Let’s face it:
Diets are terrible!
You starve yourself in order to lose weight, buy different weight loss products, and yet you see minimal results in the mirror— quite disheartening, don’t you think?
However, here’s the thing:
MAYBE you have been dieting the wrong way!
Here are some of the most common diet pitfalls that can send your diet plans spiraling down the drain and how you can avoid them in order to finally achieve your weight loss goals!
- Treats
Treats are one of the most common culprits that ruin your diet. There is nothing wrong with indulging on a small dessert after a good meal or occasional sweet treat. However, if you look at it as a reward for exercising or well-disciplined eating, then it becomes a problem!
Your favorite sweet treat should only be a part of your overall diet plan. If it fits within your nutrient and calorie guideline, then you are good to go.
- Nighttime Snacking
In terms of diet plans, the type and amount of food are crucial than the time you prefer to eat. However, nighttime snacking can be a huge pitfall. A bit of ice cream licking, some dip and chips and you have hit 500 calories without even nearly satisfying your cravings.
To avoid that, plan an after-dinner snack. You can save some calories for your evening snacking, and it will not matter if you take a midnight snack or not.
- Stress
Meeting the in-laws? A big meeting at the office? Angry boss?
Regardless of stressing situations you face, good or bad stress can often lead to dangerous overeating. Food is the ultimate comfort and eating at emotional times may serve as a great distraction from stress.
If you are pitted to such situations, instead of going straight to the fridge, take a quick walk around the block. Walking does not only add extra exercise to your regime but it also stimulates the production of happy hormones which can help you fight the down feeling of stress.
- Eating Exercise Calories
Exercise and workout are great, however, it does not give you the freedom to eat whatever you wish. Exercise calories, after all, help you lose weight a bit faster, so if you eat them all back, then you will lose weight more slowly. Much worse, if you overestimated the calories you might have burned during exercise, then you can end up stalling your weight loss goals.
- Gorging on Fruits
Limit fruits?
It might seem strange since we have been taught since we were kids that fruit offers great benefits for our body.
Well, compared to vegetables, fruits are not so nutritionally impressive. It got a lot more fructose and fewer micronutrients.
But, this does not mean that you should totally avoid it.
What I am saying is that if you are eating high portions of fruits which have high amounts of sugar throughout the day, daily, then weight loss can be extremely difficult.
So, make sure to limit your fruit intake and choose fruits which are high in nutrients and low in sugar. These include:
- Strawberries
- Raspberries
- Olives
- Blackberries
- Blueberries
- Avocado
A study revealed that focusing on fruits which have a good amount of beneficial flavonoids like berries is related to less weight gain.
- Alcohol
After long, tiring hours at the office, your boss might invite you to a team dinner, usually in bars or fine dining options. But team dinner or family get-together alike, alcohol will always be there.
After several drinks and blurry shits, that cheese fries and meaty platter seems heaven! Oh, and that greasy hangover food feels relieving the morning after. Although eating after a night of alcohol drinking is important, the best solution for drunken overeating is knowing the hangover foods that are healthy for you.
Forget about the egg and cheese sandwich from fast food chains and go for homemade scrambled eggs that contain cysteine which breaks down hangover toxins. Or you can have some banana filled with potassium in order to aid your injured liver. Or go for a product for weight loss as your source for energy instead of getting it with carb laden foods.
Also, when you can’t avoid the bar, and then fill up with whole grains before going in order to avoid ordering extra bottles.