Why You Are Not Losing Weight in a Calorie Deficit
Almost without exception, if you ask a dietitian if they've ever been asked "why am I not losing weight in a calorie deficit?" they'll reply emphatically with a "yes.” That’s because this problem is far from uncommon.
So if you’re here because you’re experiencing it – you’re not alone. It’s important to understand that while the concept of a calorie deficit is fairly simple, the concept of weight loss is far from it. In terms of weight changes, there are many factors involved, and before you get discouraged, let's take a closer look at what they are.
What is a Calorie Deficit?
In order to explore calorie deficits, let's first define what they are. Simply put, being in a calorie deficit means you are eating fewer calories than you are burning, or burning more calories than you are eating.
According to the law of thermodynamics, this is the way to weight loss. When you give your body fewer calories than it actually needs, it has no choice but to start burning the tissue in your body for fuel. And what tissue are most people looking to lose? Fat tissue.
What Calorie Deficit Is Recommended For Weight Loss
Let’s take a look at the current recommendations. The USDA generally recommends about 2,000 calories per day for women and 2,500 per day for men. Given that a pound of fat equals out to about 3,500 calories, the general rule of thumb is if you want to lose a pound a week, you simply have to reduce your calories by 500 every day.
This means, for weight loss, women would want to consume 1,500 calories and men would need 2,000 calories. Now, hold your horses there before you close that tab and assume all of your questions are answered.
Men vs. Women Weight Loss
Although these numbers are nice, neat, and round in theory, it doesn’t always work out this way. As a matter of fact, it usually doesn’t. But I can tell you how to make it effective. Still, though, the question remains: Is a calorie deficit enough to lose weight? Technically, the answer is still yes. The extent of the deficit, however, can be influenced in a number of ways that can impact progress.
For one, it’s important to know that women tend not to experience weight loss at the same rate as men. Men have more testosterone, so they can retain more muscle mass than women. Since muscle tissue is very metabolically active (meaning it can make your metabolism slightly faster), it’s a little easier for men to lose weight even if they were eating the same number of calories as a woman trying to lose weight.
How Long Should You Be In A Caloric Deficit
The amount of time you should spend in a calorie deficit very much depends on:
your current weight
how well you are tolerating the deficit
how active they are
and a number of other factors.
Generally, though, if you’ve been in a deficit for 5 months or longer and still haven’t made progress, it’s safe to assume an adjustment needed to be made. It’s important to keep in mind that the more dramatic the deficit, the worse it is for your body the longer you stay in it.
Why Am I Not Losing Weight in a Calorie Deficit?
So, now, the moment you’ve all been waiting for. Why would you not be losing weight in a calorie deficit? I’ve been hinting at there being factors that might cause a deficit to not be sufficient. What are those factors? Let’s take a look.
1. You’re Not Really in a Calorie Deficit
This is probably the most common issue. Most people will swear they are in a calorie deficit, but they are really underestimating how much they are eating. There’s something we call “portion distortion” which can happen subconsciously when trying to lose weight. Someone is less likely to be honest with themselves about how much food they are eating and how big their portions actually are which results in not actually eating in a deficit.
There are also tricky things called “sneaky calories” which are food items that contribute to our daily calorie intake, but are often overlooked as contributors.
For example, suppose you made an egg white omelet every morning and counted the calories for everything you put in it, but you forgot to include the tablespoon of butter that you used to cook the omelet in the pan. That is 100 calories that you did not account for. When you consider that that’s just breakfast, it’s easier to start to imagine how quickly a deficit can take a hit when lunch, dinner and snacks are thrown into the mix.
2. Water Shifts
If you’re someone that weighs yourself nearly every day, you need to read this. It’s astounding how many pounds of water the body can retain and let go of on a day-to-day basis. That’s why, unless you’re experiencing some sort of acute sickness, dietitians usually recommend you don’t weigh yourself more than once every 1-2 weeks. The body just does not let go of or gain fat in 24 hours or even 48 hours. If you’re seeing dramatic weight changes from one day to another, it’s likely one of the following is true:
You had a high sodium meal the night before
You’re dehydrated (or over hydrated)
You just sweated…a lot
You aren’t eating enough carbs or calories in general
You flew on a plane recently
You have a certain disease or take a certain medication
You are very stressed
You aren’t sleeping enough
This list is a sample of examples when your body is either retaining or expelling water from your tissues. This can greatly affect the number on the scale.
If you don’t want to discourage yourself and your progress, instead weigh yourself once every one to two weeks, which will give you more reliable data to track trends.
3. Change in Body Composition
If you’re worried that you’re not losing weight in a calorie deficit, this is the part where considering shifting your focus from weight loss to fat loss can make a big difference.
After all, that’s what most people want when it comes to weight loss, correct? In that case, you can experience significant fat loss in a calorie deficit and the scale will barely budge. How? Well, especially if you are someone who is brand new to consistent exercise or regularly engages in weight training, it’s very possible that your calorie deficit has resulted in fat loss, but also muscle gain.
People who are trying to lose weight or get fit are also more likely to eat high-protein diets to help with muscle growth and hunger control. Thus, this is a very common phenomenon. If you think this may be the case for you, it’s encouraged that you pay less attention to the scale as a metric of success, and pay more attention to your strength, how your clothes are fitting, how you look in the mirror, and your energy levels. Progress photos can also be a more reliable benchmark.
4. Hormonal Disorders
I’ve previously mentioned how hormonal changes can make weight loss tricky, which is why intermittent fasting could be beneficial for some populations. However, there are other medical conditions that result in hormone shifts so extreme, they can alter the metabolism in a way that a calorie deficit may not be as effective. These conditions include, but are not limited to:
PCOS (Polycystic ovary syndrome)
Diabetes
Hypothyroidism
Hypopituitarism
Menopause
If you have been pursuing weight loss, but have a suspicion that you have some sort of hormonal imbalance, it’s important to talk to your physician. While dietitians can help to a degree, it’s key to identify and treat the underlying condition before or while nutritional changes are being made.
5. You’re Exercising Too Much or Eating Too Little
Forget a calculated deficit for a minute. Some of you may be wondering, “why am I gaining weight when I barely eat?” because your motivation to lose weight may have persuaded you to eat as little as possible.
Well, believe it or not, it’s possible to go too far in either direction. The body may hold onto tissue if you're creating a deficit that's too extreme, such as depriving yourself of too many calories or exercising more frequently than you should. This is to conserve the fuel you're not supplying.
How to Reset Your Metabolism
So, if you’re eating 1,200 calories and not losing weight, it could be that your body is really struggling to function on so little fuel and your metabolism is not functioning well enough to respond to a deficit in the way you’d like.
If you’ve been in an extreme deficit for an extended period, it may be a good idea to go through a “refeeding period” of eating normally or even in a slight surplus to nourish your body again for a while. You also want to be sure you are not exercising more than 5-7 hours a week unless you are an elite athlete training under the supervision of a licensed strength coach.
6. Patience Patience Patience
This may be the hardest pill to swallow, but it may be time to consider for a minute that you are in a calorie deficit and doing all the right things to lose weight, but you aren’t giving it time! Despite what ideas magazines and social media may try to sell you, significant (and healthful) weight loss doesn’t happen in a matter of days. It also doesn’t always happen in a linear fashion. Some people may lose 3 pounds, gain 5, then lose 7.
All in all, the majority of experts advise you to wait 3-4 weeks to see weight loss if you're following a weight loss plan under a professional's supervision. In the meantime, do your best to trust the process and remind yourself of other benefits you may be getting from your weight loss efforts such as gaining strength and confidence in the gym and eating a more nutritious diet.
The Bottom Line for Losing Weight and Calorie Deficits
If you find you are eating less but gaining weight, there are likely other things at play that are interfering with your calorie deficit. It’s also possible that there are not really interferences at all, and you simply need a better way to track your progress, your intake, or practice a little patience.
Most dietitians do not recommend a diet of 1,200 calories or less for weight loss unless under very specific circumstances and medical supervision. Most individuals cannot function optimally and can experience negative side effects from a diet with so few calories. These include a risk for developing an eating disorder, muscle loss, nutrient deficiencies and a slower metabolism.
At the end of the day, while weight loss has many benefits, keeping your body healthy needs to be the first priority.
For expert guidance from a nutrition professional to remove the guesswork out of weight loss and lose weight the healthy and sustainable way, take a look at my weight loss packagest.