188) ELEVEN TOP DIET DON'TS

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For the past month, you have been on a diet that guarantees you to loss the unwanted weight but now you find that your scale is just not budging.  

Read further to learn the don'ts of top diets and what you need to do to overcome them.

1. Weight less by eating more

Doubling your intake of fruits and vegetables will not make you gain weight but instead experience a weight loss, says nutritionist Elizabeth Somer.  

How does that work since, it looks like this move would only add calories? Somer notes that once you start consuming up extra produce, you’re almost guaranteed to eat less of your usual fattening foods.

2. Don’t play the guessing game when it comes to portion size

Rarely will we get a correct calorie count if we estimate, says Brian Wansink, professor of marketing and nutritional science at Cornell University and author of Mindless Eating: Why We Eat More Than We Think. 

To solve this issue,  stick to the recommended serving size or eat individually packaged items.  Also, throw out or give away the oversize dishes and bowls and big eating utensils in your kitchen  They can deceive your brains into thinking you are taking a smaller portion when you are really not.

3. Don’t totally omit snacking

Strictly staying away from fattening foods is the recipe for a binge when you sit down for a meal.  Snacking “bridges the hunger gap between meals,” says Heidi Skolnik, co-author of The Reverse Diet: Lose 20, 50, 100 Pounds or More by Eating Dinner for Breakfast and Breakfast for Dinner. “Plan your snacks so you’ll choose healthful ones, like celery and peanut butter, or an apple and string cheese.”

4. Keep a healthy food stash in your drawer at work

When you’re trying to eat less, keeping snacks at arms reach seem counter intuitive. But it’s actually the best way to stay on track with your goal to lose weight, according to nutritionist Elizabeth Somer, author of 10 Habits That Mess Up a Woman’s Diet.  Moreover, vending machines are never filled with celery sticks or low fat yogurt!

5. Don't forget to read labels carefully

We all know that chips will do a big number on our waistline. But there are hidden places in which bad ingredients can lurk. A good example is breakfast cereal  that claims it’s packed with vitamins.  It could contain a very high amount of sugar, too, which will make you feel hungrier and very quickly.  Practice reading the fine print on labels, even when the “big print” says the food is healthy. 

6. Don’t skip your meals

Everyone needs to eat at least three meals a day to lose weight. When your meals are irregular, your body will  go into a starvation mode and may actually retain fat.  

It is a known fact that eating breakfast helps you lose weight, says Skolnik.  The idea that when you distribute your calories so that you’re eating more food earlier in the day as that is the time you are most active.  Therefore you will burn a higher number of calories.

Mindless Eating (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

7. Don’t eat excessively just because you go for exercise

Part of an effective weight loss routine is to have a physical work out, but that does not mean  you can overeat.  In fact, research has found that exercise alone will not produce significant weight loss, according to Cathy Moxley, author of The Busy Mom’s Ultimate Fitness Guide. 


The real difference is to have a combination of a downsized diet with exercise to make the weight loss possible.

8. Don’t deprive yourself of sleep

You may think that giving up your eight hours of sleep by getting up extra early to go to the gym is more beneficial, the scientists would disagree. 

 A Columbia University research team found that people who slept less than seven hours every night were 23 percent more likely to be obese.  Sleep deprivation seems to play havoc on  the hormones that controls our appetites.

9. Don’t be obsessive about weighing yourself

Weight watching is an important part of losing weight, sure. “But the problem with weighing yourself ten times a day,” explains David Katz, a professor of public health at Yale University and author of The Way to Eat: A Six-Step Path to Lifelong Weight Control, “is that you are equating weight with health.” 

Weight can change from day to day, even from hour to hour, and the number on the scale doesn’t necessary mean anything.  Monitoring how  you can fit into an old pair of jeans that doesn’t allow any stretchy give is a better yard stick to how you’re doing.

10. Don’t go cold turkey on your favorite dishes

Chocolate chip cookies? OK. Fried chicken? Sure. Don’t eliminate your all-time favorite treat when dieting — eating beloved foods now and then will make you feel satisfied, not deprived, says nutritionist Connie Guttersen, Ph.D., author of The Sonoma Diet.  Just limit it to a few spoonfuls so you don’t cancel out all your hard work. 

The exception: Avoid using your favorite comfort foods as rewards, or to cheer yourself up. It’s better to indulge when you’re feeling emotionally balanced because you’ll be less likely to inhale extra calories in response to your emotional ups and downs.

11. Don’t say, "I'm on a diet!"

Tasty Food Abundance in Healthy Europe (Photo credit: epSos.de)

These 4 words are so inaccurate: “It rings of making only temporary nutritional changes,” says Wansink. “Plus, the word ‘diet’ is so forbidding. Saying ‘I’m on a diet’ is like saying, ‘I’m in prison.’” 

Try to think of your new eating style as a healthy behavioral change instead. 

So the next time someone offers you a generous slice of Mocha layer cake, remind yourself that you’re eating only a few spoonfuls because it’s better for your entire body.

My next topic for discussion is, "Home Care Treatment For Calluses."

You may also like to read:

162) HOW TO CHOOSE HEALTHY TAKEAWAY FOOD
163) 4 REASONS WHY YOU DON'T HAVE THE DESIRED BODY SHAPE
166) 5 MYTHS ABOUT WEIGHT LOSS

MY POEM CORNER

Many diets you follow,

Losing weight like no tomorrow.

And then it finally plateau.

Indulging in sweet sorrow.

Dieting Yo-Yo!

Thanks for taking the time to read my blog.

Until my next post,

Here's To Your Health!