Megan Lee, Registered Dietician, October 2024
Ever battled with frustration when your body seems to resist weight change, no matter how hard you try? In this post I deep-dive into the set-point theory, a concept that suggests that each body has a unique weight range that it strives to maintain - despite dieting or overeating.
What is the set-point theory?
The set-point theory suggests that each human body has a predetermined weight range that it will fight to maintain for the sake of optimal functioning and survival. The body activates or deactivates certain physiological processes to guard against deviations outside of this range.
What determines your set-point?
Our psychological and physical characteristics are in part or entirely determined by our genetics. Height, eye colour, the presence or potential to develop health conditions, and weight are all influenced by our genetics - something we cannot change!
Genetics plays a role in determining the weight your body will naturally tend toward. Genes play a large role in programming traits that influence weight - like bone structure, fat mass, how much muscle you have or are able to develop, and your metabolic rate, to name just a few. Ultimately, your genetic blueprint has encoded a natural weight range for your body, and efforts to manipulate this weight are likely futile. Here's why…
Weight regulation mechanisms
The body fights to stay within its set point range, because this is the weight that is deemed safe and non-threatening to survival.
If you consume more energy than your body requires, compensatory actions are triggered to make use of this extra energy so that it is not stored. Body temperature and metabolic rate is increased, and one’s need for movement is enhanced. You may feel more restless, or generally become more active in your daily life. Ghrelin, the hormone that stimulates hunger, is also reduced to arrest excess energy intake.
Similarly, if you consume less energy than your body requires, body temperature drops, and metabolism is slowed to conserve energy for vital functions. Daily movements like fidgeting and walking are minimised to save energy, and ghrelin production is increased. One also experiences occupying
thoughts about food - a psychological attempt to increase energy consumption.
What happens if you’re below your set-point?
If energy intake is consistently insufficient to maintain your set-point, biological processes that are not essential to survival are switched off or down-regulated. Digestive processes are impaired, causing a myriad of unfavourable symptoms like constipation, bloating, delayed stomach emptying and cramps. Sex hormone production is reduced, resulting in a lowered libido and irregular or absent menstruation. The body does not favour maintenance of hair, nails or skin, and these can become dry and brittle, and hair loss can occur. If mineral intake is low, calcium is leached from bone in order to maintain vital processes like heart contraction.
How do you know what your set point is?
There is no way for you to accurately determine what weight range is deemed natural and healthy for your body. Ultimately, the weight range your body falls into when you have a balanced diet that includes all foods you enjoy, you are moving your body for enjoyment, and not sacrificing mental and social health for the sake of dieting.
Conclusion
It can be a real battle to maintain a weight that is below your set-point. The heightened hunger, diminished natural movement, slowed metabolism and constant thoughts about food can make fighting weight gain uncomfortable, as well as unlikely. This is one of the many reasons why dieting does not work long term.... the body will fight to bring you back to your ‘safe’, natural weight.
If you are keen for a shift in perspective on what your body "should" look like, we would love to work with you to treat your body like an ally, rather than an enemy.
For personalised guidance on finding a more positive relationship with food, exercise, and your body, book a consultation here: https://www.gabimeltzerdietician.com/book-online.
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