Avoid these ten nutritional mistakes in losing weight!
1. Engaging in extremely brutal calorie restrictions
When you start the weight loss process, you often want results quickly. To achieve this, it is tempting to reduce your daily calorie intake overnight. If this bad reflex has the advantage of delivering quick effects, it is detrimental to your body and character in the long run.
The human body needs a minimum amount of calories to function. If food doesn't help him, he's definitely relying on his reserves, but it sends a signal to the brain telling him to do what's necessary to ward off calorie restriction in the future. consequences ? Once the calories are increased again, even just a little bit, the body stores the maximum amount of energy as fat.
2. Skipping meals
For the same reason that drastically reducing daily calories is not recommended, skipping meals is definitely not recommended. In the face of deprivation, your body will prompt you to eat more at the next meal by delaying the onset of the feeling of fullness. It will then store the extra calories to support itself in the event of further restrictions. Whatever your situation, it's better to snack than to have no meal at all.
3. A low-calorie or restricted diet
When we talk about diet, it is generally about a temporary change in eating habits with the goal of reducing daily caloric intake to induce weight loss. Here too, diets are clearly effective when they are put in place, but they are a problem in the long run.
Depending on the type of diet chosen (low-calorie, ketogenic, high-protein, etc.), it is recommended to consume very few calories or completely eliminate certain categories of food, which poses two main problems. On the one hand, even with a strong motivation, putting strict limits on yourself is a source of frustration and more easily leads to repeated failures and thus to failure. On the other hand, you run the risk of creating a nutritional imbalance and being deficient in certain nutrients, especially vitamins.
To lose weight effectively and maintain long-term results, it is best to eat everything but in reasonable and balanced quantities.
4. Just think of calories
Calories certainly make it possible to assess the amount of energy provided by food, but they do not reflect all important parameters in nutrition. For example, an assorted salad accompanied by an olive oil dressing may have more calories than a chocolate bar.
However, from a nutritional point of view, there is no picture, it is the salad that will help you lose weight better. It is a source of antioxidants, dietary fibre, essential fatty acids, vitamins, minerals, and nutrients essential for the proper functioning of the body. On the other hand, a chocolate bar mainly contains refined sugars and saturated fats which are harmful to your health and will not satiate you properly, which leads to eating other food to satisfy your hunger.
5. Consume low-fat products
Beware of low-fat products, the real marketing traps. To compensate for the lack of removed carbohydrates and fats, manufacturers often use food additives that are unhealthy for the body. Furthermore, they are rarely nutritionally beneficial and do not provide you with essential nutrients. It is better to eat a product without a light label and in smaller quantities than this type of "empty" calorie food.
6. Weigh all your food
When you start changing your eating habits and restricting the number of calories you consume, it is sometimes reassuring to weigh food for unquestioned standards. However, in the long run, this type of behavior tends to limit the sense of freedom you once had with food and leads to frustration.
It also creates a certain dependence on "protocol" rather than prompting you to reconnect with your feelings. The only indicator that you should follow for effective weight loss is your hunger or, conversely, the feeling of satiety. By relearning to listen to your body, you will regain your diet and find your healthy weight in a free and natural way.
7. Completely eliminate sugars and/or fats
According to the received idea, to lose weight, you should not eat any sugar, get rid of fat, or even not eat fat or sugar. While it's true that to lose weight, it's best to cut out unhealthy refined sugars and unhealthy saturated fats, you shouldn't blindly cut out all carbs and fats.
On the contrary, to lose weight without frustration, without deficiency and without fatigue, maintain the correct intake of complex sugars, those formerly called slow sugars. They allow you to maintain a sufficient level of energy to last until the next meal.
It is also essential for your health to continue consuming unsaturated fats, especially essential fatty acids of the omega 3 and 6 category. They help maintain good cardiovascular function and many metabolic processes that are very important for physical and psychological balance.
8. Not taking into account the calorie content of some drinks
Artificial sugary drinks, such as sodas, sweetened water, energy drinks, or even fruit juices are very high in refined sugars. If it contributes to daily hydration, it does nothing in terms of diet and on the contrary increases the number of calories that are absorbed. Aside from its high sugar content, it poses another problem.
The brain has a hard time counting the calories they give. result ? Even when caloric intake is sufficient in terms of your energy expenditure, the feeling of hunger persists, prompting you to eat to achieve satiety. So you are taking in much more calories than if you had just drank an unsweetened beverage like water or green tea. This also applies to alcohol!
9. Not taking the time to eat
Eating is one of the first pleasures we experience since birth. Eating should never become a hassle that should be rushed. On the contrary, to reduce the frustration often caused by the failure of a weight loss program, you should take the time to savor each food. In addition, prolonged chewing allows food to be digested, providing better absorption of nutrients. Finally, it takes about 20 minutes for the brain to send a signal of satiety to the nervous system. If you eat too quickly, you risk consuming much more calories than you actually need.
10. Don't give yourself any distractions
Having impeccable food hygiene is a good thing. But feeling good about yourself is even better! It's important to know how to allow yourself some distractions to keep eating fun. Be careful, it's not about stuffing yourself to the point of exploding, but not imposing too tight limits on yourself that leads to frustration. Just because you want to lose weight doesn't mean you should turn down any invitation for a drink, deprive yourself of a slice of cake at a birthday or even ban restaurant meals from your life.
The success of your weight loss also depends on your development!