Is Sluggish Metabolism Causing You to Gain Weight?

Written by JJ Smith, #1 NY Times Bestselling Author and Weight Loss Expert

Posted October 15th, 2011 under Diet/Weight Loss

Have you always felt something was wrong or different about your body, especially as you’ve watched skinny friends eat twice as much as you and not gain a pound? Well, you were probably right. A combination of factors including aging, stress, hormonal changes, and poor food choices all cause a gradual change in metabolism. You are not lazy, and you do not lack willpower or discipline. Your body simply responds differently to food because you have a sluggish metabolism. I know this, because I had a sluggish metabolism that slowed in my late thirties. But through studying to become a certified nutritionist specializing in weight management, I began to learn more about my metabolism and its effect on my weight gain. When I first started rapidly gaining weight, I would limit what I ate. I even tried to work out with a trainer but still gained ten to fifteen more pounds. I continued to gain weight despite following the traditional advice of “eat less and exercise more.” But my body did not respond to that advice. So, I knew I needed a different and new approach, and I needed it fast. Thank goodness I found it!

If you find it impossible to lose weight and keep it off, even when you follow all the traditional guidance on dieting and exercising, it is very likely that a sluggish metabolism is one of your problems. It is important to understand how your unique body metabolizes food because that determines how food turns into energy or fat in your body. Most diets don’t factor in each individual’s metabolism. They focus on dietary changes but don’t factor in how your individual metabolism is affecting your weight gain. This is why some people have great success with one diet but others get no results from it at all.

If you have a sluggish metabolism, your body won’t respond to traditional diets and weight-loss programs. The traditional diet approach of decreasing calories won’t work because weight is determined by your body’s response to how foods are processed or metabolized within your body.

One of the greatest myths about weight loss is that for some people, it is harder to lose weight because they have a genetically slow metabolism. But scientific research shows that this is simply not true. Your metabolic rate is not fixed for life, and, in fact, it can and will change throughout your lifetime. In fact, in my new book, Lose Weight Without Dieting or Working Out!, I provide 12 specific ways that you can speed up your metabolism. We call these “metabolism boosters.”

One other important note: Yo-yo dieting will alter your metabolism for the worse and make it more difficult to lose weight in the long term. Some of you who are constantly on diets have probably begun to slow your metabolism unknowingly. Here’s how this has happened: When someone goes on a diet, the body notices that it is not getting as much food as it used to or as it needs to, so in order to conserve energy, the body slows its metabolic rate. It also begins storing fat reserves to ensure that it will have enough energy throughout the day.

Once you begin to boost your metabolism, the weight will come off and stay off permanently. Not only that, but your health will improve as well. You can learn how your body works and how to speed up your metabolism so you burn more calories and fat throughout each day.

JJ Smith (www.JJSmithOnline.com) is a nutritionist and certified weight-management specialist who has been featured on The Montel Williams Show, The Jamie Foxx Show and on the NBC, FOX, CBS and CW networks. Her advice has also been featured in the pages of Glamour, Essence, and Ladies Home Journal. Since reclaiming her health, losing weight, and discovering a “second youth” in her forties, bestselling author JJ Smith has become the voice of inspiration to women who want to lose weight, be healthy, and get their sexy back! JJ may be contacted by email at info@jjsmithonline.com and on Twitter: jjsmithonline and Facebook Page: RealTalkJJ