I cannot lose weight. Need to lose 20 lbs in 3 months. I’m 40 and I eat healthy, exercise, do everything right. Certainly don’t understand why I cannot lose weight. Gained 75 lbs in my 2nd pregnancy (my son is 2 1/2) and I lost 70 lbs in 7 months and another 10 lbs in 3 months. But I cannot lose weight, not all of it anyway. Well, I moved from Seattle, WA to Durango, CO and with the moving thing I left myself go and gained 14 lbs. Bad! What should I do? I have a trip to Brazil in February. Also I have hypothyroidism. Thanks, Francilia Ehrig. [via Ask Questions]

It is hard for me to figure out why you cannot lose weight since you have not provided any details about what you eat and how you exercise. You do say that you exercise and eat healthy, but what does it mean? How many calories do you eat a day? How often do you exercise? What kind of exercises do you do?

So I do not know why you cannot lose weight, but I know what you can do to increase your chances of losing weight. The first thing that comes to mind is sugar detox. Second, the high-fiber foods list can make your diet more nutritious. Third, take a closer look at your diet. Do you eat consistently every day? Are your meals balanced? Do you eat a healthy breakfast every morning?

There is one more thing I would like to mention, it is not my favorite technique, but if all else fails, you should definitely start counting calories. Read the How Many Calories Do I Need to Lose Weight? post. To get a baseline count of your daily calorie consumption, write down everything you eat for at least one week, and I mean everything, without any exceptions. Once you have the baseline calorie count, you know that this number represents the amount of calories you need to stay at your present weight. To lose weight, you need to consume fewer calories.

Do not cut too many calories from your diet. Start by deducting only 300 calories from your diet. If you still cannot lose weight, deduct another 200 calories, etc. Just keep in mind that under no circumstances your daily calorie consumption can dip below 1,200 calories a day.