Exercise and eating less makes the difference.

Essentially, it is all about calories in and calories out. I know there are many complex issues surrounding this, but essentially the laws of thermodynamics are the foundation upon which weight loss occurs. Metabolic activity gets rid of fat tissue. As you lose weight, you are lowering your metabolism. When metabolism decreases, demand for energy decreases. If you are eating the same amount of calories as when you first started, fat loss will stop eventually. Weight loss will come to a halt.

Please note that I differentiate between fat loss and weight loss. Weight loss is not the best indicator of progress; weight comes off in chunks. You have wooshes and stalls on the scale because of the way body stores fat (water fills fat cells temporarily when fat is lost, but then body lets go of water resulting in a 2, 3, 4, or more pound woosh, but before the woosh you were "stalled" in weight loss for maybe 4 weeks). However, fat comes off steadily and reliably, and is directly related to how many calories you are not eating.

Now plenty of people will say "but thats not true, I raised my calories/binged on carbs/whatever and immediately lost 2 pounds in a few days!" I agree, this happens... it's happened to me too. The reason you lose when on a plateau right after raising calories, is because you have interupted the body's "weight loss cycle". Your body likes to let go of the water weight after a certain amount of fat loss, when it realizes that those cells ain't ever getting filled again ; by raising calories or eating carbs you are putting a little more fat back in the fat cells. You are telling your body "HEY, here's some fat; you can let go of the water, I will fill the fat cells up again now!" This encourages your body to let go of the (heavier) water it was hording.

However rarely does eating more calories result in an increase of permanent, steady fat loss. Just the opposite, in fact. there are always exceptions, but in general the wooshes you see after raising calories are water loss and not fat loss.

Now, you may be wondering if raising calories doesn't work, if cutting or raising carbs doesnt work, what does work? Simple. Eat less and exercise. It is really that simple. We all have unique energy demands, and the only way to increase the rate of fat loss is to raise our bodies demand for energy. You do this by a) restricting energy (calories) which puts more demand on fat stores, and b) increasing metabolic activity (exercise) which puts more demand on calories, which then puts more demand on fat stores.

I know exercise can be very intimidating to us TDCers when you are really heavy, but the good news is when you are very heavy a little goes a long way. The heavier you are, the more energy you require to do activities. Exercise isn't just about killing yourself on a treadmill for an hour; exercise is about increasing your activities in little ways. Park further away from the store. If you are just sitting around watching tv, clean your house instead or get something done. Go for a walk. Exercise doesn't have to be a chore, it can be fun! I look forward to the strolls around my neighborhood; I am at peace with everything, listening to my music.

These are all little ways you can burn more calories. It really does make a difference.