Four Common Weight Loss Mistakes

Weight loss is hard, and with all the information available online, it can feel overwhelming to know what information is right and wrong.  It can also be incredibly frustrating when you’re trying to make changes but are failing to see results. Read on to discover some common weight loss mistakes and strategies to combat them!

(1) Short Term or “Crash” Dieting

Anyone who’s tried to lose weight can relate to the feeling of wanting all the extra weight gone as quickly as possible. People sometimes resort to extreme measures to lose weight quickly, like severe calorie restriction, prolonged cleanses or fasting, or highly restrictive diets. The trouble with these approaches are that they are not sustainable and do not teach healthy habits (not to mention they often come with a high price tag).  While short-term weight loss may be attained through these methods, weight re-gain is not only common, it’s virtually unavoidable once you stop the crash diet and resume your proir eating habits.

Four Common Weight Loss Mistakes

Bottom Line: Crash diets may offer short-term results, but will not create healthy or sustainable changes.

Combat strategy: Avoid falling for gimmicks and remind yourself that weigth loss is a journey, and pounds lost is not the only measure. Making sustainable, healthy changes each day will improve your overall health and will result in weight loss.

(2) Drinking Your Calories

A sure-fire way to thwart your weight loss efforts is to drink your calories. When calories are consumed in liquid form, they are more rapily absorbed, quickly turned into fat, and do not signal a response to your brain that you are full. If you’re not looking at the nutrition label before you consume a drink, it’s easy to consume hundreds of extra calories a day in sugar. Take one regular soda, for example. A 12-once can of soda contains almost 40 grams (or 10 teaspoons!) of sugar. Think your vanilla latte from your favorite café is any better? Think again. A standard 16-oz vanilla latte typically contains 35-45 grams of sugar.

Bottom Line: Liquid calories primarily come from sugar. They are rapidly absorbed and are quickly converted to fat. They can add up to hundreds of “empty” calories each day.

Combat strategy: Don’t drink your calories! Always read the nutrition label. Swap regular sodas and drinks for zero calorie or sugar-free options. Even better, stick with plain water.

(3) Mindless Eating

Mindless eating is something we are all guilty of doing from time to time. It means eating while distracted. Prime examples of this are eating in from of the TV or eating while driving. Since our attention is focused on another activity, eating becomes thoughtless. It makes it easy to consume an entire bag of chips or a whole sleeve of cookies, only to feel like you never really ate them at all. It makes the food we eat inherently less satisfying, since we did not place our full attention on it.

Bottom Line: Eating while distracted makes us eat larger portions and feel less satisfied by the food we’ve eaten.

Combat Strategy: Make eating it’s own event. Before you eat, pause and take a moment to acknowledge the food in front of you. Always eat off a plate. Avoid the temptation to engage in other activities when you’re eating.

(4) Not Doing Enough Strength Training

Common wisdom often tells us that doing more and more cardio is the best way to lose weight. However, not incorporating enough strength or resistance training into your exercise regimen can be a major pitfall in your weight loss journey. The more muscle you build, the higher your metabolism and the more calories you burn at rest! It is an essential part of weight maintenance (i.e. keeping the weight off that you worked so hard to lose). Not to mention, strength training will help to reconstitute your body, meaning fat will get replaced with muscle. Say goodbye flab and hello to tone!

Bottom Line: Cardio alone is not the best or fastest way to lose weight. Strength training is an essential part of any weight loss plan to increase your metabolism and help you maintain the weight you’ve already lost.

Combat Strategy: Plan strength and resistance training into your exercise plan at least 2 times per week for best results.

Always remember that weight loss is a journey, and ups in downs in progress are part of the process. It is always best to get your weight loss and nutrition advice from trusted sources. You should seek professional advice and connect yourself to support communities to keep up motivation. You can do this! By thinking about your weight, nutrtion, and exercise, you are becoming a healthier you.

• Short term diets

• Not counting snacks

• Eating low fat/high sugar snacks

• Drinking your calories (sugar and alcohol)

• Mindless eating

• Unrealistic goals

• Cardio with weight training

• Miscounting calories (under estimating calories and over estimating exercise)

• Overeating fat

• Eating processed foods (choosing low calorie over healthy) / not eating enough vegetables

• Not tracking calories

• Not reading ingredients

• Depriving yourself then overeating

• Eating out (restaurants and fast food)

• Cooking with oil (and not counting these calories)

• Your circadian rhythm is off

• Late night eating

• Not paying attention to sugar / nutrition label

• You don't allow yourself any cheat foods

• Eating too many fruits

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