I Am Exercising, But Not Losing Weight

This is a common situation for many people and may or may not be a real problem. The problem with trying to clarify such a situation in an article such as this is that there are so many variables which can contribute to the outcome of any exercise and/or weight loss program.

For example, the exercise necessary to lose a certain amount of weight at age 20 is going to be different at age 30. The exercises, and amount of exercise, which worked just fine for your neighbor, sister, or person in the book you just bought might not be what is going to get the job done for you.

Additionally, what you eat, how you rest, what exercises you do, how often you do them, and what you have done in your life up until now are all also going to be factors when it comes to losing weight...with or without exercising!

To complicate the equation even more, many people who begin a weight loss program to lose weight often find themselves gaining weight instead!

This last, by the way, is not that unusual, as a new exercise program may increase the appetite and cause the gain of lean muscle mass faster than fat is being lost. If you are still in the early stages of exercising for weight loss, concentrate more on how your clothes fit, how you feel, and positive comments from your friends and ignore the scale for a while.

The scale can bring you down even when your clothes are getting looser and your friends are thinking, if not saying out loud, "Wow! She's looking thinner. I wonder how she's doing it!"

In many cases, the diet someone chooses can get in the way of weight loss, no matter how good the exercise program is. Try to eat several smaller meals throughout the day...six is not unrealistic...and try to cut down on fats and sugars while adding a little fiber to the mix. Vegetables and fruits are good options, but even here you have to watch what you are doing. Your body will need protein, which is often NOT available in significant quantities in fruits and vegetables. Also, fruits often contain high quantities of sugars, and, just because the sugars are "natural" does not mean that they can't keep you from losing weight!

If you are eating right, have been exercising for a while so that you should be "over the hump", and still can't seem to lose weight, the probable answer is that you are either not doing enough in the way of exercise or doing the wrong exercises.

For weight loss, aerobic, or cardio, exercises, are going to probably be the most effective. However, your body soon adapts to whatever exercise level you find yourself at, and will require an increase in intensity in some manner to continue the weight loss progression.

In fact, weight loss tends to occur in waves, rather than in a smooth, downward slope, and you will find yourself going through several plateaus before you reach your desired weight. At each point, it will probably be necessary to adjust your diet and exercise program at least a twitch to begin moving down to the next level.

I would like to take a moment to make one point before my concluding remarks.

Health is the major issue here. Many people focus so intently on the weight loss goal that they try to do more than they are capable of doing at their present level of health and physical conditioning. They find a book that says to do 20 pushups or run a mile, and that's what they try to do whether they are in the proper condition to do that or not.

If they cannot do it at all, or regularly, they get discouraged. If they manage to force themselves to do it, they will, at best, give up because it is just too hard, or, at worst, injure themselves. I personally know a woman who will no longer try to exercise because every time she has ever attempted it, she has exceeded her capabilities and either gave up or was forced to give up for her health and well-being.

Start slow, progress slowly, and someday you may be writing an exercise book yourself.

Last but not least, no exercise program should be begun without clearing it with your personal physician. At one time, doctors would actually discourage certain people from exercising, but most now realize and recognize the health benefits of exercise.

On that same note, if you have done all that you can do in terms of nutrition and exercise but cannot seem to make it all work, do not hesitate to go to your doctor and say, "I am exercising but not losing weight." There are things that can be done to assist you as you pursue your weight loss goals.

There do exist clinical problems which can hinder attaining weight loss goals by even the most dedicated and motivated individual. These conditions may require medical or surgical intervention and such options should be presented and described by your doctor.

However, for most of us, those weight loss goals should probably NOT be to look as we looked in high school, or to weigh what some fashion model weighs. Our bodies have changed, and you probably do not want to live the way the fashion model has to in order to maintain her appearance. It is also possible that you simply do not have the genes she has.

Most people, if they exercise regularly and eat properly will look and feel much better and will not find it necessary to say, "I am exercising but not losing weight."

Donovan Baldwin is a freelance SEO copywriter living in Central Texas. A University Of West Florida alumnus (1973) with a BA in accounting, he is a member of Mensa and has held several managerial positions over the years. After retiring from the U. S. Army in 1995, he became interested in internet marketing and developed various online businesses. He has been writing poetry, articles, and essays for over 40 years, and now frequently publishes articles on his own websites and for use by other webmasters. He has a weight loss blog at http://nodiet4me.blogspot.com.

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