The journey to weight loss is tough, no matter where you start or how far you’ve come. At some point, most people have tried to lose weight and given up due to being stagnant or receiving inappropriate guidance. There are also seemingly endless weight loss tricks that advertise that this is the only thing you need to lose weight which is not true, no one thing will help you lose weight. It’s a combination of puzzle pieces that must all fit together to complete your weight loss puzzle. Here are some do’s and don’ts that you need to know during your weight loss journey:
don’t just do cardio
While cardio should be part of your program, it shouldn’t be the only thing in your program. Yes, cardio is great for burning calories and is obviously essential for good heart health but when it comes to weight loss, cardio is only a small piece of the puzzle. Now I’m not saying to skip cardio, because it needs to be done, but it’s not the biggest point to emphasize in a good weight loss program. You’ll still want to work up to about 5 days per week of cardiovascular activity for best results.
lift weights at least 3 times a week
Weight lifting and strength training is an absolute necessity when it comes to weight loss as it facilitates muscle building. Why is that important? When you build muscle, your metabolism increases and allows you to burn more calories. Building muscle is also great for bone health because as your muscles grow, your bones get stronger. For beginners, 2-3 days per week of weight lifting is sufficient, but eventually you will want to get up to 3-5 days/week depending on your schedule.
don’t go too fast
Trying to do too much fast is just as detrimental to your fitness program adherence as not doing enough. Too often, people try to do too much and get exhausted after 2-3 weeks and go back to old habits. The typical 4 week weight loss guru on Instagram has come up with a 20 pound weight loss program that is easy to follow, but truth be told, those programs are not sustainable and create long lasting healthy habits. do not encourage. Don’t get caught up in these “inspirational” 4 week transformations because most of the time, those people put that weight back on and then on in a couple of weeks. Go for the slow and steady approach, you are much more likely to succeed!
Set realistic short and long term goals
To compliment the above, setting realistic goals provides steady results. A weight loss goal of 0.5–1 pound per week is a very realistic and feasible goal for pretty much anyone, no matter how overweight you are or not. If you aim for an average weight loss of 2-4 pounds per month over the course of a year, that’s 24-48 pounds lost in one year! Not to mention, you’ll have established long-lasting, healthy habits that you can carry with you for the rest of your life.
Don’t Take Fat Burning Supplements
These are usually a waste of money packed with fancy advertising and make less than true claims on how they work. Most “fat burning” supplements don’t actually burn fat! If anything, they help you burn more calories by increasing your metabolic rate which can lead to weight loss but if you don’t burn more calories than you consume, you won’t lose weight. Some supplements will claim that they can “target belly fat” which is absurd. There are no supplements that target fat in specific parts of your body, your body doesn’t work like that. When you’re losing fat, the fat cells in your body decrease in size and everyone reacts differently. You’d be better off spending your time and money focusing on your nutrition plan and making sure you’re burning more calories than you’re consuming.
Spend most of your time and effort on your meal plan
As I mentioned above, you will only lose weight if you burn more calories than you consume. With diet accounting for about 70-80% of your results, this aspect of your fitness program should be where you spend the most time. Meal prep takes less time than you might think and will make your whole week much easier. Meal prep takes out any guesswork about what to eat next because your meals are already prepared and ready for you to heat up and eat.
Don’t Consume Liquid Calories
Liquid calories will surely derail your weight loss journey for many reasons. One of those reasons is that it contains extra calories (often from sweeteners) that don’t help you feel satiated. Now, consuming a protein shake is acceptable as long as it’s just whey protein without any added sugar. The extra protein will help you recover for your next workout. The liquid calories you need to avoid are sugary drinks (juice, Gatorade, soda, etc…) and alcohol. Alcohol contains 7 calories per gram compared to carbohydrates and proteins which have 4 calories per gram and also have additional carbohydrates attached. Alcohol can also disrupt your sleep cycle and getting your beauty rest is an important part of recovery. What about wine? While some are good for heart health, they still contain extra calories that you most likely don’t need.
Drink half your body weight in ounces of water
Most of your body is made up of water so be sure to drink it up! A good rule of thumb for how much water you should drink in a day is half your body weight in ounces. For example, if you weigh 200 pounds, you should drink 100 ounces of water per day.
don’t mind the scale
It may sound counterintuitive but hear me out. It’s great to see the numbers on that scale go down every week and it can give you a tremendous sense of accomplishment. When you start out stationary and the numbers on the scale don’t change frequently, it can be easy to get discouraged. It’s important to remember that the scale only tells part of the story when it comes to results, so don’t put all of your stock in what the scale says. Another important measurement to keep an eye on is your body fat percentage. When used in conjunction with a scale, your body fat percentage will be able to help you determine how much body fat mass you have and how much is fat free mass. It’s not unusual that the scale doesn’t change much but the body fat percentage does. If you maintain the same weight and your body fat percentage goes down, you’re a rockstar! This means that you were able to decrease your fat mass and increase your lean body mass (most likely muscle mass)! Circumference measurements and progress diagrams are also more helpful in determining progress than scales.
Focus on improving your overall fitness
Sometimes it’s best to focus your attention on separate, but related goals to jump-start your results. Instead of weighing yourself weekly, try tracking your fitness levels and making improvements such as improving your run time in a 3-mile run or instead of running 3 miles, try going 4 or 5. For strength, focus on trying to lift heavier weights and improving your overall strength levels. You can also try different programs to improve how many push ups or pull ups you can do. The key point is to take your focus off the scale and work on your strength, flexibility or cardiovascular fitness.
If you’re ready to start your fitness journey, make sure you’re ready to change your entire lifestyle. If you don’t feel you are ready to do this, ask yourself why? What’s holding you back from changing your life to improve your health? If you have trouble answering these questions let me know and let’s get started on your way to a healthier life!
