5 hurdles that may be limiting your weight loss journey

<p>Weight loss is a long journey. It is a matter of staying motivated, regularly implementing new habits and making good food choices. Are you doing everything&nbsp;but&nbsp;seeing&nbsp;no&nbsp;results?&nbsp;Finding out why you aren&rsquo;t losing weight could be the key to solving your problem.&nbsp;Maybe you are missing an important factor or just focussing&nbsp;on the wrong things.&nbsp;Let&rsquo;s&nbsp;walk through some of the common&nbsp;hurdles that often prevent people from hitting their weight loss goals.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Exercise without diet&nbsp;&nbsp;</strong></p> <p>Most people try to lose weight without realising that the first step is to change how they eat.&nbsp;Achieving a calorie deficit, which is burning more calories than you consume, is essential for weight loss.&nbsp;Without a balanced calorie-restricted diet, it is unlikely to lose&nbsp;and maintain any substantial loss in weight.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Falling for diet fads&nbsp;&nbsp;</strong></p> <p>Most weight-loss diets and supplements are marketing gimmicks to sell you diet plans or&nbsp;pills.&nbsp;It is important to recognize that most fad diets are ineffective and may cause serious long-term harm.&nbsp;Do not fall for magical diet tricks&nbsp;without consulting a medical expert&nbsp;and stick to eating&nbsp;a&nbsp;diverse and balanced diet rich&nbsp;in natural,&nbsp;whole foods.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Incomplete exercise&nbsp;&nbsp;</strong></p> <p>Exercise and physical activity&nbsp;are&nbsp;important for any individual. But if you&rsquo;re&nbsp;on a weight loss journey, you might want to opt for more than one type of exercise.&nbsp;For effective calorie burn, both aerobic exercises such as running or cycling and&nbsp;anaerobic exercise&nbsp;such as weight lifting are important.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Lack of restful sleep&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</strong></p> <p>An oft-forgotten or ignored part of&nbsp;a healthy lifestyle, people often&nbsp;ignore&nbsp;the importance of good sleep.&nbsp;Lack of sleep can affect weight loss by decreasing metabolic activity and increasing belly fat accumulation. Sleep deprivation can even make you feel hungry, even when you&rsquo;re full.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Medical issues or age&nbsp;&nbsp;</strong></p> <p>While the factors discussed so far are in your control, medical conditions can also impact&nbsp;the pace of your weight loss. Conditions like thyroid,&nbsp;PCOS&nbsp;or taking&nbsp;antidepressants, beta-blockers or other&nbsp;medications&nbsp;can cause weight gain and make it especially hard to lose any.&nbsp;</p> <p>If you&nbsp;think&nbsp;that you&rsquo;re doing everything right, then it may be a good idea&nbsp;to see your doctor to rule out a medical condition as the cause.&nbsp;</p>