You are doing everything right, or so it seems. You watch
what you eat, you exercise as much as you can and yet, you are just not losing
any weight, you look in the mirror and all you see is your flabby self, glaring right back at you!
If this scenario sounds familiar, don’t despair, you are not
alone. I have been there and done that too. Trying to get in shape, lose weight
and build muscle and getting little or no results can be very frustrating and
it even leads many people to give up altogether. If you are on that cusp,
please don’t give up, if you are really, honestly doing all that you can and
not getting results then its time to look under the rock for the hidden
culprits.
There are some factors within and outside your immediate
control that can lead to unexplained weight gain, today we are going to be
exploring them and also the cures for these conditions. If any of these
conditions look familiar to you, then I suggest you try the recommended cures
in this article, they work.
Thanks for reading, and do have a wonderful weekend!
1. LACK OF SLEEP:
Surprise! In my experience, most people
think that lack of sleep will make them lose weight; nothing could be farther
from the truth. As we sleep, our bodies heal, regulate hormones and get rid of
the past day’s stress. However, when we are deprived of sleep, the body lacks sufficient recovery time and
this adversely affects body function. We wake up tired, sore and groggy. Lack
of sleep will also make you crave carbohydrates especially those high in added
sugar because lack of sleep will leave you needing a quick energy boost. Being
sleep deprived makes it more likely that you will skip exercise the day after,
snack late and night and crave junk food.
Even if you manage to stick to your diet
and exercise routine, as long as you are sleep deprived, it is likely that the
extra weight will still stay on. The culprit in this case is a hormone, CORTISOL. It is a stress hormone, which
in addition to increasing your appetite also encourages fat storage. In a nutshell,
lack of sleep can disrupt your metabolism and make you fat!
THE
SOLUTION:
There really is only one solution, more
sleep! The average adult needs 7 to 9 hours of sleep a day to function
optimally, if you schedule is so choked that you cant get that many hours
straight at night, then I suggest you take at least two 30 mins naps at least
twice a day. Also when you need that quick snack try to have fruits and nuts
handy, they are a better option than junk food.
2. SUGAR FREE DRINKS/ ARTIFICIAL SUGAR:
Sugar as we all know is the devil! As a
result supermarkets are stocked with all manner of sugar free drinks to avoid
sending you to hell, great right? Not quite, sugar free does not always mean
healthy and some sugar free drinks could be very damaging to you fat loss
efforts. Studies have shown that sugar free sweetener alternatives like
aspartame (another Devil!) may actually increase your appetite. Here’s how;
artificial sweeteners can be 200 times sweeter than sugar, if you consume them
regularly, you unknowing train your taste towards very sweet foods. This
triggers sweetness receptors in the brain to constantly crave sugar.
Another danger with sugar free drinks is
that your body “tastes sugar” and responds to sugar but receives no real sugar.
Your body responds to this sweetness by releasing insulin but with no sugar to
act on, your body craves sugar even more. Over time, this vicious cycle can
lead to weight gain and insulin resistance and even type 2 diabetes.
THE
SOLUTION:
Artificial sugars can be a concern if you
form the habit of eating sugar free foods and drinking “diet” soft drinks. So
the first and most obvious solution is to avoid all sugars, real and
artificial. If you still crave some sweetness in your life, then create your
own flavoured drinks based on fruits and honey. It’s still sugar but fructose
based.
3. TOO MUCH STRESS:
I have purposely labeled this too much
stress and not stress and for a very good reason. Stress is part of life and a little stress is
good for both the body and the mind. However, when the body is perpetually in a
stressed condition things start to go off the rails. For some people when they
are under too much stress, they make poor food choices; I must confess that I
fall under this category!
For some people, eating can be a source of
solace and help lower stress, but emotional eating due to stress can lead to
overeating and weight gain. Stress also releases more stress hormones like
cortisol into the system and cortisol is a major culprit in unexplained weight
gain.
THE
SOLUTION:
The solution is to reduce stress in your
life, try to engage in activities that you find relaxing. Go for walks, work
out in the gym, watch a funny movie , or just simply take a 5 minute mental
break from the situation that is stressing you out, they all help. Taking time
to do something you love, and taking a break relaxes your mind so that you can
better deal with the stresses in your day.
4. FOOD SENSITIVITY OR INTOLERANCE:
This topic is a bit controversial as not
many people can agree on the exact cause of food intolerance. People react
differently to all kinds of foods. Food intolerances and sensitivities are the
body’s physiological response to certain types of foods. They are not however
the same as food allergies which can be life threatening!
Symptoms of food intolerance can vary, but
the most common include; bloating, gas, indigestion, fatigue, mental fog,
moodiness and weight gain. These reactions are due to the inflammatory response
of the immune system when exposed to certain foods; the inflammatory response
can cause weight gain and worse make it very difficult to lose weight. In fact
inflammation is a major cause of weight gain and disease.
THE
SOLUTION:
The good news is that food intolerances can
be treated; it will cost you some money though. If you suspect that your
inability to lose weight might be due to food sensitivity, your best bet is to
get a doctor, specifically an expert in nutrition to run tests on you to
determine if you have food intolerances or not. Or conversely you can run a
practical test on yourself by eliminating certain trigger foods like bread,
dairy, and gluten from your diet for at least 6 weeks to see how your body
responds. If you discover sensitivity, remove the food from your diet and you
should notice a dramatic change in how much weight you are able to lose.
5. LACK OF PORTION CONTROL:
This is the most obvious culprit of weight
gain, yet most of us are guilty of letting it sabotage our weight loss efforts.
Now you might be saying “but I eat clean” yes you do, but excess calories are
excess calories, clean or dirty! For example you eat two handfuls of groundnuts
an hour before dinner, and then eat a hearty dinner after a hard day’s work,
and what do you know, you’ve consumed 1000 calories within an hour, all without
being conscious.
In conclusion, you might be eating healthy
foods but too much is still too much, no matter how healthy the meal. Consuming
extra portions of even the most healthy of foods is still enough to cause
unwanted weight gain.
THE
SOLUTION:
There are a number of ways to get your food
portions under control, the easiest is to eat from a smaller plate, others
include; chew more slowly, stop eating the moment you no longer feel hungry and
drink water before your meal.
There you have it folks, I know unwanted
weight gain can be frustrating, especially when you don’t know the cause. My
advice to you is to step back and evaluate your behavior in line with the five
points explained in today’s post, chances are you might find out that one or
more of them is your hidden culprit!
Thanks, and do have a wonderful weekend!
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