SLIMMING DOWN YOUR WEIGHT LOSS JOURNEY

Is dieting and exercising weighing on your mind every day? Here are 5 habits that may be the reason why your scale is hanging in the balance

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EAT. WORK. REPEAT
A 2022 research article in the Nutrients journal, mentions how we’re increasingly sleep deprived – sleeping only 5–6 hours a night instead of the required 8–10 hours. Sleep deprivation negatively impacts your brain’s capacity and decision-making skills, so you end up choosing more high-energy foods filled with sugars and saturated fats. Much like how you turn to a good fast-food meal on a tired, slow day.

The Remedy: Have a ‘closed kitchen’ policy. The longer you’re awake, the more time you must eat. End your eating times at the same time every day. Use that time to unwind and ease yourself into sleeping.

LESS ISN’T ALWAYS MORE
You may be eating less, but are you consuming foods that are sustaining? Cutting down on certain foods is a good place to start but remember that foods digest and metabolise at different rates too. Sugary foods digest fast, energise quickly and for a short time, and will leave you craving food again soon after.

The Remedy: Increase your intake of plant-based proteins (nuts, legumes, seeds and whole grains) instead of animal proteins which can increase your risk of metabolic problems. Eat more whole, high-fibre foods that will help you to feel fuller for longer.

THE RIGHT MOVES
You may feel like all you’re doing is eating salads and working out for hours every day – which might be the problem. The balance comes in eating the right foods and doing the right amount (and types) of exercise. Other factors, like having a desk job, also affect our levels of activity since it affects our posture and how often we move.

The Remedy: Keep a tracker on your phone for how long you’ve been sitting, and when it’s time to be moving. Look the workouts you’re doing, and when you’re doing them. Not all exercises fit everyone and may increase your stress hormones, affecting your weight.

YOU’RE TOO HEALTHY
Cut the carbs. Cut the protein. Cut the fat. How about we cut the craziness?! Saturated nutrients like saturated oils and saturated fats cause more harm than good – but there are also natural sources of these nutrients which are needed by your body.

The Remedy: Avoid counting your calories. This can cause your body too much stress, affecting your appetite and sleep. Don’t rely on ‘avoid’ lists of foods and don’t cut out entire food groups. Eat what your body needs as fuel. ‘Carbs’, ‘starch’ and ‘sugar’ aren’t ‘bad’ words.

IT’S IN MY BLOOD
A lot of us feel guilty about our weight-loss failures, but it could just be your genes. A research paper by the American Diabetes Association in 2017 mentions how approximately 50% of weight variance is determined by genetics, and 50% is affected by your environment and habits.

The Remedy: Understand your body – diet culture isn’t suitable to those with diabetes and other related disorders. Your body also needs about 1 year to stabilize after you’ve lost weight to avoid weight regain. But with enough support, modest weight loss can still be maintained.