If you’re not losing weight, it means you’re not in a calorie deficit. Your TDEE (total daily energy expenditure) is not a reliable indicator of your activity level for the day, so it’s better not to rely on it if you’re trying to lose weight. Instead, find out your BMR (basal metabolic rate) and eat 100 calories above that. It’s important not to starve yourself and to eat low-calorie, high-protein foods while cutting out all real sugar and drinking sugar-free drinks. The longer you avoid real sugar, the more you’ll get used to the taste of sugar-free alternatives.

If you eat foods high in carbs and/or sodium, you may retain a lot of water, so keep that in mind if you don’t see the scale move as expected. You should also measure your waist and hips because as you lose weight, your body needs to adjust to your smaller frame through recomposition. The scale may not go down, but you’ll start losing inches, and if you don’t measure yourself, you may think you’re not making progress when you actually are.

To achieve your calorie deficit, exercise is essential. Walking is an easy and accessible option for most people, and it works many muscles while being gentle on the body. If you have a treadmill, set it to a 10%+ incline to burn more calories in the same amount of time. Try to walk at least 30 minutes a day, with a goal of reaching 5 miles a day. You can break up your time into chunks if needed.

It’s important to work within what your body is capable of. If you’re too sore the next day, you did too much, so scale it back. You should be recovered by the next day so you can do this every day. Eventually, you’ll build endurance and be able to push yourself further without issue. 

Real weight loss is a marathon, not a sprint. Aim for 1 or 2 pounds a week, which equates to 52 to 104 pounds a year. After just a few months of consistent work, you’ll start feeling like a new person, and the longer you go, the better you’ll feel, which will motivate you to keep going. 

However, it’s important to understand that you have to keep watching your calories and being active to keep the weight off. Everyone who is thin is actively doing something to maintain their weight. Few people are genetically gifted to not gain weight, so if you want to lose weight, you have to keep putting in