Exercise is one of the key ingredients to successful weight loss. It tones up your body and gets rid of excess fat, making it easier to achieve your body goals.
But what happens when you’re working out but not losing weight? Are you doomed to get stuck on a plateau for the rest of your life?
Learn about why you’re doing the hard work but not getting the results you want with these 8 reasons why you’re not losing weight. Take charge of your life today and see what you need to do to make the change.
1. Measure Your Body Instead of Using the Scale
One reason why you’re exercising but not losing weight has to do with if you’re measuring weight loss by what the scale says or what you notice with a tape measure. Taking measurements shows an accurate picture of weight loss and how many inches you’ve actually dropped.
If you’re using a scale, you’ll have a harder time calculating this, even when you’re losing weight. That’s because muscle weighs more than fat, making it appear like nothing changed even when you’ve put in hard work at the gym.
2. Avoid Junk Food If You’re Working out but Not Losing Weight
Junk food tastes good and satisfies a lot of cravings, but it does nothing for your body. If you’re chowing down on all your old favorites and working out, you’re still prone to weight gain.
If you’re after results with your workouts, make a point to stop eating junk food. Even if you wean yourself off it, you’ll find the weight loss you’re looking for.
3. Create a Balance of Weights and Cardio
If you’re looking for weight loss, it’s important not to choose one type of workout over the other. You’ll need an equal balance of weights and cardio for a lean look.
Weights help define and tone your body, while cardio helps shed the layers of fat you have to showcase the muscle tone. Doing weights before cardio offers the most benefit, making it easy to develop a lean, toned body quickly.
4. You’re Finding Sleep Difficult
There’s a variety of reasons why people find it difficult to sleep at night. From stress at work, illness, allergies, or even naps that last too long during the day, it’s easy for your sleep to get out of whack.
If you stay up too later or get up in the middle of the night and don’t attempt to go back to bed, it’s easy to gain weight. Proper sleep allows your body enough rest to get up and start the day, with enough energy to power through it.
If you’re noticing disruptive sleep patterns, start identifying the problems and changing them. You’ll find it easier to stick to a healthy lifestyle when you cover all your bases.
5. Cut down on Nights out Drinking
Everyone enjoys a night out. For most people, that includes eating your favorite foods and enjoying a drink or two.
Once in a while, this isn’t a big deal. But if you’re going out two times a week or more and indulging every time, consider cutting back.
Too much time out means you’ll face additional challenges in losing weight. If you stay out too late, it’s harder to wake up and begin working out.
Alcohol can affect your desire to eat at a normal time. Monitor how often you go out and call it an early night when you can to stay on track and get healthy.
6. If You’re Not Losing Weight, Eat Whole Foods
Many people think health food means items labeled as fat-free or vegan. While these can sometimes help, eating natural, whole foods is the best way to ensure weight loss.
Your body spends less time breaking down the foods, and you’ll notice greater energy throughout the day. If you’re having a tough time staying on track, consider a fitness journal to track the food you eat and your workouts.
Once you notice yourself making healthy choices, you’ll feel encouraged to keep going on your journey.
7. Fill up on Water, Not Soda
Getting thirsty throughout the day is normal. If you’re looking to quench your thirst, you reach for your favorite soft drink and reward yourself with something that keeps your cravings at bay.
Although soft drinks sound like a fun idea, it’s better to opt for a natural, calorie-free option when you need to rehydrate. Water is free in both cost and calories and offers a practical solution.
It won’t damage your teeth and goes with any meal. If you’re still not sold on the benefits of water, consider getting a filter for your house, so you can enjoy pure, store-bought quality at home whenever you want.
8. Keep Your Expectations Real
As you go through the journey to lose weight, know that it’s important to keep your expectations in line with what you want to see. Most people start to lose excess fat easily but then reach a plateau of only one or two pounds a week.
Even if you’re not noticing drastic results, it’s important to keep at your goal. Doing so keeps you healthy and allows your body to bounce back quickly after you’ve gone through a weight gain.
A healthy lifestyle is more than just weight loss, so understand that your healthy habits make a difference, even when you can’t see the results of your hard work.
Learn More
If you notice you’re working out but not losing weight, understand that the process takes time. Making small adjustments and sticking to good habits go a long way in losing weight and getting your body on track.
If you’re having issues with weight loss, there’s more than one way to reach your goals. Check out our blog post on creating a weight loss calendar, and see how you can make plans that keep you aligned with your habits.