Weight loss isn’t easy. (Isn’t that the understatement of the year!)
But why? After all, all of the health and fitness pros have simplified it to ONE rule: be in a total calorie deficit. Specifically, eat less than you “burn”.
Is that true? Is it really that simplistic? Yes…… and no.
Yes, be in a caloric deficit and theoretically you should shed pounds. No argument here. However, how many of you swear you do just that yet the scale is still bouncing around? There are scenarios where the math just doesn’t add up. Here are a few, and let’s see if any sound familiar:
1. You eat little to no calories throughout the day, just to eat a humongous meal for dinner. You may eat breakfast and lunch, but dinner is still by far the largest meal. Maybe you track the calories for that meal, or maybe you just assume one meal can’t possibly be more than you are burning throughout the day.
2. Half of the week is in a deficit (let’s hypothetically call those days Monday- Thursday), but Friday through Sunday are less regulated.
3. You have a “good” handful of days then get frustrated by the lack of movement on the scale and throw in the towel until the next time you feel frustrated enough to try again.
4. You believe you are in fact in a deficit, but most of your food choices lack any nutritional value.
5. You are chronically stressed.
6. You are crushing cardio and your smart watch claims you are burning more than you are consuming, yet the scale isn’t cooperating.
Any of them hitting close to home? Maybe more than one? You aren’t alone. These are by far the most common trends I see when it comes to clients that are making efforts yet still can’t seem to move the dial.
So now what? Well, now you may just need to try the simple but less fun tactics. You might need to eat more calories for breakfast and less for dinner. You might have to up the water and sleep to levels that you wish you didn’t need. You might need to learn how to fully enjoy SOME weekends without putting your body in a state that takes 72+ hours to come down from just to do it again the following weekend. You might need to re-structure your life ratios.
Now, if you read that last paragraph and thought “nope, I’m not willing to do any of that”, that is ok! We just might need to make peace with the fact that weight loss is not in fact our top priority. Nobody but you should make that decision, but you do owe it to yourself to be honest with yourself.
Is weight loss simple? Only on paper, and often only to people who have never had to experience weight loss and assume math is the only part of the equation. Hormone balance, stress hormones, and long term consistency matter. The ability to change your habits matter.
The sooner we acknowledge the real focus we need, the faster we get the results we want.
Questions? Just hit that reply button and I’m here to help.
Have a great weekend!
Mike, MAR Health & Performance
