Resistance to Weight Loss

There are some people who, for whatever reason, find it very difficult to lose weight, even on a low-carb diet. If you fit into this category, the information contained on this page might be of benefit in getting your weight loss started or back on track. First, though, you should understand what constitutes a real weight-loss plateau. If you have gone for four weeks or more, following the diet to the letter, and have not recorded either weight loss or a decrease in waist size, then you are officially on a plateau. If it hasn't been four weeks, or if you've lost inches but not weight, then you are not stalled yet. Be patient!

Are You Doing it Right?

Before you make any drastic changes to your low-carb diet, it is important to first take a look at what you're eating, when you're eating, how much you're eating, and what else you are consuming in the way of additives, supplements, and water.

You must be totally and brutally honest with yourself. Are you cheating--even just a little? Are you accounting for every single gram of carbohydrate that enters your mouth? Are you sure? Read the section on hidden carbs to be sure that what you are eating is really low carb or no carb.

For those who are resistant, even small increases in carbohydrate consumption might create a plateau in your weight loss. It is therefore important that you keep a diary of what you eat, for at least two weeks. Record everything you put into your mouth. You might be surprised at the number of grams of carbs you actually are consuming.

If you are sure that you haven't been cheating, and that you've been counting all those hidden carbohydrates in foods like liver, cream, and eggs, then take a look at your water consumption. Are you drinking at least 64 ounces of water daily plus another 8 ounces for every 25 pounds of weight you have in excess of your ideal weight? And that doesn't mean coffee, tea, diet soda, or any other beverage. It means water! You may drink other diet beverages, but they don't count in the water tabulation.

If you are consuming fewer than 20 grams of carbs per day and are drinking plenty of water, are not cheating, and are even counting the hidden carbs, then you're doing it right. There may, therefore, be something else that you are consuming, or not consuming enough of, that may be hampering weight loss.

Foods that Might Interfere with Weight Loss

Everybody reacts differently to the ingredients that are contained in processed foods. Some people can tolerate an additive quite well, while others find that it causes extended stalls in weight loss.

Here are a few foods and ingredients to be aware of:

• Citric Acid (diet soft drinks, tart sugar-free dessert items)
• Aspartame (diet soft drinks, most artificially-sweetened items)
• Cheese
• Salt
• Nuts
• Caffeine
• Sugar Alcohols
• Cottage Cheese
• Alcoholic Beverages

Eliminate, or strictly limit, one of these items for a period of at least a week or longer. If at the end of that time, you begin losing weight again, you've found the culprit. If not, try the same elimination test with another item.

Counting Calories

Calories do, indeed count. However, most people on a low-carb diet do not need to worry about counting calories. Your body, normally, responds to the intake of fat by ceasing hungar pangs. Also, if you are on a ketogenic diet, ketosis supresses the appetite.

Some people, however, find that they do continue to eat too many calories even on a low-carb ketogenic diet. Those people, therefore, may need to keep track of how many calories they consume daily, and then cut back if necessary.

A good rule of thumb to determine how many calories your body needs to maintain its current weight is to use this formula:

calories = your weight in pounds x 10

So, for example, if you weigh 230 pounds, then you should be able to maintain this weight by consuming 230 x 10 = 2300 calories per day. To lose weight slowly, subtract 200 calories from this total. To lose weight more quickly, subtract 250 or 300 calories, but no more.

Subtracting too many calories can also cause your weight loss to slow or stop. The reason is because consuming too few calories may cause your body to go into "starvation mode," which is a state of high-efficiency metabolism. In other words, your metabolism will slow down to the point where you will cease losing weight. If you find that you are not consuming enough calories, try taking one or more tablespoons of flax seed oil or olive oil daily.

Make sure you consume enough calories, according to the formula above, for your weight. For weight loss, keep your calories under, but close to, the calculated number of calories for weight maintenance. Notice, too, that as you lose weight, you will need to consume fewer calories in order to keep losing. That is why most people's weight loss slows down as they approach their goal weight.

Dietary Supplements

Sometimes, weight loss can stall if your body is lacking in certain micronutrients. Some of these micronutrients or other supplements act to decrease cravings for high-carb foods; others help your body utilize its glucose more efficiently without increasing insulin levels. Still others create a feeling of satiety, which decreases appetite.

Here are a few supplements you can try:

• Flax Seed or Flax Seed Oil
• L-Glutamine
• Chromium Picolinate
• Fiber
• Multivitamin and mineral formula

Thyroid Problems

Some people really do have an underactive thyroid, which prevents them from losing weight. If this is the case, it may be necessary to take thyroid hormone.

A good clue to look for if you have low thyroid is to measure your body temperature three or four times per day. If it is consistently below the normal of 98.6, then you should get your thyroid checked out by your physician.

If you have low thyroid, then taking thyroid hormone replacement therapy will probably jump start your weight loss in a hurry.

Try a Zero-Carb Day

Every once in a while, you might need to try something completely different. Here's one suggestion that will probably help break a plateau.

Go for a full 24-hour period, or longer, without consuming any carbs at all while consuming about 1000-1200 calories in fat. In fact, it would be best to do this for a full day, which would be longer than 24 hours if you include the night before and the night after.

Take one tablespoon of olive oil every 4 hours. Take one tablespoon of flax seed oil every 4 hours, either at the same time or on alternate hours. Take L-Glutamine to help prevent craving. Eat nothing else, but drink all your daily water requirements.

Yes, it's a pain. But it's only one day, and it will probably jump start your weight loss, so it's worth it!

Another Diet Alternative

There is a very small percentage of people who cannot seem to lose weight on a low-carb diet, even if they've tried everything listed above. If you belong to this small group of people, then you might have no choice but to try a different approach.

If all you need to do is lose weight, and if you do not have diabetes or other Syndrome-X symptoms, then the next best diet to consider is the one prescribed by Dr. Ornish--the very low fat, plant-based diet.

It is more difficult to stick with than the low-carb diet for most people. But Dr. Ornish has had much success with it. Although it does not improve blood cholesterol profiles as nicely as the low-carb diet, it does still provide an improvement. And if you can stick with it, you will lose weight.

This being a low-carb Website, it is not within its scope to go into the Ornish diet in detail. However, it does limit fat to no more than 10 to 15 percent of total calories and it stresses eating a lot of low-starch vegetables and fruits. Grain products are also allowed. Meat and fish are allowed, but meat consumption must be limited, and all fat must be trimmed. Also, calories do count.

Please consider the Ornish diet as a last resort, after you are sure the low-carb approach cannot work for you.

And one other caveat: The restricted-calorie "balanced" diet promoted by the USDA and the ADA are probably the worst diets to choose. These diets combine a high level of carbohydrates with a moderate level of fats. If you are overweight, you will have a very difficult time losing weight and keeping it off with these standard diets. And, more importantly, they do nothing to lower cholesterol levels, and might even cause LDL, the bad cholesterol, to increase.

The only two diets that seem to be truely healthy are the ones that strictly limit carbohydrates while not limiting fat; or the ones that strictly limit fat along with refined sugars and starches.