Weight Loss
Many people think that they can eat whatever they want because they exercise. However, this is not true. Exercise does burn calories and helps you keep weight off faster than doing nothing at all, but it doesn’t mean that you can eat more to make up for what you did during the workout session.
You think that the only way to lose weight is to eat much less than you usually do, but this isn’t true either. The foundation of weight loss is burning more calories than you take in. When you eat less, your body adjusts the way it uses the food and energy that you take in. In this case, it may get power from your muscles and store fat to compensate for the lower food intake.
- Common mistake: Overeating after working out
People often think of intermittent fasting as a quick way to drop pounds without changing their diet or exercise plan. This is false. Intermittent fasting may help with weight loss, but it’s only if combined with other lifestyle changes like cutting caloric intake and increasing physical activity. It’s not something you should do alone. - Common mistake: Not getting enough nutrients when intermittent fasting
Drinking sugary beverages can help you meet your 100-calorie limit on snacks. However, it won’t do anything to make you feel full or satisfied. Drinking something sweet triggers cravings for more food. - Common mistake: Drinking sugar calories instead of eating them
It’s easy to assume that taking a break between meals will help you lose weight. However, you’re more likely to feel hungry and be tempted to eat more than if you hadn’t taken the break at all. - Common mistake: Not eating regularly
You can drink water before every meal instead of trying to eat less during your regular meals. This may work for some people, but in general, studies suggest that people who drink water before meals eat less than those who don’t. - Common mistake: Drinking water to fill up on fewer calories
Eating your biggest meal at night is not necessarily the best option for weight loss. You indeed burn more calories while awake than when sleeping, but this doesn’t mean that you burn more calories during the day. - Common mistake: Eating your biggest meal at night
Most people are tempted to only eat healthy food without thinking about the total daily calorie limit when trying to lose weight. However, it’s essential to understand that some foods are more nutritious than others but still have high-calorie content. A typical example is an avocado – it’s rich in healthy fat and high in calories. - Common mistake: Eating only healthy food
You think that exercise will make you lose weight faster, but this isn’t always true. The amount of calories burned during physical activity depends on your weight, body composition, time spent doing the movement, and other factors. - Common mistake: Thinking exercise alone will lead to weight loss
People often give up on a diet and start eating whatever they want when they hit the plateau while losing weight. Your body may indeed get used to a given routine, but it doesn’t mean that you should give up on your plan altogether. This is the time when you should be more careful and pay more attention to what you eat. - Common mistake: Giving up on weight loss plan at the first plateau
You think that skipping meals or not eating for a very long time will help you lose weight faster. However, it slows down your metabolism and makes your body burn calories more slowly. - Common mistake: Skipping meals or over-exercising to lose weight faster
Using diet pills may have some positive effects on weight loss. However, they’re often associated with side effects and health concerns. In general, these drugs are not that helpful for losing fat in the long run because you need to change your eating habits too. - Common mistake: Using diet pills instead of changing your eating habits
People tend to eat more significant portions when they are served by default. For example, restaurants often serve much bigger meals than necessary, even if you don’t ask for them. - Common mistake: Eating more because the serving size is larger
Eating smaller portions of food might help you lose weight initially. However, it won’t speed up your metabolism enough to make you lose body fat. - Common mistake: Eating less without considering your total calorie intake for the day
People often assume that they burn more calories by exercising longer, even if this isn’t true. Sure, you can increase the intensity of your training sessions to burn more calories. However, most people overestimate the calories they need to spend during a long workout. - Common mistake: Underestimating total calorie expenditure with prolonged exercise
Some people think it’s okay to have cheat meals when trying to lose weight. However, if you’re on a rigorous diet plan, even a tiny amount of food can interfere with your progress. - Common mistake: Consuming cheat meals to enjoy an occasional treat
People often go on low-calorie diets and eliminate certain foods from their eating plan without knowing what nutrients they need to consume to stay healthy. - Common mistake: Eliminating entire food groups from your diet
It’s not a good idea to stop eating carbohydrates if you’re trying to lose weight. Carbs are the most crucial energy source for your body, and carbohydrate depletion, in the long run, might lead to muscle loss.
