If your BMI still indicates ‘overweight’ when you could swear you haven’t picked up that bar of chocolate all week, you know something’s wrong with your weight loss regime. The journey to losing weight isn’t simply dictated by a diet or an exercise program, it’s a combination of these things and more often than not, lack of guidance causes some serious disasters and failures in achieving your fitness goals. We’re here to point out a few mistakes and habits that keep us from our ideal bodies, just so if you find that you’re guilty of some of these, you know you need to stop.
1. Eating Processed Foods
If you’ve been downing Diet Coke and devouring low-fat products then you’re already headed in for a 50% less calorie reduction on your weight loss program than you would if you had had whole foods. In fact, artificial sweeteners increase blood sugar and lead to weight gain. So don’t hesitate to pick up the full fat cheese next time.
2. Not Getting Enough Sleep
Being a night owl might be poetic, but it certainly does nothing for your body. Sleep deprivation leads to junk food cravings and makes you feel hungrier due to an increase in the levels of hormone ghrelin. This means you can simply avoid the struggle against cravings and potentially sabotaging your diet plans by just getting about 8-9 hours of sleep. Who wouldn’t want that?
3. Ditching Carbs
Most diet plans and advertisements have induced fear in people when it comes to carbs. In fact carbs have come to become all evil of all diets. But before you fill your diet chart with just proteins and ‘healthy’ fats, wait. Starchy foods and dairy pump your body with nutrients like calcium, iron and B vitamins. Carbs stabilize blood glucose, cutting out those cravings. Ditching them would increase your intake of saturated fats which would make you put on weight and increase a cholesterol level. Opt for healthy carbs like brown rice and oats.
4. Not Having Cheat Days (Deprivation)
The more you deprive yourself of your favourite apple pie, the more likely it is for you to look at your diet in a new light, decide it’s impossible to keep and call it quits one night after working so hard on sticking to it. Have cheat days where you can indulge in the things you like having. Just remember to keep a check on the portions, if you’re too worried.
5. Skipping Breakfast
Most important meal of the day, especially for your diet. Eating breakfast keeps your, no guesses, mid-day cravings and dessert desperations at bay. By now, hordes of research would tell anyone desirous of a great body that starvation isn’t the answer. So grab a king’s breakfast and make sure it’s full of fibre, yogurt and juices.
6. Liquid Calories!
A good diet must keep a watch on the liquid calories too. This means you need to lay off of sugary drinks, too much beer and too many cocktails or even sweet tea. Go for healthier options like juice, instead.
7. Post Work-Out Binging
It isn’t okay to eat away all the calories you just burnt by chomping down on a bag of chips after. Sugary sports drinks are definite culprits. Keep meals after workouts, small and have lots of water.
8. Changing Diets Constantly
Keeping your weight from constantly going back and forth is important. Once you’ve achieved your goals, it’s important to maintain it. Going back to diets each time you’ve had a binge period is bad for you. Commitment is important so don’t go back to dieting each time you put on weight and don’t change diets every week.