You have seen an endless multitude of articles detailing ways you can lose weight, ways you can diet, ways you can work out to lose your muffin top, love handles, and everything else that you are told to work toward losing. But what if the obsession with losing weight can lead to mistakes that then lead to hurting your health and your mental wellness?
In this post, we’ll be explaining mistakes to avoid when you’re trying to lose weight.
10 Common Weight Loss Mistakes to Avoid
Losing weight can be a challenging journey that requires commitment and dedication. While many people embark on weight loss journeys with good intentions, they often make mistakes that hinder their progress or even lead to weight gain. Now, we will explore 10 common weight loss mistakes and provide guidance on how to avoid them, ensuring a more successful and sustainable approach to shedding those extra pounds.
1. Restrictive Eating
One thing that the media and even social are for sure pushing on everyone is the need to be skinny,
a flat stomach and to achieve unattainable body shapes that are not compatible with your body type garnered from your genetics.
For most people that are in a desperate spiral to lose weight first thought will be to restrict their eating. Restrictive eating can look all sorts of ways and manifest differently from person to person. It can be extreme dieting, eliminating certain foods, or just rarely eating altogether.
The issue with this common weight loss mistake is that this fosters obsessive behavior, can turn into disordered eating, and a deficiency in necessary vitamins and minerals. Deficiency in certain vitamins and minerals can damage your health, affect your skin, energy, and mood, and can even lead to illness. This is one of the most common weight loss mistakes you don’t want to make.
2. Laxative Teas
We often see social media influencers and even celebrities pedaling these laxative teas to us not knowing what they are.
They are shown to us in pretty pink packaging and in the hands of the skinniest and prettiest people on the internet.
The problem with this is that their names are never laxative teas, instead, they are named skinny teas or weight-loss teas,
when all it does is make you go to the bathroom multiple times a day. Having a bowel movement doesn’t mean you are losing weight. It can reduce bloating or add to it if you are constantly going to the bathroom, but in the end, that is all it does.
The celebrities and influencers online that you see selling these teas to you have bodies that look the way they do because they’ve either been working out consistently or they’ve had endless work done to get a perfectly toned stomach. This is one of the most common weight loss mistakes that a lot of people fall for. Nothing beats a balanced and healthy diet and a consistent workout regimen.
3. Overexercising
Obsessive behaviors with regard to health and fitness don’t just manifest in our eating habits. This one tends to manifest in those of us that already work out. If you are working out to lose weight, or as a way to cope with depression, working out can tend to be very enticing and addictive, especially since it is something that requires repetition in order to see results.
Overexercising can seem like a good thing to do at first when your aim is to lose weight, but similar to a vehicle that’s being driven non-stop, your body can crash and burn out. Our bodies are like engines, needing maintenance and care in order to recuperate. If you are not giving yourself even at least a couple of days off of exercising, then you are making one of the most common weight loss mistakes.
Our bodies release the stress hormone cortisol if under duress: stress, hunger, fatigue, or loss of sleep. Overexercising will lead to fatigue, possible heart damage or failure, mental and emotional fatigue, and worst of all, injury.
4. Avoiding Meals
A lot of people make the mistake of only eating small portions of bread, snacks, and even junk either throughout the week or even just for a few days thinking this will save them from the weight they potentially could pile on from eating home-cooked meals.
Fast food, snacks, and foods of that nature will only satisfy you for a couple of hours or a few at most. Your body gains weight from eating a multitude of small snack items and fast food instead of home-cooked meals because they’re not filling.
Think back to how a fast food meal felt like it never happened after a couple of hours, and now you’re back to being hungry and hankering for something else to eat, versus the home-cooked meal that would have kept you satiated until you go to bed. This is one of the most common weight loss mistakes that you will want to avoid.
5. Neglecting Portion Control
Even when eating healthy foods, portion control is crucial. Overeating, even with nutritious options, can lead to consuming excess calories. Be mindful of serving sizes and use smaller plates and bowls to help control portions. Additionally, listen to your body’s hunger and fullness cues to avoid mindless eating.
6. Not Drinking Enough Water
Water plays a vital role in weight loss, yet many people overlook its importance. Staying hydrated can boost metabolism, reduce appetite, and promote overall well-being. Make sure to drink an adequate amount of water throughout the day, especially before meals, to help control calorie intake and support weight loss efforts.
7. Lack of Sleep
Poor sleep patterns can negatively impact weight loss efforts. Sleep deprivation affects hormones that regulate appetite, leading to increased cravings and a higher likelihood of overeating. Aim for 7-9 hours of quality sleep each night to support weight loss goals.
8. Setting Unrealistic Goals
One of the biggest mistakes people make when trying to lose weight is setting unrealistic goals. Rapid weight loss might seem appealing, but it’s often not sustainable in the long run. Instead, set realistic, achievable goals that promote gradual and steady progress. This allows for healthier habits to develop and increases the chances of maintaining weight loss.
9. Not Tracking Progress
Failing to track progress is a mistake that many individuals make. Monitoring your weight, and measurements, or even keeping a food journal can provide valuable insights into your eating habits and help identify areas for improvement. Tracking progress allows you to make necessary adjustments and stay motivated along your weight loss journey.
10. Lack of Consistency
Consistency is key when it comes to weight loss. Many people make the mistake of being overly restrictive for a short period and then revert to old habits. Sustainable weight loss requires long-term lifestyle changes. Find a balanced approach that you can maintain over time
Are you on a weight loss journey?
Share your experience with us in the comment section below.
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