Why Can't I Lose Weight?

This is one of the most frequently asked health questions. Unfortunately, the answer is among the most complicated in the entire health and fitness field. Being overweight and having trouble losing it is often the result of a number of interacting factors such as genetics, body composition, psychological factors, metabolic rate and approach to weight control. In other words, it's a heck of a lot more than the amount of food you eat or the amount of exercise you do.

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Body fat distributions (where you carry your fat) are all greatly influenced by your genetic makeup. The genetic characteristics inherited by each of us from our parents can largely determine how effectively we burn fat or how quickly we store it. Genes are also responsible for a large part of how well we respond to our body's signals of "fullness" after a meal as well as the number of calories we burn just sitting around.

You can probably get a rough idea of your own genetic predisposition for weight gain by looking at your parents, grandparents and siblings. If your biological parents are overweight, then chances are very good that you'll also be overweight, or you'll have to take steps to prevent weight gain. It's important to understand that if you have a genetic predisposition toward weight gain, the likelihood that you'll ever be extremely thin is remote and you should set your body weight goals accordingly.

Even very slight differences in the way you burn calories can make a huge difference in body weight over time. Imagine changing the number of calories that you burn each day by 50 (about as much in a small cookie)- not a big deal, right? Wrong. Even a small 50 calorie per day difference adds up to more than 5 pounds of body fat over the course of a year! Likewise, your overall body composition can have a gigantic influence on the number of calories that you burn throughout the day.

People with more muscle burn more calories, while people with more body fat tend to burn less. Muscles should be considered the "power plants" of the body because the muscles are where the majority of our calories are burned each day. Increase your muscle mass and you increase your ability to burn calories and lose weight (or maintain weight while eating more). Fat, on the other hand, has a very low metabolic rate when compared to muscle, meaning that the more fat you have, the less "active" tissue you have for burning calories.

Even though your difficulty losing weight or maintaining a given body weight is the result of many factors, it is by no means hopeless. A predisposition toward low energy expenditure and weight gain, is just that, a predisposition, it does not mean that you're powerless to influence your body weight. Any weight loss or weight maintenance plan should emphasize increasing metabolic rate via a combination of aerobic, strength exercises, proper nutrition, strategic meal planning and some over the counter thermogenic enhancers.

Since most people live very sedentary lives; it's important to understand that the right weight loss supplement can and will increase your chances of losing weight. I suggest the Venus Factor authorized weight loss program. The decision to lose weight is ultimately up to you.