There’s nothing more discouraging then forcefully pushing your body and mind to the limits every day without anything to show for it. Frustration quickly builds to the tipping point when there isn’t much change on your home scale after weeks of training and dieting.
Even though you may be following every last detail of your personal trainer’s weight loss program you should not be surprised if the scale doesn’t dramatically tip in your favor. It’ll be tempting to pair your lack of results with failure, but there very well could more reasons why you’re not getting the results you want.
The biggest reason beginner’s quit their fitness program is for the lack of progress. Of course, we all want to have extraordinary results in the fastest time possible. If your body isn’t responding the way you want then your motivation is going to fall deeper into the hole of despair.
Problems arise when we restrict ourselves from only using a single form of measurement for results tracking. Weighing yourself leads to problems simply because there are so many factors that can affect your weight.
Your body is more likely benefiting from your training and dieting efforts even though the scale may not show it. This could be because you’re:
- retaining water
- gaining muscle
- hormones are out of whack
- pre-menstruating
If you can’t lose weight you should consider getting your Hormones tested....
If you’ve ever heard me talk of the hormone Leptin then you’ll know that it’s CRITICAL when it comes to losing weight. Basically to lose weight, we all know you have to be taking in less calories then you’re expending. WARNING: taking in super low calories for long will have the opposite effect and will DROP the leptin hormone levels in your body and you won’t be able to burn any more fat.
Another hormone that may be preventing you from losing weight is Cortisol. You’ve probably seen those scammy late night television ads trying to sell you pills to prevent cortisol, and they’re a total ripoff by the way…
And it’s true that stress is one of the biggest causes of cortisol and it will put most of your fat into your belly. A good way to combat high cortisol levels is to produce a lot of lactic acid in the muscles while you’re training. The lactic acid in your muscles gives you that “burning” sensation like your muscles are about to burst open.
Lactic acid is mostly produced by the concentric (positive) part of the motion in exercise, so when you’re doing lifts it’ll be a great idea to focus on going a lot slower on those movements then you would when you do the eccentric (negative) motion. This will help produce lactic acid in your muscles and fight the belly fat storing cortisol in your body.
Insulin is another hormone that you’ll need to know about for losing weight. To keep your insulin levels stable you’ll have to cut back on your sugar and carbohydrate intake. Becoming insulin resistant will be a pain in your butt if you’re trying to achieve your dream body. So this also means eating smaller 5-6 meals a day, 3-4 hours apart. This way you’re sugar levels are stable throughout the day.
Do everything you can do avoid sugar, white flour and white carbohydrates. These will inevitably spike your blood sugar levels like a crack fiend and then it’ll only be a matter of time before they come crashing down.
The last hormone I want to talk about when it comes to losing weight is Estrogen. Basically when you have too much estrogen in your body then you’ll be storing a lot more fat in the hips and thighs area.
A great way to naturally combat high estrogen levels would be to increase your natural testosterone levels. This means cutting out all foods that have soy and estrogens.
Nobody likes working hard without anything to show for it. Getting these 4 hormones tested and under control as well as regular exercise and healthy food choices will inevitably promote weight loss and start transforming your body right in front of your eyes.
Have a Happy and Healthy Day, Cheers:)