Hunger is the real adversary, not your metabolism

People who regain weight usually blame their metabolism. The evidence points somewhere else.

For every kilogram lost, appetite rises by roughly 100 calories a day, while energy expenditure falls by about 30. The appetite response is around three times the metabolic one. And it lasts: hormonal appetite changes were still measurably different from baseline more than a year after a ten-week diet.

That is genuinely better news than it sounds, because hunger is something you can work with. Protein keeps you full. High-volume food fills you up for fewer calories. Sleep has a large effect on appetite hormones. A smaller deficit is easier to hold than a brutal one.

None of that requires fixing anything about your body. It is just the more useful thing to aim at.