Why Can't You Lose Weight?

You're eating the green stuff; you're getting up at five to haul your little butt to the gym or to go for a grim jog around the block in an icy winter wind. You step on the scale, expecting a triumphant dip of the little pointer.

But no. Your weight hasn't budged. Not one tiny, little pound.

It's almost enough to make you ditch the kale breakfast smoothies and go back to the Coca-Cola.

If you're doing everything right, and can't seem to lose any weight, have a look at these twelve surprising reasons that may explain why you can't lose a pound.

Your thyroid is on a go-slow?

If you're eating healthily and exercising, one of the first things you should do is go to the doctor and have them check your thyroid hormone.

An underactive thyroid (called Hypothyroidism) can cause many symptoms, but one of the first, and most noticeable is weight-gain. This is caused by cells working slower than usual. Hypothyroidism can also cause weight-gain by causing a build-up of salt and water in the tissues.

Your thyroid is running too fast

For most people, a fast thyroid (Hyperthyroidism) will cause weight loss due to speeding up the function of the cells, but it can cause others to gain weight. This is because Hyperthyroidism can make you feel very hungry, so you may be piling up your plate with large portions, without noticing it.

You have a Vitamin D deficiency

Your body cannot manufacture its own Vitamin D; it needs the aid of the sun. An average of 77% of the American population is Vitamin D deficient. Weight gain is one of many symptoms of Vitamin D deficiency.

Vitamin D works with a hormone called Leptin, which is produced by our fat cells and sends the message to our brain that we're full. When we're lacking Vitamin D the signal sent by Leptin to the brain is disrupted, so the body no longer knows when it's full.

So, if you are struggling to lose weight, ask for a Vitamin D blood test.

You're skipping breakfast

Many people still believe skipping meals will help them lose weight. It doesn't work. And skipping breakfast is the worst thing you could do. All it does is make you hungrier and more likely to overeat later.

Eat within an hour of getting-up and have a balanced breakfast with a stabilising carbohydrate, a filling protein, and a healthy fruit or vegetable: for example half a grapefruit, and poached egg with toast; oats with fresh fruit and a yogurt; cereal followed by vegetable crudités and a cottage cheese dip.

You eat too close to bedtime

Eating at night raises your body temperature, your blood sugar and your insulin levels, reducing your ability to burn fat.

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If you must eat in the evening, stick to healthy options such as plain rice-cakes, oat-cakes, or a banana. Be careful, too, of snacking in front of the TV or a computer, which may make you more likely to eat carb-rich, sweet foods.

You have insomnia

When we sleep badly, our metabolism slows right down, meaning that we burn fewer calories than people who are well-rested. We also eat more calories (one study found that people who didn't sleep enough ate an average of 300 calories more a day).

Further Things That Inhibit Weight Loss

You are stressed

Chronic stress increases the hormone cortisol. Cortisol makes it more likely that you will store fat, especially around your waist. Not only does cortisol predispose us to store fat, stress predisposes us to crave sugar.

When we are stressed, our "fight or flight" mode is activated. In order to be able to fight an enemy or flee them, we needed to be full of energy. This means that, in "fight or flight" mode, we crave sugar. Lots of sugar. To enable sugar to go to the muscles that - according to our body - need it, all the cells are opened to allow sugar to seep in.

This causes weight gain.

It's in your genes

Here's some bad news: if you can't lose weight, your genes may be to blame. Our metabolism is, to a large extent, predicted by our genes. So, if you have portly parents, you are likely to find it harder to lose weight.

It's in your jeans

Ladies: some more bad news. How easy or hard you find it to lose weight is partly predicated on gender. Women find it harder than men to drop the pounds. The good news is that, if women do manage to lose weight, they are less likely to put it back on.

You may also find that the man in your life loses his tummy-fat before you. Women struggle much more with this area.

Too few calories

Believe it or not, eating too few calories may make it harder to lose weight. Low calorie diets are typified by bad nutrition and a daily intake of around 800 to 1200 calories. If you're on a diet like this and are not losing weight (or your weight loss has stopped), it's time you look at adding more healthy calories to your diet.

Low calorie diets increase cortisol in the body, making fat more resistant and making it harder to lose weight. A review found that 30-64% of dieters on a low calorie diet ended up gaining more weight than they had lost; the longer participants were followed, the more weight they gained.

Poor health

If you have certain health conditions, it may be harder for you to lose weight. These conditions include:

• Eating disorders, such as Binge Eating Disorder and Bulimia
• Heart Disease
• Hormonal disorders
• Sleep Disorders, like sleep apnoea

If you have any of the above conditions, it's important you tackle your health condition, before you worry about your weight. Instead of focusing on dieting, focus on eating healthily and having a sensible, doctor-approved exercise-programme.

Certain medicines

As with poor health, certain medications will destroy your attempts to lose weight before you even take that first glug of kale smoothie. These medications include:

• Birth control pills (Levonorgestrel)
• Anti-epilepsy medication (valproate, gabapentin, carbamazepine)
• Antihistamines (Diphenhydramine)
• Beta-blockers (metoprolol)
• Anti-psychotic or schizophrenia medications (chlorpromazine, thioridazine)
• Anti-depressants (Amitryptiline Lexapro, Paxil, Prozac, and Zoloft)

If you're taking these medications and your weight is causing you problems, have a word with your doctor; your doctor may be able to change your medication to an alternative where weight gain is not so problematic. Even if that's not possible, eating a healthy diet and taking gentle exercise could still limit the effects your medication has on you.

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Conclusion

Although these problems make it hard to lose weight, don't give up. By sticking to a healthy, balanced diet and following a sensible exercise programme, you can make a difference to your health. Remember, if you have a medical condition, you should be carefully monitored while you're attempting to lose weight.

Remember, don't be ashamed. Your medical condition is not your fault. The best thing you can do is try to take care of your health, and talk to your doctor about any alterations that can be made to your medication. Perhaps ask for a referral to a qualified dietician who specialises in offering advice on healthy eating to people with medical conditions.

And don't worry: although all these conditions may make it hard to lose weight, it's not impossible. There's help out there for you.