Why am I struggling to lose fat?

Now, this post is not for everyone, this post is for those of you who feel like you have tried everything and have never fully understood why it's not working. 

You no longer need to keep stressing over this, as it will, without doubt, be one of these three issues:

1- Poor or no Nutrition Plan (eating/drinking too much)

2- Poor or no Training Plan (training with no structure and training like a fairy)

3- Medical Condition 

Once you have ruled out number three with a trip to the GP, you can be quite sure that it’s number 1 or 2, or likely a mixture of the two. This might feel like some harsh truths, but the amount of people who have started working me with the illusion that they have tried everything is simply unbelievable.

I know far too many people who are struggling and getting frustrated that they’re not losing fat but have no idea how many calories they’re consuming each day, this is like complaining that the recipe you followed tastes like crap, yet you didn’t actually follow the instructions. 

Let’s step into the shoes of someone who has “tried everything”, they don’t drink much, they train 4 times per week and hardly eat at all.

This is usually what this person week looks like:

- They don’t eat much…yet each evening they have a dessert containing upwards of 500 calories. 

- They train four times per week…yet they don’t follow a plan, so they don’t train at all, they workout 4 times a week, trust me there is a difference.

- They don’t drink much…yet this weekend they did get drunk because it was their best friends birthday, actually the weekend before they celebrated a christening…..you can see where I’m going with this.

Let’s say your evening treat adds up to 300 calories, you have that 5 days a week, it ends up being 1,500 calories, now let’s factor in the 4 Jaeger Bombs on the weekend (632 calories)….. I love Jaeger Bombs…and then the 4 pints (720 calories). Oh, let’s not forget the Big Mac meal you had as a “1 off treat” (1,120 calories). Maybe this is an exaggeration….maybe not, but you can see how easily a week can escalate, due to these little extras we have added an extra 3,972 calories to our week!

A big issue I find is that people who eat like this think it’s normal, they think that they have just been dealt a slow metabolism hand. “All my friends are stick thin and they eat the same as me”, how do you know the eating habits off all your friends? Yes, they might go out every weekend the same as you, but they are a lot more active in the week as they don’t have an office job, or they only have an evening treat on a Friday, yet you have one every day. People will see a snapshot of someone’s life and think it’s their normality. 

Let’s take me for example, I eat out most days on the weekend, and I’ll likely treat myself to the odd Costa panini and maybe the odd chocolate in the week. However, I train 4 times a week…. I mean properly train, I drink a ton of water, I’m very active through the days, most months I don’t drink any alcohol, my regular meals and my calorie intake are inline with my goals.

So, this is not me saying that you should completely eliminate all these treats because as you can see, I don’t! What I am saying is that you need to be a bit more self-aware of what you’re doing through the week and how that will affect your body composition. You need to take control of your body and mindset and not let anything hold you back from what you’re aiming to achieve!