Why Do I Gain Weight When I Eat Less?

Everyone has probably experienced that moment when they down two cookies or finish a whole bag of chips and then feel like they can’t eat anymore. It might not seem like much, but your brain interprets that as you have eaten too much and starts telling your body that it needs to store everything that it just consumed in case there isn’t any more later on. The result? You end up gaining weight, which is commonly referred to as being overeaten or gorging yourself. But why do some people end up gaining weight even when they are trying their best to eat less? There are several possible explanations for this phenomenon, and the most common one is called metabolic resistance. This just means that while you may be able to lose fat faster than others, once your body has digested all the nutrients you have just consumed, it will kick into overdrive in an attempt to prevent future weight loss by storing everything in your adipose tissue (fat) so that next time there’s no danger of weight gain. So how do we beat this? Here are six reasons why you may be gaining weight even when you think you’re eating less:

Research has shown that some people are more sensitive to the calories in food than others.

One study published in Nutrition and Metabolism found that some people have a higher metabolism than others, which is why they can eat the same amount of food and lose more weight. This means that the calories they eat will be burnt at a faster rate, but not the fat. Many factors can influence your metabolism, including your age, sex, and genetics. If your metabolism is higher than average, you will burn more calories from eating the same amount of food. If your metabolism is lower than average, you will need to eat more food to get the same amount of calories.

You may be eating the wrong foods.

If you’re eating processed foods, especially refined grains and sugars, you may be inadvertently fueling your metabolic resistance. Foods that are high in refined grains, including white bread, rice, and pasta, as well as sugars and fructose, are quickly broken down and absorbed into your bloodstream. This causes an insulin spike, which tells your muscle cells to store the food for energy. This may explain why people who consume a lot of these foods tend to gain weight.

You may not be getting enough protein with your meals.

The body requires protein to build and repair tissues, and when you don’t have enough, you end up breaking down your muscles and tissues for fuel, causing an insulin spike and resulting in weight gain. An excellent way to keep your body in an anabolic state is to include protein-rich foods in each meal, preferably as your first course.

There’s a biological “set point” for your weight that you can’t change.

According to the University of Chicago, once you hit a certain weight, it doesn’t matter how much you eat, you will always end up at that same weight. Your biological set point for your weight is genetically predetermined and you can’t change it by changing your eating habits. It’s more likely that you are operating outside of your set point than that you are overeating.

Insulin resistance causes fluctuations in your blood sugar levels, which can cause cravings.

When you consume refined carbohydrates, especially sugars, your blood sugar levels spike and then fall, causing you to experience cravings for carbohydrates. However, the type of nutrients found in unrefined carbohydrates are not available for energy when you are in a lean state, such as protein and fat, so you will always crave them when you are in a “hungry” state. Furthermore, when your blood sugar levels are always fluctuating, you will have constant cravings for refined carbohydrates that may cause you to snack too often, which can lead to weight gain.

Conclusion

The good news is that you are not destined to be a “giant” and you don’t have to accept the weight gain that can often come with age. You can change your eating behaviours and make healthier food choices to lose weight and feel better. Keeping a food diary and tracking your food intake can help you identify unhealthy habits hindering your weight loss efforts, such as overeating at meals. It can be frustrating when you are trying to eat less, but you end up gaining weight instead. However, there are several reasons why this might be happening, and the most common is metabolic resistance. metabolic resistance occurs when your body operates outside of the set point for your weight, which is not a healthy state to be in. To avoid this issue, you want to make sure you’re eating the right types of foods, including lean protein, vegetables, and healthy fats, at each meal. You should also be drinking water instead of soft drinks, coffee, or other sugary beverages. These small changes can help you feel more full and avoid overindulging in unhealthy foods, which can help you stay away from metabolic resistance and lose weight.