with maintaining a healthy weight. This simple consideration will not be the same for everyone since people’s priorities are very different.

This is not to say that you will have to be in a situation whereby you barely endure life and not enjoy your life to the fullest. Therefore, I always counsel, that people should adopt the healthy eating habit and exercises they enjoy and could sustain for life. If the diet you adopt is what you barely endure and if the exercise you are involved with is not what you can commit to for a lifetime, then you are not likely going to be able to sustain your newly adopted lifestyle for long.

Wrong approaches make it difficult to maintain weight loss

As previously explained, your body’s response to your weight loss program may trigger the biological process that could facilitate or hinder weight loss. If you engage extreme low-calorie diet as a stand-alone approach, if you do not engage in any physical activity, and probably your diet is inadequate in quality protein, you are likely going to achieve a rapid weight loss. However, you will be losing the healthy weight (skeletal muscle mass) along with the unhealthy weight (fat mass). This is an undesirable situation. Furthermore, your will basal metabolic rate will reduce. Your basal metabolic rate influences the rate at which your body utilizes energy. A low basal metabolic rate means your body’s ability to burn fat reduces. Hence your body will struggle with keeping off the fat deposits when you return to a regular diet.

It is advisable to engage the services of an expert to monitor your weight loss progress and help you make the necessary dietary adjustment towards achieving the desirable and healthy weight loss. This and more has been addressed in the e-resource “My Optimal Body”.

Difficulty in maintaining weight loss due to inadequate balance of calories

Once the desired weight has been achieved, there should be a gradual adjustment of calories to achieve calorie balance. At this point, the right number of calories for your daily need must be determined to which you need to adhere. Failure to adhere to this will lead to calorie imbalance, usually, an excess calorie is often the case.

This stage requires a lot of patience and the assistance of a dietician or nutritionist for record-keeping and adjusting food intake and exercise levels. Usually, an addition of about 200 calories of healthy, low-fat food to your daily intake may be necessary to prevent further weight loss.

Binge eating as responses to stress

It is necessary to control your eating behaviour when you are stressed. Using uncontrolled eating as a coping mechanism in stress could hinder your capacity to maintain weight loss. In such a situation, you are no more in control of the number of calories you are taking in. Rather, choose other healthy options. This includes the use of exercise, physical activity, prayers, or meditation to respond to stress instead of eating.

Ignorance about food facts

The lack of knowledge of food facts may result in you taking in excess calories without your knowing it. Foods high in hidden fats such as crisps, French fries, biscuits, cookies, could hinder your ability to maintain weight loss over time. It is advisable to read labels of packaged foods so you can make informed choices about the number of calories you will be having by taking a certain amount of the food.

Lack of physical activities

After you have achieved your desired weight, you need to continue in regular physical activities such as walking, walking the stairs, gardening, etc. to balance your calorie intake with usage. If you ceased from regular activities, though you have a healthy dietary intake, you will very soon start to experience a positive energy balance and inability to maintain weight loss.

Conclusion

The difficulty in maintaining weight loss comes primarily from a lack of commitment. Also, the values you place on the benefits of a healthy weight and your perceptions of the risks of unhealthy weight will determine your commitment. Engaging the right approach to weight loss and keeping to a healthy lifestyle after you have achieved your desired weight goal will help you to overcome the difficulty in maintaining weight loss.

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Why losing weight

A slim figure is often associated with beauty. As a result, many of the beauty pageants give slim figures a high rating. While it is not a bad idea to desire a slim figure, losing unwanted weight means much than that. Health reasons are of prime importance in weight loss. I would like to emphasize here that the fact that a person has a slim figure does not indicate a state of good nutritional health or reduced risk for non-communicable diseases. While a person who is overweight or obese is obviously at risk for communicable diseases as a result of excess body fat, a person with a slim body may as well be carrying a high body fat percentage. This situation is called hidden obesity and equally increases a person’s risk for non-communicable diseases. This condition has been described in “What is in my body”.

Losing unwanted weight could be as easy as the way you accumulated them over the years. However, it will require your determination and consistency. Since you didn’t arrive at the weight overnight or instantly, it is logical that you will not be losing them as instantly as you may desire. My candid advice is to follow a healthy way to lose weight so you don’t end up losing your health in the process. Following these tips will help you in gradual weight loss while maintaining good health.

Check your portion size

If you are desirous of losing weight, the first practical thing is to minimize your food intake. Your intake of foods should match your physical activities. The foods you eat are used to produce energy which you need to support both the voluntary and involuntary activities that your body undergoes. If your body does not use up the energy produced from your food, the excess energy is converted into fat and stored in the body for use where there is a shortage of energy supply. If you reduce your food intake to match your physical activities, then you will achieve an energy balance and you will not have any storage of excess energy in the form of fat. Furthermore, if you reduce your intake to achieve a negative energy balance, i.e. your body needs more energy than what your food is supplying to support your activities. Then, your body will convert the deposit of fat into energy to support your activities. As this continues over time, slowly and surely you will begin to experience a weight loss. You may want to help yourself with a 7-day meal plan to help you achieve this, CLICK HERE.

Minimize the intake of foods high in fats and sugar

Foods and drinks high in fats and sugar quickly provide you with high calories you don’t need. While it may not be sustainable that you go off such foods some of which are your favourites, it is possible to minimize your intake. These foods include French fries, cakes, pastries, confectioneries, sweet dessert etc. Also, drinks such as fizzy drinks, carbonated drinks and even fruit juices contain a high amount of calories. You should reduce the intake by reducing the amount you take at a time and the number of times you take them in a week. Instead of fruit juice, take real fruit.

Eat foods rich in proteins

When you are trying to lose weight, it is important to ensure you prevent muscle loss while shedding the unwanted weight i.e. the fat mass. You will achieve this by ensuring adequate intake of foods rich in proteins. The body needs protein to build and repair tissues and muscles. Evidence shows that protein prevents loss of muscle mass while the body loses fat. If your body experience calorie restriction coupled inadequate amounts of protein, this will lead to undesirable loss of muscle mass and fat mass at the same time. Therefore, I counsel that you have an adequate supply of proteins in your diet as you embark on a weight loss program. How much protein is adequate is discussed in “My Optimal Body”.

Keep unhealthy foods out of reach

This is a very logical thing to do to avoid the unnecessary temptation to eating unhealthy choices of foods in excessive amount. You don’t have to keep foods like cookies, chocolate bars, candies, and cakes in your fridge or pantry. Instead, stock your fridge with wholesome fruits and vegetables and snack on these whenever you crave food or need snacks or refreshment. Remember, that when trying to achieve weight loss, you may not need more than a serving of fruit per day. Examples include 1 medium-size apple, ¾ cup grapes, 1 medium-size pear etc. Vegetables such as 6 spears of asparagus, ½ cup of cauliflower, broccoli, sweet corn, butternut, carrot etc. are healthy choices to eat as between meals or as snacks.

Eating fibre-rich foods is one of the easy ways to weight loss

Foods rich in fibre help you to feel full for a long time. Besides, you will benefit from the other health benefits of fibre which includes helping you to achieve easy stool as well as cholesterol-lowering benefit. Foods rich in fibre include beans, oats, green peas, sweetcorn, whole wheat pasta, whole wheat bread, barley and rye.

Easy ways to weight loss include drinking enough water

The recommendations for healthy eating include drinking adequate clean water (about 6 to 8 cups) daily. When your body is adequately hydrated, your basal metabolic rate (BMR) will improve. The BMR is the rate at which your body utilizes energy at rest. The better your body can utilize energy at rest in performing basal metabolic functions, the better your body will burn calories. As a result, you will easily lose unwanted weight. Conversely, if you are inadequately hydrated, your BMR will decrease and your ability to lose unwanted weight will reduce. Furthermore, your body will benefit from the numerous health benefits of water in the body. Drinking adequate water daily will allow you to have easy digestion. Your bowel needs water to work properly. Adequate intake of water will prevent dehydration and will contribute to reducing many digestive problems.

Practice mindful eating

As you work at shedding unwanted weight, enjoy your meals but be mindful of your intake. It helps to look forward to the next meal by desisting from unnecessary munching which you may regret. Also, endeavour to count calories of what you eat by estimating every meal. This will ensure you keep within the limit of your calories intake per day.

Eat slowly and chew your food thoroughly

Leptin is the hormone responsible for reducing the appetite thereby making you feel full. The hormone is produced by the fat cells. As a signalling hormone, leptin communicates with the hypothalamus in your brain and regulates your appetite and food intake. Your brain needs enough time to signal that you have already eaten enough. Therefore, by taking the time to eat and chew your food, you are more likely to be satisfied with your reduced portion size even before you finish the meal.

Conclusion

By following these easy ways to weight loss, you are on the path to consistent and healthy weight management. Remember, it is an unhealthy weight that you aim to get rid, be sure to maintain the healthy weight; the muscle mass. Also, following these tips will help you not only to shed unwanted weight but to sustain it and continue with healthy eating as a lifestyle.

For further assistance, please feel free to ask your questions in the comments section. You may want to check the eBook “My Optimal Body” a practical guide for sustainable weight loss with a 7-day meal plan.

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My Optimal Body – Preview

This resource is an evidence-based hybrid weight-loss plan that is built on the principle of continuous calorie restriction, intermittent fasting and exercise. These principles have been shown to contribute to effective body fat loss, improved body composition and better health outcomes. It is designed to help you achieve the following:

• Develop a lifelong healthy eating,
• Develop and enjoy a healthy lifestyle,
• Drop unwanted weight permanently,
• Maintain a healthy weight afterwards,
• Improve body composition and overall health

What you need to know 

Excess body weight puts you at increased risk for a range of chronic diseases including diabetes, heart disease, certain cancers, and psychosocial syndromes which could considerably reduce your quality of life.

Seven days meal plan towards my optimal body

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Good nutrition and activity are the key strategies for healthy weight loss. This is not referring to crash diets or simply starving yourself or working out at the gym. The strategies have to do with eating healthy and making sure your portions match the number of calories you need daily. It is believed that if you can create a 500-calorie deficiency every day between exercise and nutrition, you can lose up to a pound (0.45kg) a week.
Dr Debbie addresses nutrition issues for daily living and well-being “7 simplest ways to healthy eating”

Your calorie intake

Those calories should not be subtracted off of your recommended daily amount. It should be taken from the number of calories you eat daily right now. For example: If you were an adult male eating 3,500 calories per day you can drop 250 calories from your diet and increase your energy consumption from exercise by 250 calories. If you can do this every day, you will create a 3,500-calorie deficiency over the entire week – and that is the equivalent of one fat pound (0.45kg).

To lose weight you need to find a 500-calorie deficiency every day. Do it through exercise and reducing what you eat.
Minimum calorie intakes as one of the strategies for healthy weight loss

Women should not consume less than 1,200 calories per day or 1,000 less than your maintenance value (how many calories you need to keep your weight steady). A dietitian or nutrition expert can help you to calculate your maintenance value. Men should not consume less than 1,800 calories per day or 1,000 less than your maintenance value.

If you try a crash diet, where you are only consuming 1,000 calories per day and working out, or getting exercise, sure, you will lose weight. But, it isn’t going to stay off for long. When you don’t give your body enough fuel, it starts to consume the muscles in your body, whereas the muscles are an important part of being able to metabolize your foods.

Eating too little is not consistent with the strategies for healthy weight loss. You will lose weight but it may not be sustainable in the long run. You risk burning muscle of your crash diet by not eating anything. Your body will consume your muscle tissue, actually making it more difficult to keep the weight off down the road. Eating much less slows your metabolism. You aren’t eating enough food to keep your metabolism running on sufficient energy.

Tracking your calories

It might take a bit of effort, but each food has a written caloric value on the packaging. If you take the time to notice what is on the package you will be able to monitor what your calorie intake is. Then you will see that you actually take in far more than the calorie you need per day. When you can do this, you will be able to keep track of what you are eating and whether you are meeting your target intake levels or overshooting it.

If you want to be serious about losing weight, then you need to take the matter into your own hands. Don’t just grab a portion of lasagna, burger or a bowl of rice with steak and start chowing down. Calculate how many calories are in a reasonable serving and go from there. Remember there are probably high-fat salad, dinner rolls, and probably another vegetable on your menu list. You are going to have to monitor each of those to come up with a good caloric value from your meal. You wonder if this is not a task on its own. The step by step practical guide to weight loss by Dr Debbie is now out.
Most meals will have you in between 300 and 800 calories. This is a good target area. If you can calculate where you fit in there with each particular meal, you will be able to get a better idea of your plan for losing weight.

The types of food we eat

Aside from the actual caloric intake of a person, the type of food we are eating plays a large role in how we can lose weight. First of all, 100 grams of broccoli has far less fat and calories than 100 grams of doughnuts.

Some foods are high in fat, high in calories, processed, natural and more. Each one of these is going to affect your ability to lose weight. It doesn’t mean that you can’t eat a lot of these things, and you have to give up your favourite foods, you just need to be aware of how much of it you are eating. Details are described in the book “Natural weight loss revealed” which is offered you free. GET IT HERE

Why shed unwanted weight – Health concerns

You have no doubt heard the numerous health-related problems that come from being overweight. Even being 20 lbs (9kg) overweight can start to cause hidden health problems. Instead of that lower back pain being from yesterday’s squash game, it’s because your body isn’t used to carrying an extra 20 lbs (9kg) on the front end. Imagine right now if you were to strap a 20-pound (9kg) weight to your belly and walk around with it all day long.

Extremely high weight can put considerable stress on your joints, especially if you do not have the height advantage to handle that sort of weight. The biggest part is the high risk for non-communicable diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, stroke, high blood pressure etc. These are pretty serious players in the health world. They are among the largest killers of human beings.

Why shed unwanted weight – Physical appearance

For many people, physical appearance is linked directly to their self-esteem. If they believe their body is undesirable to others, they can become depressed or stressed and it causes serious emotional problems. Worse yet, in some, it can trigger the impulse to eat, even more, making the problem worse. The emotional side of being obese is only just being charted in the medical world. It is already understood that a person’s self-worth and self-confidence can be shattered if they gain excess weight. But the emotional toll it can take over an extended period might be considerably more damaging.

Conclusion

Effective strategies for healthy weight loss are not far-fetched; however, they are entrenched in discipline and determination. The value you place on the outcomes of excessive weight will determine your motivation level. Consistently practising good nutrition matched with an appropriate activity level will get you there. Dr Debbie has developed a step by step weight loss plan to practically guide you through. Access the E-book here.

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Exercise does have a lot of benefits, however, it can be frustrating spending months at the gym to gain the muscle mass you desire. Logically, there are ways to gain as much muscle mass as you desire:

1. Take adequate calories to maintain a positive energy balance during your workout sessions or even your normal daily routines.
2. Protein is essential for growth in the body. Therefore, take more protein than you break down. This is logical for maximal muscle gain.
3. Find the right exercise program that can challenge your muscles. This is perhaps, the most essential of the three. The more muscle you gain, the more challenging the program needs to get for you to further increase in strength.

The recommendations given above are the most natural way to gain muscle and strength. However, it is possible to even speed up this process and get better results by using workout supplements. I will be sharing with you some effective workout supplements that could help you build muscle. Workout supplements can be referred to as multi-ingredient dietary formulas intended to enhance energy and physical performance.

Below are five effective workout supplements that can help you build your muscle faster.

Creatine

Creatine is a very important chemical compound found in the body. It is mostly found in the muscles and the brain. Science has made it possible to synthesize this chemical in the laboratory. Creatine is also found in foods such as red meat and seafood. This power-enhancing muscle building supplement is one of the many effective supplements for workouts as has been shown by several documentations. It works by increasing the availability of creatine and phosphocreatine in the muscle. This increase helps keep energy levels regulated during high-intensity exercise routines such as in weightlifting, running and hiking.

Creatine is known to increase water quantity in muscle cells. This causes the muscles to swell slightly and appear bigger, which is a physical indication of muscle growth, and this improves your overall physique. Medical researchers have also discovered that creatine helps to reduce protein breakdown.

Protein Supplements

In the list of the methods of muscle growth, the importance of protein is highlighted. Protein is one of the substances critical for muscle growth. It is possible to get all the protein you need from various protein-rich foods. Another way to get the protein you need is by using protein supplements. There are different types of protein supplements available. Popular ones include casein, soy protein, and whey. Other types of protein supplements are those that contain protein isolated from chicken, eggs, and beef. However, protein can be sourced from a lot more sources than these.

Research has proven that protein supplements are more beneficial for muscle gain than including extra carbs in your diet. Wondering how much protein you should consume daily? If you are looking to gain muscle, 1.2 – 2 grams per kg of body weight is a good start.

Beta-Alanine as effective workout supplements

Beta-alanine is a workout supplement that you will find on the shelf of every ripped gym junkie out there. It is an amino acid that helps to reduce fatigue which subsequently increases exercise performance during intense workout sessions. Beta-alanine is an important supplement for those who follow exercise programs strictly. It can help to power you through the program successfully and significantly boost the growth of your muscles. It is a very good help for increasing muscle mass. A study showed a drastic increase in body mass when 4 grams of this supplement was taken daily compared to college athletes taking a placebo during that same period. Enough is known of beta-alanine to prove its effectiveness in increasing muscle mass when combined with an exercise program.

Caffeine

Caffeine is one of the most used and famous substances in the world. This substance is a great ergogenic aid for intense activities and endurance exercise. It give you that edge when you take it just before a work out session. However, caffeine’s use in this regard should be in moderation. Not more than your usual coffee intake is advisable.

Branched Chain Amino Acids (BCAA)

BCAAs contain three individual amino acids. These three individual amino acids are leucine, isoleucine, and valine. They are regularly found in most protein-rich supplements. Protein-rich foods like meat, eggs, dairy, and fish are good sources of these amino acids. This shows that everyone consumes BCAAs from food at least once a day. It is, however, not surprising to see BCCAs supplements. BCAAs are critically important for muscle growth. They make up about 14 per cent of the amino acids found in the muscular cells. BCAAs supplements are effective for you when there isn’t high-quality protein in your daily diet. BCCAs are effective in producing greater muscle gain when combined with an exercise program. As a body-builder, these supplements are important because of their ability to help you add muscle mass and strength quickly.

Credible Sources of effective workout Supplements

There are many companies that produce workout supplements which can aid your muscle growth. However, it is wise to obtain your supplements from credible sources. Forever Living Product is a brand that trumps other brands in this department. They provide high-quality supplements which will help you grow your muscles and give you the body you dream of having.

You will want to check out on some of these products. They include but not limited to:

1. Forever Lite Ultra with Aminotein: It supplies the 18 amino acids, comprising essential, non-essential and the branched-chain amino acids.
2. C9 Aloe Berry Nectar: It is a body cleanser designed to have you looking better and feeling great in just nine days.
3. Forever Calcium: It helps bone growth and muscle function.
4. F15 Beginner Vanilla Nectar Pack: It is designed to help you with your fitness and weight management journey.

Conclusion

The path to fitness and the desired body composition can be a long and arduous one without the necessary support to ease that journey. Forever Living has designed effective workout supplements for muscle building and these would help you get there faster. To obtain these products click here. Once on the Forever Living Products website, remember to select your country from the country dropdown at the top of the page. Feel free to share with me your experience and/or questions and I will be very glad to help you further.

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My background

I am 55 years of age, a wife, mother, and a career woman. I have quite a busy daily work schedule mostly sedentary with home chores. Nevertheless, I need a concerted effort to achieve and maintain a consistent and adequate physical activity lifestyle of between 5000 and 10000 steps of moderate-intensity every day. Typically I am 1.57 meter tall, 59kg by weight and BMI approximately 24kg/m².

Previously

As a result of the strenuous advanced studies I undertook between 2012 and 2016, I lost a significant amount of weight. My weight came down to 52.5kg. I needed to regain my weight, but it has to be a healthy weight. In the process, I discovered that you equally need deliberate effort to gain healthy weight as you do to lose unwanted weight. What did I do?

• I increased my food intake. This time academic exercises had greatly reduced. I still do a lot but without the stress of timelines, examinations, presentations and the rest.
• I had more resting periods and more sleeping hours.
• I embarked on a daily routine of physical activity; jogging in place.

Results after 3 years

After 3 years; beginning of 2019, I have increased my weight from 52.5 to 56.6. Good news isn’t it. Yes, it is, however, let’s have a look at the statistics.

Results in February 2019

Necessary improvement to gaining a healthy weight

Since I am yet to reach my goal of 59kg weight, I needed to put more effort towards the desired weight by achieving a reduced fat mass level while increasing the skeletal muscle mass. I embarked on the following:

• I increased the intake of foods rich in proteins such as milk, beans, chicken and fish. Lean meat is also a good option in this case, but it is not my favourite.
• I added the weekly Parkrun jog and walk with my daily jogging in place.

Let me recount my first experience on my first Park run in July 2019. It was at the Botanical Garden Parkrun centre in Pretoria and it was winter. The 5km Parkrun has two hills making the exercise a heavy work through.  I started with my jacket; however, about 8 minutes into the exercise, I had removed my jacket because of sweat. As I finished climbing the second hill on that first day, I felt like fainting. I thought perhaps this exercise wasn’t for me. However, the consequent visits became bearable and I climbed the hills with fewer difficulties. This was an indication of improved muscle strength in addition to increased muscle mass as I found out from my body composition results shown below.

Results in September 2019

Insights from the literature on how to gain a healthy weight

My experience is substantiated by the views of the European Society for Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism. It is recommended that adults should have adequate protein intake also with daily physical activity such as resistance training or aerobic exercise for as long as possible to sustain muscle strength and physical functioning into older age.

The ageing process is connected with a gradual loss of muscle mass associated with lowered strength and physical endurance. This condition is known as sarcopenia and it is commonly observed with ageing in sedentary adults. Regular aerobic and resistance exercise greatly contribute to reducing the effect of sarcopenia. Additionally, good nutrition, particularly adequate protein and energy intake, can help in minimising age-related declines in muscle mass, muscle strength, and functional abilities. Protein nutrition of not less than 1.0–1.2 g protein/kg body weight per day in combination with exercise is considered ideal for maintaining muscle function.

As you can see from the difference in my body composition results between February and September 2019; there were desirable improvements.  Muscle mass increased, the fat mass reduced, the visceral fat reduced and the basal metabolic rate improved. The improvements were as a result of the adjustment I made by adding the weekly aerobic exercise to my daily jogging on the spot as well as increased intake of foods rich in protein.  As I continue with my lifelong regime, the statistic will continue to get better and better. My regime is not cumbersome to me, as a matter of fact, it is enjoyable. This is why I counselled in my previous post that for your weight management endeavour to be sustainable; you must enjoy it and be ready to practice it as a lifelong commitment.

Conclusion

I believe you already have some vital insights on how to gain a healthy weight from my story which could assist you in achieving and maintaining the desired weight whether you are aiming at gaining weight or otherwise. Ensure you track the changes that are occurring in your body by checking your body composition every other month.  Following the results obtained from your body composition, make the necessary adjustment. Be consistent at your efforts in the right direction and see your desired body composition gradually fall in shape. I look forward to reading your story, please feel free to contact me through the email at the end of this article. I will be happy to communicate with you and assist you further not only on how to gain a healthy weight but other related issues you may have.

The post How to gain a healthy weight – my personal experience appeared first on Beulah Wide Family Nutrition.

The BCA will estimate body composition including the BMI, body fat mass (BFM), fat-free mass (FFM), skeletal muscle mass (SMM), skeletal lean mass (SLM), total body water (TBW), mineral content, and body cell mass (BCM). These measurements can help in revealing a person’s risk for certain health conditions such as sarcopenia; muscle loss which is associated with impaired physical functioning.

Outcomes of measurements can then be followed with appropriate nutritional intervention and follow-up. In this article, I will be answering the question; what is in my body thereby showing you what you stand to benefit from knowing your body composition.

Track the changes in your body composition over time

With repeated measures, your body composition comprising skeletal muscle mass, fat mass, body water and mineral content is revealed. The information will help you to know if it is going in a positive direction or the negative direction. For example, if you are desirous of dropping unwanted weight. You want to be sure to drop fat mass without losing the skeletal muscle mass. If your previous analysis indicated the skeletal muscle mass to be 21kg and fat mass to be 16kg, while the present analysis shows the skeletal muscle mass to be 18.2kg and the fat mass to be 15kg, this is an indication of a negative direction. With appropriate dietary counseling you will be able to adjust to a positive direction; to consistently drop the fat mass while preventing or minimizing loses in the skeletal muscle mass.

Building of the skeletal muscle mass

If you are working at building your muscle mass, appropriate dietary and fitness regimen is required to achieve the results ensuring that you gain weight in the form of muscle mass and not fat mass. Your understanding of your starting point and your target is necessary to establish a realistic timeline for tracking progress. This also will enable your nutritionist or dietitian to advice on the dietary interventions to optimize the desired result and to monitor the progress as earlier discussed. The use of supplemental protein may help enhance muscle building. However, an adequate balance with healthy, diverse diets will help in achieving the desired result. It is very vital to ensure the gain in weight is a positive one.

Steady basal metabolic rate

Your basal metabolic rate determines to a large extent your ability to drop unwanted weight. When your skeletal muscle mass increases, this has a positive implication for your basal metabolic rate. Your body’s capacity to utilize energy increases, therefore your ability to burn fat and drop the unwanted weight increases. Knowing your body composition can help in establishing a proper nutrition plan for you. Because this calculation will be based on your unique calorie need as revealed from your body composition analysis, it is specific for you. This is different from a generalized calculation from a population standpoint.

By using your BMR your nutritionist can help in developing the dietary program aimed precisely at an optimizing your fat loss while maintaining muscle mass. Also, the maintenance of a healthy weight will be achieved through the use of BMR by establishing proper nutrition and caloric intake.

Effective weight loss

You will be helped to differentiate between muscle loss and fat loss or both if you accompany your weight loss endeavour with tracking your body composition. Relying on BMI to track changes in body composition has limitations because of its inability to identify if losses are due to fat loss, lean mass loss or both. People often believe that low-calorie diets facilitate weight loss. However, the concern with the use of low-calorie diets in weight loss is the high risk of muscle mass loss. This is a negative outcome in weight loss and implies health risk and functional impairment. The accurate analysis of your body composition during your weight loss regimen will enable you to track where weight loss is coming from either negatively or positively. The body composition results are usually presented in a visual representation showing the balance between muscle and fat; helping to clearly show overall health risk. This hi-tech assessment allows your nutritionist to set effective weight loss goals while tracking the progress to ensure proper improvement is being made. Effective weight loss will show a gradual reduction in the fat mass and a corresponding increase in the skeletal muscle mass over time. If you are working at weight loss, to assist your effective weight loss effort, you may want to consider Forever Living weight management products.  To assess the Forever Living Products click here. Once on the Forever Living Products website, remember to select your country from the country dropdown at the top of the page.

Track excess fat mass and prevent muscle loss in seniors

This situation is particularly important with senior adults; age 65 and above. At this age, the diets need to be coordinated to support muscle maintenance to lower the risk of muscle loss leading to frailty. Because this phase of life is often associated with reduced physical activity and poor dietary intake, there is an easy accumulation of excess fat mass with an associated increase in disease risk especially sarcopenia. This loss of muscle reduces physical functioning, increases the chance of visceral fat storage and may initiate the risk for diabetes, and cardiovascular diseases. By tracking the body composition, nutritionists and dietitians can help in planning nutrition programs to maximize muscle maintenance for reducing the risks of sarcopenia, feebleness and injury.

Prevention of injury and inflammation in sports activities

If you are a sports person, knowing and tracking your body composition for changes in skeletal muscle and fat mass is vital to optimizing your performance for your desired success. Understanding the specific needs for your sports activities will guide the dietary plans to support the maintenance and integrity of the skeletal muscles. As a sports person, you don’t have to wait until the imbalance of the skeletal muscle mass and fat mass begins to adversely affect your performance.

Monitoring and tracking your body composition as the sports season changes are also necessary to adjust dietary and exercise routines. With continued monitoring, you can track muscle-fat balance, and the positions where lean mass is being built, lost or needs to be maintained. Undesirable changes in lean mass may indicate a dietary adjustment to prevent decreases in performance. Furthermore, measures of body water can reveal changes in hydration and may require more precise management of fluid intake. Through regular assessment, undesirable changes will be detected and your dietitian or nutritionist will be able to plan a dietary intervention to address them without jeopardizing your performance and success. If you sustain an injury, nutritional modifications are required to promote optimal recovery while preventing the adverse changes associated with decreased activity during the recovery period.

Management of disease risk

The global rising trend in obesity and overweight has led to increased risk of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) such as diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, hypertension, and certain cancers. The primary cause for concern in obesity is high-fat mass leading to an unacceptable level of visceral fat. Visceral fat is a primary contributor to increased risk of NCDs. Conversely, obesity is not the only connection with poor health conditions, low muscle mass can also influence disease risk and may impair a person’s physical functioning. In all, dietary adjustment accompanied by physical activity is a major factor in intervention if you are at risk. Tracking body composition changes over time provide a more complete solution to ameliorate the situation.

With the ability to monitor body composition parameters including the skeletal muscle mass, body fat mass and visceral fat, nutrition experts can set more effective nutrition plans geared towards reducing your disease risk over time.

Conclusion

Knowing that your BMI is within the acceptable range of 18.5 – 25.0 kg/m2 is satisfying and good. However, going further to know the variables that make up the weight you are carrying to provide more realistic and complete information about your risk for diseases. It is possible to have visually acceptable body weight and BMI, but have an unhealthy proportion of skeletal muscle mass and fat mass. This situation equally predisposes a person to a high risk for the disease especially if the visceral fat goes beyond 10; the maximum acceptable level. Conversely, it is possible to have a BMI that is above the acceptable range but have a healthy proportion of skeletal muscle and fat mass with an acceptable level of visceral fat. This status describes the body composition of a sports person.

Having tried to answer the question; what is in my body? I like to urge you to take steps beyond the BMI to know your body composition. Engage the necessary steps to secure a healthy body that you desire and deserve. You don’t have to wait until you are suddenly diagnosed with a disease condition; heart disease or type 2 diabetes, and you start to wonder how it happened. The unseen factors may be doing silent harm than you know. The good news is that you can minimize your risk for these diseases once you know what your body composition is and you are committed to tracking them and control changes.

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