The stubborn arrow on the scales doesn’t even think of moving. Although lately I have been so confidently showing a lower figure every time, and now the weight has risen, it is completely unclear how to force the body to lose weight again. And everything seems to be correct - food is limited, sports is enough. But the stupid arrow says the opposite every time. And how I want to spit on everything and eat that pie, since I’m still not losing weight. There is no need to go to extremes; the situation is not at all critical and not even unique. All men and women who lose weight periodically encounter this phenomenon. Let's talk about why the weight stops when losing weight, how to recognize the cause of this phenomenon and, most importantly, how to deal with it.
photo from useriter.com
Why does weight stay the same on a diet?
Actually, the problem is not new at all and has been studied quite well. The basics of dietetics are known to everyone, and are used by both amateurs and professionals with varying degrees of success. To lose weight, it is necessary that the calorie intake from food be less than the energy expenditure. What could be simpler - eat less, move more, but no! Our smart body has been adapting to survive in conditions of insufficient nutrition for centuries, developing adaptive and compensatory mechanisms and will not easily succumb to some Atkins or Dukan.
As a result, complaints are heard from all sides that, they say, I don’t eat anything and I can’t lose weight - the weight stays the same. This is where legends are born that after giving birth it is no longer possible to lose weight, that after 30 you shouldn’t even dream of losing weight, and other nutritional fiction. In fact, a situation where, after a fast start, weight loss significantly slows down or stops is the absolute norm, and it only means that the body is functioning normally and is ready to fight for survival.
photo from the site odnako.su
Fortunately, evolution also took care of the development of intelligence, thanks to which a person can bypass any opportunistic reactions and still achieve his goal - to lose weight. To do this, you just need to understand why weight stays the same during a diet.
So, having firmly decided that it is necessary to get rid of extra pounds, a person reduces the caloric content of his diet and begins to exercise. Following the logic, fat reserves should be immediately used up, but the numbers on the scales do not even think about changing. The fact is that when there is a lack of energy, the glycogen stored in the liver and muscles for such an event is consumed first.
The last recommendation for weight loss is healthy sleep.
In order to understand how to speed up weight loss, it is important to know that this requires optimal hormone performance. And in order for hormones to function normally, you need healthy sleep of at least 7 hours a day.
Video
There are many hormones that are necessary for our body, especially when losing weight, the production of which occurs from 11 pm during the period of deep sleep. Therefore, the later you go to bed, the less of these hormones will be produced. Weight is one of the indicators of good health. Therefore, you should not strive to lose weight just because it is fashionable. Proper nutrition, moderate exercise and healthy sleep will allow you to gain harmony without harm to your health.
Why weight stays the same when losing weight - glycogen reserves
Glycogen reserves are sufficient for half a day to a day of complete fasting with moderate activity. And only if at this time energy did not come from food, the process of fat breakdown begins. With a reasonable deficit of incoming food, amounting to 10-15% of the daily requirement, the glycogen depot will be partially restored and completely consumed 5-7 days after the start of the diet. Only after this does a biochemical process called “lipolysis” begin, which is the breakdown of fats.
photo from superdeal.com.ua
At this point, many will argue that they started losing weight from day one. Early weight loss occurs in the following cases:
- Significant nutritional deficiency. Naturally, without receiving any energy at all, the body will spend all glycogen in a day and begin lipolysis. But in parallel, as an adaptive mechanism, metabolism will slow down and calorie consumption for physiological needs will decrease;
- Loss of fluid. Intense physical activity accelerates blood flow and lymphatic drainage, so if there was excess fluid in the soft tissues, it goes away quickly enough. The effect of some miracle weight loss drugs is based on fluid loss. But taking diuretics is the last thing to do if your weight stays the same, although reviews of this method are often positive.
photo from the site krasnayakrov.ru
Diuretics improve scale readings on the first day. But a long-term lack of fluid threatens serious complications. First of all, it thickens the blood, increasing the risk of thrombosis, which leads to strokes and heart attacks.
Why the weight stopped when losing weight - dietary plateau
The most annoying situation is when the already started process of losing kilograms suddenly stops for no reason. Despite the fact that the diet and physical activity are not violated, such an algorithm has brought results before. Dietetics calls this phenomenon a “dietary plateau.” In such cases, people often lose motivation and give up further efforts. Don’t get excited, there are a lot of reasons why weight doesn’t come off with proper nutrition. Analyze your situation, find the cause and eliminate it.
The following mechanisms can serve as a reason for stopping the scale readings:
- Excessive caloric content of food;
- Fluid retention in the body;
- Unbalanced diet;
- Slowing metabolism;
- Pathological conditions.
It is no coincidence that excess calorie content of food is put in first place, although we are talking about people on a diet. The fact is that in some situations caloric restriction turns out to be imaginary. Even people who keep a food diary and calculate their diet using the correct formulas make the following mistakes:
- Unaccounted calories. Little things that you don't pay attention to also contain nasty calories, which in total can significantly affect the result. When calculating daily caloric intake, do not forget about the oil in which the food was cooked, a spoonful of sugar in coffee, half of a sandwich eaten by the child, or 5 spoons of stew that were eaten during the cooking process.
photo from the site topspbtv.ru
- Recalculation. Strictly following the calculated calorie intake is great. But do not forget that as you lose weight, your consumption rate also decreases. And the amount of food on which an 80-kilogram person loses weight will be quite sufficient for a 70-kilogram person. Of course, you shouldn’t take to the calculator for every kilogram you lose, but a plumb line of 5 kg is already a reason to recalculate.
Fluid retention in the body can easily add 2-3 or more kilograms to the scale readings. Having noticed a mark from the elastic band of socks on your shins or bags under your eyes, you already know what to do if the weight has stopped while losing weight - eliminate swelling. The causes of swelling can be a number of pathological and physiological conditions:
- The second phase of the menstrual cycle, which takes place under the predominance of progesterone;
- Large amount of salt in the diet;
- Taking medications - corticosteroids, antidepressants, oral contraceptives;
- Kidney and heart failure.
The paradoxical situation in which calorie intake is significantly less than normal, but at the same time a dietary plateau occurs due to an unbalanced diet, is not at all uncommon. In conditions of severe energy deficiency and insufficient intake of proteins from food, the body replaces muscle tissue with adipose tissue.
A kilogram of muscle requires three times more energy to maintain its vital functions than the same amount of fat. Therefore, replacing muscle fibers with fat cells is a very effective way to save scarce calories. At the same time, the weight remains the same, and energy requirements fall. The answer to the question “when losing weight, the weight has stopped - what to do?” there will be a sufficient supply of protein from food, since biochemical mechanisms do not allow the synthesis of fats from amino acids.
photo from the site girl-magazine.ru
Skepticism about a slow metabolism as a determining factor in a dietary plateau is completely unjustified. Skeptics appeal to the fact that with reduced nutrition there is simply no other way out but to use up fat reserves. This is not entirely true. In parallel with lipolysis, the same adaptive mechanisms that reduce basal metabolism are launched. A person begins to sleep more, gets tired faster, and tends to sit down at the first opportunity. Hair and nails grow more slowly, and the production of hormones and antibodies decreases.
What to do if you gain weight while losing weight due to a slower metabolism? It is impossible to consciously stop processes aimed, in essence, at saving lives in conditions of famine. But it’s quite possible to bypass them. First of all, you cannot reduce the diet to critical values. A caloric deficit of 10-15% will not give an immediate result, but will allow you to slowly and confidently lose weight, since with the help of lipolysis the required amount of energy will be delivered to the organs and tissues and the brain will not receive an SOS signal.
The so-called “variable calorie content” shows good results. Throughout the week, a person eats so that the calories in the diet are less than normal. After which, on the weekend, the caloric content of food is 100% of the norm. Thus, weight gain does not occur, but the body also has no reason to slow down biochemical processes.
Why weight loss costs weight - diseases leading to weight gain
Unlike nutritionists, athletes tend to downplay the importance of internal diseases that can interfere with weight loss. Even from trainers at famous fitness clubs you can hear the idea that it doesn’t matter what you’re sick with - a lot of training, little food and the result is guaranteed. This point of view is not only wrong, but also dangerous. Yes, strict restriction can achieve weight loss, but this will lead to irreversible health consequences. The answer to the question “if the weight has risen, what should I do?” may consist of the diagnosis and treatment of the following diseases:
photo from redmagazine.com.au
- Hypothyroidism is a decrease in the production of thyroid hormones. Patients are also concerned about weakness, fatigue, slow heart rate, hair loss, dry skin and other symptoms;
- Diabetes mellitus type 2 – accompanied by increased appetite, thirst, excretion of large amounts of urine, etc.;
- Hypogonadism is insufficient production of sex hormones. Accompanied by decreased libido, male and female infertility;
- Heart failure – accompanied by shortness of breath, a feeling of lack of air, swelling of the legs in the evenings;
- Renal failure - characterized by swelling of the face in the morning, a decrease in the amount of urine.
Checking and adjusting the performance of the thyroid gland
A decrease in the functionality of the thyroid gland causes a low level of hormone production, a slowdown in metabolic processes and a decrease in the amount of energy consumed in the body. Excess weight in such cases does not decrease, but remains unchanged.
Iodine, calcium, magnesium, iron and zinc, which are contained in seaweed, can help improve the functioning of the thyroid gland. For example, brown algae contains useful components and iodine in high concentrations. There are also amino acids necessary for protein hormone molecules.
Good functioning of the thyroid gland ensures:
- optimal metabolic rate and normal weight;
- high level of performance;
- when playing sports and increasing energy expenditure, maximum weight loss;
- girls have beautiful hair, nails and skin.
Therefore, the diet menu must be supplemented with “Kelp” - fortified capsules containing brown algae. Take 2 capsules every morning.
Video
How to beat the plateau effect
First of all, you need to understand that this is a temporary phenomenon, and you should not give up. With reasonable, targeted work, the weight will still decrease. For this purpose it is necessary:
- Eliminate diseases that can provoke weight gain;
- Create a menu balanced in protein/fat/carbohydrate composition;
- Provide a 10-15% caloric deficit and stick to it;
- Maintain a drinking regime without limiting the amount of liquid;
- Give preference to dynamic loads over power ones - running, swimming, aerobics, cycling;
- Limit salt intake if you are prone to edema.
photo from the site kkal.ru
And give your body rest, because it needs not only nutrients, vitamins and minerals. A sufficient amount of sleep, walks in the fresh air and a positive emotional mood also signal to the brain that everything is in order and there is no need for saving mode.
Now you know why weight is important when losing weight, what to do in such a situation and how to still achieve the desired slimness. Lose weight wisely and consciously, being careful not only about beauty, but also about your health.
Adviсe
Effective weight loss involves not only losing extra pounds, but also maintaining the physical and mental health of the person losing weight. If you select the right menu, there is a high probability of stabilizing the functioning of the gastrointestinal tract, improving immunity and the condition of hair, teeth and nails. It is this kind of diet that has the right to be called literate.
A few more “life hacks” for losing weight will help you lose weight without harm to your health:
- Drink clean water. Proper drinking regime guarantees weight loss, excellent health and beautiful skin.
- More vegetables and fruits. You should make it a rule to include vegetables in every main meal. For a snack, it is better to choose unsweetened juicy fruits - apples, kiwi, citrus fruits.
- Monitor protein levels. Insufficient consumption of meat, cheese and dairy products can have significant health impacts. And then you can forget about a beautiful sculpted body.
- Add vitamins. A strict diet can cause hypovitaminosis and decreased immunity. To avoid trouble, it is enough to take a course of pharmacy multivitamins or natural dietary supplements.
- Sports under control. Physical activity should be moderate. It is unacceptable to torment yourself in the gym, trudge home and satisfy your hunger with an apple. This will lead to extreme stress and exhaustion.
