Cannot loose weight/body fat

Question
QUESTION: Hi Tasha,
First of all, thanks for answering all questions! It really can make a difference..
So, my story goes like this: it's been a year now that I've been trying to loose weigh. I'm 28 years old and work in an office. I have started going to the gym, fixed my nutrition (was actually under-eating beforehand) and made any possible change in order to reduce by BF% from 28% to something lower together with loosing a couple of kilos.
I initially gained some weight (around 2-2.5 kg) which i suppose was because i started eating normal again (from around 900 kcals/day to around 1400 kcals/day which is my resting metabolic rate). From around December, i have stopped gaining but don't seem to be able to either loose weight or lower my BF%.

A typical week of training is:
- Mon-Wed-Fri: whole body circuit workout (40-50mins)
- Tue: 40min swimming
- Thu: 40 min interval cardio
- Sat: rest
- Sun: 45-60 min cardio

A typical daily food intake:
8am: low-fat strain greek yogurt (love it! and is also high in protein) + 2tbsp granola + 1tsp seeds
10am: small fruit+low fat cheese OR half wholemeal turkey sandwitch
(workout usually between 11:30-12:30)
1pm: bananna+whey shake OR 1/2bananna+whey shake with milk
2.30pm: tuna OR chicken and cottage cheese salad (spinach, greens, cabbage, carrot)
4.30pm: low-fat strain greek yogurt + 1tbsp seeds
7.30pm: omelet(2 egg white, 1 whole eg) and salad OR salmon and broad bean salad OR beef and peas casserole with salad
10.30pm: low-fat strain greek yogurt + 1tbsp seeds + 1tsp honey

I usually drink 1 coffee a day plus lots of tea!

All in all should be around 1500 kcal/day

So, after all of that i still can't loose any weight, nor loose inches or BF%. Where do you think all of this goes wrong? It is my nutrition, my exercise routine, both?

Any suggestions would help me a lot!

Thanks,
Anna

ANSWER: Dear Anna,

Thank you for contacting allexperts.com. I hope that I can assist you with your question.

Without getting more information from you, just based upon what I have to go on, it would appear to me that you are eating way too much processed food.

Just taking a quick look, I would say that most likely the food you eat every single day is laden with unhealthy chemical additives and preservatives.  Certainly, it appears to me that you are eating way more protein than you need and certainly far too much meat and not nearly enough whole, unprocessed, natural vegetables, fruits, grains, nuts and seeds.  

Ideally, you should limit your intake of meat to 3 ounces twice a week and eliminate your dairy completely. Dairy products are the leading cause of dietary allergies and have been linked to auto-immune disorders and even cancer.  Although, I will grant you that yogurt is probably the least detrimental, most likely if it is a commercial brand, it is going to contain some chemical preservatives or additives.  If you cannot live without your Greek Yogurt, then I would strongly encourage you to learn how to make your own yogurt (or buy a yogurt machine).  You might also consider trying cashew yogurt to see if it might be a viable substitute for the dairy kind.

Keeping your meat intake down and eliminating diary will reduce your calorie intake.  Replacing these unhealthy foods with fresh, unprocessed, whole foods (preferably raw and preferably organic), will provide you with much-needed added nutrients but not impact your overall calorie intake. It will also provide you with higher levels of fiber which will help you to feel full longer after a meal and reduce any desire to snack or nibble between meals.

Ultimately, when it comes to losing weight you must either reduce your calorie intake or increase your exercise level. You cannot lose weight without having a calorie deficit.  That is simple physics.  Therefore, I would recommend that you reduce your yogurt to once per day, eliminate all other dairy and meat and substitute it with as much raw fruit, vegetables, nuts and seeds as possible.

As far as your exercise routine is concerned, I would increase my daily exercise level to one hour of very low impact exercise such as swimming.  If you are located in a place where you have the ability to walk on natural ground (not concrete or asphalt), I would also recommend an additional 30 minutes of day walking on this type of surface. If you can only walk on asphalt or concrete, then I would not recommend this since the damage done to joints is too high to justify the added benefit of the exercise.  Also, it is vitally important that you get sunlight exposure and breathe fresh air on a daily basis.  So a good 30 minute walk will provide much added benefit to your health and well-being.

I also recommend a good vitamin supplement to ensure you are receiving adequate levels of vital nutrients. Judging from the diet you described, it would appear that you are low on B Vitamins which are very important in neurological functioning of the body. Aside from the poor-quality dairy, you might also be low on Vitamin D, which has been proven to prevent more than 35 types of cancer.  Spending 20 minutes outside in the sunlight will provide you with more than 50,000 IU of vitamin D and more than enough to keep you healthy.

The most important factor in your quest for weight loss is definitely to stop eating any processed foods at all. I go in to greater detail about this in my blog http://everydayhealthandwellness.com, but I will briefly mention that when the body is bombarded with chemicals it has a mechanism whereby it isolates potentially harmful substances by encasing it in a protective layer of fat. Many people know this fat as cellulite.  This type of fat can be present on people who are very slender and since the body is protecting itself from poison, it is EXTREMELY difficult to get rid of, or diet away.

Keep in mind that in addition to losing weight and reducing you body fat, by eating a healthier diet you will receive the added bonus of feeling much more energetic and having more stamina in your day to day life. Eating whole foods often results in needing less sleep and performing better in all aspects of your life. Not to mention the fact that you will be less likely to develop the many diseases and disorders that are generally accepted as being part of the aging process.

Thank you for contacting me and if I can be of any further assistance, please let me know.

Tasha

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Hi Tasha,
First of all, thanks very much for all that info!
I have (very importantly) forgot to say that I am 1.7m height and 66kg weight. I would just like to loose 3-4 kg

About the yogurt ... the one i am eating contains only pasteurized skimmed milk and milk cream and live active yogurt culture (it's the Total 2% from FAGE if you are aware), so it seems that it does not have any additives. I actually say that because i recently start eating that yogurt for the reason that you mention ... that most yogurts have many additives.

Also, why do you think i eat to much processed food? All of these foods i mentioned are cooked by myself from raw ingredients. And usually meat is once a week, mainly for iron. Which foods should i avoid?

You are right about the protein, but i was told to up my protein (as well as to train a bit extra with weights) in order to exit from the starvation mode i was in when i was eating only 800-900 kcals a day. I guess i can return to normal now that i'm eating normal amount of kcals for some time..

So, do you suggest doing more slow pace cardio instead of circuits and interval training? I did that because i read they are the best form of loosing fat

By the way, I forgot to mention that i do take a multivitamin + 2 omega3 capsules per day

Thanks again answering!
Anna

Answer
I apologize for jumping to conclusions about the processed foods.  Most people do not prepare their own meats but simply use commercial lunch meat for their sandwiches, etc. Often other food such as salads, etc., are mass produced and consumed which contain chemical additives and ingredients.

It sounds to me like you are doing everything right. As far as the multi-vitamin. I have not yet seen one that I would recommend. Usually the potencies are too small to be helpful and other ingredients such as binders are present. If you purchase a multi-vitamin at a health food store, you will find that you have to take two or sometimes three a day to obtain the levels of nutrients needed for optimum health.  I would recommend purchasing a good quality multi-vitamin that contains sufficient quantities of vitamins, minerals, amino acids as well as other nutrients.

As far as exercise, everyone is different. I always tend to recommend low impact cardio workouts for burning calories. But if you are working with a trainer who knows you and knows your unique body metabolism, I would certainly go with his or her recommendations.

Again, the only solution I can offer for you to lose additional weight is to either reduce your calorie intake or increase your activity level to burn more calories.  You would be amazed how, even small changes, can result in substantial weight loss over time.  Keep in mind that many of the foods that you mention are relatively calorie dense, so I think that changing the menu slightly would be highly beneficial in reducing your overall intake.  Eating just the banana without the whey shake; reducing the yogurt intake to one or two servings per day; eating lower calorie fruit (which is very high in sugar carbs).

Best of luck to you!

Tasha

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