If weight loss is hard for you, this article uncovers an issue that can often be the reason the metabolism just isn’t shifting.
Even when exercising and eating a low calorie diet – weight loss can’t happen with this hormonal factor playing up.
Read on…
Weight loss; it can be more complicated than you think!
For every one of us that’s ever been overweight, some well-meaning person (maybe even a healthcare professional!) has told us that the answer to weight loss is simple…just eat less and exercise more!
Honestly, if only it were that easy!
Weight gain and loss are complex processes. They can be highly individual and call for a truly holistic, personalised approach, as opposed to the rather dismissive one size fits all mantra of ‘energy in vs energy out’ that we’re all so familiar with.
In fact, only looking at calorie intake is not only misguided, but it can also be actively harmful as it ignores pertinent drivers such as how those calories affect our hormones and our metabolism. These factors strongly influence our ability to stick with a diet, particularly in the long term.
By not addressing drivers like this, which have a direct impact on our metabolic rate (and therefore on how effective the latest fat-blaster diet is actually going to be) then, ultimately, our metabolism will win out and we will regain any weight that we managed to lose, and sometimes a little extra too!
If you’re looking for some help with your weight loss goals, or even just someone to talk to about them, why don’t you reserve some time with a practitioner? Every member of our team is always ready to offer a little advice, so click the button below to organise a free call!
Weight factors
There are lots of factors other than your diet and exercise that can impact on how your body manages weight. Some of the more common ones are:
- Your family history, genetics, and the health and weight of your parents at conception and during fetal development can all influence your personal weight gain and loss.
- Your age can have a bearing on how easily you put on weight and how difficult it is for you to lose it.
- Your sex can influence where and how you store excess body fat, and therefore the health consequences of being overweight. Certain types of fat cells can also produce hormones, creating imbalances and further affecting weight management.
- How well you sleep (or don’t!) has a strong influence on your weight and poor sleep is strongly associated with being overweight as well as several other chronic health conditions.
- Your gut health, your microbiome and food intolerances are all important factors in weight gain.
- Chronic stress is both a direct and indirect contributor to weight gain, impacting upon our ability to make healthy choices, our overall hormone balance, and the way we store excess energy as fat.
- Many medications list weight gain as a known side effect and can contribute to difficulty regulating weight.
- Some medical conditions – such as hypothyroid disorders, hormone imbalances and metabolic conditions like type 2 diabetes – can promote weight gain.
With all of these many, many factors in mind (and some more that we haven’t mentioned here) it’s clear that the secret to weight loss simply isn’t as easy as diet and exercise, although they’re certainly part of the puzzle!
What this means is that a more holistic approach to weight management, one tailored to suit you as an individual, is the best chance of creating a permanent lifestyle change that will both ensure short-term benefits and long-term successes.
Getting to know YOU!
The best place to start when building a weight management program is with YOU!
A comprehensive health history, symptom assessment, and an in-depth discussion about your personal goals and priorities, are all building blocks to figuring out the best way to get your from point A to B in your health goals.
After meeting you, we dig a little deeper under the surface, utilising a series clinical tests to identify what drivers of weight gain and obstacles to weight loss might affect you as an individual.
And with that, we have all the puzzle pieces ready to go!
“I am in such a better state of physical health and state of mind due to your treatment. After battling a variety of chronic but gradually worsening symptoms for close to 20 years, in January I was resigning myself to the restrictions and limitations of life…However the treatment I have received through my consultations with my practitioner has returned my life to me – quite literally!”
– Jean A. (Central Coast NSW)
