You seem to do all the "right things", but still can't fit into those favorite jeans of your from a few years ago? Does another new diet make you feel frustrated because it seems so difficult to lose weight? You are not alone! Weight loss for women is not always that simple and there are many reasons you might be struggling with that.
Before I go over the most common reasons that make it hard for women to lose weight, it's worth mentioning next. We are always tempted to use an approach that will give us a quick fix or instant gratification.
“Any quick fix is shortly lived.”
When we lose weight fast, most of the time we end up gaining it right back, damaging our metabolism in the process.
With that being said, here are 5 things that you can check yourself on to jump start your weight loss journey.
1. You Are Not Getting Enough of Good Quality Sleep.
Yes, the quality of your sleep as well as the amount of it impacts your ability to lose weight. Your hormones and insulin sensitivity is regulated during your sleep, so the lack of those "z's" affects how those hormones will be operating when you wake up in the morning.
If you constantly missing out on sleep, your hormones such as ghrelin and leptin ( they are responsible for appetite regulation) are not functioning properly. That is when you find yourself craving those processed carbs, sugar or that pick-me-up high-calorie coffee drink. Those choices overtime will affect your hormonal balance.
2. Too Much Long Steady State Cardio.
All forms of exercise can contribute towards weight loss when done appropriately in the same time we want to make sure that you’re not overdoing the long slow cardio. Your body is master adaptor, which means it will quickly adapt to the amounts of slow cardio and after a while you will stop seeing results, because your body will no longer recognize it as a stress factor.
If you’ve been exercising regularly for a while and the primary focus has been jumping on your favorite piece of cardio equipment and working at a steady level, it might be time to switch things up and add some HIIT (High intensity interval training) or sprints into your routine. Important to notice there are a few considerations concerning safety, so if you’re new to exercise, or you have an injury or medical concern, seek professional advice around whether it’s right for you. If you’re going through menopause it’s also worth seeking advice.
3. You neglect resistance training
Are you afraid that you will bulk up if you start lifting weights? That is far from reality and let me explain why. The reality is resistance training is important for women for so many reasons. One of the main ones is it helps build bone density, as well as muscle mass. The amount of muscle you have can increase your BMR and help you to burn more calories, even at rest. So by building muscle you’re assisting your body’s ability to burn fat. The more muscle mass you have, the more fat you burn, because muscle is metabolically expensive tissue.
As we age it's harder for women to maintain the muscle due to hormonal changes, that is why they say it's harder to lose weight when you get older and resistance training helps you with that.
4. Not Consuming Enough Protein
It's harder for your body to break down protein so it works hard and burns calories along the way with digestion. When we exercise we create micro tears in the muscle tissue and stimulate protein synthesis therefore we need to properly support recovery process.
5. You Might be Drinking Too Much
Calories from alcohol still get added to your overall energy intake. So it’s worth considering whether that extra glass of wine is worth it, or whether you’d prefer to get those calories from some nutrient rich food. Furthermore, alcohol can stimulate further eating, and also lead to abandonment of restraint when it comes to food choices.