Unraveling the Secret Behind Stubborn Pounds

Hey there,

Ever get frustrated when you start a diet and drop a few pounds, only to hit a complete roadblock?

It's like smacking into a brick wall and those pounds just refuse to budge any further.

You've probably heard all about the calories in versus calories out thing, and how being in a calorie deficit is the secret to losing weight.

But for some crazy reason, it's just not happening for you!

Well, don't you worry, because we've got your back. Today, in Bolder Women, we're going to spill the tea on why this might be going down and dish out some awesome tips to get you back in the game!

But before we dive in ...

A message from the Strong Woman Project

The Strong Woman Project is launching in DECEMBER!

This new program is for committed women who want to make a real change to their health, body, and life. This program helps create a fat burning machine with beautiful lean muscle as your armour.

It is based on the science of protein leverage and the new 2023 guidelines for active women going through perimenopause and menopause. It’s not the 1980’s or 1990’s anymore and we can’t try and jazzercise our way to fat loss.

The Strong Woman Project utilises the Protein Pulsing Protocol and Resistance Rep Adaptive System and helps women develop a new mental shift by creating habits that really make the difference for fat loss.

The whole idea can be summed up in four main points.

1. Eat Amazing: Being stronger opens up the food options to include things you thought were off limits! Muscle is your armour; it protects you and soaks up energy from the food you eat. This includes cakes and donuts.

2. Feel Amazing: Have confidence in your body and being able to wear what expresses you.

3. Do Amazing: Hike to the top of a mountain, bike ride in nature, lift heavy things, whatever adventures capture your spirit.

4. Live Amazing: Being strong provides hidden health benefits that improve health span, which means you don’t decline as you age.

Right now, you can join the ‘early bird’ list and get a founding members discount when we launch.

Deep Dive:

Alright, let's talk about this whole calorie deficit thing and losing weight.

We all know the drill - to lose weight, you got to be in a calorie deficit. We want to say goodbye to that pesky fat and keep that precious muscle mass intact.

But here's the frustrating part - you hear it over and over again:

"I'm not losing weight!"

And what's the response from the dietitian or coach? "Well, you're simply not in a calorie deficit."

So, let's dig deeper and figure out what's really stopping you from achieving that calorie deficit, even if you swear up and down that you're already in one.

What could possibly be the reasons behind this madness? It can get pretty complicated, but I'll do my best to break it down and make it easier to wrap your head around. Ready? Let's dive in!

First we will explore the calorie in part of the equation.

6 reasons for not losing weight

“Calories in” side of the energy equation

Overestimating initial calorie requirements for fat loss

You have calculated the energy requirements you need to lose some pounds based on an online calculator;

however you have overestimated your activity factor and the calories that have been estimated are too high to begin with so you aren't in a calorie deficit.

Not accounting for weekend calories/meals out/"cheat days".

So, this is very common. We do really well in the week and stick to our eating plan and then on the weekend we eat a little more and this takes us out of our calorie deficit for the week.

Inaccurately eyeballing food portion sizes. Thinking you have eaten less than you have and sometimes forgetting what you have eaten.

Not accounting for liquid calories, bites, licks and tastes. Every time you try to stick to their diet, you find yourself sneaking a taste, licking the spoon clean, or nibbling on snacks you bought for the kids.

Not adjusting for changes in energy needs as their body weight goes down and eating more calories than the body needs.

When we lose weight, we become a smaller version of ourselves, and we don't need as many calories so if we are eating the same this can take us out of a calorie deficit.

Genetic makeup of our gut microbiome influences how we harvest energy from food.

Research shows the gut microbiome of overweight individuals have more microbes that extract a heap more energy from food compared to lean individuals.

Some of those little bugs seem a lot greedier than others! The good news is you can alter your gut microbiome through food by increasing the diversity of plant foods.

Deeper Dive

4 more reasons for not losing weight

“Calories out” side of the energy equation - we think we are burning more energy than we actually are.

Not accounting for reduced energy expenditure as body weight reduces.

As we lose weight, we become smaller versions of ourselves, and we therefore expend less energy.

Over estimating calories burned in the gym. It feels like a hard workout, but exercise can burn anywhere from 180-500 calories depending on intensity and time.

Reducing activity outside of the gym.

This is called our Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis (NEAT).

When we diet, our body knows it is a stress and it tries to save energy and turns down all non-essential activity like fidgeting. So, we end up burning less energy throughout the day.

You are over 40 and in perimenopause or over 50 and heading into menopause and declining estrogen results in reduced muscle mass, therefore less metabolically active tissue.

Therefore, our body does not need as much energy as it did before to maintain itself. This can be reversed through building back muscle mass with strength training.

So what can we do?

Recheck your energy requirements for fat loss

When calculating your energy requirements with an online calculator make sure you get the activity factor right.

If you have a sedentary job and do less than 8500 steps per day, then your activity would be considered sedentary.

Adjust calories as you diet. You may need to reduce your energy intake slightly to help keep you in a deficit if weight loss stalls for more than 2 weeks. This could mean anywhere from 100-300 calories per day.

Increase your NEAT

Increase your steps throughout the day. Simple things add up like taking the stairs at work instead of the lift, going for a walk at lunch and another after dinner.

This will increase the energy you expend. This is the most underrated activity you can do to support fat loss.

Start Strength Training

Building muscle mass especially over 40 is a game changer for metabolism.

You will build more metabolically active tissue that burns more energy not only when exercising but at rest too!

Over 40, women begin to lose 1% of their muscle mass and this accelerates over 50, due to declining hormones.

If you haven’t lifted before why not join the Strong Woman Project above. You can work out at home or in the gym. Home gym set up requires sets of dumbbells at various weights and an adjustable bench.

Balance Your Gut Microbiome

The makeup of our gut microbiome determines how we harvest energy from the foods we eat.

You can alter your gut microbiota to build up the good bacteria. A good guide is trying to get in 30 different plant foods a week, for example chia seeds, almonds, nut butters, fruit and vegetables.

Record any licks tastes and bites

Keeping track of your food for a few days is a great idea as you can see what you are putting in your mouth and how the calories add up.

You can use an app like MyFitnessPal or Chronometer to help you.

Just a bite of cake can be 60 calories and a nibble of a cheese toasty can be 50 calories and a sip of fruit juice another 50 calories, so you see it all adds up and can take you out of the deficit and stall fat loss, even when you think that you have been eating to plan.

Plan your weekend food

This is a great behaviour change activity. Have a think about your food choices over the weekend and prepare.

Perhaps aim to cook at home rather than getting takeout or if you are going to eat out choose lean meat or a vegetable protein source with salad or vegetables.

Check the menu ahead of time so when you get to the restaurant you already know what you are going to order.

MEME of the Day

Summary

Dropping body fat can sometimes feel like a never-ending struggle when it just decides to hit the brakes.

The good news is there's actually a bunch of stuff we can do to help ourselves out.

By looking at both sides of the energy equation - calories in and calories out, we have the power to tweak our behaviours and get that fat loss party started.

Reflection (to ask yourself)

Now that you've checked out the handy summary tips, what's one thing that jumps out at you? Something you can actually change up this week to make a difference.

Maybe it's as simple as taking a stroll during your lunch break or being proactive by planning your meals over the weekend. T

rust me, the goal here is to prevent those moments where you go overboard and blow your energy budget.

So, what's it going to be? Time to pick your game-changing move and let's make it happen this week!

The Team at Bolder Women

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