Oooooh yes, the classic advice: “Just eat less and move more!”

If I had a dollar for every time I’ve heard new and untrained coaches say that one, I’d be a cash money millionaire. 

I mean, seriously, if you’re poking around these internet streets you’ve probably heard this phrase more times than you can count. It sounds like a simple catchphrase for clients to get onboard with, right? Cut a few calories, hit the gym a little harder, and boom—weight loss magic.

But here’s the truth: “Eat less, move more” doesn’t work for most people.

And it’s not because people are lazy. Or because they lack willpower. It’s because this advice is way too simplistic for something as complex as the human body (and mind).

So let’s talk about why it doesn’t work—and what actually does.

Part 1: Why “Eat Less, Move More” Falls Flat

1. It Ignores the Biology of Hunger and Metabolism

Your body is not a machine. It’s a smart, adaptive system that’s designed to keep you alive at all costs. So when you cut calories too drastically, your body fights back:

Hunger hormones like ghrelin increase.

Satiety hormones like leptin decrease.

Metabolism slows down to conserve energy.

Your clients feel hungrier, colder, crankier, and more tired.

The body basically throws a tantrum:

“Oh, you’re trying to starve me? Cool. I’ll just make you crave every carb within a 10-mile radius and burn fewer calories while you sit at your desk.”

That’s not a lack of willpower. That’s biology.

2. It Doesn’t Address Emotional Eating or Habits

“Eat less” sounds fine in theory. But what about when…

• Your client is stressed and food is your comfort blanket?
• Your client is bored and wandering into the pantry for the fourth time today?
• Your client has spent decades tying food to celebration, reward, or even punishment?

Most people don’t struggle with food because they don’t know what broccoli is.

They struggle because of how they eat, why they eat, and when they eat.

Trying to “eat less” without addressing emotional eating, habits, and mindset is like putting a Band-Aid on a broken leg.

3. “Move More” Isn’t a Weight Loss Strategy

Exercise is amazing. It boosts your client’s mood, supports muscle, improves sleep, and is good for the brain and bones.

But when it comes to weight loss? It’s a supporting actor, not the main star.

Nobody can out-exercise a poor diet. And encouraging them to ‘move more’ to burn more calories often backfires:

• Your client gets ravenously hungry.
• You client ends up eating more than you “burned.”
• Your client feel exhausted, injured, or burnt out.

So no, encouraging your client to run themself into the ground with cardio 7 days a week isn’t the answer either.

4. It’s Not Sustainable for Real Life

“Eat less, move more” sounds easy until your client is:

• Traveling for work.
• Dealing with a sick kid.
• Going through a breakup.
• Juggling three jobs and haven’t slept in a week.

This advice doesn’t teach your client how to navigate real life, stress, holidays, cravings, or plateaus.

It doesn’t teach them how to build habits, shift identity, or think long-term.

And that’s the stuff that makes a transformation stick. 

Being able to help your client do this is what will set you apart from other coaches out there.

Part 2: What to Do Instead (The Sustainable Way)

If you’ve been using the ‘eat less and move more’ approach with your clientele and felt like a failure when they plateaued or fell off the wagon, let me say this loud and clear:

Your client is not the problem. The approach is.

So let’s ditch the old rulebook and talk about what actually works—real tools, real strategies, and real results.

Here’s your step-by-step blueprint.

Step 1: Fix Your Foundation First (Sleep, Stress, and Hormones)

Trying to lose weight while your client is stressed to the max, sleep-deprived, and running on coffee is like trying to build a house on sand.

Start them here:

• Sleep: Aim for 7–9 hours a night. Lack of sleep messes with hunger hormones and cravings big time.
• Stress: Chronic stress increases cortisol, which impacts blood sugar, hunger, and fat storage—especially belly fat.
• Hormones: Thyroid issues, insulin resistance, and perimenopause can all affect your progress. If something feels off, talk to your doc and get labs.

You can’t “calorie deficit” your way out of a broken foundation.

Step 2: Eat for Fuel, Not Just Fewer Calories

Instead of obsessing over how little your client can eat, focus on what your client is eating and how it makes them feel. A Macro Nutrition Education helps a LOT in this area.

Here’s what helps:

• Protein in every meal: Keeps them full, supports muscle, stabilizes blood sugar.
• Fiber-rich carbs: Think fruit, veggies, beans, oats, quinoa—not just rice cakes and lettuce.
• Healthy fats: Avocados, nuts, olive oil, egg yolks—they keep them satisfied and their hormones happy.
• Build balanced meals: Create plates that keep clients full for 4+ hours. If they’re starving an hour later, something needs adjusting.

This is not about them eating like a bird. It’s about eating enough of the right stuff.

Step 3: Ditch the “All or Nothing” Mindset

Raise your hand if you’ve ever had a client say:

• “I’ll start Monday.”
• “I already blew it—might as well eat the whole pizza.”
• “I was good all week, so I deserve to binge this weekend.”

Yeah. That’s the all-or-nothing trap. And it keeps people stuck forever.

Here’s the reframe you can offer them: Progress over perfection. Always.

Your clients don’t have to be perfect to lose weight. They just have to be consistent and patient.

That means:

• Eating a nourishing lunch even if breakfast was a donut.
• Going for a walk even if you didn’t get to the gym.
• Choosing a high-protein dinner even if you had wine and chips last night.

Clients will slip up. They’ll make mistakes. One meal or one day doesn’t ruin anything. It’s what they do next that matters. And as their coach, it’s your job to help them learn to navigate this by ditching the all or nothing approach.

Step 4: Strength Train (Yes, Even If Your Client is a Beginner)

Strength training is the most underrated fat loss tool out there.

Why? Because muscle:

• Increases your metabolism.
• Improves insulin sensitivity.
• Helps your client look “toned” instead of “skinny fat.”
• Keeps your client strong and functional for life.

Your clients don’t need to be gym rats. Two to three sessions a week with full-body lifts is enough for most people. Encourage them to focus on:

• Squats
• Deadlifts
• Push-ups (or incline/modified versions)
• Rows
• Overhead presses

If your client is intimidated, create a basic gym workout circuit for them (or offer some great YouTube video recommendations to get ideas from) or encourage them to start at home with dumbbells or resistance bands.

Regardless of how they start, make sure they understand that muscle is magic.

Step 5: Walk More (But Not to Burn Calories)

Walking isn’t “just cardio.” It’s one of the best low-stress tools for fat loss, blood sugar balance, and mental health.

Have your mobile and generally healthy clients aim for:

• 7,000–10,000 steps/day (or just more than you’re doing now).
• Short walks after meals to help with digestion and glucose control.
• Morning sunlight walks to improve sleep and circadian rhythm.

Remind them: Don’t walk to “earn” food. Walk because your body loves it.

Step 6: Watch Blood Sugar, Not Just Calories

This one’s huge—especially if your client deals with energy crashes, cravings, mood swings, or stubborn belly fat.

Every time blood sugar spikes (think: cereal, white bread, sugar bombs), the body pumps out insulin. And when insulin is high, fat burning is turned off.

Your clients don’t need to go keto or give up carbs forever. They just need to balance their meals. Try encouraging simple suggestions like:

• Pair carbs with protein and fat.
• Swap refined carbs for complex ones.
• Prioritize fiber (veggies, fruit, legumes).

Oh, and remind them: Stable blood sugar = stable energy, mood, hunger, and fat loss.

Step 7: Play the Long Game (No More 30-Day Fixes)

This one might sting a little, but if the method you’re using to help your client lose weight isn’t something they can reasonably be expected to do a year from now, it’s not going to work long-term.

That detox? That 1,200 calorie meal plan? That 75-minute HIIT class five days a week?

It’s a trap. And it will backfire. Don’t recommend any of it. I mean, unless you want to repeatedly damage your clients’ metabolisms and ultimately burn out as a coach.

Instead:

• Find ways of eating your clients enjoy and can maintain. Once again, this is why we love macros!
• Help them make movement a part of your client’s lifestyle, not a punishment.
• Help your clients create systems, not willpower-based strategies.

Most importantly, remind your clients that real, lasting fat loss is slow. Boring even! 

But it only works if it’s sustainable.

Ready to be a great coach?

Becoming a highly sought-after macro nutrition coach is about getting your clients incredible results…and showing them how to keep them.

You see, lots of general nutrition coaching programs will teach you the basics of calories in vs. calories out (aka eat less move more), but most clients need more than that to get the weight loss results they’re looking for.

Enter Macro Certification. Specifically, a Macro Mentorship Macro Nutrition Coaching Certification.

With a Macro Certification, you learn the ins and outs of macro-based nutrition and how to use macros to get any client long-lasting results, whether they want to lose weight, build muscle, gain weight, or anything in between. 

And with a Macro Certification from our NASM/AFAA/ISSA-approved program, Macro Mentorship, you’ll create those results repeatedly with any client, regardless of their current health and fitness level, because you’ll know how to customize macros to fit their individual needs, lifestyle, and goals.

We open Macro Mentorship 2-3 times a year…will you be joining our next cohort?

Click HERE to jump on our waitlist and enjoy special bonuses and discounts!