Top 5 Weight Loss Mistakes Beginners Make

After months of staying indoors, weight gain is inevitable. Our movements are limited and we spend most of our days eating and sitting around our homes. However, now that things are slowly and gradually going back to “normal”, you may be thinking about weight loss.

Whether or not it’s your first time to take on this challenge, you might still be making common weight loss mistakes that are interfering with your progress. We’ve compiled the top five most common weight-loss mistakes for you to remember! Here are the things to remember when trying to lose weight:

1. Sticking To Just One Workout

As you begin your journey, it’s only natural that you become comfortable with the workout routine you initially pick. Especially when you’re a beginner, your body needs to get used to performing extreme movements. 

However, sticking to just one workout isn’t going to cut it. Yes, the aim is to accustom your body to doing regular exercises to build endurance, but you have to vary your workouts. If done for long periods, your body will eventually get too comfortable and would not burn as many calories as before. 

We recommend incorporating intervals in your workout routine, between intense activities. Short bursts of intense workouts burn more calories and build more muscle. Weight lifting is also a great way to lose weight effectively. Since muscles are metabolically active, engaging them to help burn more fat and build more muscle. 

2. Eating Too Few Calories

One of the biggest weight-loss mistakes is that you have to eat as few calories as possible every day. Since the goal is to burn calories, this would make a lot of sense, right? Wrong! As reasonable as it sounds, eating too few calories can be more counterproductive than you think. 

Instead of obsessing over the number of calories you consume daily, focus on the quality of the food you do eat. When you eat below the average number of calories required, you’re depriving your body of the key nutrients it needs. These nutrients not only keep us healthier, but they help us lose more weight.

3. Not Getting Enough Sleep

Several research and studies have already shown the connection between sleep deprivation and weight gain. They’ve surmised that poor sleep quality could lead to a messed up metabolism, weight gain, and higher chances of being obese and contracting other chronic illnesses. 

How we sleep also affects our appetite. People who sleep are found to eat more calories and crave high-carbohydrate food. Poor sleep leads to a disruption in the body’s circadian rhythm which leads to weight gain. Moreover, you would also feel more exhausted the following day, hence, the low energy to exercise and perform other activities. 

To improve the quality of your sleep, here are some tips you can try out:  

• Sleep in a dark room
• Maintain a sleep schedule
• Avoid eating before going to sleep
• Wake up early in the morning
• Don’t stress too much

4. Setting Unrealistic Goals

Don’t set yourself up for disappointment and failure by focusing on unrealistic goals. The key to a successful weight loss journey is taking tiny steps. What you should do is set challenging, yet attainable goals for the first week of your journey. As you continue to reach your goals, you can then adjust them and increase the difficulty. 

Not only does this help boost your self-esteem, but it also helps form discipline. Before you know it, you’ve already created a lifelong habit that will increase the quality of your lifestyle!

5. Mindless Eating After A Workout

This one’s quite common. After doing an intense workout, the majority of us think that we can treat ourselves to our comfort foods as a reward. Having cheat days isn’t a crime. However, you have to keep the quality of the food you’re eating in mind. Just because you did a 20-minute HIIT workout doesn’t mean you can eat two cheeseburgers on the same day. You’ll know you have an effective weight loss journey is when you consume fewer calories than what you’re burning.