So… you are eating well & working out but still not losing weight?

You’ve had your thyroid & hormone levels checked and everything is normal.

Let’s look at some of the likely possible reasons- I know that I identified with the majority of these; but once you identify your reasons for self sabotage you will be well on your way to achieving your goals too.

1. Are you getting enough SLEEP?

So you are busy, burning the candle at both ends to fit everything in, staying up late to answer your work emails, watching TV or playing on social media sites. Lack of sleep slows your metabolism, makes you hungry which in turn tempts you to snack on high carb treats for energy and increases cortisol stress levels, all of which will make you gain weight. Get your recommended 8 hours of sleep in. If you have to get up at 6am, go to bed at 10pm. If you don’t feel tired, just lay quietly, breathe deeply, think of how good you will look when you reach your goal.

Don’t get up – stay in bed until you go to sleep. Try & keep your sleep patterns the same every night…intermittent sleep doesn’t work plus if you are well rested it will be a joy to get up & enjoy your day off from 6am rather than spending half of it in bed catching up on your sleep debt. To operate well your body must be well rested.

2. Not EATING?

Ok so you don’t feel like eating…skipping meals, eating irregularly puts your body into fight or flight mode. Your body will hang on to fat like it is going through a famine! How often do you hear an overweight person say I hardly eat anything but I just can’t lose weight? Your body is controlled by your brain. Your brain is assessing all of the time whether or not it should let you use stored fat as energy (or hoard it just in case there is a famine) If you create an environment of lack by not eating- your brain will make sure it conserves every little bit of food it obtains by slowing down your metabolism to ensure survival. There is no famine. Eat.

3. I did GOOD!

Every morning when I go get my obligatory long black I see people in their tracksuits after their exercise having cappuccino & cake. Funnily enough I see the same people everyday! So, you spent an hour working out- pat yourself on the back for getting off the sofa & moving. Newsflash: Do not reward yourself with food because you worked out! All too easy to consume more calories than you just burnt off! You are not an athlete; you do not need to replenish your body with food immediately after a workout!

In fact, you have increased your pulse, heart rate & core temperature so will continue to burn fat for a couple of hours- don’t refuel too early- you will miss the benefit (maybe that’s why gyms have cafes?) You are probably just thirsty/dehydrated – drink a litre of water and wait until your next meal. If you really need a reward for working out buy shoes not cake!

4.Change is good…

If you always do the same thing you will always get the same result. NOT true! If you go from sitting on the sofa to walking an hour a day you will lose weight, get fitter, feel better…for a while anyway! Your brain & body are smart. They adjust to this new regime and eventually you hit a plateau. Eating the same, moving the same, but not changing shape. So- what do you do? Change your workout! Jog, cycle, swim, dance, skate instead of walk – this will confuse your body and brain & get you back on track. Also beats the boredom.

5. Eating too much.

No matter how healthy the food you are eating is be careful not to fall into the trap of eating too large a portion. Even extremely clean diets can deliver far too many calories if you eat too much. The right size for a serving of lean protein is 90-120 grams (the size of your palm) three times per day. That may well be half a chicken breast or fish fillet- not a whole one. The correct size serving of potato, fruit, cereal, rice or pasta is about the size of half a cup cooked once per day. It would be difficult to overeat green vegetables- so if you are hungry, load up on broccoli! Too much of a good thing isn’t good!

6. Drinking your daily calories?

The average cappuccino has 400 calories. If you have done the maths & have a daily calorie target of between 1200-1600 calories 4 drinks can easily wipe out your whole days allowance! Remove soft drinks, replace with sparkling mineral water. Check the energy contents of any drink you think about buying- would you rather have that drink or some real food for that 400 calories? Switch to black you won’t go back!

7. Focused on the wrong numbers?

If you are working out, building muscle your body can reduce in size without the dial on the scale moving, Muscle weighs four times the weight of fat- so if you lose a kilo of fat & gain a kilo of muscle the space it takes up is a quarter of the old space. Use the tape measure & your clothes to see the difference- not the scales. Take selfies- you will see the difference. Throw the scales away!

8. Forget about perfect.

The media peddled images are unrealistic. Be what you are happy being! Get down to the beach and have a good look at what real people look like in their cossies. Feel good about yourself, Love your body & look after it. (It’s the only place you have to live!)

LOOK GOOD. DO GOOD. FEEL GOOD.