It is possible to ruin even our greatest efforts when trying to lose weight by making some of these common mistakes.

• Hidden Calories
  If you don't know the amount of calories in the foods you eat, it will be difficult to control weight loss. For example, if you think that a salad covered in Ranch dressing is a low calorie appetizer, you are unwittingly eating hidden calories. If you are not at a place yet where you are exercising regularly and eating balanced and nutritious meals, begin to record everything you eat and see how many calories you are consuming. Then start taking steps to get on the right track.




• Too few calories
  Eating less than 1,000 calories per day causes your body to adapt to a minimal amount of food, and slows down your metabolic rate. Then, when you begin to eat normally, your calorie needs are reduced and you start to gain more weight on less food. Eating too few calories can start a negative cycle of diet-binging, which is one of the fastest ways to gain weight!




• Lack of exercise
  Exercise preserves lean muscle mass, and lean muscle is what burns calories. If you diet and don't exercise, your body will gradually decrease in muscle content and require fewer and fewer calories to maintain.
  [Why Dieting Can Make You Fat]




• Not exercising hard enough
  If you do aerobic exercise, and can easily have a conversation with a friend, then you're probably not working hard enough. If you are lifting weights and can do 30 repetitions without much problem, your weight is too light. For your body to adapt to increase its metabolic rate and become a fat burning machine, it is necessary to gradually "stress" the body by pushing it hard enough so that it begins to adapt.




• Lack of rest
  Your body needs time to recover from intense exercise. A muscle needs 48 hours to recover from intense weight bearing/resistance exercise. If you do aerobic exercise daily, it is wise to cross train (do a variety of aerobic workouts) so that one muscle or body part is given time to rest and is not over trained on too many consecutive days.




• Focusing on health and ignoring calories
  Dried fruits and nuts have many health benefits, but they are also high in calories. Eating large amounts of healthy food, regardless of the calories, will hinder you from reaching your weight goals.




• Focusing on calories and ignoring health
  You can exercise regularly and eat 1500 calories a day. But if those calories are "empty' or junk food, your body will not have the nutrients it needs to function properly. The metabolic processes going on in your body require adequate nutrition to burn stored body fat efficiently.




• Too little protein
  Your body needs protein to maintain and build muscle. Muscle is where most of the body's fat and calories are burned. If you are not eating enough good protein, it will be difficult for your body to maintain muscle mass and your need for calories will decrease. In addition, your exercise performance is likely to be hindered so that you burn fewer calories while working out!




• Not enough water
  If you are not drinking at least eight glasses of water a day, a lack of water is probably affecting your weight loss.
  [Why Is Water Important to Weight Loss?]




• Lack of consistency
  Fad diets and fad exercise programs usually don't work in the long run. Changing to a "lifestyle" mentality rather than a constantly changing "diet" mentality greatly helps us to stay consistent with healthy eating and regular exercise. You no longer see yourself as being "on" or "off" a diet, but working steadily toward a healthier lifestyle.




• Ignorance of nutrition and exercise principles
  Gaining an understanding of the basic principles of exercise and nutrition can make weight loss quicker and easier. For example, 30 minutes in the gym could become twice as effective if you exercise at the correct intensity, rather than working out at too low or too high an intensity. And changing just a few simple eating habits, based on a greater understanding of nutritious foods, could make a large difference to your weight loss. Skipping just 100 calories a day can increase your weight loss by about 1 pound per month.




• Lack of understanding of 'low carb diets'
  Checking the grams of carbohydrate on a food label is only part of knowing how to read a food label. The goal of a low carb diet is to prevent a blood sugar rush. A sudden increase of sugar in your blood will trigger insulin release and ultimately results in less fat burning and more fat storage.
  
  The two main factors determining how quickly sugar enters the blood are:
  • Glycemic index of the food
  • Quantity of the food
  Understanding what affects the level of sugar in your blood will enable you to control it and prevent a blood sugar rush that hinders your fat loss efforts.
  [Low Carb Diets]




• Use wisdom
  
  • Don't shop when hungry
  • Don't keep junk foods in the house
  • Work or travel with a bottle of water and a healthy snack
  • Plan exercise into your schedule
  • Plan your healthy foods in advance and make sure you have fresh ingredients.
  • Always have healthy snack foods available in your refrigerator and pantry




• Breakfast
  Surveys have shown that people who don't eat breakfast are more likely to be overweight. If you skip breakfast, your blood sugar level will fall and may trigger a desire for high fat and unhealthy food.
  
  A weight loss article in FDA Consumer Magazine (Jan/Feb 2002) outlined the weight-control behavior of more than 3,000 American adults who lost an average of 60 pounds and kept it off for an average of six years. One of the eating habits they followed was eating a regular breakfast.




• Going too long without eating
  Going for long periods of time without food on a regular basis will cause your metabolism to slow down. Consistently going over 6 hours without eating tricks the body into thinking that a famine has occurred and your metabolism begins to slow down. You burn fewer calories so that your body can survive longer on your stored fat and lean muscle tissue (organs and muscles).
  
  Also, allowing yourself to get too hungry can create a cycle of binging and eating uncontrollably. If you do this too often, it becomes a habit that is difficult to break.
  
  Also, allowing yourself to get too hungry can create a cycle of binging and eating uncontrollably. If you do this too often, it becomes a habit that is difficult to break.




• Trying to lose weight too quickly
  Research has proven that successful weight loss is accomplished through a slow weight loss plan, using a moderate calorie reduction, exercising 30 minutes, 5 times per week and keeping a food journal of everything you eat.