Mistakes People Make When Losing Weight

With so many weight loss claims strewn across televisions, newspapers and magazines, it can be difficult to differentiate between what is true and what is false advertising. Those who are trying to lose weight are often compelled to try out the latest diet fad or turn to the easiest claim, but these mistakes can prevent weight loss and actually lead to future weight gain.

Calories

Severely restricting calories tops the list of the most common mistakes people make when trying to lose weight. The body needs a certain amount of calories in order to function properly. If calories are restricted too much, the body enters into a sort of starvation mode and the basal metabolic rate drops. Basal metabolic rate is the rate at which the body burns calories at rest. When this rate drops, the body cannot burn calories as efficiently and instead stores food intake in fat cells. Severe calorie restriction can actually lead to future weight gain. MayoClinic.com notes that most people who follow a severe calorie restriction gain all the weight back within six months of stopping the diet.

Food Group Restriction

A healthy weight loss diet incorporates all of the food groups. Each food group provides different nutrients and minerals that are important for body function. Diets that eliminate entire food groups, such as no carbohydrate or no fat diets, can deprive the body of specific nutrients and minerals and cause an array of physical symptoms. The best way to lose weight is to incorporate all of the food groups but decrease portion sizes.

Exercise

People trying to lose weight place a great deal of importance on aerobic exercise and do not incorporate strength training and resistance exercise. Aerobic exercise is a crucial part of weight loss, but it should be combined with strength training. Using weights at least three times per week can help to build the body's muscle mass. "Nutrition and You" by Joan Salge Blake notes that muscle mass increases basal metabolic rate, which leads to greater weight loss.

Goals

The proper mindset significantly contributes to weight loss as well. Losing weight requires time and preparation. One of the common mistakes people make is setting outrageous weight loss goals that are nearly impossible to meet. Goals must be realistic. A healthy weight loss is generally considered around 2 lbs. per week. Weight loss goals should be based around this healthy weight loss number. A goal for 8 to 10 lbs. per month is realistic. If someone has 100 pounds to lose, they should expect it to take around a year. Weight loss does not happen overnight.

Considerations

One pound of fat is equivalent to 3,500 calories. In order to lose a pound, a person must burn 3,500 calories. The best way to do this is with a combination of healthy food restriction and increased exercise. A calorie restriction of 500 calories per day plus an exercise regimen that burns 500 calories per day will lead to a weight loss of 2 lbs. per week.