You’re Trying to lose weight—But It’s Not Working. Why?
You’re eating healthier. You’re cutting out the junk. You’re walking more. But the scale won’t budge—or worse, it’s creeping up. You start to wonder, Is it my metabolism? Is it hormones? Am I just doomed to be stuck like this? Why Can’t I lose weight?
I see you. I’ve been you. And I know how frustrating it is when you’re doing “all the right things” and not seeing results. You’re checking all the so-called “healthy eating” boxes—salads every day, cutting calories, reaching for ‘health food’ you don’t even enjoy, swapping full-fat for low-fat, or grabbing 100-calorie snack packs because they seem like the “right” choice. But if that approach was really working, wouldn’t you be seeing results by now?
The good news? You’re not broken. Your body isn’t fighting you—it’s trying to tell you something. And once you figure out what’s really going on, you can finally get results. I was a health coach before my body was hit with some big health challenges that left me uncertain of how to get the old me back. When I drew a line in the sand and said “ENOUGH!” I had to unlearn a bunch of things, and really set in to research mode. What I learned may surprise you.
Let’s break down the hidden reasons you might be struggling to lose weight—and how to fix them.
Reason #1: Your Metabolism Has Slowed Down (But You Can Fix It!)
Your metabolism isn’t set in stone. It speeds up and slows down based on what you feed it—whether that’s real, nourishing food or ultra-processed junk. You also feed it stress, late nights, endless screen time, and toxic exposures. Every choice you make either supports or suppresses your metabolism. How you move and how much stress you’re under matter just as much as what’s on your plate. If you’ve been dieting for years, skipping meals, eating too little protein, not getting enough sleep, over-exercising, relying on caffeine instead of real nourishment, or exposing yourself to too many environmental toxins, your body has likely adapted by slowing down your metabolism to conserve energy.
🔥 How to Reset Your Metabolism:
✔️ Eat More Protein. Protein boosts thermogenesis (your body’s calorie-burning process) and helps prevent muscle loss, which keeps metabolism high. This post will help you!
✔️ Stop Under-eating. Consistently eating too little teaches your body to hold onto fat instead of burning it.
✔️ Prioritize Walking and Gentle Movement. Walking keeps your body in fat-burning mode without stressing it out, helps regulate blood sugar, and supports your nervous system. Gentle stretching, mobility work, or even slow, intentional movement can be more effective than high-intensity workouts when your body is already under stress.
Reason #2: Insulin Resistance is Blocking Your ability to lose weight
Insulin is your body’s storage hormone. When it’s working correctly, it helps shuttle nutrients into your cells for energy. But when insulin is constantly elevated (from too many processed carbs, stress, and lack of movement), your body gets stuck in fat-storage mode.
And here’s the reality—many people are insulin resistant and don’t even know it. Conventional estimates say around 1 in 3 adults in the U.S. has insulin resistance, but functional medicine practitioners believe the real number is much higher—likely 50-70% of adults, especially women. Why? Because conventional medicine only diagnoses insulin resistance once blood sugar and insulin markers have already been out of balance for years. By the time a doctor catches it, your metabolism has already been struggling for a long time.
Early warning signs—fatigue, stubborn weight gain, sugar cravings, brain fog—often go ignored because they don’t always show up on a standard blood test. Functional medicine takes a deeper look at fasting insulin levels and glucose patterns to identify insulin resistance much earlier, but most people don’t get tested at all.
If you’ve been struggling with unexplained weight gain, low energy, or constant hunger, insulin resistance may already be playing a role. The good news? You can take steps to reverse it before it turns into a bigger problem.
🔥 How to Support Insulin Sensitivity:
✔️ Eat Balanced Meals. Every meal should include protein, healthy fats, and potentially some fiber to keep blood sugar stable.
✔️ Go for a Walk After Eating. A 10-15 minute walk after meals can significantly lower blood sugar and improve insulin function.
✔️ Try 10 Squats Every 45-60 Minutes. Research suggests that doing just 10 bodyweight squats every hour can have a profound impact on blood sugar regulation and metabolic health. But if you’re looking for a gentler approach, walking is still one of the best ways to support your body and keep insulin levels in check.
✔️ Cut Back on Processed Carbs. You don’t have to eliminate them, but focusing on whole-food sources will help regulate insulin levels.
Reason #3: Stress is Keeping You Stuck
Stress isn’t just a mental burden—it’s a physical one. When your body is constantly in “fight or flight” mode, cortisol levels stay high, and that can make it tricky to lose weight. And high cortisol? It tells your body to store fat, especially around your midsection.
🔥 How to Lower Stress and Support Weight Loss:
✔️ Get Outside Daily. Sunlight and fresh air naturally regulate stress hormones.
✔️ Ditch the Chronic Cardio. Excessive cardio can spike cortisol—opt for strength training, walking, or yoga instead.
✔️ Prioritize Sleep. Poor sleep increases cortisol and leads to cravings for sugar and carbs.
✔️ Turn Off the Screens. You may feel like binging on your favorite shows helps, you relax, but that’s actually not really how that works. Screens create more stress on your nervous system. Trying to reduce your screen time can have great benefits.
✔️ Go check out this fantastic post by Dr Casey Means for more on this subject.
Reason #4: You’re Missing the Right Kind of Movement to lose weight
Most people either do too little movement (sitting all day) or too much (over-exercising). The secret to sustainable fat loss? Walking + Strength Training.
🔥 How to Move for Weight Loss:
✔️ Walk Daily. Aim for 7,000-10,000 steps per day. Walking lowers cortisol, improves insulin sensitivity, and keeps metabolism humming. Here’s a post I wrote about walking.
✔️ Strength Train 2-3x a Week. If you are in a place wher it feels good to lift weights, muscle burns more calories at rest and prevents metabolic slowdown. If this feels too hard or too much right now, focus on walking, and add weight/strength training when you are ready.
✔️ Skip the “All or Nothing” Mindset. You don’t have to kill yourself in the gym—consistent, intentional movement is key.
What’s Next? Get the Full Plan!
The truth is, weight loss isn’t just about “eating less and moving more.” It’s about understanding how your body works and giving it what it actually needs to thrive.
That’s why I created The Healing Roots & Rhythms Guide—when I was struggling to see change, I knew something in me had to change. I wrote this guide to share all the things I learned in my journey to lose weight so you don’t have to start from scratch.
💡 Inside the 200+ page guide, you’ll get: ✅ The 5 key principles that transformed my weight loss journey ✅ A 28-day day-by-day healing blueprint ✅ Delicious recipes to nourish and support fat loss ✅ The real truth about metabolism, insulin, and stress ✅ Plus so much more!
If you’ve been struggling with weight loss and you’re ready for a real plan that works, sign up now to get on the list for my upcoming guide release!