Have you ever wondered why it’s so hard to lose weight? The answer has to do with evolution, energy, and food availability. Our bodies are designed to store fat as energy to prevent starvation. It’s a holdover from our evolutionary past when food was scarce, and our ancestors needed to be able to survive prolonged periods without eating. These days, food is plentiful, and we don’t need to worry about starving to death. But our bodies haven’t caught up with our changed circumstances.
Adipose tissue is not just a place to store energy as fat. It is a complex active endocrine system that produces many hormones responsible for energy balance and regulation. Leptin is one hormone that helps to regulate appetite and metabolism. When we have lots of fat, the adipose tissue secretes Leptin, indicating that we have plenty of energy, signaling the brain to decrease appetite. When food is scarce, or you are following restricted food intake, leptin levels fall, leading to increased hunger and difficulty maintaining the desired weight loss.
Furthermore, the body resists using stored fat for energy when needed. To use fats in our body, energy must first be used to break them down into more usable energy blocks. The body would instead use stored glycogen or glucose for energy because it requires less energy to break them down into energy blocks. The body will only use stored fat for energy when it has no choice. This usually occurs when a person is in a calorie deficit for an extended period.
Briefly, our body is built to store fat and resist using it because of the risk of starvation. Still, with commitment and motivation in place, one can tip the scale and make steady progress toward weight loss. We must accept that weight loss won’t happen overnight, and that perseverance is key!
