If you’re looking to loose weight, it can be difficult to know what things may be helping your diet – or hurting it. Unfortunately, there are plenty of times where we think that something may not have a negative impact on our diet goals, but in fact, we’re actually sabotaging our efforts. Here’s some weight loss mistakes you may be making.
Weight Loss Mistakes #1 – Skipping Breakfast
Less calories in means your body will be forced to burn more fat. Seems simple, right? But how many times have you then gotten to work, and been hungry – and the food choices around the workplace are not the best for succeeding on your diet. Avoid that mid-morning hunger (and energy crash) by making sure you have something to eat for breakfast. Think about having some oatmeal (steel cut oatmeal, not that instant sugar-filled stuff!) with some fresh fruit, or scrambled eggs with veggies. No time to make breakfast? Try a couple of low-sugar granola bars with two hard-boiled eggs and some blueberries!
Weight Loss Mistakes #2 – Eating Lunch At Your Desk
Here’s the problem. That computer screen in front of your desk means you’re more focused on your work, rather than how much you’re eating. Try moving away from your computer when you eat lunch – go outside, go for a walk, go find a friend to eat lunch with – all of which can also help you clear your head and become more productive post-lunch. If there’s no way to do that – try eating half now, and saving the other half for later – you may find you don’t need it and can save it for tomorrow’s lunch!
Weight Loss Mistakes #3 – You’re Stressed
Stress sucks. It kills your diet in a number of ways. Stress amps up the amount of cortisol in your system, which can keep your body from burning fat. Cortisol also spikes your blood sugar, which then crashes – leading to cravings for sugary, high-carb foods. And how many times have you eaten to deal with stress – causing you to consume even more calories than you should? Stress related cravings are not physical – they are emotional. So, go take a break, have some water (you may be dehydrated if the stressful situation has caused you to miss staying hydrated – and clear your head. You may find the food cravings disappear along with your stress.
Weight Loss Mistakes #4 – You Forget Snacks
Avoiding having healthy snacks around you when you work, means when you do get hungry, all you’ll have around you is more likely, unhealthy food choices. Having a small selection of healthy snacks around you in your desk, means you’re more likely to not only eat healthier, but also be able to control the portion size of your snacks, meaning you’ll kill those hunger pains without ingesting too many calories as well. Whole grain crackers, homemade trail mix, or some fruit are great choices.
Weight Loss Mistakes #5 – You Work Late Into The Night
We’ve all had times where a project has occasionally made us work late. But doing so on a consistent bases can wreck havoc on your diet. If you’re tired when you get home, you’re much less likely to cook something healthy, choosing instead for something quick and simple that may be more calories, more sugar, and more carbs than your diet allows. If you find you’re working late more often than you’d like, take some time and pre-make your meals ahead of time. Having a selection of healthy meals that you’ve pre-prepped, in portion sizes that fit your diet, can help you stay on track with your diet.
Part of a healthy weight loss plan is exercise. And, Fitness 4 Home Superstore has a full inventory of Arizona’s best fitness equipment. Whether you’re looking for strength equipment, cardio equipment, or fitness accessories, stop into any of our 3 Phoenix locations and find what will work best for your home workouts!
