10 Mistakes to Avoid When Losing Weight

Losing weight is a big challenge for many people. However, countless books, blogs, and guides can be overwhelming for those striving for healthy weight loss. Losing weight doesn't have to be that complicated. We've looked at the 10 most common weight loss mistakes and have some tips and tricks for you that will provide clear answers to your questions.

Almost everyone makes these 10 mistakes when losing weight

If you want to lose weight in a healthy way, you should know where the most common traps are waiting for you. We have therefore identified ten common mistakes that you can now specifically avoid – losing weight quickly and avoiding the infamous yo-yo effect at the same time should ideally be a little easier. Let's go!

1. You focus too much on the scale

A mistake that most people make when they want to lose weight for the first time is standing on the scale day after day and focusing exclusively on the number that the device shows you.

In the first week, this may still be positive, as weight loss is usually accelerated in the initial phase. However, this is mainly due to reduced storage of carbohydrates and water and only partially due to a reduction in fat deposits.

Consequently, your weight loss will decrease significantly even after the first phase – for many reasons, which can lead to reducing calories even more drastically. However, this can backfire. In the same way, an overly meticulous look at the BMI value can prove to be counterproductive. You can learn how to integrate a BMI calculator in a useful way from the tips at the end of the article.

2. You have unrealistic expectations and no clear goals

Probably the most important cornerstone of a sustainable weight loss strategy is clear and achievable goals. Getting the dream figure within four weeks to brag about it on the beach probably only works for very few.

In general, crash diets aimed at such rapid weight loss are not recommended. The risk of nutrient deficiencies and rapid weight gain after the crash diet is simply too high.

Clear and realistic goals, on the other hand, can lead to long-term success. Approximately 0.25 to 0.5 kilograms per week are considered realistic.

3. You are not in a calorie deficit

The most important criterion for successful weight loss is a calorie deficit. This involves consuming fewer calories than your body actually needs. You can calculate your individual energy needs with a calorie calculator , for example.

How high the deficit should be cannot be precisely determined; there are simply too many variables that influence weight loss. As a guideline, however, a deficit of 500 to 700 calories is recommended, which you should save daily. Anything above this can be productive but should only be done under the supervision of experts ^​1 .

4. You eat far too little

Eating too little can negatively affect your metabolism in the long term. It also increases the risk of being undersupplied with important nutrients. This not only throttles your basic needs, causing your body to burn even less at rest, but negative health consequences can also be triggered by a lack of micronutrients , such as vitamins or minerals.

To see how much energy a food contains, take a look at the calorie table . This way you can better assess your calorie intake and avoid an excessive energy deficit.

5. You eat too often

Although regular meals are generally recommended, eating too often is more of a hindrance to losing weight. The reason for this is that you consume calories with every additional meal.

If you only eat very small portions each time and thus remain in the desired calorie deficit, losing weight can still be possible. However, this is probably only realistically and practically feasible for a few people. Therefore, it is better to focus on only three to four meals after which you will feel really full.

6. You're too impatient

Impatience rarely pays off in life, especially when it comes to losing weight. Because if you want to lose weight as quickly as possible, you are likely to fall for crash diets. However, it should be clear to everyone by now that these rarely bring the promised success.

Nevertheless, these promises are of course very tempting. But just as in sports, the same holds true for losing weight: consistency is better than over-motivated phases that last only a short time. Excessive increases in stress in sports or excessive restrictions on nutrition can hardly be sustained in the long term.

7. You forbid yourself too much

A common mistake is also to limit yourself too strictly to certain food groups and to want to avoid others completely. Often, it is not individual foods or nutrients that prevent weight loss.

Abandoning too much can instead cause you to gradually lose motivation. It is therefore better to try to reduce "unwanted" foods and eat them consciously.

For example, as a chocolate lover, you don't want to live without chocolate forever. Instead of falling back into old eating patterns after some time, it would be better to treat yourself to your beloved chocolate in moderation again and again. For instance, you might occasionally use dark chocolate as a topping for a porridge .

This way, you stay motivated and do not run the risk of falling into old patterns.

8. You don't eat enough fiber and protein

To change your diet in the long term and thus lose weight healthily and keep it off, you should rely on foods that satiate you well. Because nothing is worse than if none of your meals fill you up properly.

Long-term satiety is particularly successful with plenty of fiber and protein despite fewer calories. Both have the effect of filling your stomach well and satisfying your hunger effectively ^​2 . In this way, proteins and fiber not only help you lose weight, but also help you maintain your new feel-good weight.

Incidentally, what may sound a bit abstract in theory can be easily implemented in practice. Oatmeal , for example, contains both valuable fiber and high-quality proteins!

9. You drink too little

Somewhat surprisingly, the influence of water on your weight loss may be significant. Because in fact, water consumption seems to promote weight loss success, as a much-cited study shows ^​3 .

Of course, this does not mean that you now have to drink four liters of water every day. According to the study, it may already be sufficient to consume more than one liter per day. The common recommendations suggest that one and a half to two liters of water per day are sufficient.

It is best to use tap or mineral water. Unlike most soft drinks, these do not contain any calories – this alone can save you a lot of unnecessary calories!

10. You don't exercise at all or do too much

Losing weight without exercise is possible, but most people find it easier. Especially when it comes to meeting the targeted calorie deficit, exercise can be very helpful. Because during physical exertion, your body burns calories, which can aid you both in losing weight and maintaining the new weight ^​4 .

Now you may be wondering which sport is best for losing weight. But we can tell you one thing in advance: there is no single "best" sport.

It is much more important to find a sport that you enjoy doing regularly. Whether this is an endurance activity such as walking, running, or cycling; or strength training, if that brings you more pleasure, is not so important.

But here, too, the dose makes the poison. While regular exercise is considered health-promoting and can help with weight loss, excessive physical activity looks different. Excessive activity can lead to increased hunger, causing you to exceed your calorie intake.

6 tips to make weight loss effective

Now that you've learned about the most dangerous weight loss pitfalls, let's explore what tips and tricks can effectively help you lose weight.

1. Balanced healthy eating

If you want to eat healthy to lose weight and feel more comfortable in your body, the many opinions on the Internet can be overwhelming. It is not as complicated as is sometimes claimed.

Yes, losing weight is a big challenge for many. At the same time, however, it should be emphasized that it largely does not matter whether you do without fat or carbohydrates for long-term weight loss.

After all, it is the energy balance that counts, not the exact ratio of the macronutrients ^​5 . How you meet your calorie deficit is, therefore, up to you. Therefore, it is best to do what you can sustain long-term.

In conclusion, it is simply important that you eat a balanced diet. Adequate amounts of all important macro and micronutrients ensure well-being and keep you healthy. The easiest way to obtain your nutrients is to rely on high-quality food. These have a high nutrient density and provide you with the necessary vitamins and minerals with just a few calories.

2. Start the morning with a healthy breakfast

The saying that breakfast is the most important meal of the day is well-known. Although this applies to everyone, it particularly applies to those aiming for targeted weight loss and long-term maintenance.

In fact, a large-scale study ^{6 ​​} found that regular breakfast consumption is one of the most successful strategies for maintaining a healthy body weight.

Breakfast options that you can quickly prepare are particularly suitable. One of them is porridge. Since oatmeal, as porridge is also called, is prepared within a few minutes and is loaded with healthy nutrients, it can keep you full for a long time. Thus, porridge is suitable for weight loss – a reassuring news for all oat lovers.

Porridge basic recipe – sugar-free and vegan

The Scottish oatmeal is very easy and quick to prepare. You only need three ingredients for the basic recipe and can then supplement it with your favorite fruits and spices.

Preparation time 10 min.

Course: Breakfast

Servings: 1

Ingredients

• 180 ml milk or plant drink
• 3-4 tbsp oatmeal
• 1 pinch of salt

Preparation

• Bring the milk (or plant drink) to a boil in a saucepan.
• Add oatmeal and switch the stove to a low setting.
• Simmer the porridge for about 5 minutes (stirring constantly with a spoon so that the milk does not burn and the porridge gets a nice creamy texture).
• Remove the pot from the heat and let the porridge steep until it reaches the right consistency.
• Finally, add a pinch of salt. This enhances the flavor of the oatmeal, whether you want to enjoy it with sweet or savory toppings.

3. Find a healthy exercise routine

To maintain the desired calorie deficit, you can't overlook healthy routines. Regularity and continuity are especially important, not only in nutrition but also in exercise.

To avoid unwanted weight gain, the prestigious American College of Sports Medicine recommends 150 to 250 minutes of moderate exercise per week ^​7 . Whether this is achieved through endurance or strength training depends on your preferences.

Both training methods have their advantages ^​8,9 . For instance, strength training can reduce fat mass while increasing muscle mass – you might maintain your weight but now have stronger muscles with less fat. On the other hand, endurance training ensures not only weight loss but also benefits your cardiovascular system, which is advantageous in sports and everyday life.

4. Set realistic goals

Whether in sports or nutrition: realistic goals are fundamental. Starting off without a plan or with overly ambitious goals rarely leads to success. A clear definition of goals with realistic requirements can be extremely beneficial in finding the right weight loss strategy.

It has proven practical in various contexts to use the SMART formula for goal setting ^​10 .

This approach allows you to clearly formulate your goals and effectively measure your progress, but more on that later.

5. Track your weight loss progress

As you may recall, at the beginning we warned against going to the scales too often as a means of control. In doing so, we wish to remain fundamental. At the same time, it is still important that you record your progress in some way.

This is important because many people find it extremely challenging to maintain their weight after losing it. To avoid falling back into old patterns, you should continue to monitor your diet.

This can be achieved through regular weighing, counting calories ^​11 or using helpful apps ^​12 . However, it is crucial not to obsess over this – otherwise, you might risk developing compulsive behavior.

You can also occasionally use a BMI calculator for tracking. While daily calculations of BMI are not recommended, checking the value every few weeks can make sense.

6. Avoid crash diets

Finally, we would like to emphasize what has already been mentioned several times in this post. In short: Crash diets rarely lead to success. If you genuinely want to lose weight in the long term, adapting your daily life is essential.

This means finding routines that work for you and that you can maintain for life without excessive effort. Forcing yourself to perform sports activities that you dislike for the sake of burning calories may not be effective.

Conversely, trying out various sports and selecting the one that you enjoy the most is entirely feasible. The same applies to nutrition; a strict deprivation or banning of certain foods will not advance your cause – shifting to foods that you actually enjoy will.

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