Does Your Body Weight Have a Set Point?

Is there a weight at which your body is content to stay despite your best efforts to lose more?

In this video, I talk about the bodyweight set point theory and the evidence to support its existence, as well as some strategies that might help you coax your body down to a lower weight.

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Disclaimer: Dr. Becky Gillaspy, DC received her Doctor of Chiropractic degree from Palmer College of Chiropractic in 1991. Her use of “doctor” or “Dr.” in relation to herself solely refers to that degree. Dr. Gillaspy was a licensed chiropractor in Pennsylvania, but she no longer practices chiropractic in any state and does not see patients. This video is for general informational purposes only. It should not be used to self-diagnose and it is not a substitute for a medical exam, cure, treatment, diagnosis, and prescription or recommendation. It does not create a doctor-patient relationship between Dr. Gillaspy and you. You should not make any change in your health regimen or diet before first consulting a physician and obtaining a medical exam, diagnosis, and recommendation. Always seek the advice of a physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Dr Becky Fitness LLC and Dr. Rebecca Gillaspy, D.C. are not liable or responsible for any advice, course of treatment, diagnosis or any conclusions drawn, services or product you obtain through this video or site.

[gigigo]

I am 77 years old, 5' 8" tall, and weighed 160 when I decided to lose weight. No diet worked for any length of time and always stalled at 155. Then I heard of Keto, and cutting out the sugar, grains (which I love) and starchy vegetables were the answer. It took me 5 months to get to 145. Now the goal is to stay at the level. You videos were a big help and still are. Thank you!

[jackiehammerton]

If you can change your habits, you can change your set point. My anecdote: I was 145lbs. at 5’4” throughout my young adult life, but looking at my eating habits, I snacked often and routinely ate half a pint of ice cream before bed. I would do my best to diet, but I either couldn’t stick to a program or would continue with “healthy” versions of my habits (snacking on baked chips or opting for frozen yogurt). Never could push myself below 145 for very long and I’d always bounce back up.
Then I observed the eating habits of one of my “naturally thin” friends and noticed she never snacked and rarely ate dessert. I started practicing the habit of 3 square meals a day and over the course of a few months, my weight dropped to 130lbs. I’m no longer in the habit of snacking or eating desserts on the regular and this is now where my weight settles. Sometimes it’s a pound higher, sometimes a couple pounds lower, but always in the realm of 130lbs. Adopt new habits and see what happens over the course of 3-6 months.

[charlenerobinson]

My body set weight is 160. I’ve lost weight every year for 4 years straight in which I would get down to 140, but no matter what. I end right back at 160. I’m 5’2 so I really don’t favor 160.

[hustlehardermommy]

I've always felt this way. Whether I was gaining or losing weight at around 195 lb my body would stick so to speak. It was as if it wanted to stay there and I would have to have some kind of breakthrough to get larger or smaller. Thank you so much for sharing the information.💪😘

[kimberlyvalmera]

I did the DNA Comprehensive report. I found out that I am at higher risk of obesity and diabetes (which I already knew lol). It picked up on my Vitamin C intolerance. Also said I would be more suitable for a high protein diet (25% it says). And it also said that I have slight impaired glucose
tolerance with a late dinner time and slight increased risk for type-2 diabetes. My IF schedule is 7am-3pm so this fits perfectly. I also lowered my A1C from 6.8 to 5.4 from a keto diet. Very interesting info, thank you!!

[laurahiser]

I’ve often wondered about this topic. My “ set weight “ appears to be 135-140. Thanks for all your helpful videos.👍🏻

[jeffreyphillips]

I'm hanging in there at 195lbs, and I'm 6' talk, medium/large frame, nearly 72 years old. I do have some love handles but nothing serious and probably an inch of belly fat. But I'm ok with where I'm at. I love your videos though because they keep me inspired and on the right track. 👍

[roberthansen]

When you look at the distribution of all the weights, heights, ages, etc, and then do the BMR math to estimate what each of those person's TDEE is, you will find that except in the extreme cases (BMI > 45), they are all eating roughly the same number of calories per day according to their size (number of cells, not weight). For example, a person who is 100 lbs overweight and weighs 250 lbs and is sedentary will have a TDEE of 2300 cal/day. That same person at 150 lbs and moderately active will have a TDEE of 2200 cal/day. Only 100 cal/day difference, but the difference between sedentary and moderately active is 400 cal/day of activity. Thus, this person is eating 100 cal/day more food than they need and lacking 400 cal/day of activity/exercise. 20% of their issue is food, 80% is lack of activity. If this person was sedentary and 150 lbs then they would have to limit themselves to 1800 cal/day to make up the full 500 cal/day difference.

Unfortunately, many dieters will try to lose the 100 lbs in that example and then maintain the 150 lbs by eating 1800 cal/day. They will most likely fail and eventually regain the weight back because their body is designed for and wants around 2200 calories a day, whether they burn the 400 cal/day in physical activity or not. They can eat 2200 calories a day and get 400 cal/day physical activity and be 150 lbs, or be sedentary and 250 lbs. It is very hard to willfully deny the body that 2200 calories forever.

My point here is that while it seems like there is a weight set point, what is really in play is that there is a set number of calories that we are designed to eat a day and this number is irregardless of our weight or level of activity. This design is probably due to evolution which is based on survival and sedentary bodies would obviously not be viable during that evolution and prior to modern civilation. We don't have DNA that can moderate our caloric intake to account for sedentary behavior.

The argument that our obesity is caused mostly by exccesive food intake is very convincing, even to me previously. All of those extra slices of pizza, 5 or 6 sodas a day, snacks, etc. Bad habits for sure, but when I dived deeper, those calories could not have been on top of our normal calories, most of those calories were in place of our normal calories. As I showed above, if we assume that we must be moderately active, the surplus in food was only 100 calories. And I also came across this in looking back to my early 20's when I was slim and active, I was eating more on average than in my 50's, but my activity had gone down to zero due to lifestyle changes (desk job, etc.). It is like when people say some person can eat anything and not gain weight. They may occasionaly eat excessively, but they eat much less the other times. We all over estimate what our actual average daily calorie intake is.

Back to the bad habits. Exercising on a treadmill for 30 minutes or eating a large bag of Fritos will both provide a relatively equal amount of dopamine. Obviously, especially when you are obese, opening a bag of Fritos is much easier than pressing the start button on the treadmill. It is just natural as your daily activity levels go down and your weight goes up to find your joy in a bag of Fritos than on a treadmill. You may think "so I am over eating, since the Fritos are adding 500 calories to my diet!" And I would reply "No, you probably ruined your supper eating a whole bag of Fritos, thus offesttng the 500 calories. Eating the bag of Fritos isn't the cause of the weight gain, it is a symptom. It means that you are not physically active and going to food for dopamine. It is the lack of physical activity that is causing the weight gain.

Of course at the extremes there are true food addictions in play, but they look very different. In those cases the people eat more and more and more, till their heart stops.

In any event, just food for thought. Our bodies are designed for a certain number of calories per day based on our size (number of cells, not weight) and that design assumes moderately active bodies. The majority of obesity is not caused by people eating far over their "natural" calorie intake, but by a lack of meeting their phsyical activity requirements. Most of what they think are signs of overeating are actually bad food habits related to our desire for dopamine. Thus, our caloric surplus (the cause of weight gain) is mainly due to lack of physical activity with bad food habits contributing, which are also driven by the lack of natural dopamine we would have gotten from physical activity.

The level of activity (the 400 calories in the example) is not as much as you might think. If it were spread out through our 16 hours of awake time, it would be 25 cals/hour, a few minutes of running. It is also inline with recommendations like 300 min a week of exercise, or the 10k steps a day fad. And it includes both exercise and normal activity, like shopping or working around the house.

When you start a diet and go to the BMR tables to plan your deficit and then plan your eventual target calories for after losing the weight, you cannot pick the sedentary option (1.2 x BMR). Your body will simply not let you eat that few calories forever You must pick something like 1.5 x BMR and plan to workout regularly and/or add activity to your daily life. You still need to practice mindfull eating, but it won't be a battle of sheer will power to try to exist on 1800 calories forever. And turning down seconds or not eating a whole bag of chips is actually hardly even a task if you are fit and working out. You wern't doing those things for the calories, it was for the dopamine, which you will now have plenty of from working out.

[deb]

I find when I get below my set point, the weight comes back very quickly but not as much from that "set point" weight

[susannaharget]

I think we DO have set points for body weight. Years ago, I had gastroenteritis (vomiting, diarrhea) and lost 7 pounds in a few days. After I recovered and could eat again, I was STARVINGLY ravenous until I gained all the weight back, and then my hunger went back to totally normal.

[godsgrace]

Hi Becky, I just found your channel! I love it. The information is great, but the presenter is even better! You have a sweet, calm way about you that makes it easy to follow and listen to. Blessings to you....and much success! Great hubby too😉

[MJ]

My body easily goes into a plateau. It takes alot of work to drop the weight and then it settles again. Every 3 to 5 kgs, it reaches a plateau.

[KJB]

So really a NON answer and an ad for 23 and Me. Thanks.

[Chantal-inzh]

Thank you, Dr. Becky! As always, your videos are very helpful.

[silversurfergamer]

i think the real truth here is, when you get down to a certain level of weight, it takes more work and more effort in micro management of nutrients to keep losing.. Most people haven't got the time or inclination to take it that far or your life would be taken over by food management.. I really dont think the body has a set point, if you think of starving people in the war how skin and bone they got...

[RocknRollkat]

Excellent presentation, thank you !
Bill P.

[beverlyabner]

Great video I sent it to everyone. I especially needed it I'm still going up and down in the 170s hello just can't get over the hump down in the 160s.

[linnilucidiamondpainttiluf]

Love your videos! You have helped me so much! I am down 20 pounds so far!

[joujmat]

Always a pleasure to watch your videos very informative 👍🍀🌸

[nilmdtsnashville]

Wonderful video.. I appreciate your help and guidance... I am stuck right now and your short video gives me hope... Thank you Dr. Becky... Judy in Tennessee...