10 Reason Why You’re Not Losing Weight Part: 1

If losing weight were simple, Spanx would be just a screen name in an S&M chat room. But dieting is complicated: There are even ways to screw up without realizing it. For instance, who would ever think that working out in the a.m. or cranking the AC might be the reason you’re not slimming down? Luckily, once you’ve identified these flubs, fixing them is nowhere near as hard as pulling on a pair of control-top hose.

Roadblock number 1: Always a go-getter, you work out at 6 a.m.
What’s wrong with that? Morning workouts are great—if you go to bed at 10 p.m. In a recent study in the American Journal of Epidemiology, women who slept seven or more hours a night were less likely to put on weight than women who didn’t. Those who slept only 6 hours a night were 12 percent more likely to gain substantial weight—33 pounds on average over the course of 16 years! (Women who slept a measly five hours had a 32 percent chance of gaining 30 or more pounds.) Other studies have linked lack of sleep to a higher BMI and have found that it negatively affects levels of the appetite-regulating hormones ghrelin and leptin.

Detour: Don’t sacrifice your snooze time—not even for an extra-long run. And quality matters more than quantity, so taking a siesta later won’t help. “In a 20-minute power nap you don’t get into the deep-sleep stage,” says Donna Taliaferro, Ph.D., associate professor of nursing at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, who conducts research on sleep and circadian rhythms. “You need to go through the cycles of sleep over a few hours to get the restorative rest that allows your body to work properly.” Bottom line: You’re better off sleeping through your workout every other day than stumbling to a sunrise Pilates class on too few z’s.

Roadblock number 2: You’re a teetotaler (or a sot!).
What’s wrong with that? Alcohol may not be the diet kryptonite you thought it was. Recent research showed that those who have a single drink a couple times a week have a lower risk of becoming obese than either teetotalers or heavy drinkers. Those who consume more than four drinks daily, on the other hand, boost their odds of obesity by 46 percent.

Detour: Go ahead and have a drink; just avoid belly-busters like a 245-calorie piña colada. Instead, raise a glass of heart-smart merlot (123 calories per 5 ounces), Bud Light (110 calories per 12 ounces), champagne (88 calories per 4 ounces), or sake (39 calories per ounce). Or mix a 100-calorie cocktail, like vodka and diet tonic or tequila and club soda. “Just make sure you drink it with some healthy food, such as raw veggies with low-fat dip or whole-wheat pita and hummus,” advises Dawn Jackson Blatner, R.D., a spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association. Eating slows the rise of alcohol in your blood—and cuts the odds you’ll drunk-order the deep-fried mozzarella sticks.

Roadblock number 3: You crank the AC.
What’s wrong with that? Al Gore wants you to lay off the thermostat to save the planet. Here’s how it can save (the shape of) your own ass, too: In a study published in Physiology & Behavior, researchers found that exposure to temperatures above the “thermoneutral zone”—the artificial climate we create with clothes, heating, or air conditioning—decreases our appetite and food intake. “At a slightly uncomfortable 81 degrees, the women in the study experienced a 20 percent decrease in appetite and ate 10 percent less than at 72 degrees,” says lead author Margriet S. Westerterp-Plantenga, Ph.D., a professor of food-intake regulation in the department of human biology at Maastricht University in the Netherlands.

Detour: Instead of cranking the air conditioner every time you feel a little warm, learn to endure slightly steamier conditions. Hitting the “off” button is well worth a little discomfort if it helps you lose the saddlebags.

Roadblock number 4: You log extra miles on the treadmill to make up for giant meals.
What’s wrong with that? When it comes to dieting, success isn’t 90 percent perspiration. You can’t achieve lasting weight loss via exercise alone. But a new study in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism found that dieting can shrink your fat zones just as effectively as dieting plus exercise.

Detour: If you try the diet-only approach, you need a clear idea of how much you should be eating. Multiply your weight by 10, then add your weight again to that sum: That gives you the number of calories you need to maintain your current weight without activity. For example, 135 pounds x 10 = 1,350 + 135 = 1,485 calories. Eat more than that regularly, and your “loose-fit” pants won’t anymore; eat less, and your muffin top will start melting away. But not so fast—before you burn your gym membership, read on about sarcopenia.

Roadblock number 5: You ignore sarcopenia.
What’s wrong with that? Sarcopenia, in case you weren’t paying attention to your medical TV dramas, is age-related muscle loss—and it can start in your 30s. If you don’t take action now, you could begin to lose as much as 1 to 2 percent of your muscle mass by the time you hit 50. Less muscle means you burn fewer calories and store more of them as fat.

Detour: The key to stopping muscle meltdown is to strengthen your back, shoulders, arms, and thighs. “When you increase lean muscle mass, you burn more calories, even when you’re sitting down doing nothing,” says Amy Campbell, M.S., R.D., education program manager for health care services at the Joslin Diabetes Center of the Harvard Medical School. Find a strength workout in “Secrets of the Nation’s Top Trainers” and start sculpting at least twice a week. And keep it up after you reach your goal weight: Studies show that if you don’t exercise regularly (60 minutes of moderate physical activity a day), the pounds can creep back on.

Read Part 2 Here….

Reprint Of Article: By Nancy Gottesman, Women’s Health

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