Calories in, Calories out or so the theory goes. If you’re taking in 2000 calories a day and you’re burning 2000 calories a day, your weight should stay the same. Create a deficit and you lose weight, right? NOT ALWAYS!! Take this scenario, you are eating 1200 calories a day, doing spin 5 days a week and you can’t drop a pound. You go to your trainer who says, “Well you need to cut back those calories. And exercise more!” I find this so annoying and obnoxious. Maybe if you haven’t been there yourself you don’t understand. Another case in point. Someone (ok, it’s me) does the so called “Master Cleanse” and gains 10 pounds in a week. Of fasting. I only drank lemon juice, cayenne pepper and maple syrup for a week. And my legs swelled up like tree trunks.
There are a few reasons you might not be able to lose any weight no matter what you have tried.
Food allergies/intolerance. Just like your sinuses get congested because the mucus is building up to protect it, your body can swell up with fluid to protect itself from something that it thinks is attacking it. You could be allergic or intolerant of a food you are eating and in turn it is causing you to gain weight. There are blood tests for food allergies but frankly, I find them unreliable and expensive. You can sway test (see my previous blog on sway testing) food and ask if the food is safe or if you are allergic to it. You can also do an elimination diet by eliminating one food category at a time for a period of time and see if you notice a change. Some of the main allergens are gluten, dairy, soy, eggs and corn. Some people also have a histamine intolerance that causes them all sorts of reactions including migraines, congestion and weight gain from food. Foods high in histamines are fermented beverages and foods like champagne, red wine, sauerkraut, vinegar, yogurt, pickles, cured meats, and aged cheeses.
Some people have celiac disease and never know it. This is an autoimmune disease caused by a reaction to a protein found in wheat, barley, rye and sometimes oats. While this can cause weight loss, many times it can cause weight gain, among many other problems. I believe this is a hugely under diagnosed disease and can lead to major problems down the road, even cancer. It’s basically poisoning your body every time you have so much as a teaspoon of gluten. Testing can be tricky. There are blood tests and gene tests, but the gold standard is an endoscopy to look at the intestinal lining. You could also try cutting out gluten and see if some of your problems go away. This would not prove the disease itself, but it could give you an idea if it is possible or if you have a gluten allergy.
Chemicals and Toxins in Food. Sadly our food supply is being pumped full of additives, chemicals, antibiotics, neurotoxins and dyes. Many people react to these by becoming inflamed or swelling up with water and hence gaining weight. All those second hand antibiotics can also cause a human to gain weight. Try and eat an all natural diet without any processed foods and organic as much as possible. Keep the beef to grass fed, make sure the fish are wild caught and eggs and chicken are free range and organic.
Low Thyroid/Low Adrenal Function and Hormonal Imbalance. If these are not working up to par, you are certainly at risk for weight gain. However, you must get to the root of the problem, Why are your adrenals and thyroid low? Although I didn’t agree with a lot of what Anthony William was saying in his book “Thyroid Healing”, I do agree with his thought that low thyroid is usually caused by a viral infection. And until you get rid of the infection no amount of supplements or thyroid medication will work. I can’t tell you how many people I know on thyroid medication and it just doesn’t work for them. They try to adjust the dosages and it nothing ever seems to come of it. I was prescribed it for a few months and it did nothing for me. Once you get your body back in balance these things will adjust back to normal.
Viral/Parasitic/Fungal and Bacterial Infections. When I was sick, I gained weight and couldn’t lose it. When I’m not sick and my symptoms aren’t flaring up, I am thin! Strenuous exercise made me gain more weight! When there are many contractions or too much movement in a body with a chronic infection, it just makes the bacteria, parasites or viruses move around and awaken in the body. Certain foods and triggers can also cause the critters to flare up and make you gain weight. They also can tell your brain you need sugar or certain foods to feed it causing you some serious cravings. Candida overgrowth is another big problem causing weight gain. This is an overgrowth of yeast in the gut (can be in other areas of the body as well) typically caused by antibiotics, medication or a high sugar diet. Candida and parasites in the gut are a huge reason why people bloat up or have that “beer belly”. For many people it gets worse or the stomach will blow up after eating even a small amount of sugary or starchy food.
There is no question that some of these chronic infections, infections you may not even know you have, can be causing you weight gain.
Lack of sleep. It is so important to get enough sleep. This can be tough because so many people suffer from insomnia. Do your best to get as much sleep as possible. If you can’t sleep, try some calming teas, meditation, diffusing oils, homeopathic remedies or something to allow you to get those Zzzz’s. I have recently found that taking L Theanine before bed helps me sleep through the night. Many people have turned to Melatonin for a sleep aid. Keep in mind that this is a hormone. And any time you start taking an artificial hormone, your body will most likely stop producing it. Meaning you would have to take melatonin for the rest of your life. I would definitely not give it to kids.
Too Much Exercise. Yes folks, this can happen. Too much exercise can actually be a bad thing and cause you to gain weight. Keep it simple. Don’t exhaust yourself. Also, if you are sweating a lot you need to make sure you replace the salt. If you throw off your electrolytes this can cause an imbalance in the body leading to dehydration and also weight gain. The rule for everyone is, 1/8 tsp good quality sea salt for every 16 ounces of water, but even more if you are sweating and exercising a lot. And as I just mentioned, a person battling viral, parasitic and fungal infections can only make things worse by strenuous exercise and too much movement in the body.
So the math of Calories In, Calories Out does not always hold true for some people. I still am not exactly sure why the Master Cleanse caused me to swell up like a dead fish. It could have been all the maple syrup, the sugar feeding the critters and causing them to come out for a party. Or it could have been too many toxins dying off from not eating and my body just couldn’t keep up. Certain foods can cause me to gain weight immediately or the next day. Be sure to keep a food journal or at least a mental journal so if you do gain 5 pounds in a day or swell up, you can try and track the food causing it.
These are some of the main reasons I think people are having trouble losing weight. By changing your diet to real, whole foods, keeping a food journal to see what foods are making you “puff up” or gain immediate weight, reduce stress as much as possible, cut out triggers of infections, rest and get adequate sleep, exercise and stay active but don’t over do it. You could also try some natural antimicrobials to help clean out the gut. I have an older post called “How I Healed from Chronic Illness” that lists a lot of natural antimicrobials that could be helpful in that area.
Desperate for Health 