At FitWise Nutrition, we are passionate about helping our customers achieve their goals, especially when it comes to weight loss. We often hear things like, “why can’t I lose weight?” or “why is my diet failing?” To help, we’ve assembled a list of common issues that prevent people from losing weight, plus a few weight loss tips to combat the bad habits. Here are some reasons you’re not losing weight and how to overcome them.

A Poor Sleep Schedule

You may already be aware that poor sleep habits can affect mental dexterity and alertness, but did you know it can also affect your ability to lose weight? Too much or too little sleep can disturb natural hormone rhythms in the body, like those that control appetite and cravings. This means you may feel impulses to eat too much simply because you didn’t get a sufficient amount of sleep or significantly overslept.

Not getting enough sleep or sleeping too much can also disrupt your exercise routine. Many people decide to skip their workouts on days they haven’t had a sufficient amount of sleep, or sleep through them, altogether. To keep to an exercise plan, it’s important to stick to a regular sleep schedule. Most adults should be aiming for 6 to 9 hours of sleep. Get in the habit of going to bed and waking up around the same time each day.

Dehydration

It’s important to drink plenty of water, especially when you are dieting and exercising. Water doesn’t have any calories and satisfies your thirst better than any alternative. Without sugar, carbs, or fat, water gives your body what it needs without any harmful additives.

When you drink water, you are also less likely to crave sugary substitutes like soda, juice, energy drinks, and other beverages that are high in calories. You may even reduce food cravings between meals.

Waiting Too Long to Eat

Sometimes, diets tell you to skip a meal or space your meals out without eating anything in between. This isn’t always good advice and can actually lead to weight gain rather than weight loss. As you wait between meals, your metabolism begins to slow down. This means any calories your body can’t digest will end up as fat stores, leading to weight gain. The longer you wait to eat, the more severe this problem will become.

Most nutritionists think it’s preferable to eat small amounts throughout the day. Try splitting your breakfast into two parts. Eat your first serving before you leave home and the other when you’re settled at your desk. This keeps your metabolism going at a consistent rate throughout the morning.

Your Goal is Unrealistic

Many people don’t understand the weight loss process. As a result, they have unrealistic expectations of how much weight they can lose and how quickly they can lose it. Some people may see a significant dip in weight at first but find that they can’t lose weight at the same pace for an extended period of time. This is perfectly normal. Most people lose less than two pounds per week after experiencing an initial period of rapid weight loss.

To manage your expectations, talk to your doctor or nutritionist about your goals. They will be able to give you specifics about how hard to push yourself and a general timeline of what to expect to see on the scale.

Remember, the goal is always to practice healthy habits rather than lose pounds quickly. It’s also important to note that muscle is heavy, so if you are lifting weights and consuming protein as part of your diet and exercise plan, don’t get discouraged about what the scale says.

You’re Eating Out a Lot

It’s hard to resist a night of takeout when you don’t want to cook. However, eating out, even at restaurants with healthier options, may be contributing to your weight gain. It’s hard to know what goes into your food at a restaurant and how much sugar and oil has been added. Condiments, bread, soups, and meats can all contain hidden sugars, starches, and fats that quickly counteract weight loss progress. Even salads can contain dressings with sugary, fatty ingredients.

Eating at home is safer because you can read ingredient labels closely and prepare your meal exactly how you like it. By cooking at home, you can easily avoid ingredients that can counteract your weight loss and cut the extra sugars and carbs.

Of course, it’s fine to eat out once in a while and treat yourself. But avoid doing it regularly when you’re trying to lose weight.

The best course of action is smart meal prepping and planning, so a busy schedule won’t tempt you to eat out. Pack lunches the night before, and pre-plan a week’s worth of easy, healthy homemade dinners. To make eating in easy and nutritious, we provide ready made diet products and bundle packs, so you never run out of healthy options.

You’re Not Tracking Food Intake

It is incredibly easy to ingest food without realizing it. If you have fruit or candy laying out, you can pop a hundred or more calories in your mouth without thinking twice. Snacking at work or in front of the television while distracted leads to unrestrained calorie intake, which is disastrous to a weight loss regimen.

Log everything you eat during the day. This will force you to measure your portions and be mindful of what you are eating. You are likely to cut down on impulse eating and empty calories when you journal everything you eat. A food journal is also great to take with you when you visit a doctor or nutritionist.

Insufficient Protein Intake

Protein is absolutely essential to your diet if you want to lose weight. Carbs and sugars burn through your body quickly, ensuring that you get hungry again sooner. Protein takes longer to break down and gives your body plenty of energy and sustenance. This keeps you fuller for longer and ensures that your body is digesting your food rather than turning it into fat.

There are many ways to incorporate more protein into your diet. Protein shakes are a great option if you want an easy, on-the-go solution to this issue. With protein shakes, you can continue to snack and eat regularly and trust that your calorie intake will sustain you for longer.

We offer a wide range of high protein options including protein bars, protein shakes, protein pudding, protein pancakes, and much more!

Stress

Consistent stress often causes the body to rely on sources of serotonin and dopamine. A fast way to increase these chemicals is with sugar and carbs. This is why many people turn to chocolate, chips, and ice cream to “stress eat”. Stress also causes many people to reach for an alcoholic beverage to relax. Alcohol contains an extremely high amount of sugar and adds more calories to your daily intake than most people think.

Find healthy coping mechanisms for stress. Meditation and yoga are great ways to calm the mind and engage the parasympathetic nervous system. Having a plan in place for stress helps you to avoid unnecessary calorie intake.

Our Mission

Here at FitWise Nutrition, we are passionate about helping people with their weight loss goals. That’s why we provide high quality protein shakes and replacements that nourish the body and omit excess intake of sugar and carbs. Our products are high in protein, giving you sustained energy and less fat generation than standard foods. We have helped thousands of people to achieve their weight loss goals. If you want to know how to lose weight, we are your go-to!

FitWise Nutrition is located in Connecticut, but we can ship our products anywhere. With same-day shipping and insulated container options, even our perishable products are available to you.

Don’t let your weight loss journey get you down. Take a step toward sustainable and healthy weight loss with our team at FitWise Nutrition.