Why Losing Weight Is Harder the Second Time
We’ve all been there—losing weight feels like a monumental accomplishment, but when the pounds start creeping back on and you try to shed them again, it’s much harder the second time around. So, why is this happening? Let’s break it down and find out what you can do to make your next weight loss journey more successful and sustainable.
The Body’s Famine Response
The first thing to understand is that your body doesn’t know the difference between a modern diet and a historical famine. Our ancestors faced periods of feast and famine, so the body has evolved to defend against potential starvation by becoming more efficient at storing energy. When you lose weight through a calorie deficit, your body thinks a famine is occurring. It will lower your metabolic rate to conserve energy, making it harder to continue losing weight and even easier to gain it back.
If you return to your old eating habits after your weight loss, your body’s new, slower metabolism will cause you to gain weight faster than before. It remembers the “famine” and adjusts accordingly to store as much energy (fat) as possible for future “emergencies.”
The Vicious Cycle of “Eat Less, Exercise More”
The conventional advice of “eat less, exercise more” sounds logical, but when followed to extremes, it can lead to long-term metabolic damage. Let’s say you initially start losing weight by cutting your calories from 2,000 to 1,500 a day. You lose weight for a while, but then hit a plateau. So, you cut your calories even further, down to 1,200 or less, hoping to reach your goal. Eventually, you might drop down to 900 or even 800 calories a day just to lose those last stubborn pounds.
While you may reach your goal weight, this extreme calorie restriction teaches your body to survive on fewer calories. When you inevitably increase your intake, even just a little, your body sees it as an opportunity to store fat because it’s been in “survival mode” for so long. This is why the weight piles back on—and why it becomes harder to lose weight again in the future.
How to Break the Cycle
To break this frustrating cycle, you need to approach weight loss differently. Here’s how:
- Focus on Protein
Protein is your body’s building block for muscle and tissue, and it plays a vital role in signaling to your body that it’s not in starvation mode. By keeping your protein intake high, you’ll ensure that your body has the nutrients it needs to maintain muscle mass while losing fat. Plus, protein is more thermogenic than carbohydrates or fats, meaning it burns more calories during digestion. - Choose the Right Deficit
You still need to be in a calorie deficit to lose weight, but don’t cut your calories too drastically. Instead, aim for a moderate deficit that allows you to lose weight gradually. This prevents your body from entering “famine mode” and slowing your metabolism. - Prioritize Resistance Training
Most people think of exercise as a way to burn calories, but that’s not the primary benefit. Resistance training, in particular, helps build and maintain muscle, which is metabolically expensive for your body to keep. The more muscle you have, the higher your resting metabolic rate, meaning you’ll burn more calories even at rest. This can prevent the metabolic slowdown that makes weight regain so easy. - Add Zone 2 and Fasted Exercise
In addition to resistance training, incorporate long-duration, low-intensity exercise (often referred to as Zone 2 training). Activities like walking, cycling, or swimming at a steady pace help you burn fat without putting excessive stress on your body. Doing this in a fasted state can further encourage fat burning, as your body will be more likely to tap into its stored fat for energy. - Avoid Processed Foods
Whether you’re eating a plant-based or animal-based diet, focus on whole, unprocessed foods. Processed foods, especially those that combine fats and carbohydrates, are a recipe for disaster. They flood your body with quick-digesting calories that are easily stored as fat, worsening insulin resistance and making weight loss harder. Stick to whole fruits, vegetables, lean meats, and healthy fats to keep your blood sugar stable and your metabolism functioning properly.
Long-Term Thinking
The key to successful weight loss is patience. Quick fixes and extreme diets may work temporarily, but they usually result in weight regain—and make future attempts harder. Instead of aiming for rapid weight loss, set long-term goals and understand that your body needs time to adjust. Prioritize building muscle, eating enough protein, and maintaining a slight calorie deficit. This will allow you to lose weight without triggering the metabolic slowdown that makes it harder to keep the weight off.
The bottom line is that your body is designed to survive, not thrive in a world of abundance. By understanding how your metabolism works and making strategic choices, you can finally achieve lasting weight loss and avoid the frustrating cycle of losing and regaining weight.
By following these steps and approaching your weight loss journey with patience, you can prevent the dreaded “second-time struggle” and set yourself up for long-term success.
References
- MacLean, P. S., Higgins, J. A., Johnson, G. C., et al. (2015). Metabolic compensation following weight loss: The role of adipose tissue. Obesity, 23(1), 35-45.
https://doi.org/10.1002/oby.20951 - Dulloo, A. G., Jacquet, J., & Montani, J. P. (2012). How dieting makes some fatter: From a perspective of human body composition autoregulation. Proceedings of the Nutrition Society, 71(3), 379-389.
https://doi.org/10.1017/S0029665112000225 - Stiegler, P., & Cunliffe, A. (2006). The role of diet and exercise for the maintenance of fat-free mass and resting metabolic rate during weight loss. Sports Medicine, 36(3), 239-262.
https://doi.org/10.2165/00007256-200636030-00005
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