Factors Affecting Weight Loss

Several factors affect the rate at which you lose weight. Some of them are not things which you can change.

Gender

Your fat-to-muscle ratio greatly affects your ability to lose weight. Because women typically have a greater fat-to-muscle ratio than men, they have a 5 - 10% lower resting metabolic rate (RMR) than men of the same height.

This means that women generally burn 5 - 10% fewer calories than men at rest. Thus, men tend to lose weight quicker than women following similiar diets.

Yet, while men tended to lose weight quicker than women, that doesn't necessarily translate into the ability to maintain weight loss.

Age

One of the many bodily changes that occur with aging is alterations in body composition - fat mass increases and muscle mass decreases. This change, along with other factors like the declining calorie needs of your major organs, contributes to a lower resting metabolic rate.

In fact, adults over age 70 can have RMRs that are 20-25% lower than those of younger adults. This decrease in RMR can make weight loss increasingly difficult with age.

Starting Point

Your initial body mass and composition may also affect how quickly you can expect to lose weight.

Those with a higher starting weight may lose more actual kilograms initially but the more important measure is percentage of body weight lost. In fact it's really percentage of body fat lost and this can be measured on a smart scale. Because ultimately its fat that we want to shed, not muscle.

Using a tape measure is another important tool as it actually measures what most want to lose - size.

Sleep

Sleep tends to be an overlooked yet crucial component of weight loss. Chronic sleep loss can significantly hinder weight loss and the speed at which you shed kilograms.

Just one night of sleep deprivation has been shown to increase your desire for high-calorie, nutrient-poor foods, such as cookies, cakes, sugary beverages, and chips.

One 2-week study randomized participants on a calorie-restricted diet to sleep either 5.5 or 8.5 hours each night. Those who slept 5.5 hours lost 55% less body fat and 60% more lean body mass than those who slept 8.5 hours per night.

Other Factors

Several other factors can affect your weight loss rate, including:

• Medications. Many medications, such as antidepressants and other antipsychotics, can promote weight gain or hinder weight loss.
• Medical conditions. Illnesses, including depression and hypothyroidism, a condition in which your thyroid gland produces too few metabolism-regulating hormones, can slow weight loss and encourage weight gain.
• Family history and genes. There is a well-established genetic component associated with people who have overweight or obesity, and it may affect weight loss.
• Yo-yo dieting. This pattern of losing and regaining weight can make weight loss increasingly difficult with each attempt, due to a decrease in RMR.