What Causes A Person Not To Lose Weight On Low Carb?

Following a low-carb diet can be an effective way to lose weight, lower your triglycerides levels and boost your heart-protective HDL cholesterol levels, according to a study published in May 2004 in "Annals of Internal Medicine." Most low-carb diet plans recommend that you keep your carb intake lower than 100 g a day, while some plans further restrict your carb consumption to below 50 g a day. To keep your carbs low, you need to avoid most grains, sugar and starchy vegetables. Depending on your degree of restriction, you may also need to limit fruits, milk, yogurt, nuts, seeds and butters.

Carb Creep

One of the most common reasons why low-carb dieters stop losing weight at some point is because carbs have sneaked their way back into their diet. After a while, you get used to following your low-carb diet and stop counting your daily carb intake and may indulge in just a few french fries, a bite of cake or a sip of fruit juice. Although it may not seem like a lot of carbohydrates, it can be enough to stop your weight loss. Start tracking your carb again to see if you are still within your carb budget and adjust if necessary. Use an online tracking tool, like MyPlate, to make your job easier.

Protein and Fat Intake

A low-carb diet is usually moderate in protein and high in fat, but even overdoing protein and fat can hinder your weight loss. Keep your servings of protein to 4 to 6 oz. per meal, whether you choose chicken, fish, seafood or meat, and your servings of fat to 1 to 2 tbsp. per meal, whether you use butter, cream, olive oil, avocado, nuts or nut butter. Watch your intake of cheese, nuts, bacon and other high-calorie, low-carb foods. Even though you may have a low-carb intake, consuming too many calories in the form of protein and fat is a common problem in low-carb dieters who can't seem to lose weight.

Losing Inches but Not Pounds

Losing weight is not only about losing pounds on the scale. Sometimes your weight can stay stable for a while, but you may still be losing inches off your body. Take measurements of your chest, arms, waist, hips and thighs every two to four weeks to track your progress. Pay attention to how your feel in your clothes, and you may realize that you are losing weight, even though the scale does not show it. It is best to not weight yourself more than once a week to prevent discouraging yourself by focusing on a number.

Hitting a Plateau

If you are doing everything right and not losing weight, you may have hit a plateau. Hitting a plateau simply means that your body is adjusting to a lower body weight. You can take this time to appreciate that you are now actually able to maintain a lower body weight than your starting weight. Usually, all it takes is a bit of time and perseverance, and the weight loss will resume by itself. If you find yourself a little bit impatient to reach your goal weight, you can speed things up by increasing your physical activity level, slightly reducing your carb intake or slightly reducing your calorie intake by decreasing your servings of protein or fat.