10 mistakes that will stop weight loss

Guidelines for losing weight are among the most searched issues on the Internet today, despite that people still struggle to lose weight due to several mistakes.

Here are the mistakes to avoid while working to lose weight:

1. Consuming too few daily calories. Unfortunately many people think that skipping meals will help them lose weight faster, however this is not certain because eating too few calories deprives the body of fuel needed to carry out the necessary metabolic activities. Consequently it’s likely you’ll end up gaining more belly fat instead.

2. Over consuming calories to compensate at the gym, or thinking they can burn it off. A study related to physical exercise and sports medicine revealed that people overestimate the number of calories they shed at the gym, for that reason they consume excess calories thinking they will compensate with exercise. But what happens is they end up gaining more fat.

3. Not drinking enough water. Physical exercise and hydration go hand-in-hand. People who rarely hydrate properly can confuse thirst with hunger, meaning they frequently reach out for snacks which leads to unnecessary eating, and excess calories. To combat this try drinking water half an hour before meals as this reduces appetite, and therefore reduces overeating.

4. Misunderstanding food labels. individuals tend to miss read food labels food being labeled as healthy is not a guarantee that it is appropriate for weight loss journey for instance food label that's free from additives could be high in sugar and fat therefore it is vital to check the ingredients to be sure what to expect

5. Restricting to, or having a heavy reliance on, fat free food. It’s easy to perceive fat free food as the ultimate solution during the weight loss journey. But sticking to a fat-free diet isn’t a good idea because a lot of fat free foods contain additives that have a high amount of sugar.

6. Poor sleeping habits. Another mistake is not having enough sleep. Poor sleeping habits suppress the production of leptin which is a fullness hormone, instead there is overproduction of the hunger hormone ghrelin. Not getting enough sleep will cause you to eat more as a result!

7. Under eating fibre. Fibre is essential for the slow absorption of fat, assists in balancing the body, plus fibre absorbs water and turns it into a gel that makes one feel fuller for an extended period, depriving your body of fibre increases your appetite.

8. Having unrealistic expectations. Losing weight is not easy, or quick. Having unrealistic expectations can result in taking inappropriate actions such as over exercising under eating and consuming the wrong food. It is essential to set realistic goals and follow the right guidelines to attain them. After all if it’s taken years for the weight to come on, why would you expect it to go overnight?

9. Over consuming healthy food. Healthy foods such as ground nuts, fruits and fibre are suitable for health purposes. Nevertheless that does not mean it is okay to consume them in excess, overeating healthy food also leads to excess weight. You need to balance your daily calories in vs calories out.

10. Focusing only on scale weight. It is normal to want to lose weight fast however it would be best if you did not restrict yourself to the scale weight only. Your weight can change (even in a day) by nearly 2 kilograms, and you can lose mass whilst retaining water weight. Therefore frequently checking your weight on the scales can discourage you from committing to your journey. If you must check your weight, once a week is more than enough. Instead look to measure inch loss with a tape measure, or take regular photos so you can your body shape changing.