Working out and NOT Losing weight?

scale

I get asked this question all the time… “why am I not losing weight but I am working out?”

Well, there are many factors to consider why one person is not really losing weight. It’s not a one
size fits all here. I was on the same boat, doing a mix of cardio, lifting
weights, yoga and pilates for at least 3-5x every week with 1500 cal/day. I
reached plateau and what worked for me is that

  1. I added variety in my workout
  2. I became mindful of my pre-post workout food
  3. I increase my protein intake
  4. I added in healthy fats to my diet which helps your body burn more calories

Variety in workouts consist of changing up your current exercise routine.  If you have been doing the same thing day after day, your body will never respond differently.  You see this a lot with runners.  If you run ever single day, your body levels off and stays exactly the same.  I worked with a lady who ran the Boston marathon.  She came to me and wanted to start competing in fitness competitions like me.  We changed up her diet and completely revamped her workout routine to weights 5 days a week and only 2 days a week of running.  She transformed her body like never before!

Pre and post workouts foods play a breakfasthuge role in your overall success and results.  You must feed your body a small meal or pre workout foods,  before a workouts so you have fuel and energy to sustain the workout.  Then, equally important is the post workout food or recovery meal.  For me, I like to have a 1/2 whole wheat bagel with 1 tbsp nut butter and 4-5 slices of banana.  Small, powerful, protein and carbs equal a complete pre-workout meal.  Then for the post meal I always have a shakeology shake!  Best way to start my day!  Pre workout foods and post workout foods should contain protein and are typically higher in carbs, to provide your body energy.

Increase your protein and calories to lose weight!  Another reason you may not be losing weight may be that you actually need to increase your protein and calories.  A good rule of thumb is, take your body weight and that is how many grams of protein you should be eating in a day to build lean muscle mass and lose unwanted fat.  Then divide that number by 6.  For example, I weigh 120 pounds.  120/ 6 = 20 grams of protein per meal.  NOTE, your body can only absorb 25-30 grams per meal.  So men may need to eat up to 7 meals per day.  I know it sounds cray, but I promise, it works!  If you are not feeding your body enough calories or protein, it will think “I’m in starvation mode” and hold on to the unwanted fat!  My mother is the worst at this… “I need to go on a diet to get into a dress, so I will only eat 1 piece of cheese today and starve myself skinny”  THIS WILL NOT HELP YOU LOSE WEIGHT!  This will make you fat!  Eat more to lose weight!!!  Also if you see a chart that says you should only be eating 1,200 calories and after 1-2 weeks on it your still not losing weight, add more calories and protein, then the next 2 weeks, you should lose weight!  “Skipping meals can slow your metabolism,” says Elisa Zied, RD, author of
So What Can I Eat?! (Wiley, 2006). Based on your high level of activity, you
may require as many as 2,200 calories a day (so eat up, girlfriend!).  See How Many Calories Should I Be Eating? for more tips.

Add in healthy fats!  I broke through a plateau by adding healthy fats into my diet.  In The era of “FAD diets” it was taboo to eat fat… so what happened?  Everyone got fat!  It’s a false misunderstanding.  Healthy fats include, nuts, extra virgin olive oil, coconut oil (one of my favorites!) and avocado.  Check out ==> You are what you eat<== for more specifics.

Most people report losing inches, but get frustrated that the scale does not move down too much… your not alone!  This is very common!  But WHY you ask?

  • Your actually losing fat
  • You typically store fat in your stomach, midsection and thighs
  • You are building lean muscle tissue, which burns fat, but weighs more than fat
  • You will lose inches first, then weight

I encourage you to be patient and trust the system and my advice!  It works!

Here is another reference to look at from LIVESTRONG.com

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