Roadblocks to Healthy Weight Loss
Posted by Dr. Della Parker on July 28, 2015
Roadblocks to Healthy Weight Loss
Eat right and exercise it should be that easy, right…wrong!
First, what does “eating right” even mean? It doesn’t mean counting calories or giving yourself an anxiety disorder surrounding food. It means eat real food! Protein and veggies mostly. Is it earth made or man-made? I say go with what the earth made stuff, most of the time anyway! Occasionally we are in a rush and we need to consume some not so ideal food choices for convenience or pleasure and that’s ok! Don’t beat yourself up about it, you are human. Just do better tomorrow.
Then comes exercise. Don’t overdo it now! Let’s get your heartrate in the fat burning zone not the sympathetic dominant I’m running for my life and I can hardly breathe mode. 180- (1/2 your age) = top number subtract 10 and you have your bottom number. This is your target heart rate, read the last sentence slowly and you can figure it out. Then mix in some weight training a couple times per week.
So you are doing all of that and you aren’t losing weight? Or worse, you are gaining weight!? Here are some reasons why that may be happening;
Hormone Imbalance
Yep we are talking about those darn adrenal and thyroid glands. Adrenals are your stress handlers and become fatigued when we are over stressed. This can mean low energy or stamina and more belly fat! The bummer is that your adrenal glands hold hands with your thyroid gland, which runs your metabolism. So when your uber stressed out lifestyle catches up with you and your adrenals crash, so does your thyroid and that aint pretty!
What to do? Support those adrenals by cutting out sugar! Also, eat foods high in vitamin C such as bell peppers, broccoli, dark leafy greens and more. The adrenals have the highest concentration of vitamin C in the whole body. The thyroid requires selenium, so eat a single brazil nut per day and you will have your daily requirement completed. Lab testing can also be very helpful in identifying any functional hypothyroid conditions.
Neurotransmitter Imbalance
Neurotransmitters regulate things like mood, appetite, cravings, and sleep. Examples are; decreased serotonin = carb cravings and decreased dopamine = binging behavior. You can see how those would contribute to weight gain eh?
These neurotransmitters are made in the gut, so if that place aint lookin’ so hot, neither are our neurotransmitters! Our guts need acid to stimulate a healthy environment for all our happy little gut bugs to live. Probiotics can be helpful but sometimes you need a specific probiotic or a prebiotic to help change the whole environment in there. A healthy level of Hydrochloric acid is key at the start of the digestion process for things to be smooth sailing downstream. So quit poppin’ those tums and acid blockers! They aren’t doing your waist line any favors.
Food Intolerances
Eating foods that are constantly aggravating your system causes inflammation, an increase detox burden on the kidneys and liver, as well as messing with that whole gut environment thing we just talked about. Food intolerance testing is quick and easy and can help identify what foods may be standing in the way of you and your beach bod. Eliminate them and eliminate inflammation that can cause your body to hold on to lots of buffer weight.
Sleep
Ahhh sleep. If you aren’t getting enough sleep, you are more likely to be overweight. Just sayin… your body is doing lots of repair and maintenance in those lights out hours. You need to be getting at least 8 a day! If you aren’t sleeping then you need to figure out why! And don’t just take melatonin. Let’s figure out why you aren’t sleeping and actually fix it. I am fairly certain it is not due to an Ambien or Benadryl deficiency.
So there you have it, a short list of things that can impact your whole health along with the inability to lose weight. Let’s face it, if it were easy we would all be 120 lb. But there are roadblocks. Identify them out so you can get through to a healthier you!