I want to start by telling you a story about Jessica, a client of mine.
Jessica managed to eat healthily… some of the time!
But not as often as she would have liked.
Especially when sugary desserts or cookies were around.
(Or cakes or donuts or sweets. Or anything sugary in fact!)
Like many of us she blamed herself.
She thought she would have to live with sugar cravings; that she needed more willpower.
But she discovered that this wasn’t the case.
It took a few months but she managed to get rid of them.
Now she can walk into a cafe and see the cakes but not feel she MUST have one! (Or two!)
Do you struggle to eat healthily or to lose weight?
Then feel bad about yourself?
Or frustrated and demoralised?
If so, I want you to know that it’s not your fault.
And there is another way.
First you need to know why it’s so hard.
Below are 11 ways your body can block your weight loss.
Before we look at them, here’s the good news…You can use food and lifestyle changes to combat every single one of them. Then it becomes so much easier to lose weight and sustain it!
So here are 11 ways your body blocks your weight loss…
Blood sugar imbalances - Trigger cravings, make you store more fat and can encourage belly fat.
Stress hormones - Increase your appetite, particularly for high-sugar/high-fat foods, and make you store fat around your belly.
Female hormone imbalances - May make you eat more or you may crave carbs or sugary foods premenstrually. Can make you store belly fat, especially coming up to the menopause. (Polycystic Ovary Syndrome is linked to insulin resistance which makes it harder to lose weight).
Appetite regulation disrupted - You have a system that works to keep your body weight constant. As you gain weight it makes you want to eat less. But it can be disrupted or overridden by another system that drives you to eat.
Low calcium, magnesium or vitamin D - These nutrients work together and are involved in fat regulation. If you are low in them, you are more likely to be overweight.
Low omega 3 fats - The more overweight you are, the lower your omega 3 levels are likely to be. Obesity is an inflammatory condition, and omega 3 fats are anti-inflammatory. They can reduce your appetite, help you burn more fat and reduce belly fat.
Sugar - It’s not just about the calories. Sugar can affect your weight in many ways from increasing inflammation or encouraging binging to making you burn less fat.
Gut bacterial imbalances - Can make you extract more calories from food, slow your metabolism and increase the amount of fat you store. They can also increase your appetite, cause inflammation and increase the risk of food intolerances (which can lead to weight gain).
Food intolerances - Increase inflammation which can cause weight gain. You may also crave foods you are intolerant to.
Slow metabolism - If your metabolism is slower, you burn less calories and gain weight more easily.
Obesogens - These everyday chemicals can increase your appetite and slow your metabolism. They can also promote insulin resistance, disrupt your gut bacteria and make you store more fat, including around your belly
As you get rid of these blocks, not only do you set up the conditions in your body for lasting weight loss, you reclaim your energy and vitality, so you always look and feel your best. Learn more in The Body Effect book