Permanent fat loss is not an impossible feat. Fat loss is a science, period. If you aren’t reaching your fat loss goal, you might ask if you are making one of these common mistakes.
1. You want results too quickly. You aren’t patient.
We live in a “NOW!” society. Many people who don’t see immediate change or numbers plummeting on the scale, simply give up. Well unfortunately if you are doing things right, immediate visual change will not likely happen. If change comes too quickly, it’s unlikely the results will be permanent. Even worse, you might wind up doing metabolic damage that is very hard to reverse! So chill out and give it months, even years – because after all, it took years to put the fat on.
2. You aren’t 100% committed.
You have to be consistent with workouts and nutrition. This doesn’t mean never again go to a birthday party or take a vacation. But it does mean that you need to be planning meals and prioritizing workouts on a weekly basis. Excuses are unacceptable. Your body doesn’t care what excuses you have for not being committed to fat loss.
3. You blame others, circumstances, and situations for your failures, instead of blaming yourself.
Ties right in with excuses… “My co-worker brought in pizza”, “I was too busy to exercise”, “My husband took me out to dinner”. “The holidays did it”. Your body doesn’t care. Take responsibility for your actions.
4. You view fat loss as a “diet” rather than a “lifestyle”.
Diets have end-dates. Lifestyles don’t. If you have an end-date in mind, you have already failed.
5. You’re still not eating real food.
This one is VERY often overlooked, yet one of the most important. This usually applies to people who focus soley on counting calories, rather than what it is they’re fueling their body with. Just because those Ritz crackers come in a “100 calorie pack” does not mean it’s ok to eat it. Don’t eat crap. Eat food made from scratch. It’s that simple.
6. The “treats” you frequently consume are obviously not really what the name suggests.
A treat is something you enjoy on a rare occasion. If you eat “treats” all the time, they are no longer treats! That’s just eating crap on a regular basis.
7. You are eating too little, not sleeping enough, or not resting enough.
I’ve lumped these into one category because they all mean over-working and under-recovering. If you work out hard, your body requires rest days, quality sleep, and plenty of quality food to fuel those workouts. And while under-eating and over-exercising can achieve short term fat loss results, I promise this will screw yourself in the long run.
8. You’re doing too much cardio and not enough weight training.
Tons of cardio without enough muscle building exercises will make a person skinny-fat. Cardio in excess will waste away muscle tissue, leaving you looking not toned. Things will sag because of muscle tissue loss. To make matters worse, if the amount of cardio is decreased or stopped, rapid fat gain is likely. This is not the case for a person who focuses more on strength training. This is especially true for women. If you are female and your goal is fat loss, get off that treadmill. You must lift heavy and lift often! (And please, do not even ask if this will make you big and bulky…)
If you are consistently sleeping enough, eating correctly, and balancing weights and cardio needs, results will come. Once again, you MUST be consistent, for a long time. Once you’ve hit your goal, maintenance won’t take as much work, but don’t forget these principles are lifestyle-based.
Keep in mind that people are not made from a cookie-cutter. What works for one person might not work for another. It is a trial and error process for each individual. A fitness professional can help you with a detailed plan, adjust it as needed, and be a great source of support in your fat loss journey.
Want to Learn More?
- 7 Best Tips to Burn Fat during your Workouts
- Nutritional recommendations for weight loss
- Top 5 ways to lose weight fast
- 6 ways to help you lose belly fat
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