ShareWhy is it SO HARD to lose weight?
Biology works against our weight loss goals. Our bodies don’t like change and when it comes to losing weight, our survival instincts kick in.
Early mankind spent much of its time and energy simply looking for food. You ate what you could when you found it, but you couldn’t always count on having food available. If you ate too much, your body converted the excess calories to fat and stored the fat for future energy for times when there might be a scarcity of food. Our biology is the same now even if our access to food is completely different. So we eat and convert excess calories to fat. But since we always have access to food, our body gets used to holding onto fat we don’t need.
Do the math and get to a new normal!
To lose weight you need to do some math. There are 3500 calories in one pound of fat. When you have a surplus of 3500 calories you gain one pound of fat and when you have a deficiency of 3500 calories you lose one pound of fat. Find out how many calories you need each day, consider your weight loss goals, and stick to that number. If you do the math, it seems simple. BUT your body will play tricks on you to maintain your current state, even if you are overfat. Your body will crave high calorie foods in order to keep the weight on. So as you are reducing calories you have to resist those cravings. Your goal is to introduce your body to a new normal weight. The good news is, once you get to a new normal weight, your body will work to stay there.
BTW, your metabolism does not make you fat!
Your metabolism is not SET, inherited or beyond your control! Metabolism is the process your body goes through to utilize energy. This process works the same way for every person. Your metabolism does, however, slow down as you get older. It’s estimated your metabolism slows down 5% every decade after you turn 40. This likely happens because of the loss of muscle (sarcopenia) which plays a crucial part in maintaining your metabolism. But you can speed up your metabolism!
Move it!
You can increase metabolism by moving more frequently. Cardio exercise is great for weight loss but don’t forget about resistance training. Resistance training will not only help you burn the calories, it will help keep the excess weight off. A balance of cardio and resistance training can help burn off calories, ramp up your metabolism and help your body stay at its new normal, healthy weight.
If you have any questions or are interested in Green Fit products, please contact us for advice and answers. We are looking forward to supporting you.