Read that title one more time and think about it for a few more seconds. It’s a profound question, really.

There has been an extremely long and complex debate whether or not gaining weight (or losing it) is as simple as adjusting the energy balance equation, or calories in versus calories out. I am not going to dive into that debate in this article. Rather, I would like to introduce another part of the complex pathways of gaining or losing weight. 

Let’s chat about hormones and inflammation.

Hormone balance and uncontrolled levels of inflammation play a powerful role in how fat is stored, burned and regulated. Then the hormone and inflammatory pathways are disrupted, weight gain often shows up as one of the earliest warning signs that something is not right in the body.

Of course, this is a very complex topic, and I will write many more articles about this but let’s start with a few of the basics to help you understand truly why weight gain may really be a symptom of other disruptions in the body. Let’s start with hormones.

Hormones are chemical messengers that tell your body how to use energy, where to store fat and when to burn it. If these signals are off, metabolism becomes less efficient. 

While there are over 50 hormones in the human body, the following are the ones you should be familiar with as we start this educational series.

• Insulin - elevated insulin from frequent blood sugar spikes encourages your body to store more fat, particularly around the abdomen. Over time, insulin resistance makes it harder to lose weight. Read more about how to stabilize blood sugar using the Metabolic Efficiency Training concept.

• Cortisol - chronic stress increases cortisol, which raises your blood sugar and promotes fat storage, especially visceral fat around organs.

• Thyroid hormones - low thyroid hormone production can slow down metabolic rate, making weight loss more complex and challenging.

• Sex hormones (estrogen, progesterone, testosterone) - imbalances here, such as estrogen dominance, low progesterone or low testosterone, affect the location of fat distribution in the body, muscle preservation and appetite regulation.

• Leptin - this hormone is produced by your fat cells and helps regulate appetite by signaling your brain when your body has enough stored energy. In overweight individuals, leptin resistance can develop which can lead to increased hunger and a reduction in energy expenditure.

• Ghlerin - this hormone is released by the stomach and signals hunger to your brain. It typically rises before meals and falls after eating. An imbalance with this hormone can lead to excessive hunger and overeating.

There is nothing simple about hormones and their functions and when they are imbalanced, your body’s normal “checks and balances” on hunger, satiety and fat burning get disrupted. This is usually the reason I have seen so many individuals get so frustrated when they start gaining weight despite eating well and exercising.

Now, let’s move on to inflammation. There are two main types: acute and chronic.

Think of acute inflammation when you walk by a table or chair and hit your leg and it bruises. That’s acute inflammation, which helps the body heal. 

Chronic inflammation is the type that we really need to focus on and worry about. 

Chronic, low-grade, inflammation is subtle but persistent. It develops over time and you often cannot feel that anything is happening. This is usually when you look down around your mid-section one day and bark a few expletives because it feels like that fat just appeared there overnight. 

We’ve all been there and that’s why paying attention to chronic inflammation is SO important. It can build up over time and unless you have blood work done with specific biomarkers to measure it, you will not see its effects until after they present as an increase in body weight and body fat.

Now, here’s the thing, chronic inflammation is highly triggered and driven by processed foods, poor gut health, stress and environmental toxins. Probably not a shocking revelation but you get the idea here.

Reduce processed, refined foods as much as possible, eat more pre- and probiotic rich foods, employ stress management techniques and try to stay away from harmful chemicals and toxins (in food and the environment) as much as possible.

Hormones and inflammation are deeply intertwined. Hormonal imbalances can trigger inflammation (ie - low estrogen can increase inflammatory markers) and inflammation can worsen hormonal regulation. Taken together, they create a feedback loop that can promote weight and fat gain, fatigue and metabolic dysfunction.

I hope you can see why weight gain in the presence of hormonal imbalance or inflammation is a symptom and not necessarily the problem. Treating it solely with calorie restriction or excessive exercise often fails because the underlying issues remain unaddressed.

When you gain weight in the context of imbalanced hormones and inflammation, it’s signaling that something deeper is out of alignment. Restoring hormone balance and calming inflammation not only supports weight management but also improves energy, mood and longevity.

Losing weight and body fat is always a challenge but it is actually much easier when your nutrition and exercise plan is built around improving your hormone and inflammation profile.

The eNRG Performance team of Performance Dietitians is here for you! Reach out if we can help you achieve your weight and body recomposition goals!

PS - I’M SO EXCITED!!! 

I just INCREASED THE VALUE of my Virtual FatBurn Blueprint program by like ten million times! 

What did I do? 

I listened to all of the great feedback of the past participants of the program. While the 4-week program was a huge success for them, it was only a catalyst.

They wanted more touch points and contact to make sure their successes continued long-term so, drum roll please…

The Virtual FatBurn Blueprint Program is now a 12-week program with added touch points with myself AND 2 hormone tests so we can see how much we actually changed your hormones during the program AND a genetics test so I can customized your nutrition and exercise plan based on your HORMONES AND GENES.

I am so excited that I received this valuable feedback and I’m even MORE EXCITED about these updated changes that will add A TON MORE VALUE to the Virtual FatBurn Blueprint Program. 

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE PROGRAM HERE.