If you're doing everything right but weight isn't moving, chronically elevated cortisol is a likely suspect.
Cortisol's effect
Chronic stress elevates cortisol, which encourages abdominal fat storage and increases insulin resistance. You can be in a calorie deficit and still see no progress.
Markers to watch
Morning fatigue despite sleep, sugar cravings, abdominal weight gain even as overall body fat drops, anxiety that wasn't there before.
What helps
Aerobic exercise (lowers cortisol). 10 minutes daily of any quiet practice — meditation, prayer, journaling. Sleep first; everything else follows.
