Why You May Be Gaining Weight by Trying Too Hard

by | Mar 3, 2021

The harder you try, the more weight you gain.

It seems counter-intuitive, right?

We’ve been taught our whole lives that hard work gets rewarded.

And in most cases, it’s true.

Except when it comes to fat loss.

Trying too hard may actually be the thing that’s keeping you stuck.

Let me explain.

Do you ever feel like no matter what you do, your body just won’t respond?

Like, no matter how strict you are with your diet and regardless of how much you work out, that it just feels like you’re broken or something?

You may have even asked yourself the question … why am I doing everything right if it just leads to me spinning my wheels and banging my head against the wall?

Shit, if I’m going to remain stuck, I might as well be stuck with some damn cheesecake than stuck while starving.

Wanting to change your physical appearance is an emotionally charged endeavor.

It tests us in so many ways, but it especially tests us psychologically.

You’ve probably gone through periods where you were so dissatisfied with your current situation that you vowed to be perfect with your nutrition, vowed to train 5 days per week AND get some extra cardio in, and vowed to do the little things like drink enough water each day.

And yet … nothing …

Except gaining weight again …

The harder you worked … the more your body fought back.

So, you may have even done what I used to do … which is … restrict even more.

Add even more cardio.

Eliminate social gatherings. Cut out alcohol. No more restaurant meals.

And yet … nothing.

The more you squeezed and tightened your grip, the more your body continued to battle back.

And, the strangle hold that you placed on yourself was creating a scenario where you literally and figuratively couldn’t breathe.

I want you to do something for me real quick just so I can show you something profound and powerful.

Take a deep inhale in (about 5 seconds).

Hold it for 2 seconds.

Now, let it out slowly as if you were breathing through a straw for about 7 seconds.

While you exhale, let your shoulders drop down, release the tension in your jaw and face.

Just breathe.

Feel that?

THAT is the feeling your body needs to feel more often.

That is the signal that tells your body everything is ok.

So, all those times that you vowed to try harder. All those times that you tried to be more perfect. All those times that you restricted more and worked out more.

All you were doing was sending the signal to your body that a threat is present.

Gaining weight is your body’s response to a threat.

Your body responded as it’s supposed to … by protecting you. By preserving stored energy.

By holding on to body fat so it can keep you safe.

Your need to control everything. To be perfect. To force the issue because you want results so badly is the exact thing that’s keeping you stuck.

We need more of that deep breath feeling. We need to loosen that death grip.

We need your body to feel safe so it willingly lets go of that stubborn fat that you’ve likely been battling with for years.

It’s amazing how many times we have our clients do less and respond better.

It’s amazing how many times we loosen the reins and they immediately feel the difference.

Reducing that accumulation of stress will always work.

Women are more sensitive to stress. Your body is not going to allow for a baby to enter an unsafe environment. Your body is not going to allow for a reduction in that protective fat layer in an unsafe environment.

Guess what continuously trying harder registers as? An unsafe environment.

When we talk to our clients about monitoring the daily stressors in their lives, they often think of the obvious things … craziness at work, fighting with a spouse, kid drama, etc.

What they don’t realize (and quickly learn) is that the subtle, more constant stressors like obsessive thoughts around food, trying to be perfect, worrying about derailing progress with one meal …  all have a greater impact if not dealt with.

We are quite good at overcoming an acute stress. One argument here and there isn’t a big deal. The persistent thoughts and emotional distress about food, your body, or exercise is often what’s holding you back.

Once we address those issues with our clients, they immediately see and feel a change.

Not only more peace of mind but all of a sudden they look leaner, less bloated, and their clothes fit better.

This is just one reason why our program is so effective in achieving results when seemingly nothing else worked.

But, we leave nothing to chance.

We also close the stress gap by priming your metabolism – eating enough calories to, once again, send that safety signal to your body so it lets go of fat.

It’s also more fun and effective to lose fat while getting to eat more.

And, to eat more freely, which is something we build into the process. Restaurant meals, social events, date nights, vacations … those life experiences matter and you don’t have to choose between having fun or making progress.

You literally get your cake and eat it too.

We can do that by making sure we’re giving you the proper calories and macro ratios over the course of weeks and months. This allows us to know exactly how much freedom and flexibility you can have while also prioritizing body composition.

We’ll know what foods, meal composition, and meal timing work best for you based on your personality type, diet history, and current lifestyle. By factoring in these things when creating your plan, you’ll be more consistent with less effort and will notice more progress.

Lastly, we’ll make sure your nutrition aligns with your training which will improve performance and recovery. Once again, closing the stress gap will make a world of difference here.

No more feeling like crap and dragging ass through your workouts or battling with hunger and cravings all day.

It’s amazing what happens when you actually know how to work with your body and stop trying to force the issue.

These are the steps we take in our 6-month, signature 1:1 coaching program that will allow you to finally stop swimming upstream and actually achieve the results you want when nothing else has worked.

If you want to get leaner and more toned, improve your body composition to look better naked, and most importantly, want to completely alleviate the mental stress around food … then you may be the right fit for our program.

If you’re interested, the next step is simple: PM me on Facebook.

I’ll respond with a few questions about your goals, what you’ve tried in the past, and your current mindset around food. We’ll determine if it’s a good fit and if it is, I can offer you an invite into the program.

Interested in 1:1 Coaching?

And let me know that you’re interested in the 1:1 signature coaching program.

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