The misconceptions behind ‘metabolism’ and weight management can create confusion and lead some people to questionable fad diets and products.
What is metabolism, can it be ‘slow’ and if we think we have a slow metabolism what can we do about it?
10 Fat Loss Troubleshooting Tips & Tricks
Metabolism is just a unit of how many calories we burn in a day.
A ‘slow metabolism’ means the amount of calories you burn has reduced.
A ‘slower metabolism’ is a normal part of weight loss and being a lighter human.
A ‘slow metabolism’ is unlikely to be the reason for a lack of weight loss.
If you think you’re eating very little - evaluate how closely you are tracking what you eat.
Control diet variables more accurately, reliably and consistently.
Consider whether your expectations of progress are realistic and adjust if needed.
Check that you are still moving around as much as you were when you started.
Check that the ways you’re measuring progress are reliable and if you are measuring enough different things.
Take a break and switch the focus to maintaining your weight until ready to diet again.
1 - What is metabolism?
Metabolism is simply a unit of energy usage. It refers to how much energy (calories) our bodies burn over a given day, doing all the ‘living stuff’, we do. We need energy to run vital organs, function at rest, go about our daily routine, as well as fuel any planned exercise. If we think about ourselves as machines, ‘metabolism’ is just how much fuel we use.
2 - What does ‘slow metabolism’ mean?
A ‘slow metabolism’ implies that the amount of calories we burn over a day has reduced.
It’s rare that energy used for vitals function actually drops to a notable extent, rather the bulk of any reduction in energy burned comes from reduced physical movement.
What does this mean for our weight loss goals?
Weight change over time is dictated by energy balance. Energy in versus energy out. When we burn less energy, (our metabolism slows) it’s harder for us to burn more than what we eat.
Can our metabolism actually ‘slow’ down?
In short, yes. Our metabolism is dynamic, forever changing. It’s a moving target that adapts to our environment, situation, how much we eat, and what we eat.
3 - Is a ‘slow metabolism’ the reason why weight loss isn’t happening?
While metabolism can ‘slow’, it’s certainly not the primary reason for weight loss resistance in healthy individuals.
When we lose weight we become lighter, more efficient machines. This means we require less energy to function and maintain our weight. It’s not a bad thing, it’s just like removing the back seats, and passengers from your car. The car is now lighter, it’ll be able to travel for a greater distance with an equal amount of fuel. It’s more fuel efficient.
This means the amount of calories you need to eat to keep losing weight is less than when you first started your weight loss phase.
4 - Does a slower metabolism mean your metabolism is damaged?
No, it’s not damaged, it’s an adaptation to being smaller. If you return to your pre diet weight and body fat level, your metabolism will ramp back up as well.
Is “survival mode” really a thing?
There is some truth behind the idea of ‘survival mode’. The human machine is great at survival and in times of famine or lack of food, the body can go from a V8 fuel guzzling performance vehicle to a fuel efficient hybrid vehicle. This isn’t going to completely stop weight loss but might slow the rate of weight loss.
If you truly restrict calories, you will keep losing weight until you die. However the body is good at not letting that happen by making you feel hungrier, move less and conserving energy for vital functions.
Let’s consider some reasons why weight loss may not be happening and then we’ll follow up with some tips to help you get back on track.
5 - Are you actually eating as little as you think?
There can be a discrepancy between the calories you think you are eating versus what you are actually eating. Even if you track calories, under reporting can occur, things can be missed.
Make sure you’re accounting for all the Calories you actually consume.
Don’t miss the extra few almonds you snuck into your oats, the sauce on your potato, the oil you used to cook with, the butter on your broccoli, the few instances of mindless grazing whilst cooking. These things can add up to a few hundred calories without you even realising.
6 - Are you consistent enough?
Consider what your daily average calorie intake might be over time. Are occasional spikes in calorie intake (weekends, meals out, drinking) bringing up your average daily intake? Are you estimations getting further and further from reality?
If this sounds familiar, consider controlling variables more accurately for a while.
This could include short periods of consistent calorie tracking and food weighing. It could include an evaluation of the reliability of your existing calorie tracking approach if you already are tracking, eg if you notice you’re estimating portions, try being more accurate and use kitchen scales for a while.
“1 serve, 1 medium, a handful, 1 sandwich” are a bit vague. Loose tracking and estimating is fine if you’re getting results. When you’re not, weigh and measure carefully for a short while.
If tracking, use accurate data entries.
Search ‘oats’ into My Fitness Pal and you’ll get heaps of entries and conflicting data. Use barcodes where available or enter your own data, create your own food options in the app, using data from the Australian and NZ Food Standards Database. https://www.foodstandards.gov.au/science/monitoringnutrients/afcd/Pages/foodsearch.aspx
7 - Are you just too inpatient?
Weight loss takes a long time. A weekly loss of 0.5-1% body weight per week on average is great progress. Don’t focus on one week but step back and look at the last month. If your weight loss actually averages out to a rate similar to this, then congratulations - you are making progress.
8 - Are you moving as much as you think?
Ensure your activity levels haven’t dropped. Unfortunately we don’t have a whole lot of control over spontaneous activity like body language and fidgeting, however daily step count can provide some insights to see if your steps are consistent when compared to the start of your weight loss phase.
9 - Fat loss might be hidden.
Consider how you’re measuring fat loss? Is it reliable and does it provide an accurate picture of how the body is changing?
People often associate fat loss exclusively with the scales. While scales are a useful tool, they’re full of limitations. Undigested food from a high fibre day or increased fluid retention from stress, poor sleep or even a salty meal might result in elevated scale weight, independent of actual body fat changes.
Have you gained muscle weight?
This might explain fat loss in the absence of weight loss. This is a likely scenario for those who have just commenced weight training. You’ve lost fat, gained muscle and the scale reading has stayed consistent.
Measure your progress more reliably
Include a variety of objective and subjective ways to assess how your body is changing. Use ‘numbers’ and feelings, then mash them together to draw reasonable conclusions every week or two.
Don’t place too much emphasis in one single data point.
Use a range of objective measures:
a weekly average scale weight, monthly photos, fortnightly hip and waist measurements and notice how a few certain items of clothing fit.
Combine that data with some subjective ratings of :
overall hunger, mood, energy and exercise performance.
Progress doesn’t come down to just the scale, it’s a combination of factors.
10 - What do you do if these troubleshooting tips and tricks don’t help?
Take a break
Do a reset and increase your Calories to estimated weight maintenance for a few weeks.
Re-calculate your weight maintenance calories based on your new weight and enjoy maintaining your new weight for 1, 2, or more weeks before attempting another weight loss phase.
Calories in versus calories out are dynamic and influenced by one another. If you start to eat more, your spontaneous movement and planned exercise might ramp right up resulting in a significant increase in your total daily calorie burn or your ‘metabolism’.
Think of a weight maintenance phase as a pit stop so the next chunk of weight loss can be achieved with greater ease.
Read our blog on Maintenance Phases for more info.
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