By There are so many mistakes to be made along the weight loss journey
Weight loss results from a healthy lifestyle, and it requires some conscious effort over a long period. Some people assume that in a week, they might lose weight. Initially, you will lose something, but that’s just water weight. The real magic happens when you make an effort every day for nutrition and exercise. Fast-tracking doesn’t exist. There are some ways you can manipulate your body for weight loss, but it still takes work. Losing weight doesn’t happen overnight, but it will eventually happen if you do the right things. Sometimes we can believe the wrong information — based on other people’s experiences. So I always say, stick with the basics, and you can’t go wrong. The basics are fundamentals keeping you sane and eliminating the “it’s too hard” excuse we sometimes seem to make. Whatever it takes, we have to go ahead and do it. The family might disagree with the food choices, but better health and longevity benefit everyone — even though the initial reaction might be a bit of a pushback.
One: You are overcompensating the number of calories you burn when exercising
A lot of the time, we assume that the activities within the gym are burning a lot more calories. It would be best to underestimate the calories bunt from your workout to keep you in the calorie safety zone. Take caloric burn your machine indicates with a grain of salt, or your iWatch, for that matter. It’s a rough gauge depending on your age, caloric intake and fitness levels. For instance, walking or running for an hour (depending on the intensity) can only burn about 300–500 calories. The problem lies when people assume that they don’t need to create a calorie deficit. Or, maybe that deficit is only required via one meal or exercise. Creating a calorie deficit with food and exercise is essential for weight loss. But this takes place over some time. So you have to do this continually. It’s also important to watch your portion size and not overcompensate during meals. It’s tough to work out, but you can do it with practice.
Two: You are eating more than you think or snacking mindlessly
It’s easy to go overboard on snacks, despite the health benefit of things like nuts, seeds and protein bars. This will set you back for weight loss — despite how healthy or low calorie they may be. An excellent accountability tool is to have a food diary and always write down what you eat. Then, monitor the nutritional value and see how much things add up. It will bring awareness to foods you might be overindulging in inconsistently. I found this beneficial when I started. Snacks are a great thing to have in between meals, but we still need to be mindful that they can be harming our efforts. So, again, inform yourself of the necessary portion sizes and stick to them.
Three: You are not exercising effectively
Exercising the right way is the key to weight loss. So I will go outside of the grain here and preach the importance of strength training for weight loss again. You can do as much cardio as you like, but you will never reshape your body like you would with lifting weights. Lifting weights isn’t to get muscular — but to create lean muscle mass and elevate our metabolism. Whilst cardio such as sprints is a great tool to use for stubborn fat burning and preserving muscle mass, strength training surpasses any form of exercise to build muscle and get you leaner at the same time. Many program variables are best implemented for you by a professional. Choose a trainer that walks the talk, and start today!
Four: Not eating enough protein -or too much
Protein is an essential component of weight loss, but I’ve seen it abused too often. Eating seven egg yolks and believing that won’t cause weight gain. But, some people believe protein doesn’t cause gain weight & to eating more of it won’t do any damage. Weight gain results from overeating everything — protein included. Over the long term, when you consume the right amount of protein, you will be eating far fewer calories due to the filling effects of protein. Protein is also thermogenic, meaning that you burn calories whilst digesting it. But make sure you aren’t going overboard and keeping protein intake in line with your caloric consumption levels. Ensure you eat a high protein diet to boost metabolism and preserve muscle when on a calorie-restricted eating plan. I would suggest opting for low-calorie varieties such as eggs, fish, turkey and chicken, then swapping the sources regularly for a higher grade protein source.
Five: Assuming that liquid or diet calories don’t count
This is big because people assume that liquids don’t contain the calories that can negatively affect their weight or that diet soda is ok. The brain does not register these liquids as calories, encouraging you to eat more later due to the lack of satiety. Instead of juices, opt for the actual fruit, as it contains fibre, promoting fullness. Instead of drinking diet soda, drink water or mineral water with lemon wedges. You could also blend berries and green vegetables as a smoothie. It’s a beautiful way to boost your antioxidants and fibre intake. In addition, eating the pulp will increase your satiety. Diet sodas still give our bodies the impression that we consume something sweet. Therefore, it sets a cascade of endless cravings to eat more. That’s correct; your diet soda makes you eat more because of artificial sugar’s effects on the body. It’s the same as when consuming a sugar beverage. Your best bet is to regularly drink coffee, tea, herbal teas, and water.
Six: You don’t plan ahead
When your mission is to lose weight, it’s essential to plan your meals. Try using the weekend to sit down and decide your food choices, shopping list, and portion sizes. Planning for things like snacks is also essential. Leaving the door open to Uber Eats could put you in a position of eating a lot more calories than you require — due to the hidden sugars and artificial ingredients. Plus, when a considerable portion is in front of you, it can be hard to say no! Trust me; you won’t eat it if it’s not there. The most disciplined of us can expose our hidden need to eat everything on the plate. Truth be known, eating everything on your plate as your mother once told you isn’t accurate. Eating as much as you need and being mindful of chewing and enjoying your food is the perfect weight loss ritual. So, plan and eat with awareness, but know that the old rule of eating everything on the plate does not apply to adults. Our parent’s traditional way of forcing us to eat and prevent wastage is now outdated — and we should try to bury it away with all the other inaccurate habits we inherited. If it’s not serving your health and goals — get rid of it. ????????
Key take away
With some practice and some planning, losing weight will be easy. It doesn’t happen in one week. Nothing does. But, if you intend to work on it every day and allow yourself to make mistakes — the weight loss world is your oyster!
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