Lipotropics are injections offered to promote fat loss. Lipo shots help to achieve faster fat loss by increasing how fast the body is able to remove, transport, and burn fat.
Ingredients in Lipo Injections
Methionine
Inositol
Choline
Ingredients often added to Lipotropic injections
Vitamin B12 (Methylcobalamin)
B-Complex (mixture of B-vitamins)
L-Carnitine
Arginine
Using Lipotropic shots for Fat Loss
Lipo shots are used in a number of medical weight loss protocols, due to their effectiveness in removing triglycerides (fat) from fat stores, aiding in the transporting of fat through the blood stream, and supporting the processing and removal of fat within the liver.
Do Lipo Injections Really Work?
Do lipotropic injections really work? In short, yes, Lipotropics can help to accelerate fat loss in conjunction with a healthy exercise and diet plan. Lipotropic shots won’t just do the work for you if you aren’t trying, but if you are trying, they can accelerate fat loss. Typically, clients will take 1-2cc’s (shots) per week of lipotropics. You should feel more energy, and with that energy it’s recommended to do exercise.
How Fast Can I Lose Weight With Lipo Shots?
How Rapid are Lipo Shots? The rate of fat loss while using Lipotropic injections will vary from person to person. Also, some clients may notice more energy than others. Why is this? Some individuals might be more deficient than others in the liptropic ingredients. Also, the more weight you have to lose, the faster your body will allow you to lose it.
How Long Can I Take Lipo Injections?
How Long are Lipo Shots Safe to Take? As long as you are taking a proper dosage of Lipo shots, you should be able to take them indefinitely. Still, consult with your doctor about how long you should take Lipotropic Injections.
Are Lipo Shots Safe?
Lipo Injections are very safe, as long as you don’t have an allergy to them. The only common allergy to the common lipotropic ingredients is sulfa. Individuals with Sulfa allergies should be careful with the ingredient, Methionine. Although reactions are generally mild, consult with your doctor before taking Lipotropic Shots.
Where can I Get Lipotropic Injections?
There are a number of places where you can buy Lipo injections. Keep in mind that Lipotropics have to be handled with care, and must be refrigerated, so choose your source wisely. Clients can buy B12 injections or buy lipo shots from Ikon Health through our telewellness system.
HCG or Human Chorionic Gonadotropin is a hormone that our bodies produce naturally. During the early stages of pregnancy, women’s HCG levels will increase to nearly 2000 times the standard HCG dosage for the HCG Diet.
HCG and the Hypothalamus
Our bodies have a regulatory system that helps to control our body weight. At the core of this system is a part of the brain called the hypothalamus. The hypothalamus receives signals from the body through the use of hormones to help determine if weight loss or gain is necessary. The hypothalamus has many functions, including:
Control of hunger and appetite
Regulation of body temperature
Storage and burning of fat
Obesity: A Growing Problem
Eating habits and activity levels have changed dramatically over the last 50 years. The availability and ease of calorie dense foods with few nutrients is a key factor, but sedentary lifestyles are also playing a huge role. The human body is designed to store extra calories in preparation for a possible calorie famine. Once a person is overweight or obese, additional problems arise, and weight loss becomes considerably difficult.
Can the HCG Diet Help You Lose Weight?
The HCG Diet utilizes a VLCD or Very Low Calorie Diet in conjunction with HCG hormone injections. A very low calorie diet will cause anyone to lose weight, but in the case of the HCG Diet, the HCG hormone helps to preserve muscle mass in what would be a very catabolic state, normally. So the short answer is yes, the HCG diet can help you lose weight, but it isn’t easy. Dieters will still get hungry and struggle at times.
Before You Start the HCG Diet
Weigh Yourself
Weighing yourself is important for you to see progress and to provide feedback on how your body is responding. Most doctors recommend weighing yourself every day. From time to time, weight will shift up and down without warning. This is perfectly normal as water weight increases and decreases.
Measure Yourself
Taking body measurements is a better indicator of progress. Weight loss will often slow down, stop, reverse, or speed up without warning. Measuring will give you a more consistent indicator of success and help ease your nerves if weight loss stalls for a time.
Goals
Goals are an essential part of any weight loss plan. It might be helpful to also set milestones, or smaller goals that lead up to the larger goal.
Set a Goal Date or Event
In addition to measuring progress, you will need to have a specific date that will motivate you to achieve your goal. This date can be adjusted during the diet to better motivate you, rather than discourage you.
Personal Accountability
Personal accountability may be the most important step after setting goals. If you keep your goals a secret, it becomes easy to give up later. The most successful individuals are those who follow the diet with a friend or family member.
Rewards
Rewards can be very helpful. Most dieters decide to set rewards based on how much weight they lose, but there will be times when you are following the diet closely without seeing changes. It is important to reward yourself based on adherence to the diet protocol. Find ways to reward yourself, without using food as the reward.
HCG Diet Phase 1: Loading
During the Loading Phase you will take HCG each morning and eat a lot of food for two full days.
Before the Loading Phase
Here are a few precautions to think about before starting the loading phase.
If you are sick prior to starting the loading phase, please make sure you have completely recovered.
Women Only: Prior to starting the diet, make sure you have at least 5 days before your next period starts, and no sooner than 2 days after your last period ended.
Two Day Loading Phase
The loading phase lasts for two days. During these two days you will take HCG injections each morning, and eat to stay full all day.
Take 150 IU’s of HCG in the morning on both days (15 mark on syringe). If you are using sublingual HCG, follow the pharmacy label instructions.
Load up on calories both days, and keep yourself full
Eat calorie dense foods, and try to get a lot of carbohydrate rich foods
Start weighing yourself each morning
After the loading phase, you will begin Phase 2, and continue taking daily HCG injections.
Phase 2: Very Low Calorie Diet
Phase 2 is a 3-6 week Low Calorie Diet which can be repeated after phase 3 as many times as needed, until you have reached your goal. Phase 2 requires you to follow a low calorie diet while eating from a strict list of foods. Also, continue taking 150iu’s (15 mark) of HCG every morning.
Very Low Calorie Diet
Immediately after the loading phase, dieters are to follow the low calorie diet outlined below.
Minimum Amount of Time on the HCG Diet
After starting the HCG Diet Protocol, Dr. Simeon noted that a person must follow the diet for a minimum of 3 weeks in order to adapt to burning fat as a primary fuel.
Maximum Amount of Time on the HCG Diet
Dieters will often get excited about the rapid changes in body weight and shape, and try to overextend the duration of the Low Calorie Diet. In the long run, this will most likely cause a reduced metabolic rate. In order to maximize results over time and guard against rebounding, follow this set of guidelines:
Don’t exceed 6 weeks on the HCG diet.
Follow Phase 3 after every 3-6 week round of HCG.
The HCG Diet Plan (800 Calories)
Food
Breakfast
Lunch
Dinner
Protein
1 Serving
1 Serving
1 Serving
Vegetable
1 Serving
1 Serving
Fruit
1 Serving
1 Serving
MCT/Coconut Oil
1-2 tbsp
1-2 tbsp
Water
2-3 cups
2-3 cups
2-3 cups
HCG Diet Phase 2 Food List
PROTEIN
Chicken Breast
Crab
Turkey
Crawfish
Beef
Prawns
Ground Beef (93% Lean)
Shrimp
Game Meat
Scallops
Pork
Eggs – 2 whole
Fish
Cottage Cheese – 1 cup low-fat
Tuna
Protein Shakes
Lobster
Serving Size: 3.5 oz. / 100 g (or otherwise listed)
VEGETABLES
Broccoli
Beet Greens
Cauliflower
Lettuce – as much as desired
Peppers – as much as desired
Fennel Root
Hot Peppers – as much as desired
Chard
Green Beans
Celery – as much as desired
Mushrooms
Red Radishes
Spinach – as much as desired
Cucumbers – as much as desired
Asparagus – as much as desired
Zucchini
Cabbage – as much as desired
Yellow Squash
Onions – as much as desired
Artichoke
Field Greens – as much as desired
Serving Size: 1 cup (unless otherwise listed)
FRUIT
Apple – medium
Cantaloupe – 1 cup
Orange – medium
Honeydew Melon – 1 cup
Grapefruit – half
Banana – 1/2
Strawberries – handful
Grapes – 1 cup
Blueberries – handful
Kiwi – 2 Kiwi Fruits
Raspberries – handful
Tomato – 1 tomato
Blackberries – handful
Peach – 1 medium
Huckleberries – handful
Pear – 1 medium
Serving Size: As listed: Do Not Exceed
Additional Phase 2 Instructions
Water: Try to drink at least 8 cups of water each day. Water is an essential element in the weight loss process. You should drink enough water to have at least 3-5 clear urinations per day.
Calorie Counting: Don’t worry about counting calories during Phase 2. Just eat foods from the list in the quantities allotted.
Coffee and Tea: Black coffee and tea are permissible in the morning. If you would like, you may flavor coffee or tea with stevia and/or almond milk (40 calories/serving).
Diet Soda: While diet soda won’t cause the diet to fail, you should not exchange it for any of your water servings. You still need to drink at least 8 cups of water in addition to any diet soda you drink.
Crystal Light and other Calorie Free Beverages: Other non-caloric drinks that you are accustomed to drinking should be handled like diet soda.
MCT Oil or Coconut Oil: MCT, or Medium Chain Triglycerides are fats that are derived from Coconut Oil. MCT works great for low carbohydrate and low calorie diets because it supports ketosis, provides energy, and guards against constipation. MCT Oil can be used for lunch or dinner as a salad dressing ingredient, mixed with any combination of salt, vinegar, and seasonings. Also, you should use it as your cooking oil.
Salad Dressing: There are a few options for salad dressings. The first is MCT Oil. MCT Oil is a perfect complement to the low calorie diet. You can mix it as mentioned above to make a dressing. Walden Farms offers calorie free salad dressing and condiments that are okay to use on the HCG Diet as well.
Protein Shakes: Some protein shakes are okay to use on the HCG Diet for a protein serving, although whole foods tend to keep you fuller for longer. Choose shakes with very little carbohydrates and fats.
Seasonings: Any calorie free seasoning is permissible on the HCG Diet. Be sure to check labels.
Sweeteners: We recommend using Stevia, Splenda or Sucralose to sweeten your foods.
Plateaus on the HCG Diet
The human metabolism is adapted to maintain homeostasis (a state of balance). This means the body fights against weight loss.
Rate of Fat Loss on the HCG Diet
It is important to understand how fast you should be losing weight on a weight loss program, and have realistic expectations. Most clients can lose up to 1 pound per day, but it isn’t the same for everyone. The larger you are, the faster you lose. Women who only weigh 120-150 lbs will probably not lose a pound a day, but a man who weighs 300 lbs probably will lose a pound a day for a time.
Water Retention on the HCG Diet
Fluctuations in water weight happen at the beginning and end of all low carbohydrate diets. Generally, this water fluctuation can account for somewhere between 2-5 lbs. Do not panic if you experience these rapid changes in weight because they are not related to fat loss or gain.
Combating Hunger on the HCG Diet
Hunger is an extremely complicated subject that is affected by both physiological and psychological reasons. Most of the time hunger is a combination of the two.
Vegetables and Fiber Effect Hunger: Fiber can help with hunger in at least two ways. The physical stretching of the stomach is one signal of how much food has been consumed; when the stomach is stretched the brain thinks you’re full. High fiber/high volume foods (e.g. foods that have a lot of volume/few calories) accomplish this most effectively. Additionally, fiber slows gastric emptying, or the rate at which food leaves the stomach. A high fiber intake keeps us feeling full by keeping foods in the digestive system longer. Always eat your vegetables.
Hormonal Hunger: Hormonal hunger is hard to control. Often women will notice that during their period, hunger dramatically changes. Also, when we don’t eat for extended periods of time, our brains and intestines start releasing powerful hormones that cause us to feel very hungry. By that time, our hormones are often too strong, and it causes us to binge. Be sure to at least have a small breakfast each day to help control this. Also keep in mind that this hunger will pass.
Carb/Sugar/Starch: When starting a low carbohydrate diet you may feel cravings for carbohydrates, especially for the first few days. This will pass as your body converts to fat as its primary source of fuel.
Dehydration: Mild dehydration is often masked as feelings of hunger, when the body simply needs water. The confusion starts in the hypothalamus, where hunger and thirst are both regulated. Diet drinks don’t hydrate well, so make sure to get at least a gallon of water per day. Less than a gallon per day is known to slow weight loss.
Salty Foods: There are a couple of different reasons that a person may be craving more salt. Dehydration: occurs when you aren’t getting enough minerals/electrolytes and water. Adrenal exhaustion: often occurs when a patient has a history of using stimulants; coffee, energy drinks, etc. This can also occur when you have a lot of stress.
High Fat Foods: Most often fatty foods are comfort foods. This is usually a psychological matter, and a matter of habit. Be aware of physical or emotional cues that may cause your desire for high fat foods.
HCG Diet Phase 3: Diet Break
Phase 3 will provide an immediate increase in calories which will boost the metabolic rate, and provide you with a break. Phase 3 should be thought of as a practice round to see how well you can maintain your weight after a rapid weight loss stint.
3 Week Diet Break
The Diet Break will last 3 weeks. During this 3 week break, the goal is to increase calories, and allow the body to reload glycogen stores and allow the metabolic rate to recover. If you don’t increase calories, it may set you up for failure for the next round.
Introduction of More Carbohydrates
When you start your diet break, you will likely gain 3-5 pounds immediately, but don’t be alarmed. After following a low carbohydrate diet for an extended period of time, you will be depleted of glycogen (sugar). When your body stores glycogen in muscle tissue, water is also stored; this can account for a few pounds.
Increasing Calories (Reverse Dieting)
Phase 3 increases calories to the amount needed to maintain body weight. This amount of calories will differ from person to person. Your goal is to eat enough to maintain your weight. If you are gaining weight, reduce calories. If you are losing weight, increase calories. It’s that simple.
Macronutrients
Phase 3 is a perfect time to start learning how to be more aware of macronutrients. Macronutrients are the nutrients that contain calories. The macronutrients are:
Protein: (4 calories/gram) – start with around 1gram per pound of bodyweight
Carbohydrates: (4 calories/gram)
Fat: (9 calories/gram)
MyFitnessPal We recommend MyFitnessPal on your smart phone to track your calories. By tracking your macronutrients, you will begin to have a much better idea of what you eat daily, and what foods contain the most calories. Only use this app during Phase 3, Phase 4, and afterwards to track calories.
HCG Diet Phase 4: Transition and Maintenance
Phase 4 increases calories to the amount needed to maintain body weight. This amount of calories will differ from person to person. Your goal is to eat enough to maintain your weight. If you are gaining weight, reduce calories. If you are losing weight, increase calories. It’s that simple.
FINDING YOUR MAINTENANCE CALORIES
Maintenance calories is going to be different for each person. There are a number of factors that affect how many calories you should be eating, which include:
Weight
Gender
Age
Activity Level
IMPORTANCE OF PROTEIN
Protein is the basic building block for most tissues in the body. It is also the most effective macronutrient for maintaining a healthy body composition. Protein satisfies hunger very well, supports lean body mass, increases metabolism, and tastes good.
Note: The maintenance phase provides only a basic guideline for maintenance dieting, and should be adjusted based on individual needs as time moves on. We recommend using an application such as MyFitnessPal.com to track calories for a few weeks after the diet. This will help you get a better understanding of what you are eating, and how many calories your body burns.
Weight Loss Tracking
DO
Weigh yourself in the morning
Make sure that your daily habits before weigh-in are consistent (i.e. empty bladder first, don’t drink water, dressed or undressed)
DON’T
Use the scale as your only method of tracking success
Weigh too often (1x/day max)
Body Measurement Guide
Body measurements are one of the most accurate ways to monitor changes. While the scale can indicate slowed weight loss, body measurements can tell a different story!
Why? Keeping track of a few key measurements will keep you motivated and be a voice of reason when the scale is not reflecting what you want to see. A happy dieter is a more successful dieter!
Where? The key areas for measurement are as follows:
Chest (under armpits)
For Women: Waist (smallest part of waist)
For Men: Largest part of belly
Hips (largest part around buttocks for women, Belt-Line for Men)
Thigh (upper thigh)
When? The body fluctuates during the day. Pick a time where you will be relaxed and stay consistent on the time of day. We recommend that this measurement be done weekly.
How to Get Started on the HCG Diet
If you are want to start the HCG Diet, we have made it easy for you. We have made a list of all the best HCG Diet Providers that you can visit online to Buy HCG Injections from the comfort of your own home.
There may just be a million possible reasons why you might not be losing weight. But, speaking as a trainer who has consistently and predictably helped clients permanently lose weight, people are usually focused on the wrong things – leading to wasted energy, time, and eventually burnout. The process of losing weight is often a long and difficult one, but it is by no means impossible or unattainable. So before deciding that lasting weight loss just isn’t in the cards for you, try to analyze your current situation and identify if there are any major factors that you have left unchecked. Boiling down all the possible reasons why someone might not be losing weight down to just seven is in some ways a daunting task, but patterns emerge once you have successfully helped many people through the process. There exists a clear hierarchy of variables to focus on, and those at the top of the list are extremely basic, usually free, and only take some lifestyle modifications and effort to implement. Just cutting calories and ramping up cardio will work in the short term, but that strategy dries up extremely quickly – leaving you temporarily lighter, but no closer to reaching a point of sustained weight loss. Ask yourself if any of the following mistakes may just be the reason you aren’t losing weight, and then begin to alter your behavior or approach and start creating progress once again.
Here’s a quick rundown of the 7 Reasons You Might Not Be Losing Weight
Poor Sleeping Habits
If there is any single factor that can completely ruin any attempt to lose weight, it is poor sleep habits.
Eating Too Many Calories
At the end of the day, weight loss or gain is a matter of energy balance. Finding ways to control calorie intake is essential.
Metabolic Adaptation
How quickly and severely experience decreased metabolic rate caused by prolonged caloric restriction is highly individual, but everyone will likely develop some degree of metabolic adaptation during the dieting process.
Training too much
As a society we tend to think that more is always better. Ironically, if you are wanting to create lasting changes with your training and nutrition approach however, this could not be further from the truth.
Relying on Cardio to Burn Calories
Relying on incessant cardio sessions to create an energy deficit and hopefully fat loss will almost certainly end in frustration, a whole lot of wasted energy, and an eventual plateau.
Not Moving Enough
On the other side of the energy balance equation from the calories you eat is energy out. As a society, we are highly sedentary. Find fun ways to start moving more.
Weekend Sabotage
One of the more prevalent examples of weight loss self-sabotage happens over just a few days out of each week.
Now, for the in-depth look at the reasons we can’t lose weight. It is only fitting that we start with what is one of the most common reasons people are unable to reach and sustain a weight loss goal – poor sleep.
Reason #1: Poor Sleeping Habits
If there is any single factor that can completely ruin any attempt to safely, healthily, and permanently lose weight it is routinely getting poor sleep. If you aren’t already doing so, prioritizing getting enough quality sleep should be your primary focus when you are starting out on any fitness journey – especially weight loss. Paying close attention to and protecting your sleep like your life depends on it will help prevent you from having to experience a whole host of unwanted effects caused by acute and chronic sleep deprivation which seem perfectly designed to hinder the weight loss process. If you skip on sleep you can expect to experience:
An increased drive to demolish hyperpalatable, calorically dense foods. (Research has found that even partial sleep deprivation leads to around 400 or more extra calories eaten the next day when compared to well-slept subjects).
Decreased hormonal function (thyroid, sex, and adrenal output will all be impacted).
Decreased executive function (objective decision making is reduced).
Depressed immune function (not necessarily related to weight loss but developing disease certainly puts a hold on healthy weight loss).
Few variables can have such a profound impact on your health and fitness in the way that sleep can, but the next mistake absolutely can and fundamentally does limit weight loss entirely.
Reason #2: Eating Too Many Calories
At the end of the day, weight loss or gain is a matter of energy balance (an excellent and meticulous explanation of all things energy balance can be found here: Energy Balance. Having a positive energy balance means you will be adding weight – whether that weight is muscle or fat, calories are needed to create it. Although you may not think or feel that you are eating too much food, it is the calories in the food that matter. Inconveniently, most food products nowadays are processed and designed to be chock full of calories and include ingredients that fuel the drive to eat more. This effect is compounded by the fact most food products are missing any semblance of actual nutrition, and our body’s know it. Our innate drive to eat food includes a variety of factors, but two that are fundamental to this urge include the need for calories (energy) and the drive for nutrition (nutrients including vitamins, minerals, amino acids, etc.). Fulfilling our need for energy, without also satisfying our body’s need for nutrition will usually result in a perpetual drive to eat more in search of the nutrients it needs.
Eating too many calories is absolutely going to prevent weight loss, and create weight gain if done consistently. Energy balance is a law of nature that is inescapable, despite what some diet gurus and zealots may say. Prioritizing whole, natural foods that are full of actual nutrients is a great way to set yourself up for energy balance success but it is far from a panacea – at the end of the day, calories in vs. calories out is the rule of weight loss or gain. The next common roadblock to weight loss however, is much less understood – not just by the average person but most fitness professionals as well.
Reason #3: Metabolic Adaptation
You will have very likely heard of the dreaded “starvation mode” – a feared (and largely imagined) state where you are unable to lose weight no matter how few calories you eat. Luckily this mode does not exist, but you can expect and plan for a decline in hormonal output, decrease in libido, reductions in lean body mass, and a few more undesirable effects if you cut calories too low for too long. How quickly and severely you specifically will experience these potential effects caused by prolonged caloric restriction is highly individual, but everyone will likely develop some degree of metabolic adaptation during the dieting process. Pushing yourself to the point of becoming metabolically adapted to an unsustainably low calorie intake can absolutely pump the brakes on your weight loss progress – so the trick is to avoid reaching this point at all by planning appropriately and strategically. The best strategy to avoid this common pitfall is pretty simple:
Consistently bring your calories up to maintenance or slightly above for at least 48 hours. How often you need to do this will depend on many factors, but around every 2-3 weeks is probably often enough for most people.
Eat enough protein. Getting enough protein helps to spare lean body mass and thus aids in mitigating part of how the body becomes more efficient with the calories you give it (remember, in this context efficient is bad!).
Lift weights. Similar to eating enough protein, lifting weights can prevent much of the lean body mass loss that is expected to occur when dieting for weight loss by convincing your body that keeping muscle is in it’s best interest.
These three strategies should each be part of any weight loss diet even if you haven’t experienced any significant degree of metabolic adaptation just yet – for a far more comprehensive illustration, check out The Metabolic Adaptation Manual built by Dr. Eric Trexler, one of the leading researchers in the physique modification realm. Extremes on the training spectrum can be just as detrimental to weight loss progress as extreme dietary restriction, and both are usually reached by working without an intelligent strategy.
Reason #4: Training too much
As a society we tend to think that more is always better. Ironically, if you are wanting to create lasting changes with your training and nutrition approach however, this could not be further from the truth. All forms of training can be pushed to the point of diminishing returns, but some are able to hit that point rather easily like most HIIT style training, crossfit, unreasonably high volume workouts, and quite a few others. Training for weight loss progress is a physiologically and psychologically difficult form of training, and it should be treated as such. Thinking that you can simply hold your training volume extremely high, burn a ton of calories, and endlessly shed excess pounds is an antiquated approach that is more reflective of the rise in the popularity of high intensity group training than what is actually effective for the average person.
Again, weight loss is a difficult process for your body, don’t make it more difficult by stomping down your body with long, arduous, and inappropriate workouts everyday. You absolutely should lift weights and stay active, but don’t ask too much of your body too soon! Staying active and doing cardio aren’t the same thing, as you will see with our next common mistake – relying on cardio to burn calories.
Reason #5: Relying on Cardio to Burn Calories
Relying on incessant cardio sessions to create an energy deficit and hopefully fat loss will almost certainly end in frustration, a whole lot of wasted energy, and an eventual plateau. This mistake is so commonly made because cardio will absolutely result in quicker weight loss progress than any other form of exercise – but this advantage doesn’t play out over the long-term. Manually burning calories through frequent cardio sessions is an extremely strong signal to become more efficient with the calories that you feed it (efficient isn’t helpful with weight loss). This adaptation would have been beneficial in the not-so distant past, but if we are seeking permanent fat loss, it is actually the exact opposite of what we want. Check out our article that covers exactly why resistance training is better than cardio for fat loss here: Restance Training
If you keep pushing for weight loss success from cardio without first taking care to manage your daily activity levels, you are missing out on some almost free progress. Most of the people you see killing themselves on a treadmill or living on an elliptical seem to not realize they could have simply walked around the block instead.
Reason #6: Not Moving Enough
On the other side of the energy balance equation from the calories you eat is energy out. This can be more technically referred to as total daily energy expenditure or TDEE, and the number is the sum total of all the calories your body used in a day – a number that can be highly variable and difficult to fully determine. Some of the factors that contribute to your TDEE you can actively manipulate in various ways, some you can’t. Staying active and moving a reasonable amount everyday is likely going to be your easiest and most sustainable method of increasing your energy use over the course of the day – not adding frivolous cardio.
Cardio can be a great tool for weight loss if used sparingly and in a manner that adds to your current level of activity. When it is used as a means to haphazardly establish a baseline level of activity however, the benefits begin to quickly dissipate. Moving enough throughout the day is also essential to the function of your lymphatic system and overall health – the less you move, the less healthy you are overall. Increasing your daily activity through steps is an easy way to start managing the energy balance equation, but the next common mistake has more to do with managing behavior.
Reason #7: Weekend Sabotage
One of the more prevalent examples of weight loss self-sabotage happens over just a few days out of each week. Awareness surrounding the daily habits and practices that are required for producing weight loss often fades during the weekend and choices are made that can reduce or eliminate any progress that was developed during the week. Our body’s respond and adapt to the demands you place on it, but those demands must be as consistent as possible. This means that if the energy balance equation is catapulted in the wrong direction thanks to a few meals out or some drinks over the weekend , you have effectively reduced your weight loss progress. This effect is further compounded if you are more inactive during the weekend than during work week – dragging down the energy-out side of the equation and boosting your likelihood of gaining body fat as a result.
Remain as consistent as you can during the weekend. Try to sleep at the same time, eat on the same general plan, keep training, and stay active and you will be dramatically reducing the likelihood of any diet self-sabotage over the weekend!
How to Avoid All Seven Reasons You Aren’t Losing Weight
Hopefully this list helped you identify some key areas where you weren’t exactly cutting it before. If you recognize more than one of these mistakes in yourself, start working on one major variable at a time. Weight loss is a difficult process, and so is changing the habits that cause weight gain in the first place – but neither task is anywhere close to impossible. Stick to the basics and be consistent.
Services to Boost your Weight Loss Efforts
It is essential to understand and implement the foundational principles of weight loss that were touched on in this article. At the core of health is our sleep, exercise habits, calorie consumption and nutrient intake, and most of all, consistency. Once you have a decent grasp on each of these, there are a number of services that can help you in your efforts. At Ikon Health we offer a number of services that can improve your weight loss efforts, and some of these services are listed below.
IV for Weight Loss: Nutrients that boost energy, support liver function, and boost metabolic rate
B12 Injections: Boosts energy, supports digestion and absorption nutrients, and aids in maintaining healthy nerve cells.
Lipo Injections: Great at improving energy, supports liver function and fat metabolism, and much more
Wellness Coaching: Our coaching program is the best way to help you to choose goals that will provide the most results with the least initial effort, and keep you accountable.
Anti-Aging Peptides: Peptides are likely the most powerful service that we offer at Ikon Health. Boost fat loss, muscle building, strength, energy, sleep, vitality, appearance, and much more.
