Remember These Dont’s When Trying to Lose Weight

The journey towards weight loss is an important one for health, happiness, and confidence, but it can also be a tricky hill to climb. With temptations, poor habits, and time constraints all becoming significant challenges, it can become easy to lose sight of the goal and become frustrated or even given up. However, with the right motivation and plan, you can face these challenges and come out on the top. It also helps when you are armed with the right knowledge, so here are some don’ts of weight loss that you should definitely keep in mind – 

So Don’t – 

• Set Unrealistic Goals – Perhaps the first reason many individuals give up on their weight loss journey is that they are unable to meet their goals – because these goals are too unrealistic. It is unrealistic – and unhealthy – to want to drop twenty kilos in a single month. For weight loss that is sustained and good for your body, your goal needs to be a distant point. Instead, focus on objectives, that are shortstops you can reach on the way to your goal. 
• Believe Exercise is All That’s Needed – Weight loss is all about the calorie game, or ensuring that you spend more calories than you eat. So do not be fooled into believing that simply hitting the gym or taking the stairs will put a dent. Instead, you will need to supplement exercise with good dietary practices to see the results that you want.
• Starve Yourself – Common sense might suggest that eating less can lead to greater weight loss, but drastically reducing your food intake can actually do more harm than good. Your body needs fuel to function, and prolonged starvation actually puts the body in a power-saving mode, which means you burn even lesser calories. Instead, focus on eating clean and healthy, engage in strength training to build lean muscle (which powers calorie burn), and do not hesitate to indulge in some treats every now and then.
• Eat Just for the Sake of It – Being plugged into our screens today has turned eating into a mindless activity. If you scrutinize your eating habits, you might realize that a lot of your eating is simply to pass the time, or because you are bored or are watching something. So learn to dissociate eating with everything except for hunger, and you will see a positive change in the way you eat food.
• Cut Out on Food Groups – Contrary to what many fad diets may suggest, no one particular group, such as fats or carbs, is single-handedly responsible for weight gain. They do play a role, but often only when consumed in the form of highly processed junk food – fruits and vegetables all contain these nutrients, but they are as healthy as they come. Instead, focus on a balanced meal that satiates you without overloading you with calories or nutrients. 
• Discount Your Medical Concerns – If you have some chronic problem or even some injury you are recovering from, both your diet and exercise patterns will need to be adapted to accommodate your health. Do not believe that you have to do what the athletes do to get fit. Instead, the best path to both health and weight loss lies in listening to your body actively and making changes as and when needed – including taking a break when required.
• Don’t Feel Guilty – Remember that you are trying to lose weight for your own wellbeing and happiness. It is completely okay to skip a few days of exercise or to engage in a treat sometimes, as long as you are able to bring yourself back on track. The goal is to lose weight and adopt a more healthy lifestyle, not to be simply miserable. So do not let your physical health come at the cost of your mental health.

Weight loss can be a challenge and a long journey, but it is one that promises better health and confidence at the end. So do not lose sight of your goal, and keep these pointers in mind. You will be there before you know it.