Is regaining weight a sign of weak willpower?

Key points in 30 seconds

1. Regaining weight is not a matter of willpower.
2. When you lose weight, your body changes to use less energy.
3. The faster you lose weight, the stronger the pull back.
4. Right after reaching your goal is the riskiest time.
5. If you're not losing weight despite your efforts, we check for other causes such as thyroid problems.

What we often hear

• "Every time I lose weight, I gain it back."
• "It's because my willpower is weak, right?"
• "I've lost count of how many times this has happened."

Is regaining weight a sign of weak willpower?

No. When you lose weight, your body treats it as a crisis and changes so that it uses less energy. Burning less than before, even when you eat the same amount, is the body's basic response.

There's a reason we start with this. Most people who regain weight blame themselves first. But the pull back toward your old weight works regardless of willpower. Knowing about it and preparing for it is very different from being caught off guard.

What happens in the body?

The energy you burn at rest goes down, hunger signals get stronger, and fullness signals get weaker. All three happen at the same time.

The faster and more weight you lose, the stronger this response becomes. If you lose weight by starving yourself, your body cuts muscle as well to lower energy use. Then, as the weight comes back, fat returns first. You end up back at your original weight with a worse body composition than before.

So what should I do?

The key is to slow down and protect your muscle. And from the start, plan together for what comes after you reach your goal weight.

Most people make a "losing plan" but no "maintaining plan." Yet the pull back is strongest right after you've reached your goal. How you get through that period decides the result.

What does a Korean medicine clinic do?

We focus on keeping your energy from dropping while you eat less, and keeping your digestion and bowel movements from falling apart. On top of that, we set up exercise to protect your muscle.

It's not just about cutting back well. Your body has to be able to cope while you cut back, so you can keep it up. If it can't cope, you end up going back.

What are the limits of this assessment?

We don't have numbers on how often people regain weight after our programs. What we've written here is based on known mechanisms and what we've seen in the clinic.

One more note. Sometimes weight won't come off for other reasons, such as an underactive thyroid, polycystic ovaries, or medications you're taking. If you're losing far less than your efforts would suggest, or you've suddenly gained weight, check those first.

We don't start with talk about willpower. When weight comes back, a force that tries to restore the lost weight is at work.

If you keep losing and regaining weight, come see us. We'll start by finding out why it came back.

How much weight comes back differs from person to person depending on how fast and how it was lost.