Sustainable Weight Loss: What Actually Works (and why)
- Tracy Tredoux
- 57 minutes ago
- 4 min read
If weight loss were simply about eating less and exercising more, far fewer people would be struggling.
While creating a calorie deficit is essential, how your body responds to that deficit depends on hormones, gut health, stress, sleep, muscle mass, and metabolic function. This is why some people lose weight easily while others do everything “right” and see very little change.
This pillar guide explains what actually drives sustainable weight loss and why it sometimes feels so hard.
1. Calories Matter. Here’s a Simple Way to Calculate Yours
Weight loss requires a calorie deficit. A practical and realistic starting point is:
Take your body weight in pounds and multiply by 9-11
This gives you a daily calorie range likely to support fat loss without excessive restriction.
Example: If you weigh 130 lb:130 × 9-11 = 1,170-1,430 calories per day
If you eat more than 1430 you risk putting on weight and if you eat less than 1170 you risk your metabolism slowing down, making it harder to lose weight and resulting in quicker weight gain when you increase calories.
As body weight decreases, this range needs to be adjusted.
2. Can You Lose Weight Eating Sugar? Yes, But It’s Much Harder
From a purely mathematical perspective, you can lose weight eating below your calorie target, even if those calories come from high-sugar or ultra-processed foods.
However, people eating this way typically experience:
Energy crashes throughout the day
Blood sugar fluctuations
Increased hunger
Strong cravings
Difficulty sticking to the plan long-term
So, while calories determine whether weight loss occurs, food quality determines how sustainable and tolerable that process feels.
3. Why Food Quality Makes Weight Loss Easier
Meals built around:
Adequate protein
Healthy fats
High-fibre vegetables and fruit
Lead to:
Faster satiety (you feel full sooner)
Longer periods of fullness
More stable energy
Fewer cravings
Easier long-term adherence
This is why many people find they lose weight more easily when eating whole, minimally processed foods, even at the same calorie intake.
4. Protein Is the Cornerstone of Fat Loss
Protein plays a central role in sustainable weight loss:
Preserves lean muscle mass
Maintains metabolic rate
Increases satiety
Reduces hunger hormones
A useful target is 1.2-1.6 g protein per kg body weight, increasing if you are very active or strength training.
Protein powders (whey or casein) can be helpful tools when appetite control is difficult.
5. When You Eat Matters More Than You Think
Research shows that eating the same calories earlier in the day leads to better metabolic outcomes than eating them late.
A pattern of:
Larger breakfast
Moderate lunch
Smaller dinner
supports blood sugar regulation, insulin sensitivity, and fat metabolism. Late-night eating impairs glucose tolerance and increases fat storage - even when your daily calories are identical.
6. Muscle, Movement & Metabolism
Resistance training is essential during weight loss because it:
Prevents muscle loss
Protects metabolic rate
Improves insulin sensitivity
Cardio supports fat loss and cardiovascular health, but most daily energy expenditure actually comes from NEAT (non-exercise activity thermogenesis), everyday movement such as walking, standing, and general activity outside the gym.
Small increases in daily movement often have a bigger impact than structured exercise alone.
Why You’re Not Losing Weight (Even When You’re Trying)
If you are consistently eating in a calorie deficit and still struggling to lose weight, this is an important checkpoint.
Weight resistance is often driven by biological factors, not lack of effort or discipline.
Sleep, Stress & Hormones:
Poor sleep and chronic stress significantly impair weight loss.
Lack of sleep:
Increases ghrelin (hunger hormone)
Reduces leptin (satiety hormone)
Increases cravings for sugar and refined carbohydrates
Lowers metabolic rate
Chronic stress elevates cortisol, which promotes fat storage (particularly abdominal fat) and increases emotional eating. Without addressing sleep and stress, weight loss often becomes an uphill battle.
Thyroid Function & Metabolic Rate:
An under-active thyroid reduces basal metabolic rate, meaning your body burns fewer calories at rest. Even mild or “subclinical” dysfunction can make fat loss significantly harder.
Gut Microbiome & Weight Regulation:
Your gut bacteria play a direct role in how calories are extracted from food, how full you feel, and how inflammation is regulated. Certain microbial patterns are strongly associated with:
Increased fat storage
Insulin resistance
Obesity
Supporting the gut microbiome can dramatically improve weight loss response.
Toxins, Obesogens & Fat Storage:
Many environmental toxins (known as obesogens) interfere with hormones and metabolism. These compounds are often stored in fat cells. When weight loss begins, toxins are released into circulation, placing extra demand on the liver. If detoxification pathways are overwhelmed, the body may resist further fat loss.
Slow Metabolism & Chronic Dieting:
Repeated dieting, excessive restriction, high stress, inflammation, and muscle loss can slow metabolism over time. In these cases, addressing metabolic health first often makes weight loss achievable again, without further restriction.
Final Thoughts: Weight Loss Is a Physiological Process, Not a Moral One
Yes, calories count. But hormones, gut health, muscle mass, sleep, stress, and toxin load determine how your body responds to those calories. If weight loss feels harder than it should, it is often your physiology asking for support, not a failure of willpower.
Enjoyed this article? I go into more detail and provide further information in my free Healthy Weightloss Guide, which you can download on my Free Downloads page for lots more advice and tips.
If you’d like guidance with gut health, hormones or blood sugar balance, book a free discovery call with me today.
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