I EAT HEALTHY AND WORK OUT, WHY IS MY BODY NOT CHANGING?

I hear this ALL. THE. TIME. The frustration. The annoyance. After putting in so much effort, yet seeing minimal results. Clients have followed diets and workout plans found online for years with only yo-yo results. As a health coach, I get to the roots of their weight loss difficulties and through nutrition, health and fitness coaching, find a lifestyle and plan that will ensure consistency, and therefore, long-lasting results. 

No matter the client’s background, there is always a checklist I run through to find where they could have been going wrong in their health journey up until now:

5 Key Things Before You Go On a Diet

Off the rack diets won’t take your individual body and lifestyle into account, just because it worked for your best friend, doesn’t mean it will work for you. You might be eating salad each lunchtime and working out almost everyday but you’re simply not getting the results you want.

It’s frustrating to be putting in the work, making the time, the effort and the choices, and NOT seeing the changes you desire. BUT the good thing is, there are reasons as to WHY NOT.

And, I can relate, I’ve been there.

I’ve eaten healthy and worked out since I was 13, but I didn’t start to have control over my body, and didn’t truly start changing shape (and keeping the changes), until I did these 5 things:

1. Understood That It’s Not Just About Calories In, Calories Out

I wish it were that simple, but it’s not. There are a lot of factors that dictate whether we can lose fat weight and if we’ll keep it off. A few of those things are hormones (sex and stress), stress (cortisol, adrenal health), sleep, recovery, blood sugar, digestion, gut flora imbalances, food intolerances, etc... then comes things like habits, calories in calories out, supporting muscle with proper protein for goals, consistency, proper training, adjusting intake per body change needs. 

You can't “band-aid” the internal health things. 

They will surface by means of not allowing you to lose weight - or keeping you in the yo-yo. I promise, if you get those things in check, the outside WILL follow. Focus on causes instead of bandaging symptoms. 

So, before you start your weight loss journey, please consider when is the last time you dieted? If you’ve purposely taken in less calories for quite some time OR if you maintain a low intake because this is going to make fat loss really tough. Exercise and diet are our tools, if we are already using them (eating low intake and exercising a grandiose amount) we lose them. Make sure your maintenance intake level is somewhere you can make changes to healthfully.

2. Learned About How The Body Actually Transforms

Fat loss is a phase of body transformation, and also the most misunderstood and abused. Fat loss is a PHASE, not a lifestyle. If you are chasing fat loss then there is either one of the factors in #1 above that is throwing you off, or you are not actually in fat loss. Fat loss is tough. It requires you to be in a deficit of intake and that’s not comfortable, and when you are in a deficit, that's added stress on the body, the mind, the stress systems of the body, hormones and it also causes our metabolism to down regulate. 

Fat loss isn't something that you can be in forever. It's not possible as it is hard on the body and on you. This is important because if you are eating very little food and working out a good amount and you are not seeing your body change, you may need to go into a reverse diet phase to get your body back in your control again. I go into a bit more detail in this blog post.

3. Got My Gut Health In Check

There are many parts to gut health, (food intolerances, bacteria balance, digestive enzymes, etc) but the one I want to mention here is digestion. 

A common theme I see is that so many think that going to the bathroom 2-3 times per week is normal. That is NOT normal. 

You should be eliminating daily and if you are not, or if you have a lot of gas, bloat, diarrhea, it’s not normal. This is REALLY important and you need to figure out WHY NOT. These functions need to be regulated to be able to transform your body. 

Gas/bloat included - they all have causes that need to be addressed - these might be common but they’re not normal. Plus, you can’t get a good read on feedback from the body if you’re not in a normal pooping routine. Is the scale change actually weight or is it bowels backed up?

4. Learned How Much Stress Is A Factor In Weight Loss

I remember training for my 2nd bikini competition, I was 100% on point with my diet & training, all things were going so well. Then I had a few weeks of lots of emotional stress. I went to weigh in for my coach & the scale was up 8lbs (in less than 2 weeks). Yes, 8 freakin’ lbs! I didn’t change anything! 

So I learned this, nothing else matters; calories, workouts, water - if you are stressed out. Stress is hormones and hormones dictate whether we’re going to be able to lose fat. If you’re stressed internally or externally, the body is going to do what it can to protect and its priority is not going to be weight loss. 

Think fight, or flight. If you’re constantly walking around tired, sad, angry, moody, frustrated, overwhelmed, anxious - I’m going to bet that hunger, cravings, energy and more are feeling out of whack too. So yes, calories do matter, but if your hormones, gut and stress aren’t in check, nothing else you do, matters.

Your body makes cortisol in response to stress, if you run around stressed too much of the time, cortisol heightens. High or dysregulated cortisol levels wreak havoc over time, depleting your happy brain chemicals like serotonin, robbing your sleep, and making you store fat - especially in your belly. High cortisol is likewise linked to depression, food addiction, and sugar cravings. Find the root cause and fix it first (don’t waste your efforts)!

I wrote a blog post focusing on how to spot stress as well as methods of managing stress and sleep at home, take a read here. If you need deeper help figuring out what needs to change and want to finally understand your body to get results that stick around, send me a message, let's chat.

5. Learned My Body

I’ve tried all the diets out there too. I did weight watchers, Atkins, paleo, south beach, whole 30, you name it… but the thing is that there are so many diets out there because they worked for someone at some point in their weightless journey. You are not them. You are you. 

Why continue putting in so much effort to adhere to diets and styles of eating that give you temporary results and aren't custom to YOUR body. Stop the yo-yo. Learn your body and its needs. Get the internal stuff working well for you, learn the foods that your body thrives on, learn how much fuel your body needs (and how to adjust it in response to your body changes and shifts in health) and how your body works. 

Understand your mind and create habits. That’s where permanent body transformation comes from. Invest in it once and for all - learning your body is something you will forever use, how you feel in your skin affects everything: mood, attitude, focus, relationships, etc... you deserve to not think about food or discomforts 24/7.

You’ve got one body and it’s not going to get any easier. As the days and years pile on, it will only get harder to peel back the layers and get your body functioning well and you in control of it (your mind too). Do. it. now.

If you need help figuring out the 'why not', what needs to change and what to do to finally ensure that your efforts are creating results, reach out or check out how we can help you. I love teaching this stuff and these stages are SO important!

What’s Your Goal? What’s Going On In Your Life?

This is a critical question to ask yourself, your goal is going to determine the likelihood of success. 

Are you able to dedicate the efforts to prioritizing that goal? 

Fat loss takes effort - it’s going to leave you a bit hungry on the reg, workouts can’t be excused, and eating habits need to be the best they can be. It’s tough. If you haven’t dedicated time to your food relationship, triggers, if your hormones are skewed, digestion is off, and if stress is high, get those in check first so your efforts actually lead somewhere.

If you’ve experienced the “putting efforts in, yet don’t see results” feels, come back to this checklist. If you need help, reach out, we offer consults to help ensure your foci are in the right place.