How Do You Lose Weight? The Complexities of Weight Loss

When people go on a diet, they often ask, “How do you lose weight?”

We all know that if losing weight was easy, the majority of the population today would be healthy and fit, eating the right foods would be a cinch, and exercise would come naturally.

Sometimes, though, our bodies can throw a curve ball at us, even if we do everything we can to lose weight.

Often, this is when many people plateau, and their disappointment turns into a “failure” type of attitude.

If you find yourself developing this type of attitude toward losing weight, fear not, because there is an explanation for your weight loss woes.

In the video below, bistroMD’s founding physician, Caroline Cederquist, M.D., explains the difficulties of weight loss, and answers the question: “How do you lose weight?”

Listed below are some reasons why losing weight can lead to a big stumbling block, and what you can do to overcome these obstacles.

The “Eat Less, Exercise More” Approach

A path that many people take is a hard-core exercise program, with little diet, and a whole lot of physical activity. This is an “eat less, exercise more” approach to weight loss that just doesn’t work.

When you exercise more and eat less, you aren’t taking into account the fact that metabolic issues, including hormonal changes, could be the reason why you are having trouble losing weight.

When you get "skimpy" with your meals, and exercise more, your body is most likely not getting the proper nutrients it needs from food.

In order for your metabolism to burn stored body fat, it needs to be fueled by proper nutrition. If your metabolism doesn’t get the appropriate amount of nutrition from food, your body will literally start feeding off of itself for energy, making it difficult for you to lose weight, but easy to gain.

Daily Activities Can Cause a Bigger Struggle

When we wake up in the morning, we don’t even think that our daily activities can also have a negative effect on our weight loss.

These are just simple activities you do every day: Going to work, paying bills, and even taking your daily medications.

Believe it or not, some medications, if taken on a daily basis, can make it easy to gain weight, but difficult to lose. These include medications for conditions like diabetes, and even certain medications prescribed for psychological conditions, like depression.

Steroid medications can also make it difficult for you to lose weight, especially if you have certain conditions, like rheumatoid arthritis.

More Stress Can Lead to More Weight Gain

Stress is something that many of us have to deal with every day, but it can also put a halt on your weight loss goals.

When bills start piling up, when life gets complicated, we either eat a lot less, or eat even more.

Stress is not ideal for weight loss because it makes our bodies crave things, like sugars and starches, especially if we are not eating a proper diet.

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