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From hormones to calorie intake to exercise, a host of factors affect the numbers on your scales. By understanding them all, you can take a healthier and, hopefully, happier approach to weight loss
As anyone who’s ever tried to lose a few kilos knows, weight loss can be a tricky old thing. It’s never as simple as cutting out bread, chips, and booze, nor is it about endless cardio or forcing yourself through HIIT workouts three times a day. Healthy, sustainable weight loss requires a different approach entirely.
To help you get started on the path to a leaner tomorrow, we’ve consulted expert nutritionists—including Huel’s own lead sustainable nutrition executive, Daniel Clarke—on the real science behind a weight loss journey.
We all know the basics: eat better, move more. You’ve probably heard that a million times. So, you cut out the crap, start hitting the gym, running, going to kettlebell class, and things start to change. Brilliant. You’re officially in the stage of noticing your weight loss. But after a few weeks, progress slows down. Why? It’s the common weight-loss plateau.
Source: Precision Nutrition; Brian St. Pierre, MS, RD
A weight loss plateau is completely normal and part of the journey. “Weight loss plateaus are a very normal part of a weight loss journey,” explains consultant dietitian Ro Huntriss. “We liken a successful weight loss journey to one that looks like a staircase, in that you have periods of loss and then periods of maintenance, so it is important that plateaus are normalised.”
It’s important to have realistic expectations and not get discouraged. If your progress stalls, take a step back and assess your nutrition and activity levels. “If you hit a plateau and you don’t know why it’s happening, take a step back and consider both your nutrition and your activity levels,” she says. “You could consider completing a food diary for a week to see if you can identify things that you could change to achieve that calorie deficit.” Weight fluctuations are completely normal, not a sign you’re doing something wrong.
Since weight loss can be unpredictable, tracking your calorie intake is key to staying on track.
“The big reason why people’s progress flatlines is because you aren’t adjusting your calorie intake to your [new] weight,” says Clarke. For example, if you started at 90kg and were consuming 2,500kcals per day, but now weigh 85kg, you may need to adjust your intake to avoid hitting a plateau.
To lose weight consistently, you typically need to eat 500kcals fewer than your maintenance level, which can result in about 1lb (0.45kg) of weight loss per week. Tools like calorie counters can help you track your intake, making it easier to adjust your approach as needed. Huel helps here, too—each serving is exactly 400kcals, making it easy to track your intake while ensuring you get the complete nutrition your body needs.
So, what’s really happening to our bodies as we shed the kilos? Isn’t our body just going to hold on to fat if we’re cutting calories? Clarke says that’s not the case. “If you’re eating the right number of calories and exercising, the body can’t ‘cling on’ to fat. It’s not magic, you will lose weight.”
However, hormones can complicate things. Oestrogen (or estrogen) fluctuations can lead to water retention during menstruation, and hormonal shifts like progesterone spikes can slow digestion, causing bloating or constipation.
“Where hormones play a big part is around hunger,” says Clarke. “One week, you might suddenly fancy fatty foods a lot more. Or you just want to eat more calories. It varies, is natural, and you can’t control it.”
Genetics also play a big part. For some, the last bit of fat to go is stubbornly stuck on their belly, while others struggle with hips, thighs, or arms. “People have particular body areas that they find it difficult to lose weight from,” says Clarke. “This is genetic. We don’t have control over it. And it’s also impossible to lose weight in just one area.”
Above all, it’s vital not to lose sight of the bigger picture. As Clarke reminds us, losing weight should be part of a broader overall health and fitness approach. “We don’t want to lose muscle,” Clarke says. “Gym exercises promote an hourglass figure, but you won’t achieve that through weight loss. You need to put on muscle to shape your body.”
Focus on losing body fat while gaining muscle—this is the balanced, sustainable approach that leads to real results. After all, weight loss isn’t just about fitting into your old jeans. It’s about overall health, fitness, and, most importantly, feeling good in your own skin.
Words by Tom Ward
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