Weight Loss Mistakes You Might Be Making
Losing weight can be hard and discouraging. But you might be getting in your own way. I wanted to take some time to share some common weight loss mistakes that you might be making that hamper your results.
Weight Loss Mistakes – It’s All About YOU
Before I dive into the meat and potatoes of this article, I wanted to make it known that weight loss is completely individual.
What I mean by this is that everyone’s body responds differently to different kinds of food, diets, exercise… etc. What may work for someone, might not work for someone else.
To get the best results, I highly recommend individualizing your nutrition plans. Furthermore, nutrition plans might need to be adjusted over time as people grow and change.
Because of this, it’s important to work with a trusted fitness/nutrition professional if possible. This will help save you time and create a support network for yourself.
There Is Such a Thing As Too Little Calories
When losing weight, it’s all about sustainability and long-term health. That’s truly the only way to keep the weight off.
Many people try super low-calorie diets. With these types of programs, they may lose weight, but I guarantee they will have a hard time keeping it off.
Not to mention, consuming too few calories long-term can lead to serious health issues such as brain fog, organ failure, fatigue, eating disorders, etc.
Starvation Mode
Furthermore, when one consumes too few calories on a consistent basis, the body can easily go into starvation mode.
Starvation mode happens when an individual consumes too few calories, and the body essentially “gets freaked out” that it won’t get fed again, so it holds on to all the food “out of fear” of malnutrition.
When this happens, it can create unwanted weight gain and/or lack of weight loss.
I’ve worked with many clients that consumed too few calories and ended up gaining 5-10 pounds. This was most likely due to the individual going into starvation mode.
What Is The Right Amount of Calories?
Generally speaking, somewhere between a 500-750 caloric deficit is healthy for most people when trying to lose weight, but again everything is individual.
Caloric deficits mean the number of calories you minus from how many calories you are burning in a day.
For example, if you burn 3000 calories per day, and apply a 500 calorie caloric deficit, then you would consume 2500 calories per day.
Sometimes finding the right caloric deficit takes trial and error. I suggest keeping a nutrition journal and logging all relevant info.
The more info you can provide, the more likely you will be able to reach your goals.
RMR Test
Getting an RMR test can help you gauge how many calories you burn on a typical day. BodySpec gives these tests (hours and protocols might be adjusted due to the pandemic).
The test is super easy. You just sit with a nose plug attached to a tube for 12 minutes. The technician will also ask you questions about your daily life.
The results can provide a baseline on which to base your caloric deficits.
Fitbits and Apple Watches
If the RMR test doesn’t sound like your cup of tea, I highly recommend buying something such as a Fitbit or Apple Watch that can track how many calories you’re burning on a daily basis.
This way you can track your progress as well as get a general sense of how many calories you’re burning daily.
Like all technological tools, these options are not 100 percent accurate. However, they’re certainly accurate enough.
When I was training for bodybuilding competitions, I used a Fitbit charge HR to track my calories and it worked like a charm!
All Liquid Diets
Many folks think that all liquid diets will help them lose weight. In reality, weight loss comes down to consuming fewer calories than you’re burning. It has very little to do with solid or liquid foods.
However, drinking enough water can aid with weight loss as well as hydrating the body/skin and flushing out toxins.
Fun fact: Consuming cold water burns 75 calories due to the fact that the body must turn the water into body temperature liquid.
My Thoughts On Keto
I know many people might not agree with my negative thoughts on keto. And that’s okay! But here’s my opinion on it:
- It’s not necessary or healthy.
- We need healthy carbs to function. It’s fuel for the body!
- Also consuming too much fat is bad for triglycerides and cholesterol.
I have worked with a decent amount of folks that lost a ton of weight on keto but then put it right back on when going back to eating carbs.
Keto is basically tricking the body into ketosis by limiting carbohydrates and replacing them with fatty foods.
I don’t think to lose weight you need to trick your body into doing anything. You just need to eat clean, find the correct caloric deficit and exercise regularly.
Can I Ever Have a Cheat Meal?
The short answer is yes!!! For your mental sanity, I usually suggest having a cheat meal weekly or biweekly.
Also, having a cheat meal helps to avoid plateaus and keeps the metabolism rocking and rolling. When I was bodybuilding and would reach a plateau, I would have reset days.
A reset day was a day of eating whatever I wanted.
This was done to essentially reset the body for the next nutrition plan due to the fact that the body has a way of “becoming wise,” and usually will no longer see your caloric deficits as a deficit at one point or another.
The body likes to keep homeostasis. That’s one of the reasons weight loss is difficult for most people.
This is why having a cheat meal every once in a while can keep your body from reaching plateaus, and helps keep the mind and heart happy all at the same time.
***Please note, unless you’re a bodybuilder or some other type of pro athlete, I don’t recommend having cheat/reset days.
These types of days more likely than not will set the individual back in regards to their fitness goals if implemented on a consistent basis. Once in a while for a special occasion is totally cool.
I recommend at most one cheat meal a week. And if you do want a reset day, I would definitely have them sparingly.
Supplements
Lastly, many people take supplements to lose weight and are resistant to change their diets.
This might work for a bit (and that’s a BIG maybe). However, the healthiest and most sustainable way to lose weight is to adjust your diet in such a way that allows you to eat clean, yet still indulge every once in a while (hence my speech on cheat meals).
Wrap-Up
In closing, healthy weight loss is all about effectively nourishing the body with the right amount of calories and types of food.
Furthermore, it’s all about doing the work to find out what works best for you and track your progress
Weight loss is a science, and it’s important to have info on what will yield the best results for your person. There are no quick fixes. I don’t recommend trying out fads. Step by step you can do this!!
Feel free to reach out to me with any questions or comments here. I would be honored to help you on your fitness journey!
As always thanks for reading and stay tuned!
Images via Dreamstime.com.
Alexis is grateful to be a NASM-certified personal trainer and a Mad Dogg Athletics-Certified Spin Instructor. Her mission is to help all individuals achieve their best selves, and have the happiest and healthiest lives possible. Her specialities are resistance training, TRX, bodybuilding, HIIT/VIIT/LIIT, spin, corework, functional moment, nutrition, and weight loss.
She is honored to be a guest contributor for DIY Active and wishes to inspire and motivate all readers. Please feel free to email her at alexismallery121@gmail.com for more info about wellness, fitness, and personal training including virtual options.
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