I tried reducing my food intake and exercising, but the scale was always the same. Diet challenges and failures that decrease slightly and then return again are repeated. Losing weight and maintaining it isn't really easy.
In particular, it is not easy to succeed in dieting in just one go. Even people with strong willpower often fail when dieting. In most cases, after repeated attempts and failures, people finally succeed in losing weight.
Why do diets fail even though there is a clear purpose and reason to lose weight? One very simple mistake can ruin your dieting efforts.
Also, even if you succeed in losing weight, you may experience the yo-yo effect of quickly returning to your old self. In relation to this, we looked into mistakes that make weight loss difficult based on data from the American health and medical media ‘WebMD’.
Eating too little = You may think that eating less temporarily will help you lose weight, but in the long run, the exact opposite may happen. To lose weight, you need to burn more calories than you eat.
However, eating too little can slow down your metabolism. If your metabolism slows down, your weight loss rate will also slow down. You may also feel tired and lack the energy needed to exercise. Therefore, it is important to eat well-balanced and portion-controlled meals.
Do only aerobic exercise = If you want to diet, cardio exercise, or aerobic exercise, is essential. However, if you only do aerobic exercise without strength training, you may easily get tired and get injured. Increasing muscle density and metabolic rate through strength training will give you the strength to continue cardio exercise and increase calorie consumption.
Not drinking enough water = Drinking less water is one of the most common mistakes made during dieting. Water is essential for calorie consumption. If you lack water, your metabolism slows down and you lose weight slowly. Additionally, drinking water before a meal can help you feel fuller and control your food intake.
If you stay hydrated by drinking water, you will avoid reaching for drinks that are high in sugar and have little nutritional value. Drinking water can help flush out toxins from your body. Just drinking enough water is effective in controlling appetite and preventing overeating.
Exercise while starving = If you exercise with an empty stomach, a lot of calories are lost from muscle, not fat. If you lose more muscle instead of fat, you will lose energy, get tired easily, and give up exercising. Even if you are on a diet, eating in moderation is more helpful in losing weight than not eating at all.
Skip breakfast = It is easy to think that you can reduce calories by skipping breakfast. But in reality, you feel hungry throughout the day. We often make the mistake of snacking on snacks or eating a large lunch.
Eating too much of healthy food = Nuts, avocado, whole grain wheat, olive oil, dark chocolate, etc. are representative foods that are beneficial to health. People who do not eat diet-friendly foods such as cookies, pizza, and pasta rationalize that they can eat these healthy foods as much as they want.
Always look for low-fat foods = It is important to eat less fat. However, low-fat foods should not be confused with low-calorie foods. Since it is a low-fat cake, if you eat a lot of it, you will eat more calories than if you eat a small amount of regular cake. It is important to reduce harmful saturated fat and eat good unsaturated fat.
Avoid dairy products = Eating dairy products such as milk and cheese helps with diet. The secret is in calcium. When dieting, you can easily become deficient in calcium, but consuming calcium from dairy products helps you burn fat better.
<Frequently Asked Questions> Q1. Why do I fail when I just diet?
A1. These include too drastic calorie restriction, setting short-term goals (e.g. -10 kg per month), only dieting but not managing sleep or stress, and extreme thinking about trying to be “perfect.” Dieting is often not a matter of will, but rather sustainability.
Q2. Why does yo-yo come after dieting?
A2. Yo-yoing can usually occur due to short-term dieting, decreased basal metabolic rate, returning to normal eating habits, or the release mentality of “I’m done.” The key is to keep the maintenance period after weight loss as long as the weight loss period.
Q3. Are carbohydrates really the enemy of diet?
A3. no. The problem is not carbohydrates but ‘excessive intake + refined carbohydrates.’ Switching from white bread to whole grain bread, from sugary drinks to water or unsweetened tea, and eating natural foods like potatoes or sweet potatoes instead of sweets can help you lose weight.
This article is general information, not legal advice about your specific situation.