Feel like you have a slow metabolism? No matter how little you eat, you just cannot lose weight? While some people tend to use a slow metabolism as a scapegoat for poor dietary habits, for others this is actually a very big reality.
In some cases, it can actually be a medical issue causing a slower metabolic rate, often termed hypothyroidism and in this case, proper professionals need to be seen.
For other cases, it’s simply years and years of improper dieting that has led to their body becoming efficient at storing body fat and inefficient at burning fuel.
How can you tell if this is your situation and what can you do about it?
Symptoms Of A Damaged Metabolism
Usually those who have a damaged metabolism are those women who have been on a very low calorie diet for a very long time.
Because of this, their body has now adapted to running off less fuel and is stuck in ‘conservation’ mode. Just what you want.
How long you’ve been dieting in such a way will determine just how long it’s going to take for you to repair the damage.
Some key questions to ask are:
1. Do you feel as if you are living in an igloo? – this can be a signal you’re metabolic rate is running at turtle speed
2. When was the last time you actually took a break from dieting? Or has it been so long that you can’t even remember?
3. How well am I actually losing weight? – if you aren’t losing weight despite eating fewer than 10X your current body weight in pounds per day, you might have an issue at hand
4. Are you doing more cardio than the next champion marathon runner? – If you are doing hours of cardio a week to no
prevail on the scale, your metabolism could be stuck
5. Was the last time you saw a carb at the turn of the century? – low carb dieting for extended periods of time can create major issues for some individuals
If you are nodding your head to many of the statements, you need to make some changes.
Getting Yourself Out Of This Mess
The very first thing you must do when you suspect your metabolic rate is stuck on speed: slow is to give yourself a diet break.
Yes, you may gain some weight. Relax – likely, it will be mostly water weight and stored muscle glycogen (especially if you’re on a low-carb diet), which will come off again once you’ve finished the repair process.
Consider the fact though, if you’re scared about gaining this weight, that if you just continue on as you are, you’re going to have to keep bringing your calories lower and lower to see weight loss happening.
You’re already on the rabbit diet, so where are you going to go from here? Become a breatharian? (it’s an actual diet – look it up!) How much lower can you possibly bring your calories? Eventually you will get to a point where you simply aren’t satisfying your nutritional needs and that isn’t going to work in the long-term.
Accept a few pounds of weight gain for now, because once your metabolism is running better, not only will you feel better, but you’ll actually then be able to make some progress on your diet for a change.
Bring your calories back up to a maintenance level (typically a good estimate is 15 calories per pound of body weight each day; 14 for those who have a slowed metabolism). In addition to this, if you have been on a very low carb diet, introduce some carbs back in – treat your body to some pasta for once! This, more than either protein or fat, will have a positive effect on your metabolic rate.
Next, you need to get off your insane cardio program, if you’re on one and I’m will to guess a vast number of you are. An insane cardio program would translate to anything more than 3 hours of moderate cardio a week and one or two sprint sessions. This would be the upper most amount most people should ever do (aside from if you are training for endurance related events, of course). Ideally you should actually be doing much less because your diet should be doing the fat loss work for you.
In addition to destroying your metabolism, too much cardio over time can contribute to overtraining syndrome as well, which is yet another thing that can make fat loss hard.
To fully refresh yourself, try and take one week off all exercise. I know, this is unthinkable right now. But what’s worse. Take a week off or spend another year working out for over an hour a day yet making no progress at all? It should be obvious. Make the right decision and give your body a break. NOW.
When you do decide to get back into it, approach it slowly. Add 2-3 cardio sessions a week and see how you do. Spend some time figuring out a smart diet plan – one that doesn’t have you starving, and watch how much better the fat starts falling off your body.
So, if you are feeling ‘stuck’ with your weight loss and think your metabolism may have died, implement these steps. You may feel like you are regressing, but you really need to ask yourself what’s worse? Regressing a little to get better progress later, or keep going as you are at a snail’s pace. I think if you answer this, you’ll find you know what you need to do.
