Why Am I Not Losing Weight On A Calorie Deficit?
Introduction
Calorie deficit.
The two words you’ve probably heard enough times to last you ten life times, never mind one. We’re told time and time again of the importance of being in a calorie deficit, so much so that it’s on its way to becoming the new “eat less, move more” – the phrase that says so much but so little at the same time because it ignores everything about that person as an individual and aims to give them a one-size-fits-all solution to a completely unique situation.
To lose weight, we must be in a calorie deficit, but sometimes this is easier said than done, and can often prompt the question: Why am I not losing weight on a calorie deficit?
What Is A Calorie Deficit?
If you’re already familiar with this, feel free to jump on to the next section.
Every second of the day, your body requires energy to stay alive. Therefore, your body will require a certain amount of energy each day to be able to carry out a bunch of different functions to keep you ticking over (known as your maintenance calorie requirement). These range from your heart beating and lungs breathing, to fuelling your brain to be able to read these words; it all requires energy.
If we provide our body with less energy than it needs each day, this is called a calorie deficit. Being in a calorie deficit means your body has to then use stored energy (such as fat and glycogen – AKA glucose) to make up the difference.
In simple, that’s how weight loss works. You provide your body with less energy than it needs, your body uses up stored fat to make up the difference, and your weight comes down.
Easier said than done, of course.
Let’s go through a bunch of reasons for the question of:
“Why Am I Not Losing Weight On A Calorie Deficit?”
#1 You’re Not In a Calorie Deficit
“What?! But I’ve been tracking!”
Ultimately, weight loss is a numbers game. If your weight isn’t coming down, you’re not in a calorie deficit.
If you think about it logically, this is saying that your body is not getting the calories (energy) it needs each day, but is somehow managing to maintain itself.
It’s just not possible.
Your body can’t create energy from nothing, in the same way that you can’t build a house without bricks.
There are certainly things that can impact the number on the scale, such as gaining muscle, and this is where you’ll see changes elsewhere, such as waist circumference. It’s very common when starting to lose weight, if you introduce a lot of new exercise, to gain some muscle, which can make it seem like you’re losing fat much slower than you actually might be.
This is why you can’t fully rely on a pair of scales to tell you the full story.
You can use online calorie calculators to give you an idea of roughly how many calories to aim for each day, however, it’s extremely important to note that these calculators are simply providing you with their best guess, and not a 100% accurate number.
I’ve lost count of how many times someone has said to me “but I’m sticking to my calorie number that it told me and I’m not losing weight!”.
As I said, it’s just a very educated guess, and should be adjusted based on your results.
#2 You’re Not Tracking Everything
The odd biscuit here and there, the milk and/or sugar in your tea or coffee, the glass of orange juice, the mayonnaise in your tuna, the cheese on your spag bol, the butter on your toast.
These are but a few of the countless things each day that many people simply don’t even think to consider when trying to lose weight.
When losing weight, to do so in a more sustainable and manageable way, it’s generally advised to aim for around 300-500 calories below what you need.
Do you know how easy it is to eat an additional 300-500 calories each day to completely erase that calorie deficit?
For context, that could be as simple as:
- Adding 10g of butter (75 calories) to 2 pieces of toast (total of 20g butter) – total calories: 150.
- Having 3 cups of tea (or coffee) with some milk and 2 sugars in each (total of around 50-60 calories depending on how much milk you add) – total calories: 180.
- Adding 30g of light mayonnaise to your tuna for a sandwich. Total calories: 100.
That’s it.
Those three things above equal 430 calories and all of a sudden you may no longer be in a calorie deficit.
It’s ridiculously easy to consume more than you think. Often, we can be so used to having certain things in our day-to-day diet that we never even consider that they contain calories.
I once worked with someone who was pulling their hair out with frustration; they simply couldn’t figure out why they couldn’t lose any more weight. After going through their current diet, it turned out they were drinking 8+ cups of tea per day with milk and sugar in each. This totalled up to around 400-500 calories just from these drinks.
#3 You’re Guessing Your Portions
Have you ever weighed out a 30g portion of cereal? It’s bloody tiny, you can almost still see the bottom of the bowl.
Have you ever weighed out a 30g portion of cheese? That’s a one-way ticket to Disappointment Central. Population: You.
Cheese and cereal aside, it is unbelievably easy to think we’re eating less than we are, especially if we’re just eyeballing our portions.
Please don’t get me wrong, this is not me saying you have to weigh everything you eat.
However, a lot of people simply don’t realise that their “normal” portion of cereal, is actually 3 or 4 times what they think it is. That bowl of Fruit and Fibre they thought was “healthy” might actually be 600 calories because they nearly filled the bowl and added a bunch of milk. Oh, and don’t forget the mixed nuts they added too.
Remember, everyone’s idea of what a “normal” portion is, is completely different.
Ultimately, if you’re not losing weight, even though you believe you’re eating less than you need, it can very often simply be down to the size of your portions.
Even if a food/meal is nutritious, it’s important to remember that these foods still contain calories, and are absolutely possible to overconsume.
#4 You’re Not Consistent
Calories don’t count on the weekend… right?!
One of the most difficult things with weight loss is being consistent with it. Sticking with your plans from Monday to Friday is certainly a lot easier for most people when compared to the weekend.
The weekend can completely erase your week’s progress.
The graph below shows an example of someone aiming for 1800 calories per day, and how they can hit their calorie goal all week (Monday to Friday), then overeat on the weekend. This can significantly increase their average calorie intake for that week (from 1800 to 2142) and can easily be the thing that stops you from making progress.
Remember, your body doesn’t reset at midnight each night, it works on an ongoing basis. Consistency is one of the most fundamental parts of weight loss success.
The occasional straying from your plan here and there is not a big deal, but if it’s a continuous thing, that’s going to have a much greater impact on your progress overall.
#5 You’re Not As Active As You Might Think
Exercise is so important for health, and the last thing I would ever want anyone to do is to think that exercise is just something you do to burn calories. There are a huge number of benefits to being active.
And, believe it or not, exercise on its own is not all that effective for losing weight.
Why?
It’s very easy to think you’re doing more than you are.
Some common things I hear are:
“I’m going to the gym 5 times a week and my weight isn’t budging!”
“I’m walking for an hour every single day and my weight isn’t coming down!”
Ultimately, many of us believe we’re burning a lot more energy than we actually are.
For example, going to the gym for an hour, for many people, might only result in burning around 300-500 calories (of course, it depends on what you’re doing).
Walking for an hour may only burn around 200-300 calories.
Burning a few hundred calories through exercise is unlikely to produce weight loss results if you do not change your diet. This is simply because it’s so easy to eat back the calories we’ve burned, or to move less throughout the rest of the day because we’re tired from the exercise we did. We may also feel hungrier as a result of being more active.
In addition, many calorie-tracking apps will often add the “calories burned” to your daily total, meaning people will believe they can eat their exercise calories back.
The problem with this is, research has found the accuracy of smart watches, especially to measure our energy expenditure (calories burned), can be very inaccurate. This can lead to you thinking you’ve burned more energy than you have, eating more, and struggling with weight loss progress as a result.
Wearing my Garmin, I can rack up 100s of steps doing things like brushing my teeth, whisking my morning eggs or even waving my hands around during conversation, all while not doing a single step.
This might lead me to believe I’ve moved more than I actually have.
Smart watches can be a great tool, but they don’t tell you everything, and they’re not 100% accurate.
#6 You Might Be Gaining Muscle
As mentioned above, when you’re new to exercising, especially weight lifting (or resistance training), it’s possible to gain some muscle fairly quickly, even if you’re in a calorie deficit.
As such, it may very well be that you’re losing fat, but gaining muscle at the same time, meaning the scales might appear as though they’re standing still. This is also known as body recomposition.
Do you notice changes in your waist circumference?
Do you notice any changes in the mirror?
Do you notice any changes in how your clothes are fitting?
Remember, the scale doesn’t tell you everything – it is one tool in your toolkit.
#7 Your Calorie Needs Might Have Dropped
If you’ve lost a significant amount of weight, and are no longer losing weight, then it might be that your calorie needs are simply less.
For example, if someone started out weighing 250lbs, and now weighs 210lbs, naturally, their body is going to need less energy to fuel itself as they now simply weigh less.
People often say:
“I’m still eating the same as I always have, but my weight just isn’t coming down any more!”
This is more than likely due to the point above; their calorie requirements are less as they weigh less.
As such, they need to readjust by recreating a calorie deficit again.
This can be either through being more active (burning more energy), eating less food (consuming less energy), or both.
One of the most challenging aspects of weight loss is hitting that weight loss plateau and changing up your plans moving forward to continue to make progress.
So many people just throw in the towel at this point because they can’t figure out what’s going on, which is such a shame.
Conclusion
If you’re not losing weight, you’re not in a calorie deficit. However, these reasons could highlight what could be holding you back when you believe you’re in a calorie deficit.
A calorie deficit is essential for weight loss, without it, your body has no reason to use up stored energy to fuel itself.
Portion control is vital. Misjudging sizes can hinder your progress. Consistency throughout the whole week is crucial, with weekend “off days” potentially wiping out the week’s progress.
Exercise, while essential for health, might not be the weight loss key it’s perceived to be. Beware of overestimating calories burned, especially considering the limitations of tracking apps and devices.
The scale doesn’t tell the whole story; monitor changes beyond it, such as waist circumference or clothing fit, for a holistic view. Muscle gain can mask fat loss.
Adapting to change is essential in many areas of life, and the same applies with weight loss. As your body transforms, so do its energy needs. A plateau is an opportunity to reassess and continue to make further progress – through increased activity, reduced calorie intake, or both.
Subscribe to Email Updates
If you want to stay up-to-date with my regular posts focusing on managing your weight, then please consider subscribing to my email updates below. And if you get sick of me harping on, you can unsubscribe at any time. And best of all? It’s free!
