Weight Loss Mistakes That Hinder Progress

You’ve tried everything. 

From drinking tablespoons of vinegar before each meal to YouTube workouts that you were sure would show results in 2 weeks or less. 

But nothing seems to work. 

I’ve been down that road… and while I know everyone’s weight loss journey will be different if you’re not seeing progress with your weight loss or have hit a plateau, you’re probably making one of these weight loss mistakes that are hindering your progress. 

Read Also: These Are The Three Things to Focus on When Trying to Lose Weight

Eating Too Many Calories Or Not Enough

I know there are people who have experienced remarkable results without counting calories. However, if you’ve changed your diet and have been exercising consistently but aren’t seeing any results, you’re probably eating too many calories or not enough. 

Starting to count calories could be that boost you need to kickstart your weight loss results again. 

I’ve been taking calorie counting seriously since June with My Fitness Pal and not only has it been the boost I needed to make noticeable results with my weight loss journey, but it’s also been a real eye-opener about just how unhealthy I was still eating. 

I’m not sure how many calories I was eating before, but it was definitely more than 1200 that is recommended for my lifestyle. 

Plus, it’s been eye-opening seeing just how many calories were in things that I was considering to be healthy. Simply eliminating fried foods from my diet wasn’t going to get me the results I’m aiming for. 

But wait, maybe you are calorie counting and are always under your recommended amount and still aren’t getting any results. 

I’ve had this happen too. 

Well, it turns out that you need to consume a minimum amount of calories per day for healthy weight loss. 

Not Exercising Consistently Or At All

In my opinion not exercising consistently is just as bad as not exercising at all. 

There have been times where I started off exercising daily for about a week and then when the scale didn’t budge I would drop down to 1-2 times per week and expected results. 

I’ve made excuses about not having time, being too busy, and just plain not feeling like it. I’ve gone through the phase of setting a date and then adjusting it again when life got in the way. 

The inconsistencies in exercising not only didn’t give me my desired results, but it also made me not want to exercise even more. 

The only way exercising is going to boost your weight loss journey is if you’re doing it consistently.

For me, once I made it past a month of working out daily for 30 minutes to 1 hour, exercising became a part of my lifestyle. 

My day isn’t complete unless I run at least 1 mile and do a minimum of 15 minutes of weight training.  

Weighing Yourself To Frequently

Obviously, stepping on the scale multiple times throughout the day isn’t going to affect your weight loss results on its own. 

However, weighing yourself frequently will affect your mindset. 

As you build muscle your weight may go up until you lose some fat. 

If you drink a ton of water, the water weight will affect the scale. 

At the beginning of your journey, especially the first month, I would recommend avoiding the scale altogether honestly. 

It can be very unmotivating to want to continue to eat healthily and exercise frequently when the numbers on the scale are always bouncing around. 

Not Eating Proper Servings 

Americans have large portion sizes.

This is especially true when you’re eating at restaurants and when you compare some of our dishes to other countries. 

Also, when is the last time you’ve looked at a label on something you’re cooking and measured out the meal to make sure it’s the serving size listed on the bag?

For me, I didn’t start doing this until June, when I started calorie counting. 

I invested in a cheap food scale and I was definitely overeating when it came to some foods. 

So, while you may be eating healthy, if you’re not eating the correct serving amount, you could be hindering your weight loss progression. 

Not Watching What You’re Drinking

To my surprise drinks were making up the majority of my calorie intake each day. 

My favorite fruit juice was 90 calories per 8 oz and I was drinking a few hundred calories of that each day unknowingly. 

Unless you’re drinking plain water all day, you’re probably drinking a ton of calories too. 

The good news is you don’t have to limit yourself to solely water. I’ve been able to find some very low-calorie options that allow me to get a break from the water. A few of my go to’s each week is low-calorie Gatorade (30 calories), honest kids juice boxes (40 calories), low-calorie lemonade (15 calories) and green tea (0 calories). 

Focusing Too Much on Cardio And Not Enough on Weight Training

While walking and running are great exercises and can bring results, focusing 100% on cardio during your workouts will cause your results to be extra slow. 

You’d have to be putting in some serious mileage to burn a decent amount of calories. 

For example, I recently went on a 6.5-mile jog/walk and only burned 836 calories. 

Plus, with weight training, you’re boosting your metabolism, building muscle, and promoting fat loss. 

Not Looking At What’s in the Food You’re Eating

If you’ve been staying in a healthy calorie consumption range and exercising frequently, but find the results are not coming, it’s possible that you need to look more into exactly what you’re eating. 

How much sugar, carbs, sodium, and fat are you ingesting each day?

Take a closer look at your macros and you may be surprised at your sugar and fat consumption each day. 

Trying Weight Loss Shortcuts 

Most people want to get quick results without putting in A LOT of work. 

However, unless you’re going to get the surgery you are going to have to work hard and remain disciplined to reach your weight loss goals. 

There are a ton of products, courses, and ebooks that will have ‘clickbait’ titles to draw you in yet you won’t get any results. Instead, you’ll be out of money and discouraged about reaching your target weight. 

THERE ARE NO WEIGHT LOSS SHORTCUTS OUTSIDE OF SURGERY. 

It took more than a day/week/month for you to get your body to this point, therefore, it’s going to take time to get back into shape. As long as you have this mindset, you’ll be able to get results and avoid disappointment. 

Anytime someone reaches out to me trying to get me to join a ‘community’ that will help me lose X amount of pounds in X time I tell them I’m not interested as I’m not looking for quick results. 

In the past, I’ve done all types of fitness challenges that drew me in with promises of quick results and they always resulted in failure. 

Not Measuring Yourself 

As I mentioned earlier, the scale can be the devil especially when you’re weighing yourself daily. 

I, like most people, feel drained and disappointed, when the scale is constantly going up instead of down despite all of my hard work. 

However, now that I’ve started measuring myself every two weeks I’m not so bothered by the scale. 

Furthermore, I’ve made measurement goals in addition to having a weight goal. 

Losing inches will help you fit better in your clothes AND possibly have to go shopping for new clothes while the scale may not show drastic results. 

In my case, at least, when I measure myself every two weeks there is always a decrease in inches and never a gain, which is very encouraging. 

This week when I measured myself I decided to try on some leggings that I haven’t been able to fit since December and to my surprise, they fit perfectly now. 

Conclusion: Avoid These Weight Loss Mistakes to Restart Your Results

Before giving up, try the things that I’ve discussed today to see if you’re able to restart your weight loss results. 

Also, if you need some encouragement or suggestions during your weight loss journey don’t hesitate to contact me.