Common Mistakes People Make With Weight Loss
Don’t have the time and energy to maintain consistency in your workout regime? Or lack the proper knowledge to put together effective fitness plans that will keep you motivated? Cause both consistency and knowledge are the keys to healthy weight loss.
If you are struggling with weight loss, that may be because of certain habits that are missing from your lifestyle. Hiring a fitness coach can save you from putting your body through unnecessary and excessive pain.
To help you avoid some basic errors that could prove to be costly, Puravida Fitness has put together a list of the most common mistakes people make with weight loss.
1. Cutting their calories too low
It has been pounded that cutting calories is the best way to lose weight. While creating a caloric deficit is important, it is also important not to cut your calories too low. At first, this will work, but eventually, you will hit a plateau from metabolic slowdown from your body going to a survival/starvation mode. Nobody knows how 1200 calories became the universal target, but it seems everyone defaults to that. This is also a recipe for losing muscle mass, a metabolic tissue that keeps metabolism higher. Most people quit when they hit plateaus due to frustration. The way to avoid plateaus and keep progress consistent is to cut calories slightly and lose weight slower, making slight adjustments to keep the muscle and shed the fat.
2. Going low carb all the time
Going low carb all the time can lead to lost muscle and poor performance in the gym. It also can keep the hormone cortisol high with high stress, which works against a healthy body composition. High levels of cortisol promote fat gain and muscle loss which is exactly the opposite of what people want. Eating carbs from whole food sources around your more active times of day will ensure your body uses the carbs for energy and not storing them as fat. You will also feel stronger in the gym and recover more effectively from your workouts.
3. Dieting only with no resistance training
Most people focus on weight loss, as do many diet plans. The problem is when you diet only. You lose muscle mass which sabotages your metabolism. Muscle is a “use it or lose it” tissue. If I don’t give my body a reason to keep it, it can be broken down for energy in a caloric-restricted environment. Over time this leads to a metabolic slowdown as muscle requires calories to maintain fat does not. So doing resistance training just 2-3 times per week can do wonders to maintain or add to your muscle mass. We always say feed the muscle and starve the fat. Resistance training is feeding the muscle.
4. Following inconsistent eating patterns
Many people have random nutrition practices. They miss meals and eat at different times each day. This can lead to blood sugar crashes, which create big-time cravings and often lead to overeating and giving into sugar cravings. Success leaves clues, and eating the same things around the same time works well for success. Yes, it’s boring, but boring gets results. Every client with nutritional success has an established rhythm with their eating habits.
5. Failing to plan and prep meals
Heard the old saying, “if you fail to plan, you plan to fail”? It is 100% true when it comes to weight loss. If you don’t have a plan, you will be more likely to go the “grab and go” route which generally consists of processed foods that spike your blood sugar and create a “fat storing” environment. Once again, success leaves clues. Our successful clients plan a shopping and prep day for their nutrition. This is truly a make-or-break habit when dialing in your nutrition.
6. Doing too much cardio
Just look at most endurance athletes who do tons of cardio. Do they look lean? So why do we still believe cardio is the key to a lean and toned physique? Cardio should be done in moderation; if not, it can contribute to muscle loss and overstressing the body. Doing just three times weekly for 20-30 minutes works well with a cold nutrition plan.
To avoid these and other mistakes, reach out to the experts at Puravida Fitness.
Our founder has 25 years of personal training experience, a combined experience of 32 years working with clients, and a 100% money-back guarantee backs our customer service. We offer one-on-one personal fitness training, group fitness training, nutrition coaching, and online fitness training. Our clients are spread across Lakeville, Burnsville, Apple Valley, Prior Lake, Savage, Farmington, Elko New Market, Eagan, and the surrounding areas.
For a complete list of our services, please click here. If you have any questions about fitness, we’d love to hear from you. For more information, please call us at (952) 522-2462 or email us at info@puravidafitness.com.