Calories in verses calories out. If it really is that simple than how come I can't lose weight? I barely eat anything. That is a frustrating situation. For the sake of this post I'm going to assume you really are eating very little (1,200 calories for example is considered a VERY low caloric diet). It is important to note that calories you drink count too and sometimes people think they aren't eating much but they are actually consuming lots of calories. Candy, alcohol, sugary drinks, and junk food often are miss counted. However, let's say you are a smart person that is aware of what you are eating and that's not much but you still can't lose weight. What is happening?
While you aren't eating much somehow you still aren't in a caloric deficit. Your body has, for some reason (and there are lots of reasons) stopped using a lot calories. The caloric balance of calories in calories out still holds. What is super complicated in your situation is the calories out.
Calories in = whatever you put into your mouth
Calories out = Basal Metabolic Rate, Resting Metabolic Rate, Thermogenesis, Thermic effect of food, Exercise and purposeful movement, and No-exercise activity thermogenesis.
That's a lot contributing to calories out. Bad news is that's complicated. Good news is you can increase all of those categories. Without going into super detailed explanations there are easy steps you can take to help improve all of these calories out categories. The following are some examples to help you get started.
Get 150 minutes of purposeful exercise each week, build more muscle, fidget more, bounce your leg, chew gum, pace, go outside, get cold or hot, take a cold shower, eat whole less processed foods like fresh veggies or fresh fruit, and walk the long way back to the car.
I hope some of these ideas have helped you come up with some of your own easy ideas. Start simple, build the basics, you too can make progress.
-Anna