Why Am I Gaining Weight Even Though I Eat Healthy and Exercise?

You may be wondering "why am I gaining weight even though I eat healthy and exercise"? A lot of clients I work with think diet and exercise are the ONLY factors when it comes to weight loss.

Unfortunately, there are 7 major factors and diet and exercise are only 2 of them. And if you're eating right and exercising and can't lose weight, then those 2 aren't the most important factors on whether you lose weight, gain weight, or stay the same.

Why Am I Gaining Weight?

If you don't think your diet or exercising is the problem, then here are a few factors you should look into to get your weight loss on track:

1. Are you taking medications?

If so, you're unintentionally messing up your hormones. Your hormones have a lot to say about how much you weigh. Birth control and cholesterol pills are the 2 major pills that really mess up weight loss... but other do to. I can't tell you to stop taking them, but if it's at all possible, phase off of them and stop using them completely or look for alternative natural remedies. Do a Google search if necessary.

A quick tip I can give you that comes from 1 of my weight loss ebooks... spin around like a child. This is strange, but it does help bring balance to your hormones by the way it stimulates your Endocrine System. Through that, it helps you to lose weight.

2. Are you getting enough sleep?

Stacks of studies show that extra sleep helps for weight loss. Of course, it doesn't tell you to sleep all day. To put it in simple terms... if you're overweight and getting only 6.5 hours of sleep... you'd be wise to find a way to bump that up to 7.5 hours of sleep. That added hour adds up to an extra night of sleep each week.

So whatever amount of sleep you're getting now, add an hour or so to it. Take a nap during the day if you can. Add an hour or 30 minutes at night. Whatever. Just sleep more and the weight will more than likely start to come off.

One final tip... if you don't get enough "good sleep" at night, try taking the supplement ZMA. It doesn't help you to fall asleep, but it's great for giving you a nice, deep, refreshing sleep when you are sleeping. It's cheap and worth every penny.

So if you eat healthy and exercise, yet you're gaining weight instead of losing it, consider these 2 factors as possible problems. If you do, you'll stop wondering "why am i gaining weight" and start to reverse it and lose weight rather quickly.

Can You Really Lose Weight With a Fasting Diet?

There are really only two methods of losing weight, you can either increase your activity level so that you are burning more calories, or you can decrease your calorie intake, which will mean that your activity level is burning more calories than what you are eating.

Although it would seem like the best way to lose weight is by cutting out all or the majority of you calorie intake, this is an extremely bad approach to weight loss. One of the reasons that this is a bad idea is that when your calorie intake is severely cut, the result is that your metabolism slows down and you will actually be burning fewer calories.

Your body will be constantly fighting against you when you take this approach. The body's only goal is survival, and if it believes that you are starving because of lack of fuel, it will begin to shut down and use far fewer calories that what it was before, and when this happens, cutting those calories will do you little good.

The fasting or starvation diet does restrict calorie intake, but the problem is that it restricts it too much; this results in a slower metabolism and the deterioration of muscle tissue, which is bad. When you do return to a regular diet, you will find that you will gain an immense amount of weight because your body's metabolism will be out of tune with your body's needs.

If you want to lose weight what you need is a diet that will take those pounds off of you in a healthy way. No fad diet or pill will be of much help with this in the long run; sure you may lose a lot of weight at first, but your health will suffer and you will likely gain that weight back within a short period of time. When you think of dieting to lose weight, think of healthy and nutritious foods, as well as a good exercise routine.

Combining proper nutrition with exercise is the best method to reach your weight loss goals.
To lose weigh in a healthy manner it is best to do some research and find a diet and exercise program that will provide your body with good nutrition while helping to increase your metabolism.

Smart Start to Weight Loss

Starting a weight loss regimen can be difficult. People often give up prematurely due to lack of motivation or lack of results. They might start out with the right attitude but their goals may not be realistic. And once these goals are unattained, without the proper motivation people just wave the white flag. However, there are steps to starting a weight loss regimen the smart way.

The first step is buying a journal. In this journal you will write your goals and plans. The journal will include your diet, types of physical activity completed daily and the amount of time you spent exercising. Writing these things down will help you keep track of what works for you and what doesn't.

The second step to smart fitness is keeping it simple. For your physical activity do something that you enjoy. Don't try to imitate the complicated routines that others might be doing at the gym. With time, you will create your own complex routine.

The third step is to exercise in the morning. During the evenings we usually have a lot more going on and we are more likely to skip a session or two. Furthermore, exercising too close to bed time is not advised.

The fourth step is to lighten up. Often times we place so much pressure upon ourselves. We constantly complain that we have to work out. The key is not to spend hours thinking about it. Just do it is the best motto in physical activity. And the last tip towards a smart start is to give it some time. Don't expect to lose 5 pounds during the first week. It is important to remain realistic. Certainly weight loss takes time and patience, but the end results are priceless.