Have you tried every weight loss trick but still not losing weight?
Now, most articles on the web don’t look into all aspects of weight loss. Vague advice like eat less, move more won’t guarantee weight loss. So in this article, I will discuss habits that stop folks from attaining ideal weight even when they eat healthy and exercise.
Here you go – 25 habits that may be sabotaging your weight loss efforts.
#1 Overeating on the weekends
According to research, most folks maintain healthy eating habits on weekdays and overeat on the weekends.
Eating high calorie foods and overindulging in alcohol from Friday to Sunday can easily cause weight gain. You have to change your eating habits on the weekends if the scale goes up every Monday morning.
Be more aware on the weekends to realize what makes you overeat. If it’s being idle – keep yourself busy. If it’s eating restaurant food – cook your own meals.
#2 Cheat days overindulgence
Cheat days are supposed to help you overcome the stress of dieting and maintain healthy eating habits. But most folks see them as an opportunity to overindulge in unhealthy foods.
In many instances, dieters lose control and continue bingeing days after the cheat day. If this happens to you, stop having cheat days. Just eat the foods you enjoy when you crave them instead of planning for a specific day to eat them.
Cheat days only work for people with control of food. If you don’t, stay away from them.
#3 Underestimating calories consumed
Various studies show that people underestimate the number of calories they consume and overestimate calories burnt through exercise.
If you’re not losing weight chances are you’re eating too much. Counting calories is the only way to know for sure if you’re on a real calorie deficit. And you don’t have to count forever, just do it until you can accurately eyeball portions.
MyFitnessPal is one of the most popular tracking apps. You can use it to track your weight and daily calorie intake.
#4 Late-Night Eating
Research has proven that eating late at night causes weight gain. A study published by The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, found that people who ate between 11 pm and 5 am gained more weight than those who didn’t.
And this six months study conducted on 160 healthy adults found that 37% of the subjects were eating past 11pm, for 3 consecutive days. At the end of the study, the subjects who ate late at night had gained more weight.
It’s not the act of eating late at night that causes weight gain but rather the excess calories you end up consuming. Set a simple rule that you won’t eat anything after dinner.
#5 Overeating on holidays
We all overeat on holidays but most people never lose the weight gained during that period. According to this study most people only two thirds of the weight gained during holidays.
The weight adds up holiday after holiday and eventually folks become overweight. Well, you can celebrate holidays without sabotaging your weight loss efforts. The easiest way to do this is to eat in moderation – don’t eat until you’re uncomfortably full.
#6 Using a lot of vegetable oil
Most people eat vegetable oil from fried foods and processed foods. Researchshows that vegetable oil causes inflammation due to high levels of omega 6 fatty acids. Additionally, oil is also high in calories so it causes weight gain.
Consume less processed foods and junk food to reduce vegetable oil intake. You should also consider cooking with coconut oil. Studies show that it has numerous health benefits.
#7 Strict dieting
There are so many strict diets out there. Diets that advice what to eat, what not to eat, when to eat, and so on.
Such diets are not healthy and usually lead to bingeing. In fact, researchers saydieters start craving foods when they’re forbidden from eating them. Sometimes they start craving foods they don’t like, simply because they’re forbidden.
Unless you’re addicted to a food, don’t restrict yourself from eating it. You don’t have to eat clean all the time to lose weight. Just eat healthy foods 80-90% of the time.
#8 Consuming a lot of sugar
Even though study after study has shown that sugar is bad for your health and weight loss – sugar consumption is still increasing every year. And it’s not table sugar which is to blame – added sugar is the real cause of this problem.
So many processed foods have added sugar. Be sure to check food and drink labels for added sugar. Reduce the intake of table sugar as well.
#9 Drinking high-calorie drinks
Calorie containing beverages will automatically increase your daily calorie intake.The stomach doesn’t care about calories – it cares about food volume. Since sugary drinks are not filling, you’ll still be hungry even after drinking thousand calories.
Note that fruit juices are not any better because they contain the same amount of sugar as processed drinks. Avoid all calorie containing beverages when trying to lose weight.
#10 Rewarding yourself
Rewarding yourself can actually help you stay on track. But just like cheat meals, most people use this opportunity to overindulge in junk and sugary foods.
If you eat a piece of cake every time you finish a workout, you’re probably consuming more calories than you burnt in the workout. Neither do you have to reward yourself for eating healthy for 2 or 3 days.