There is nothing more discouraging and frustrating when your hard work doesn’t pay off, especially when it comes to exercise and eating well. Maybe you have pushed your body to its limits training everyday, or you have tried the latest diet that all celebs swear by.

But still your weight doesn’t budge.

Well we’ve listed six surprising reasons you are not losing weight. Keep reading on:

Reason #1 – You Don’t Have A Set Sleeping Time

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When was the last time you had a good night’s sleep? Nowadays it’s not uncommon for people to lead a hectic lifestyle. You might find yourself surviving everyday on 5 hours of sleep and several cups of coffee. So how bad could it really be?


Well, when your body is sleep deprived you will feel it influence your behavior. Sleep deprived individuals tend to eat more food especially more junk foods. It’s pretty easy to understand why – if you don’t have enough energy from one source, you body will look for it someplace else. That ends up being in the form of high-carb junk food and sugar cravings because these have the easiest “quick energy” available.

Insufficient sleep also affects your body’s insulin sensitivity. This is basically your metabolic capacity to handle eating carbs and use them for energy instead of storing them as fat. When insulin sensitivity goes down, you’ll be more likely to store food as fat and…still be hungry. Yikes.

Reason #2 – You Are Stressing Too Much

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Stress is a fact of life for most of us. However, if you find yourself stressing excessively, it can prevent you from losing weight and even add pounds despite having a balanced lifestyle.

Why is that? Well, every time you have a stressful day, your brain instructs your cells to release potent hormones. You get a burst of adrenaline which taps stored energy so you can fight or flee. You also release cortisol aka the ‘stress hormone’ which tells your body to replenish energy even when you haven’t used many calories. The result? You get hungry. Very hungry. Your body keeps pumping out the cortisol as long as your stress continues.

Solution? Take stress seriously.

Find stress reducing practices that work for you and naturally lift your mood. Meditate, take a walk, write in a journal, drink plenty of water and sleep enough. If your stress is getting out of hand don’t be afraid to speak to a therapist.

Reason #3 – Your Plate Is Too Big

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Let me explain this before you think I’ve lost my marbles! Researchers have found that people tend to eat 92% of the food on their plate regardless of how full they are. Larger plates can make a serving of food appear smaller and therefore trick our minds to eat more. This illusion can be an annoyance when you are trying to trim your waistline. Next time, use a smaller plate to cut down on the amount of food consumed. This is especially helpful when dining at buffets which notoriously serve high calorie foods. You can thank me later.

Reason #4 – You’re Not Drinking Enough Water

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You’ve probably heard time and time again the importance of drinking water. Well, let me tell you once more – drinking more water can help you lose weight.

It helps boost your metabolism, cleanse your body of waste and acts as an appetite suppressant. It even helps your body stop retaining water leading you to shed those extra pounds of water weight. And that’s not all: when you are dehydrated your kidneys don’t function properly so the body turns to the liver for extra support. Because the liver is overworking, most of the fat you consume is stored rather than burned off.

So how much water should you be drinking daily? Aim for about one-half your body weight in ounces everyday especially if you workout often. And to make sure you are getting the recommended amount: drink before your meals to make you feel fuller, ditch the sodas and juice and replace them with water and try hitting the gym more often.

Reason #5 – You Are Crash Dieting

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People try to lose weight by dieting and skipping meals. In the long term, this can actually make you fatter rather than prevent it. Nutrition experts recommend that you don’t dip below 1,200 to 1,500 calories a day.


Now why is that so, you may be wondering? It all boils down to your metabolism. If you crash diet for more than two weeks or so, your metabolism will slow down. This is because your body is storing energy to keep you from losing weight too quickly.

And that is not all: when you significantly cut calories, you lose muscle along with fat. Muscle is a ‘calorie burning furnace’ so you’re essentially slowing down your metabolism even more. A smarter move is to aim for moderation when it comes to exercising and healthy eating habits. The last thing you’d want is your crash diet coming back to bite you in the end.

Reason #6 – You’re Sitting On Your Desk All Day

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Modern age has made sitting behind a desk a part of our daily lives. And much to our dismay, studies show that dedicated workouts simply cannot compensate for being sedentary the rest of the time.

The solution is pretty straight forward. Try to get up and walk for just two minutes during each of those hours to burn some calories. This can be done by setting a timer on your phone or computer. What else?

You can try taking the stairs instead of the elevator. Or swapping your chair with a stability ball to strengthen your core and burn calories at the same. time. Or if your office allows, convert to a standing desk to shed pounds and improve your posture. The list goes on and you can probably google more suggestions (chair exercises anyone?).

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