Why you’re not losing that stubborn weight
JUST as the doctor ordered, you started to eat well, hit the gym and changed your sedentary lifestyle practices. But despite all your efforts to lose weight, the figures on the scale remain as stable as an anchored boat.
Frustrating, right? Not to worry though, there are several possible causes for your limited progress, and guided by clinical nutritionist Dr Kimberley Sommerville, we explore some of the culprits that may be obstructing your weight loss goals.
You are doing a poor job at portion control
“You may have changed your diet to include more fruits, vegetables and complex carbohydrates, good proteins and fats, but you are eating too much of each of these food groups,” Dr Sommerville explained. She pointed out that even as you might be making better food choices, if you are eating too much of them and not burning enough calories then you will still gain weight.
You are skipping meals
A lot of people think that to lose weight, starving themselves might help. This has led to many people choosing to skip meals thinking that since they will consume fewer calories they will shed pounds. However, when this happens, Dr Sommerville said what the body does when you are hungry and you don’t eat is to store the fat because it feels pressured or starved and feels that it needs to reserve, causing you to gain or maintain your body weight.
Eating until you are uncomfortably full
“If you eat until you are uncomfortably full, the message that your stomach gets is that it needs to stretch a little more to accommodate more food. The more your stomach stretches, the less your stomach will feel full in the other meals to come,” Dr Sommerville said. This means that you are conditioning your stomach to need more food to feel full. The nutritionist said, though, that choosing smaller meal portions can help your stomach to revert to a smaller size. “One other way to ensure that you don’t eat until you are uncomfortably full is to make sure that you are not very hungry before you eat. Choose smaller portions and snacks throughout your day,” Dr Sommerville advised.
You go for seconds, almost immediately
Going for seconds is not necessarily bad, especially if you eat small portions, but you might not need them if you give your body a chance. “You need to give your body at least 20 minutes after you have eaten before you eat another meal. This way the brain can register what is happening in the stomach, and you may realise that you don’t need any more food,” Dr Sommerville underscored.
You are living a sedentary lifestyle
The general recommendation is that you aim for a ratio of 80 per cent diet and 20 per cent exercise. However, the clinical nutritionist suggests that you engage your body in exercise as often as you can. Not all of us are sedentary by choice but there are ways that we add more activities into our day. “So if you have a sedentary job, try to get up at least once per hour and stretch… a few jumping jacks. Instead of driving everywhere, consider walking to complete errands as often as possible, choosing a parking space farther from your office and so on,” Dr Sommerville recommended.
Hormonal health conditions
Hormonal imbalances such as polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), Cushing’s syndrome and hypothyroidism can disrupt the metabolic rates and impact your ability to lose weight. “PCOS is a common hormonal imbalance in which women may have irregular periods, it affects the body’s secretion and use of insulin, which puts women at a greater risk of obesity. Hypothyroidism is where there is not enough thyroid hormone being produced which is one hormone important in our daily metabolism, and then in the case of Cushing’s syndrome, there is an overproduction of the cortisol hormone which helps to keep weight on,” Dr Sommerville explained.
Poor sleeping habits
Not getting enough sleep or poor sleep habits are a major risk for obesity. Outside of wanting to eat more when you are up, sleep deprivation can also affect the secretion of cortisol — one of the hormones that regulate your appetite. Your energy levels and mood will also be affected.
You’re stressed
Stress is notorious for wreaking havoc on our bodies — stress can come from all facets of our lives including relationships and work. “One type of stress that many of us don’t talk enough about is over-exercising and under-eating. So if you practice a lot of intensive exercises all week and don’t nourish the body properly, this puts stress on it. When our body is stressed there is an increase in the production and release cortisol, which tells the body to reserve the fat,” Dr Sommerville advised.
Dr Kimberley Sommerville is a clinical nutritionist at Imara Medical, Suite 20 Winchester Business Centre, 15 Hope Road. She can be reached online at simplesommernaturals.com.
