FAT LOSS HAS LITTLE TO DO WITH WILLPOWER AND EVERYTHING TO DO WITH THIS…

holistic wellness metabolic health sheree's health diaries May 14, 2025

Fat loss has little to do with willpower…
And everything to do with this

You don’t need more discipline. You need metabolic safety.

If you’ve been beating yourself up for lacking “willpower”…
If you’ve told yourself to just stop eating sugar or train harder…
If your weight feels stuck no matter what you try…

Let me say this clearly: This is not your fault.

What you’re experiencing isn’t a character flaw.
It’s your biology doing exactly what it was designed to do.

And fat loss?
It has very little to do with willpower — and everything to do with your metabolism, hormones, and nervous system regulation.

WHY YOUR BODY ISN'T LETTING GO OF FAT — ON PURPOSE

In her book Metabolic Reset, Dr. Lara Briden explains how women’s bodies are especially attuned to stress, energy availability, and hormonal shifts — particularly in our 30s and 40s.

When the body perceives a threat — whether that’s from:

Caloric restriction
Overtraining
Poor sleep
Inflammation
Low progesterone or estrogen imbalance
Or chronic stress…

…it responds by shifting into preservation mode.

This is adaptive thermogenesis — a survival mechanism where your body reduces energy output and increases fat storage in response to stress or restriction.

Translation?
Your metabolism downshifts before you even realize it.

HERE’S HOW IT ACTUALLY WORKS

1. Your Body Reduces Energy Output
Your hypothalamus — the part of your brain that governs hunger, energy, and hormone regulation — senses internal stress or low energy availability.

It responds by:
→ Lowering spontaneous movement (you fidget less, sit more, walk less)
→ Reducing thyroid hormone output (T3 conversion drops)
→ Shifting your nervous system into a parasympathetic “freeze” state — think fatigue, brain fog, no drive to train

This isn’t laziness — it’s biochemical protection.

In fact, research shows energy expenditure can drop by 15–20% with consistent under-eating — even if you’re still moving your body.

This is your metabolism saying: “She’s not safe — slow it all down.”

2. Your Hunger and Cravings Skyrocket (and It’s Not Emotional Eating)
When you’re in a low energy state for too long, your appetite-regulating hormones rebel:

Leptin drops → you don’t feel full
Ghrelin rises → you feel ravenous
Dopamine signaling changes → you start seeking reward-based foods (like sugar and starch)
Insulin sensitivity declines → blood sugar crashes trigger more cravings

As Briden explains, this is not sabotage — it’s your body’s attempt to increase fuel intake for survival.

Even women who “eat clean” often under-eat protein and calories, leading to this metabolic mismatch: their body is starving at a cellular level, even if they’re full.

3. You Store Fat — Especially Belly Fat
Under chronic stress or inflammation, your cortisol rises — and with it comes:

→ Insulin resistance (hello blood sugar swings and belly fat)
→ Increased visceral fat (which drives more inflammation)
→ Suppressed mitochondrial energy production

What’s worse?
That stored fat feeds back into the dysfunction — inflamed fat tissue secretes cytokines that further disrupt hormonal and metabolic signaling.

This is the loop so many women get stuck in:
Eat less → Move more → Crash metabolism → Store more fat → Repeat.

THIS ISN’T A MINDSET PROBLEM. IT’S A METABOLIC ONE

Studies show hunger and energy output are mostly unconscious.

That means you don’t “decide” to feel exhausted…
You don’t “choose” to crave sugar…
You don’t “fail” when the scale doesn’t budge.
Your body intelligently adjusts your behavior to keep you alive — even if it feels like betrayal.

So What’s the Solution? Restore, Don’t Restrict.

If you want sustainable fat loss, you must address the root cause:

Nourish your metabolism with enough protein and calories (Briden recommends 30g+ protein per meal)
Support your nervous system through recovery, breathwork, and sleep hygiene
Balance hormones by regulating blood sugar, supporting the gut-liver axis, and gently detoxing inflammatory triggers
Cycle your training with your energy, not against it (especially through perimenopause!)

You don’t need another diet. You need a physiology reset — one that aligns with your hormones, not fights them.

BOTTOM LINE

This isn’t about discipline.
It’s about restoring the system that governs hunger, energy, and fat burning.

You were never meant to white-knuckle your way to weight loss.
You were meant to feel regulated, resilient, and radically supported by your biology.

This is the work we do inside the 4 week mini-shred!
Because when your nervous system feels safe and your metabolism is fed — your body stops fighting you. And that’s when the magic happens.

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