Working Out But Not Seeing Results?

Do you eat well, exercise a ton and still feel like you’re not making any progress?

Well, you’re not alone I hear this from so many frustrated women out there.

Below are some possible reasons you’re feeling stuck.

Not eating as healthy as you think

I always thought I ate healthy but then I learned that I wasn’t eating enough whole foods. Once I transitioned my diet to include more whole foods I was blown away by the results! The term “whole foods” refers to natural foods that are not heavily processed. That means whole, unrefined, or minimally refined ingredients. Click here to learn simple strategies to start eating healthier today!

Tip: Aim for 80% of your daily food intake to come from whole foods.

Cutting out all carbs

Contrary to popular belief, all carbs do not make you fat. There are actually 2 kinds of carbs – simple and complex. Example of simple carbs: candy, soda, white bread, etc. Now overeating simple carbs will definitely hinder your progress. On the other hand, our bodies need complex carbs. Example of complex carbs: brown rice, whole wheat bread, oatmeal, etc. What most people don’t realize is by not eating enough complex carbs you will also mess up your plans. Complex carbs contain fiber and nutrients that help you feel full and satisfied. Not eating enough complex carbs leaves you feeling deprived and tempted to binge.

Tip: Try adding complex carbs like oatmeal with fruit and nuts at breakfast.

Doing too much cardio

Cardio is definitely important to keep your heart healthy, your mind clear and to burn some calories but it’s not where you want to focus all your efforts. Doing only cardio or too much cardio can actually slow down your efforts. Extra-long cardio sessions can actually cause you to store fat to be used for energy and even burn lean muscle. Plus, all this exercise makes you hungry so you will likely eat more food than you really need.

Tip: Studies show a combination of cardio and strength training workouts is optimal for keeping your heart and your entire body healthy.

Not lifting weights

Strength training with weights will help you add lean muscle to your body. Lean muscle burns more calories than fat even when you’re not exercising. The best way to manage your weight and health is to add lean muscle by doing some type of resistance training along with strengthening your heart with some cardio exercise.

Tip: Using light dumbbells or even doing body weight exercises like squats, pushups and crunches is a great place to start.

Not enough recovery time

After particularly tough strength workouts you need to give your body enough rest and recovery time. This rest time is equally as important as your workouts. Now that doesn’t mean you cannot move your body every day. Just try to mix it up so you’re not overworking the same muscles and body parts day after day.

Tip: Try alternating heavy cardio days with strength training days. It’s ok to add some light cardio on your strength days too.

Not working hard enough

Even if you’re spending hours in the gym you might not be pushing yourself enough. Doing the same workout routine day after day is not only boring for our brains, but also for our muscles too. You need to challenge your muscles differently to see results.

Tip: Try upping your intensity for less time or add interval training moves to mix things up.

Eating too many calories

If you eat out a lot or consume a lot of convenience foods, you are probably eating too many calories. Restaurant foods and processed foods contain extra salt, sugar and oil causing them to have more calories than homemade meals and whole foods. Plus they are usually lacking in the fiber and nutrients our bodies need for optimal health and weight management. 

Tip: Try making more meals at home, bring your lunch to work and be sure to include lots of healthy whole plant foods throughout the day. Click here to learn simple strategies to start eating healthier today!

Poor stress management

Stress causes the production of cortisol, a natural stress hormone. Cortisol helps your body mange stress. Exercise stresses your body and causes your body to produce cortisol too. This is totally normal and necessary for energizing your muscles for your workouts but over exercising can produce too much of this hormone. Excess cortisol over long periods of time is unhealthy and it can cause your body to store unwanted fat.

Tip: Establishing a regular stress management practice is critically important for total body wellness.