Why Can’t I Lose Weight? 3 Reasons For Your Lack Of Weight Loss

A little over a year ago, I wrote an article that contained 11 mostly-sarcastic-yet-entirely-accurate reasons for why a person can’t lose weight. It has since gone on to become one of the most popular articles I’ve ever written. Which is nice.

You know what’s less-nice? When I STILL get 40 emails/messages/comments a day from people who STILL claim to be “doing everything right” but yet “STILL can’t lose weight.”

Now when this happens, the first thing I do is send the person to that article I just mentioned. And from there, one of three potential outcomes will occur.

The first is that the person reads it, understands my points and goes on to successfully lose weight. Awesome! The second is that the person completely misses/ignores my points and calls me an asshole instead. Much less awesome, but still kinda fun. The third outcome is a little different, and it stems from the fact that there are two additional reasons that I should have included in that article but somehow forgot.

To make up for it, I’m going to explain both of those reasons right here, right now… and recap that original reason as well. Ready? Here are the 3 reasons for your lack of weight loss…

1. There Is No Deficit

Technically, this is the only legitimate reason for why a person can’t lose weight, so I HAVE to mention it. That original article I wrote covered this fact pretty well, so I’m not going to repeat it all again. I will however link you there (11 Reasons Why You’re Not Losing Weight) and to a newer and even better version I recently wrote (36 Reasons Why You’re Not Losing Weight) and give you a quick summary. Which is this…

As long as you’re a relatively healthy person (e.g. no thyroid issues… and if you’re unsure, you should see a doctor and find out), then you’re either eating more calories than you think, burning less calories than you think, or some combination of both… and no deficit exists. That’s it. Always. 100% of the time. There is nothing else it could be.

And this “deficit” I’m referring to is of course a caloric deficit, which is the one and only cause of fat loss. Details here: How To Lose Fat and What Is The Best Way To Lose Weight Fast And Keep It Off

So if it appears as though you can’t lose weight no matter what you do, the very simple answer is that you’re just not doing the one thing you actually need to be doing, which is creating a caloric deficit.

Which means it’s not starvation mode. It’s not because “muscle weighs more than fat.” It’s not your carb intake, or your fat intake, or how clean or dirty your specific food sources are, or the glycemic index, or your meal frequency, or your nutrient timing, or any of the other nonsense people will commonly consider when the weight loss they’re trying to make happen doesn’t actually happen.

It’s always just a lack of a caloric deficit, potentially caused by everything from an ineffective diet/workout program, to a lack of compliance on an effective diet/workout program, to unknowingly underestimating intake, overestimating output, or just flat out miscalculating or making some kind of mistake somewhere that will cause a person to think they’re in a deficit when they are in fact NOT in a deficit.

Which happens constantly… to the point where I’ve had more than one person swear on the lives of their children (dafuq?) that they’re eating/burning exactly what they need to be, only to eventually realize they weren’t. As far as I know, the kids are thankfully still alive and well.

Again, that original article explains all of this in detail: 11 Reasons Why You’re Not Losing Weight

This would be another good one to read: 12 Causes Of Unexplained Weight Gain

2. You’re Improperly Tracking Your Weight

So that’s the only real reason why a person will be unable to lose weight. However, there are still scenarios that can and do occur in which a person will successfully be losing weight but just THINK that they’re not.

The first such example of this occurs due to improperly tracking your weight… and then basing your progress on it.

Let me take you through a few of the common scenarios I see on a regular basis:

  • Person A compares what they weigh today to what they weigh tomorrow… and bases their progress on it.
  • Person B weighs themselves before eating/drinking/pooping on some days, and after eating/drinking/pooping on other days… and bases their progress on it.
  • Person C weighs themselves at random times throughout a single day… and bases their progress on it.
  • Person D compares their weight first thing in the morning today, to their weight after lunch tomorrow, to their weight after their evening workout the day after that… and bases their progress on it.
  • Person E is a woman who ignores the normal change in weight that takes place at a certain time every month… and bases their progress on it.
  • Person F weighs themselves once per week and compares that one day to the same day of the following week… and bases their progress on it.
  • Person G weighs themselves every day for 4 days in a row and compares it to their weight on the 5th day… and bases their progress on it.
  • Person H weighs themselves as accurately as possible for 1 week only… and bases their progress on it.

I can keep going, but I think I’d run out of letters. And I think you get the idea.

Which is that in all of these scenarios, the person is basing their entire weight loss progress (or lack thereof) around what the scale is telling them, while failing to properly use that scale and/or properly perceive what it’s telling them.

Why is this a problem? Because while your body weight is a very useful tool for tracking your progress, you must also realize that the numbers you are seeing aren’t always an accurate representation of what your body is truly doing. Especially in scenarios like these.

This is because your body weight can and DOES change from one day to the next (or even one hour to the next) as a result of a loss or gain in muscle, fat, water, glycogen, poop, food intake and more. That means daily fluctuations in body weight (plus extra monthly fluctuations for women) are extremely common and normal. And they’re constantly taking place without your knowledge.

Which means it’s possible for a person to be in that required deficit making progress BUT YET incorrectly come to the conclusion that they’re not… all because they’re not properly tracking that progress. So it’s not that you can’t lose weight in these cases, it’s just that you’re doing a poor job of seeing that it’s happening.

So how do you prevent this?

  • Always weigh yourself first thing in the morning on an empty stomach before eating or drinking (but after peeing), and wear the same amount of clothing (ideally very little) every time.
  • Weigh in daily… take the weekly average… and only pay attention to that weekly average. This is key.
  • Have 2-4 weeks worth of accurate data before assuming, worrying or adjusting. So none of this “I was losing weight fine on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday but now on Thursday my weight has stalled” bullshit. Or telling me your weight loss has stalled, I ask for how long, and you say something like “1 week.” Nah, it doesn’t work like that. Instead, wait until you have 2-4 weeks worth of weekly averages to compare before assuming there’s a problem.
  • Be aware of outside factors. For example, if you consume an above-average amount of sodium today, you should expect an above-average amount of water retention tomorrow, and thus a temporarily above-average body weight. Of course, the previous points (only paying attention to the weekly average over the span of 2-4 weeks) will go pretty far in preventing this sort of thing from making any meaningful dent in your tracking.
  • Measurements can help, too. So if your weight from one week to the next happens to be the same, but various measurements have slightly decreased, it’s a good sign that things are still moving in the right direction (and for one reason or another, it’s just not showing up on the scale yet). I should however mention that measurements come with their own accuracy warnings. For example, you could put the tape measure around your stomach and have it be just slightly less-straight than you had it last time, and that tiny difference could throw the measurement off by a full inch.

Additional details here: When And How Often Should You Weigh Yourself

Also keep in mind that this is really only ever going to be a short term issue. Meaning, if you’re following these guidelines, weighing in as accurately as possible, and yet still find that 3, 4, 5+ weeks are passing without any weight being lost… then guess what? You’re just not in a deficit.

3. You Have Unrealistic Expectations

And finally we have a second scenario where a person is in fact losing weight and just thinks they’re not. But, instead of it being a result of improperly tracking their progress, it’s because they have unrealistic expectations for what that progress should be.

Let me give you an example of a conversation I’ve probably had a dozen times…

Person: I can’t lose weight no matter what I do.
Me: How long have things been stalled?
Person: About 1 month.
Me: So you haven’t lost any weight whatsoever in a month?
Person: I lost maybe 3lbs this month if I’m lucky.
Me: So then you have lost weight?
Person: Well if you want to look at it that way, then I guess so. But it’s only 3 pounds so it just doesn’t seem like anything.
Me: First, 3lbs lost in a month is actually pretty good progress for many people. Second, it shows that you ARE losing weight. And third, I think I’m going to go bang my head into a wall.

See what happened here? A person makes decent realistic progress and it registers to them as making no progress at all.

Why? Most often because they assumed they were going to lose 10 pounds every week or have the six pack of their dreams overnight or whatever other unrealistic garbage they’ve been brainwashed into believing.

And so you end up in a scenario like this, where a person actually sees they’ve lost weight but still comes away complaining that they can’t lose weight. Logical? Not at all. But since when is anyone ever logical when it comes to weight loss?

And That’s It

So why can’t you lose weight? Because you’re not in a deficit.

Why can it occasionally SEEM like you can’t lose weight even though you are? Because you’re not properly tracking your progress and/or you have unrealistic expectations for what that progress should be.

Whichever it is, the solution is still pretty simple.

NEW: My brand new fat loss program, Superior Fat Loss, is now available. It’s completely designed to allow you to lose fat as quickly and effectively as realistically possible… WITHOUT losing muscle, or feeling hungry all the time, or giving up the foods you love, or doing tons of cardio, or following annoying diet rules, or experiencing excessive metabolic slowdown and plateaus, or regaining the fat after you lose it. You can learn all about it right here: Superior Fat Loss

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
About Jay
Jay is the science-based writer and researcher behind everything you've seen here. He has 15+ years of experience helping thousands of men and women lose fat, gain muscle, and build their "goal body." His work has been featured by the likes of Time, The Huffington Post, CNET, Business Week and more, referenced in studies, used in textbooks, quoted in publications, and adapted by coaches, trainers, and diet professionals at every level.

80 thoughts on “Why Can’t I Lose Weight? 3 Reasons For Your Lack Of Weight Loss”

80 Comments

  1. You must get tired of hearing this , but AWESOME article man !!! Whenever the women at my job say they have trouble losing weight , i refer them to your great articles… and the truth is they don’t need to pump iron to get great results, but it does help… I told them they need to retire the Christmas treats that are still lingering around and start eating more protein…. hahaha they don’t want to hear the truth, even when its staring them right in the face saying ” all you need is a calorie deficit.” that’s it… Your a great writer man… keep up the good work bro!!

  2. Great article! I tried losing weight for years using various diets and fads, and nothing really stuck. I came across this site, and your blog posts last year, and the common sense approach of ‘eat less/move more’ clicked. I started tracking my calories better, got myself in a deficit, and set some realistic goals. After a few months, I lost more weight than in the previous few years of trying. Thanks for the good advice!

      • Hey,

        Just want to say thank you for all of your work on this site and your ebook.

        I started your 2 day program and calorie counting about 5 weeks ago. In that time, I’ve dropped 6 pounds and lost 2% body fat.

        Prior to doing your program I had tried EVERY kind of diet and couldn’t even lose 1 pound. I would get discouraged and just quit. I tried paleo, low carb, “clean eating”, atkins, etc. etc. The weight (fat) just stuck.

        I started blaming being “over 40”. Then I found your site and everything clicked. I realize now that there there is no magic formula, just follow the 3 steps you outlined

        1. Create a deficit (log everything I eat so that it’s accurate)
        2. Weight train to avoid losing muscle (make sure it’s progressive overload)
        3. Eat enough protein to maintain muscle and avoid feeling hungry

        I’ll keep you posted on my progress.

  3. The deficit is no joke. Before I started using the common sense tools Jay writes, I had a BF% of 28 or is and weighed 215. After a year, I weighed 190 with a BF% of under 15. I never thought I’d be able to see my abs! At 40 years old nonetheless! The BF readings were done by my physician.

    I’d recommend picking up Jay’s book as well. Packed with awesome info.

    Manuel

  4. Great article as usual. I found your site a little over a year ago and have since read every blog post and check regularly for new ones. I’ve been on a moderate deficit for a year now and have been training for 9 months now. I’ve lost lost 85lbs. and gained a good amount of muscle (thanks to the excess body fat and being a beginner). I used to be kind of in a loss on the whole nutrition thing but not any more, thanks to you! I appreciate all that you’re doing!

  5. I have been through all the mistakes. I assumed after losing the first 10lbs (in pretty much just two weeks, obviously some of it was not fat) I thought wow this is easy I can lose the rest in no time. For each 10lbs it took longer and required more strict dieting (and took a little over a year). The number one setback I find is eating food prepared by someone else, and you don’t know what’s in it. For example I would guess this rice wrap was 300 calories. The next day I bought it again and noticed they included nutritional information and it was ACTUALLY 600! I underestimated by 50%! This happened with a blueberry muffin I bought too. I guessed it was 200 calories and then I found out later it was 450! The best advice I can give is eating simple recipes you prepared yourself, where you can measure EVERYTHING. Get a scale, use a measuring cup, bring a tablespoon with you to Starbucks when pouring coffee cream. Don’t count on the exercise machines at the gym to tell you how much you burned, and if your Zumba or spin instructor tells you you’ll burn 1000 calories in an hour with them, they’re full of crap! I wore a heart rate monitor to a group class and the instructor asked how much I burned in that hour and I said 350 calories. You should have seen the look on her face, she obviously had never measured it herself and assumed it would be twice that. All the trainers and instructors greatly overestimate how many calories you’ll burn in an hour, and you need to count on yourself to count correctly!

  6. I see you keep referring to thyroid issues and how they can prevent people from losing weight. Because my thyroid is currently under control (with no medication, thankfully) I can continue to lose weight (I am actually a normal weight, but aiming for low-normal because I’m athletic). BUT, because I have Grave’s disease (and my thyroid swings either way when my body begins attacking it.. usually hypo, sometimes hyper), what, pray tell, do you recommend someone do once their thyroid begins to have problems? Keep on trucking like the rest? Avoid those goitrogens or go have some iodine? Take your meds?

    I’m wondering what your solution is because you keep mentioning it.

    I know a lot of people are all BSing “waah but it’s my thyroid!”. You could mention that in an article too. But for those of us whom it has been discovered have anti-thyroid antibodies in their blood .. what do?

  7. I lost 30 lbs the first time I did a cut and weighted myself every Monday morning under the same conditions. I would slightly reduce the Kcal intake based upon if there was weight loss or not. It was actually working great, especially since I wouldn’t have too much water variation since I ate the same pretty much everyday.
    I tried weighing myself everyday lately and I must admit that I really don’t like. On some days I would lose 100-200g constantly which is pretty much a realistic weight lose once you make an average over a longer time. But after a while I would start weighing 500g more some days and then 600g less the next day. This method is actually psychologically less fitting for me since it creates more the “doubt” once stuff is too varying on a daily basis.

  8. Another fantastic article there Jay.

    What is an alternative to leg press exercises on lower body workout A? The gym I go to only has one leg press machine, but sometimes there will be a pair of ass clowns hogging the machine. You know the guys who take turns doing a bazillion sets adding 45 lb plates each time thinking they are Lou Ferrigno, only to go about 2 inches.

  9. Hi, Jay.

    Your website is awesome! I’ve structured my entire calorie-counting and working out life around what you’ve blogged about and am getting pretty good results. I’ve lost around 8kgs over the last 8 months and I feel great :).

    The only grey area I have is factoring in the calories I burn during resistance training. I’m using the formula:
    0.0537*(weight inkgs)*(time in minutes)
    which seemed to have been working when I was heavier (at 108kgs), but is now causing my calorie counting chart (calorie deficit vs. weight lost) to be off by around 250kcal a week. My chart shows that I lost 1kg in the last month for only 6500kcal instead of 7700kcal. I understand that because of strength gain, I am now lifting bigger weights and must be burning more calories, but because my weight itself is lesser, my estimate of calories burnt will be lower and so my deficit will show up as lesser.

    How does one correctly estimate the calories burnt during weight training? Is there some tool or something that I’ve missed out on? Or should I just increase the 0.0537 factor and fit it to suit my chart? I fear that doing that might hide some intake calories that I might be miscounting as well.

    Regards,
    Manjit.

  10. Thank you for this! At 69kg I appeared to have hit a plateau but after reading this article I’ve thrown taking everyday weigh ins to heart and I’ve realised that a 0.5kg a week weight loss is still pretty good.

  11. I love your website. And you’re right about unrealistic expectations. I plugged in all my data for a calorie calculator after I read one of your articles where you mentioned 20% being a realistic attainable deficit. So my 20% deficit starting today would have me lose the 20 pounds by mid July. And of course I said to myself “July?! I can’t wait that long!” But then I remembered I’ve put this weight on gradually through the years, and I shouldn’t expect I can just snap my fingers and get what I want now. Lol. So big thanks again, for the reality check 🙂

  12. Hi Dear
    Thanks a ton for helping me to reduce my weight. I am 172 cm and around 38 years of age, I weighted 84.5 kg (186 pounds) in August 2014 when I joined the Gym.
    I stumbled upon your website when I was searching for a perfect guide to newbie. I read all the articles that you have written and tried to follow them with some subtle changes here and there.
    I lost 36 Pounds in around 5 months which is a testimony of your knowledge and guidelines. I never dreamed that I will be able to reduce that much weight. Everyday I get lots of compliment from my colleagues and friends that I am looking 10 years younger; and I refer them to your website .
    The only change I did was to include cardio ( despite your advice) on off days ( in 3 days in a Week spilt schedule except Sunday)
    My reasoning was that Indians in general and I am in particular are not tall enough to have a natural high BMR and hence in order to create high calorie deficit I have to burn more calories.
    I think that I may be right since it reflected in my gradual weight loss, Now I think I should stop weight loss and try to concentrate on muscle building.
    I need your advice.
    thanks
    Dr Vijay

      • OK I give up, I am going to fork over the money and get Superior Muscle Growth once and for all! My kids can eat next month, I need the info in that guide TODAY :)…

        Just kidding, my kids won’t really have to starve so I can afford your masterpiece :).

        That is an e-book, though, correct? I am in Germany so not sure how shipping would work…

        Gary

  13. Hi Jay!

    Awesome website and love the way you write your articles – with the pure truth !

    Ive just got a question which is half off-topic in relation to this post.

    I firmly believe in upper/lower and PPL routines, however why is it that the most transformation I see on basically every popular fitness website are people using a “Bro-split” (Bodypart split) thats usually Chest/Back/Shoulders/Arms/Legs split into 5 days? This applies to both fat -> ripped and skinny -> beast transformations… how did they get such results on once a week frequency?

    Thank you for your time and keep up the good work!

  14. I love your straight forward thinking! and it really is “just that simple”
    Love the site and all that wonderfulness 🙂

    I wonder if you have a good way to log or track calories? (sorry if you have said it a million times) some sites (like My Fitness Pal) allow members to put in the calorie and nutrient amounts and errors can of course happen leading to miscounting calories. so with that said, do you personally recommend a site that has accurate numbers? or good ole pen and paper?

  15. I’ve got a fat loss related question. Do saunas cause any fat loss at all? I know calories are the real thing that matter and the easiest way to cut calories is through diet not exercise. I don’t really plan on using this info for anything. I’m not going to start sitting in the sauna for 7 hours in a garbage bag or anything like that. It’s just something I enjoy doing for about 15 minutes after my workouts, and I’ve always been curious as to if it burns any more calories than say sitting on my couch.

  16. Thanks for this article. There were several points that struck home, but in regards to expectations and using a scale, that is something I needed a better understanding of. I am definitely “that guy” when it comes to this subject. I only got a scale six or seven months ago, after spending a lifetime only getting weighed at the doctor. I really haven’t known how to effectively use it as a tool. I realized there would be natural fluctuations, but it did not occur to me how to account for those. I was for the most part weighing myself everyday about the same time, after my morning ritual. Unfortunately, I also would step on the scale at various other times during the day out of curiosity. It had me starting to question the reliability of my scale, but now I am starting to realize that it probably is not the scale that has a problem, but how I was using (and retaining) the information it gave. I think it is time I start up a spreadsheet instead of just using last recall and also stop with the occasional hourly weigh ins.

  17. I participate in a strength-to-weight ratio sport so I am on the leaner side, estimating 14-15% BF at 102 lbs, 5’5″ (female). In the past when I have tried to shed weight to get to 12-14%, I’ve found it really challenging mentally and physically difficult to train effectively. When I am closer to 18-19% BF (estimated), I find fat loss easy to accomplish using the same calorie deficit calculation (that is, accounting for lower/higher weight).

    Anyway, I saw a comment you made on a previous post about recommending men use cardio to help achieve fat loss when they have a BF% in the single digits. Since I may be on the equivocally lean end of the spectrum for a female, do you recommend I shift my focus to cardio vs diet to achieve my deficit? I’m curious about what this strategy change is meant to address (mental, hormonal, etc.).

    • If you’re looking to go from lean to really lean, that’s when cardio becomes a much more useful tool in my opinion for obvious reasons (burning more instead of eating less… and that’s primarily where the benefits would be… not having to eat less).

      • Thanks for your response. I’ve stayed away from incorporating cardio since I assumed I would end up just as hungry but have to deal with another variable in training. My maintenance is pretty low though so it would be nice to eat like a normal person a few times a week in exchange for a run.

        I guess the only thing to do is give it a shot!

        • Yup, that’s a big part of what sucks about trying to get REALLY lean. As for the cardio itself, to minimize any negative effects it may have on overall recovery and other forms of training (and still burn some calories), keeping the intensity no higher than brisk paced walking is something I’ve personally found to be ideal for me.

  18. Great article and I value the advice you offer on your website. However, I was having a problem losing weight and I really thought I was doing everything right. I visited my doctor to have my blood tested and he discovered I had hypothyroidism. After seeking treatment, my metabolism and thyroid resumed normally and I was able to lose weight. Point being, always check with your doctor if you are having issues and get your thyroid checked!

    • Yup, I agree with this. In a small minority of cases, a thyroid issue can certainly be a part of the problem. A blood test is the only way to find out for sure.

      In the vast majority of cases however, it will be one of the 3 reasons mentioned in this article.

  19. Hey,
    I saw you mentioned thyroid issues. I have had Hypothyroidism for about 4 years now and it’s hard for me to lose weight. I am on medication but is there anything else I can do?
    Thank you

  20. I assume that you’re probably sick of these questions and I reallu didn’t want to ask but amongst the things you listed people asking you, mine didn’t appear and I’m really curious.

    Background info: I know how to lose weight. I enlisted into the army and lost about 25kilos – they made us run everyday. I know how to gain weight(ahah apparently) – either fat or muscle, I did some lifting back in school playing rugby and body composition didn’t matter much to me so I was just packing on more muscle and I’m also an endomorph so.. Yeah.

    What I’m confused about is body recomposition. I’ve read a few articles on it and I guess the only way to really know is to measure fat ratio.

    I’ve only started/resumed lifting about 3 months ago after a few years of not lifting. The progress has been really positive, as long as we’re talking about the weight I carry in the gym

    But I am not losing weight. I see a slight difference in the mirror – muscles getting denser, fat slightly getting less. But my weight isn’t dropping.

    I lift 3x a week and do cardio 3-5 times a week, am an endomorph and have been watching my diet as well.

    Could it be a recomp, or am I simply not making progress in terms of recomp/body weight/body composition?

  21. Just discovered this place today. I love these articles, real info in human language, something I can actually understand. I read your starvation mode myth and I admit it. I was a firm believer that starving would cause my metabolic rate to drop to an absolute crawl. Thank you for that article.

    For the last 63 days I have been keeping track on calorie in vs calorie out. I am 5’10 and used to be 315 lbs. And I am 31

    I have a question regarding weight and scale. I am eating 900-1300 calories per day it’s usually around 1200 with some days being less and aimed being more and I have lost 30 lbs in 60 days.

    Please bear with me.

    This week I haven’t lost a pound. First week of no loss at all. I know I am as accurate as humanity possible with the counting (this is how I found your starvation article lol) and my common sense tells me it could be a number of things. Water weight from sodium etc etc. But it’s so easy to panic but like you said I better give it a couple more weeks before I panic.

    I have a unique question. I am Female to Male transgender with no internal female organs which means no excessive estrogen production, I do however inject testosterone into my muscle (under doctor supervision ) as part of my hormone therapy. My question is: how should I eat? Like a man or like a woman? Nobody seems to have a clue, I sure don’t. I am currently eating like a woman with 1200 average but the people at MyFitnessPal (who don’t know I am trans) say my weightloss is far too fast for a man my height and weight. What do you think?

    30 lbs in 60 days at 1200 average. I want to do this the healthy way. I just don’t know if I should go by male or female metabolic rate.

    • There is no such thing as “eating like a man” or “eating like a woman.” It’s just a matter of eating for your specific needs/goals/preferences, and using progress (body weight, measurements, pictures, mirror) to determine if adjustments need to be made. And yes, for someone 315lbs, 1200 calories per day is quite excessive regardless of your gender. 20-30% below maintenance would be my typical suggestion.

      • Thank you for the reply, I am confused about maintenance. When I put in my numbers at an estimate place, height, weight, sex and age I get a much different maintenance number for male than female. What confuses me is which one I go by.

        I do feel fine on my current calorie intake of 1200. I have a stationary lifestyle apart from the gym 3 times a week. I do not experience fatigue or anything that might suggest I’m under eating. Of course my BMI is 45 according to websites so I have plenty of fat for my body to burn and muscle too I imagine. Maybe as those resources reduce I will no longer feel fine on such a low calorie intake.

        Think I have a unique situation to be honest, I’ve never been much into food. I’ve always eaten very little of it and it bores me. Before I began my journey to a healthy lifestyle I would eat candy and crisps all night every night and lot of it. I’ve now given all that up but I am left with my uninterest in actual food. It’s really easy for me to not eat any of it and just have a quick supper and call it a day. I do force myself to consume atleast 900 to 1200. But without my massive amounts of sugar I struggle with this.

        Anyway. Thank you for taking the time to shed some light on this and help me and others understand these subjects.

  22. I gotta say… I discovered your Website a calorie counter last year and read everything!! But everything in a few days and ITS REALLY AWESOME!! It works!! I’m a woman of 32 with 2 kids and there was nothing that would take a pound off my body! And I was sure it was normal because of my age and the fact that i’m a woman with kids and you know..hormones…low metabolism… pure crap!! Create a deficit and lose weight!! How awesome!! And recently decided to train myself to improve even more and this site is the best!! Again, read everything in 2 days, and did my first training at home already! And I love the way you write, it’s sacarstic but really so funny! Thank you for all the free education, a keep on posting new stuff! I love to read your articles!

  23. Hey Jey.

    Is one supposed to feel hungry, like almost all the time, when in a deficit? If not, is that a sign that one is not in a deficit?

    • Your goal in a deficit is to put everything together in a way that makes you NOT feel hungry all the time. So as long as a deficit does in fact exist (weight, measurements, mirror will confirm this), the less hungry you feel, the better job you’re doing.

  24. Jay, these fat percentage scales seem pretty useless – they give different readings just seconds apart! There are some types too that are supposed to measure your skeletal muscle too….

    Just weighing yourself on a normal scale and measuring your waist circumference around your belly button seems a better bet.

  25. I fell into that third category pretty hard last year – Decided to lose weight in January in order to look good for a minor celebrity meetup in July and thought that I could easily lose 2.5 lbs per week and thus around 60 lbs. by the time the meetup rolled around.

    Ha ha, no. I lost 10 lbs.

    Several times I lamented to my friends how I wasn’t meeting my weight loss goals, and it ended taking them, my nutritionist, AND my gynecologist telling me the same thing you just said – “Okay, you haven’t lost 10 lbs this month, but you did lose 2! That’s sustainable, and you’ve made lots of healthy lifestyle changes in the meantime! Be proud of what you’ve done!”

    Now, I’m still trying to reach that 2.5lbs/week (40 lbs to go!), but I no longer beat myself up about it if I don’t hit that goal. Now I can be content with losing half a pound. Like all the pins on my Pinterest board say (lol), progress is still progress, no matter how small. ^_^

  26. this site all of it has provided me a lot of guide and knowledge after 3 year of fat loss Plateau now I see progress.and every time time I hit wall instead of losing hope and courage. I try to find problems,mistakes and… and fix them
    thank all of you for providing gold worth of information and knowledge.

    sorry for my bad english

    • Yes, being hypothyroid can prevent weight loss by making a person’s maintenance level much lower than it should be, requiring a caloric deficit that would need to be much lower than it should be. The solution is to see a doctor who will (usually) prescribe medication to get things closer to normal.

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