Common Mistakes People Make When Trying To Lose Weight
by Julia Gregory
Many people attempt to lose weight, though only a few of them can keep to their weight loss programs if they are too strict. If you are thinking of trying to lose weight yourself, then it can be helpful to examine the mistakes others make so you can avoid making them yourself. With that in mind, here are some common mistakes people make when attempting to lose weight.
Mistake #1: Eating too little.
You might think that the less you eat, the faster you'll lose weight. But actually, cutting your calorie intake too low will just leave you ravenous, which will probably cause you to binge and undo all of that hard work later on. So, how much should you eat? Start by using an online calculator to estimate how many calories you burn each day. Then, aim to eat 500 calories less than that. This will have you losing a pound every 5 days since you need to burn 3,500 calories to lose a pound of body fat.
Mistake #2: Weighing yourself too often.
Weighing yourself daily seems like it would be a good way to stay on track, but it's not. Your weight can fluctuate by as much as a few pounds each day, so weighing yourself daily can make you frustrated since you may see some daily increases. It's better to just weigh yourself once a week, for example, and pay attention to the overall trend rather than the exact numbers.
Mistake #3: Only focusing on diet.
You can lose weight by making changes to your diet and not adding any extra physical activity, but this is a hard way to go about things. It's much easier to lose weight if you both reduce your calorie intake and increase your physical activity. You don't have to run a marathon or join a cross fit gym. Even a 30-minute brisk walk around the block can burn about 200 calories! Try dancing, cycling, or anything else you actually enjoy and will stick with.
Mistake #4: Cutting out all fat.
Low-fat diets are just another trend and are not a healthy way to lose weight. You need fat in your diet in order to remain satiated, and cutting your fat intake down too low will likely lead you to overeat, which is not good for weight loss. Instead of cutting out fat, focus on choosing healthier fats. Eat fewer saturated fats from animal products and more unsaturated fats from plants. For instance, use olive oil in place of butter.
If you avoid the mistakes above when attempting to lose weight, you increase your chances of success. Weight loss can be an achievable goal if you focus on making the right moves.
Share
About Me
The decision to move one of my parents into assisted living was one of the most difficult I have ever made. I had extreme feelings of guilt that led to me being at the facility with my parent practically around the clock. It took a few months before I realized that I could not let my own life fall apart from the guilt I was feeling. I also learned that my parent was fine without me constantly hovering around. Since that time, I have had several friends express similar feelings of guilt. I started this blog to help others in the same situation understand not only their feelings about assisted living, but those of their parents.