Trying to lose weight or maintain a healthy weight is challenging for most people. It also doesn’t help that there are so many fad diets and quick weight loss tricks out there.
However, it’s important to understand that cutting calories alone will not lead to fat loss. In order to lose weight, you need to create a calorie deficit through healthy habits like eating less, exercising more, taking supplements, and eating nutritious foods that fuel your body.
If you find yourself struggling with your weight and putting on pounds again after trying different diets, the worst mistake you can make is giving up.
The truth is that there isn’t one ideal way of losing weight; it’s all about finding what works best for you. Here are common pitfalls when trying to slim down and some advice on how you can get back on track:
1. Trying to lose weight too fast
Most people have good intentions when they decide to lose weight. However, it’s easy to overestimate your capabilities and push yourself too hard.
Losing 1-2 pounds per week is the best place to aim for if you want to see long-term results. Rapid weight loss is not just unsustainable, but it can also lead to muscle loss which can slow down your metabolism.
A healthy, sustainable weight loss rate is 1-2 pounds per week. This means that it will take you anywhere between one and two years to lose 40 pounds.
If you are looking at a much bigger number, it’s important to take the long-term approach and not just give up halfway through.
Setting realistic goals and having a long-term plan in mind will help you stay on track and reach your desired results.
You also have to keep in mind that a certain amount of weight loss is dependent on your genetics and metabolism. This doesn’t mean that you can’t change these things, but you need to be realistic with your goals.
2. Overestimating your exercise impact
Many people who are trying to lose weight overestimate the number of calories they burn during exercise. This can lead to the feeling that they don’t need to make healthy food choices.
For example, if you jog for 30 minutes on a treadmill at a speed of 5 miles per hour, you will burn about 200 calories. This is just about enough for a piece of bread.
While exercise is extremely important for a healthy weight loss journey, it doesn’t provide you with a free pass to eat whatever you want.
Be mindful of your food choices, and try to make healthy eating a daily habit even when you are not actively trying to lose weight and that’s what leads us to the worst mistake people make when trying to lose weight.
3. Neglecting to pay attention to what you’re eating/drinking
When you focus too much on exercise and not enough on what you’re eating, you can easily fall into the trap of neglecting your health.
Eating a healthy, balanced diet is crucial if you want to lose weight, stay energized and focused, and maintain a healthy body. You don’t need to cut out all the foods you love to lose weight.
Rather, you want to focus on eating healthier versions of your favorite foods. For example, if you love burgers, you can still indulge in them by swapping the bun for slices of lettuce.
Choosing whole grain over white, switching to non-fat or low-fat dairy, and opting for lean meats will not only make your diet more enjoyable but can also help you slim down.
When you’re trying to lose weight, you also want to consider portion size. Eating too much of any one thing can cause weight gain.
4. Dieting without exercise
Dieting without exercising is a surefire way of gaining weight. When you start a new diet, your body senses that it is being deprived of the nutrients it needs and starts to store anything it can get its hands on.
This includes fat, muscle, and tissue. If you want to lose weight and keep it off, you need to exercise regularly. In fact, obese people on diets who exercise are 47% more likely to lose weight than those who don’t, according to a study.
Exercising will help you maintain your muscle mass while you’re cutting down on your calorie intake. It will also boost your metabolism, which means that you burn more calories even when you’re not working out.
Exercising might seem like a major inconvenience when you’re trying to lose weight, but it’s actually one of the most important things you can do to make sure that the weight stays off for good.
There are tons of different exercises you can do to meet your health and fitness goals, from strength training to cardio. Finding an exercise routine that works for you is important. It doesn’t matter how many calories you’re burning if you hate the exercise
Exercising regularly will help you keep your muscle even when you are cutting back on your calorie intake.
5. Believing that weight loss should be easy and instant
Losing weight is never easy, and it’s definitely not instant. The only thing that happens instantly when you go on a diet is that you lose water weight. The pounds you want to shed are way too stubborn to disappear that quickly.
For most people, it takes at least two months of hard work to see any significant results. That’s why you shouldn’t get discouraged if you don’t see a big change in the scale after a few weeks of dieting.
It’s important to remain focused on your long-term goals and celebrate every small victory on the way to your success.
6. Not Taking Enough Protein
Many people who are trying to lose weight fast tend to cut back on their protein intake. This is a big mistake.
Protein is essential for maintaining muscle mass, which can help you burn more calories even when you are not exercising. Protein is also important for keeping your metabolism high so that you can continue burning fat when you aren’t working out.
Eating enough protein will not make you gain weight, so there’s no reason to be afraid of eating more of it.
Your body needs an adequate amount of protein to maintain muscle mass, and the recommended daily allowance is 0.8 grams per kilogram of body weight.
The good news is that even if you have already reached your goal weight, it’s never too late to start eating more protein-rich foods like chicken and fish.
Conclusion
With so many fad diets and quick weight loss tricks out there, it’s easy to get misled and make the wrong choices when you’re trying to lose weight. It’s important to understand that cutting calories alone will not lead to fat loss.
In order to lose weight, you need to create a calorie deficit through healthy habits like eating less, exercising more, and eating nutritious foods that fuel your body.
If you find yourself struggling with your weight and putting on pounds again after trying different diets, the worst mistake you can make is giving up.
The truth is that there isn’t one ideal way of losing weight; it’s all about finding what works best for you.
Author’s Bio:
Azeez Abdullahi is a medical practitioner and a health and wellness content writer across the web and a health content publisher at https://fithealthyweightloss.com/
