How Not To Lose 10 Pounds

There are few things worse than feeling bad about the way you look because you are overweight.

It can get even more depressing when you see all the slim and attractive models on TV and in the media, so it’s no wonder that weight loss has become such a big industry in the past few decades.

Nowadays, people want to lose weight, and they want to lose it fast. But very often they go about it the wrong way, and either end up not losing any weight or gaining more weight.

In this article, we will have a look at some of the common reasons why people fail to lose weight and the mistakes they make. Hopefully, by being aware of these mistakes, you won’t repeat them yourself!

You Won’t Lose 10 Pounds By Skipping Meals

In the short term, if you don’t eat very often you will lose weight, but in the long run you are likely to end up binging and gaining more weight.

Of course this doesn’t always happen, as some people become anorexic, at which point they put their health and life in great danger.

Skipping meals is not an effective way to lose weight for two main reasons.

The first is that it causes low blood sugar levels, which then makes you feel very weak and crave food.

This is why many dieters end up binging on junk food if they have been starving themselves, as the bodies natural reaction is to get something to eat to raise blood sugar levels.

The second reason why skipping meals is not an effective weight loss approach, is because doing so slows down your metabolism. The result is that you burn fat slower and accumulate it more quickly.

Eating frequent meals has the opposite effect. It speeds up your metabolism and increases the rate at which you burn fat.

So the key is to eat when you are feeling hungry, but limit how much you eat.

Not Exercising During A Weight Loss Programme

Exercise is not required for weight loss, as you can lose a significant amount of weight simply by cutting out sugar and simple carbohydrates from your diet.

However, exercise can help you to lose more weight faster, and is especially important if you are quite overweight to begin with.

If you are very overweight and lose weight quickly, you are likely to experience sagging skin which doesn’t look very attractive. Exercising while you lose weight however, should help to minimise or prevent this from occurring.

Developing an exercise routine is also a good way to keep weight off in the long term, as exercising on a regular basis helps to boost your metabolism which accelerates the rate at which you burn fat.

You Won’t Lose 10 Pounds If You Don’t Start!

Some people are afraid of dieting, perhaps because of some restrictive and boring diet they tried before. As a result, they want to lose weight, but never seem to start as they plan to do it “sometime” in the future.

If you want to lose weight, set yourself a date you will begin and start on that date. If possible, try to schedule this during a time when you won’t be stressed or have lots of commitments to attend to.

You Won’t Lose Weight If You Don’t Set Goals

Another common mistake people make when trying to lose weight is not setting themselves goals.

If you just say to yourself you want to lose “some weight” how will you know when you have reached your goal? How will you monitor your progress?

By setting yourself one large goal, and then breaking that goal down into smaller goals, you will be much more likely to stick to your weight loss programme and will also feel more motivated as you can see yourself moving ever closer to your goal.

How Long Will It Take You To Lose X Pounds?

Setting unrealistic weight loss goals is perhaps the biggest reason why people fail to lose weight and keep that weight off.

We each lose weight at different rates, so whilst some people may be able to lose weight quickly, it might take you a bit longer.

Some of the factors which affect how quickly you lose weight include your current weight, current lifestyle and dietary habits, how much you are willing/able to change your diet/lifestyle and your overall level of commitment and self discipline.

If you try to lose weight too quickly than is possible for you, it is likely that you will not achieve your goal and will suffer from a lack of motivation for future weight loss.

When this happens, dieters usually feel depressed and end up binging on junk food which makes them even more overweight.

Therefore, the key to successful and long term weight loss, is to lose weight slowly and in a time that is realistic for you.

Think about what changes you would like to make, and then think about what you could realistically fit into your schedule and follow.

Even though this may take you longer to lose weight, in the long run you will benefit because the new dietary and lifestyle habits you will have developed will enable you to keep off the weight rather than just putting it back on again in a few months or so.