What do I do if I’m not losing enough weight?

Kris Reid   Body Makeover Expert

     You are probably well on your way to your ideal you!  However, what does that mean?  Well-on-Susan’s-way might be three pounds because she is only trying to lose ten.  Sam might be well on his way with a 50-pound weight loss but still has 100 pounds to go.  Meanwhile, Jimmy is not satisfied with his progress of 20 pounds, yet he only has 40 to lose total.  This is a subjective topic of conversation and it all stems from your self-image, reward system and, the way we track progress.  In general, we are typically hardest on ourselves.  We set high expectations for our progress and when we don’t achieve the exact goal we will beat ourselves up over it. 

     We all ask that $6 Million dollar question when we begin our program:  How much can I expect to lose?  Or, how long will it take me to lose 60 pounds?  Those are the exact same question posed from two different mathematical standpoints.  I want to start by saying one thing: We are doing this so that we stay healthy and keep the weight off for the rest of our lives!  This means that 5 months instead of 3 months is insignificant when we are talking about 20, 30, 40 or even 50 more years of life.  That is 240 months, 360 months, 480 months or even 600 months.  This is the way I have looked at it for the past seven years.  That is when I lost 60 pounds –for good.   

     The reality is that we all lose weight at different rates and for different reasons.  We are in control of some of the reasons and not in control of others.  I always tell clients to look for one ½ to 3 pounds per week of weight loss for women and two ½ to 4 pounds per week for men.  However, age plays a big factor, as does the amount of weight one has to lose, and health conditions and medications.  Any consistent weight loss is great news.  You are going in the right direction. 

     Now that we have determined that weight loss is positive…no negative…well, you know what I mean, let’s look at a new checklist for ways that you might be able to speed up your weight loss:

1.      Did you eat all your meals?

2.      Were you too slow in getting to each meal?

3.      Do you eat enough food and at the right time?

4.      Is it your time for your menstrual cycle?  There may not be weight loss due to water weight.

5.      Where are you getting your protein?  Look at the salt content.

6.      Are you buying canned food?    

7.      Are you drinking enough water?

8.      Are you taking hormone medications?

9.      Are you taking other medications that may slow weight loss?

10.  Ask your doctor. 

11.  Is your thyroid medicated adequately?

12.  Are you on birth control?

13.  Is your expectation realistic?

14.  Are you a career dieter?  If so, it may take your metabolism a little extra time to get back on its feet from years of yo-yoing. 

15.  Are your measurements smaller?  If you have the tendency to be muscular then you could be burning body fat and gaining muscle. 

16.  Are you overtraining?  This is a kind of stress and will slow and even inhibit weight loss. 

17.  Are you sleeping/resting enough?  Studies have shown that weight loss is correlated with sleep.  It is easy to explain from a biochemical standpoint as well.  Your body tends to become catabolic at night.  That is why you wake up lighter.  The less time you sleep, the less time you give your body to get into those fat cells!

18.  Are you ill?  You cannot diet if you have a cold, flu, chronic fatigue, as well as many other chronic and acute illnesses.  Your body needs extra nutrients (healthy nutrients) to fight off that condition. 

19.  Are you taking on too much too soon?  Dieting is a fairly dramatic change in your life and if you are already under a lot of stress, it may not be wise to take a dramatic approach.  It may actually cause you too much stress and hinder your weight loss efforts. 

20.  Are you choosing the right foods?  Maybe the ideal foods for weight loss are not the easiest to prepare.  Select choices that will fit into your life. 

21.  Is the treadmill tedious?  Maybe you need a little more visual stimulus and thus, should walk outside. 

22.  Maybe you and your mind do not agree with what they see.  Create a visualization picture so that your mind’s eye matches what you want to see in the mirror.