How to Get Past Set-Point Weight
Genetically our bodies are pre-wired to be comfortable at a set weight and may be predetermined in adolescence, middle age or even pregnancy. This set point is where our bodies like to rest when not thinking about what we eat and how we exercise. This weight on the scale sets our basal metabolic rate. The basal metabolic rate is the minimum calories our body requires to sleep, walk, work, grow hair and do all our basic functions. This set-point is very difficult to alter! We often only change it when we lose weight, requiring less calories to meet our daily needs, which creates this yo-yo effect in our diets. This is the frustration of many individuals who lose weight only to regain it within a few years.
Because our bodies like to rest at a certain weight, we need to figure out how to get past this natural set point. The fluctuations in weight can trigger changes in your metabolic rate and your hormonal balance. First, it is important to understand it is less about the “calorie in/calorie out” outdated paradigm and more about balancing our hormones. A diet high in processed food and sugar will increase cortisol in your system, telling your body to store fat; while eating a balanced diet in minimal sugar, quality protein and fats, and lots of vegetables will increase leptin in your system, telling your body to burn fat. In this capacity we have the ability to hack the system and utilize our hormonal system to bypass this natural phenomenon.
As it turns out, what we already know to be true, is always true. Eat healthy, eliminate processed food and sugar, and know that if we don’t eat better we will go back to the point where our body is comfortable when we don’t think about how we feed it. Small, incremental changes will occur when we remember to eat with hormonal balance as your goal. One pound, one week at a time.