Reasons People Gain Weight

If you’re interested in experiencing fast fat loss, it’s vital that you come to learn some of the biggest mistakes that many people make as they go about their plan and often completely steer them right off track.

It’s easy to overlook the smallest of things that could in fact be having a big impact on your overall progress, so by discovering what you must watch out for, you’re one step ahead of the game.

Let’s have a look at the most common mistakes that cause weight gain in others, so you can be sure they don’t hinder your results.

Neglecting To Plan

The first and most important reason why people gain weight is because they simply don’t have a plan in place. It’s an absolute must that you know precisely what you will be eating at every point in the day if you want to see the greatest success with this goal.

If you can come up with a plan and follow it, you know precisely how many calories you are taking in and can adjust this based on your real world results.

If you have no plan then you’re leaving weight loss up to chance. If you don’t plan for meals away from home and bring appropriate food items with you, you’re counting on the fact that you’ll be able to find something healthy while out and about.

More often than not this is not the case.

Plan to succeed and you will.

Neglecting To Account ALL Calories

The second big problem is neglecting to factor all calories. You know how it goes, ‘Oh, but I was standing when I ate that, so it doesn’t count’.

Yes, it does. If you want to succeed with weight loss, everything will count. Beverages included. Don’t forget to tally up those 300-500 calorie smoothies or gourmet coffee that you down each day as well.

If you aren’t including these, you won’t see weight loss and will question why you aren’t moving forward. It’s due to the high intake of these beverages.

Neglecting To Factor In Individual Preferences

Another mistake to avoid is neglecting your individual preferences. Try and avoid going on a diet that you hate. If you do this, you’re setting yourself up to fail from day one.

Yes, you will have to make some changes and may have to give up the junk food that you do enjoy, but if you can’t stand the thought of cutting out carbs or using a low fat diet plan, don’t. There are plenty of diet approaches that can work well so you should easily be able to find one that you will enjoy.

Dieting really doesn’t have to be as torturous as so many people make it out to be if they just invest in some quality research finding the right plan for themselves.

Neglecting Physical Activity

Finally, last but not least, make sure that you don’t neglect physical activity. It’s very important that you stay active all the time as this will help you maintain a higher metabolism and help to give you more freedom with your diet.

One mistake is thinking that only diet matters. While it’s true that diet is the most important factor for losing weight, it’s the exercise that goes along with it that allows you to really change the way your body looks while you lose weight.

If you want a complete transformation, adding the workouts will be a must.

So there you have the top mistakes that some people make as they go about their weight loss journey. Do you see yourself in any of these?

Smart Alcohol Choices for Weight Loss

If you’re on a fat loss diet program, alcohol is something that you should be strictly limiting. Not only is alcohol very calorie dense coming in at seven calories per gram, but it’s also going to put an immediate halt to all fat loss progress going on when you consume it.

Not to mention the fact that when you indulge in a few drinks your will power to stick with your diet will also go down, therefore it could cause you to start eating foods that you shouldn’t.

That said, not everyone can cut out drinking from time to time as it is something that’s heavily linked to normal socialization, so if you feel like drinking isn’t something that you can give the boot to, at the very least it’s helpful to know which drink choices you should be choosing.

Let’s have a look at the top considerations.

The Good

Straight Liquor With Seltzer Water

The very first choice that you should consider is one ounce of your favourite liquor with simple seltzer water or plain water. This will contain only around 70 calories per drink, so is a much lighter option.

If you can alternate this with one glass of plain water, all the better.

White Wine

If wine is your thing, the good news is that this is also a relatively lower calorie choice as well. Most wines range from 90-150 calories per glass depending on the variety, so if you keep your total number of glasses down, it doesn’t have to destroy your diet plan.

Like the above, it’s always a good idea to alternate one alcohol drink with one non.

Light Beer

Light beer is another choice that you may want to consider. If you’re a big fan of beer but don’t like what it does to your weight, light beer is almost half the calories so will be much less devastating to your diet plan.

Light beer is also lower in total carbohydrates, so that’s definitely a plus as well.

The Bad

Creamy Liquors

Now we move on to the less than optimal choices. Creamy liquors are one drink to beware of as they contain alcohol, fat, and sugar in one, so will really be a doozy as far as sticking with your diet is concerned.

Often these are mixed with milk as well, so while the milk is healthy, it will add extra calories. Most creamy liquors will come in around 120 calories per ounce, so it will add up quickly.

Frozen Beverages

Frozen slushy beverages are also something to be very careful about. These can easily contain upwards of 400 calories once everything is added in and will do a real number on your waistline.

They contain far too much sugar as well, which will be very bad if you’re trying to prevent a hangover. The combination of so much sugar plus alcohol entering the body is a sure-fire recipe for body fat gain. The sugar will spike the insulin levels and since there is no carbohydrate oxidation taking place (as the body will be 100% focused on burning off the alcohol calories), this means that sugar will move right into body fat stores.

Cocktails

Finally, the last beverages to avoid are any fancy cocktail like drinks. These also contain higher amounts of sugar and will often contain more than one different type of alcohol as well.

Most come in at around 300 calories or more, so will put a big dent in your diet if you have two or three that evening.

So be sure that you keep these points in mind if you do plan to drink on your diet. Alcohol does tend to hinder your progress so you really must make a choice as to what is most important to you – weight loss success or indulging in your favourite drinks.

Dieting Over 50 Years Old

If you’re someone who’s beyond the age of 50 who is looking to lose some body fat, you might start to wonder if there should be a difference in the approach you use versus the approach of someone who is younger.

After all, your body is different now than when you were in your twenties, so it only stands to reason that you may need to use a different type of diet.

So what differences should someone over 50 take note of? What alternations will best help you see success?

Let’s go over the main things that you should know so that you can get right on track to progress.

Alterations To Your Calorie Intake

The very first thing that you will likely want to do is use a slightly lower calorie intake at this point in your life. Now, there is the common saying that the metabolism naturally slows with age. While this is true, it’s not for the reason many people believe.

The primary reason why your metabolism will decrease as you get older is because you’re losing lean muscle tissue. If you’re someone who has been active for the last 20 years, then you likely don’t need to use a reduced calorie intake as you will have more lean muscle tissue.

If you haven’t been exercising though, then a slightly lower calorie diet is in order. Try starting at around 10 or 11 calories per pound of body weight.

At this point in your life you may not be quite as physically active overall either as you were when you were younger, so that will also factor into your total daily calorie burn.

Accounting For Nutritional Deficiencies

Another adjustment that you should make is accounting for nutritional deficiencies. Those who are older will want to really make sure that they are taking in enough calcium, iron, and B vitamins.

This will help ensure that they maintain strong bones and high energy levels. In addition to that, make sure that you’re taking in a very high quantity of fresh fruits and vegetables daily on whatever diet you choose as these will help to protect against some of the common diseases that can develop as the years go on.

Adding Extra Protein

Finally, the last thing that you should adjust on your diet protocol is your protein intake. Many older individuals are not getting enough protein total, so it’s important that you bump up your intake.

Additionally, since you aren’t quite as active as you were when you were younger, having more protein in the diet will help to further safeguard against lean muscle tissue loss, so will help to keep your metabolism higher long term.

Remember to add plenty of low fat dairy sources of protein in particular such as Greek yogurt, skim milk, and low-fat cottage cheese as these are both high in protein and high in calcium, so will really help you along your way.

So there you have everything that you need to know about dieting past 50. While the general approach should still be quite similar, making these few additional changes would be well worth your while.

Cutting Calorie by Food Swapping

If you’re looking to succeed on your weight loss diet plan, it’s vital that you take a look at some of the simple ways that you can go about reducing your calorie intake so that you can make fast progress without feeling like you’re on a very strict diet.

If the truth is told, for many people there are some very small adjustments they could make to their normal diet intake that would have a huge impact on the fat loss results that they see.

By taking the time to learn what these adjustments are and then getting them in place, you can see for yourself just how powerful they can be.

Let’s give you a few quick calorie cutting food swaps to think about.

Swap: Granola For Oatmeal

The first great swap to make is to exchange out your usual bowl of granola in the morning for some oatmeal instead. Oatmeal is very high in fiber and completely sugar free, which cannot be said for most granola cereals.

By choosing oatmeal instead, you can easily save yourself 200-300 calories in the process.

Swap: Beef For Fish

The next quick swap that you may want to consider is exchanging fish for beef. While beef definitely is a good protein source in your diet, fish would be a superior option.

Fish is lower in calories and completely fat free, so when you’re really trying to get the weight off quickly, it’ll help you get there faster.

Allow beef once per week to help keep your iron intake up, but then have fish or chicken the remaining nights instead.

Swap: Juice For Real Fruit

Another smart swap for faster weight loss is to exchange juice for real fruit. Juice is very high in calories and will produce a rather rapid spike in blood glucose levels due to the lack of fiber it contains, while real fruit is the opposite.

Real fruit is going to be high in fiber and nutrients and will fill you up much more quickly and help to keep you satisfied. Many people make the mistake of thinking that juice is a very healthy selection, but that’s not the case.

Swap: Pasta For Spaghetti Squash

Finally, the last swap that you should consider adding into your diet plan is spaghetti squash for pasta. Pasta is another very high calorie food is and is very easy to overeat on. If you want to maintain that reduced calorie intake for faster weight loss, then squash is the superior choice.

This vegetable can be eaten in much the same way as normal pasta would be, but will help shave off 200 calories or more from that meal.

So there you have just a few of the quick and easy swaps that you can start making today. They won’t really change the overall meal that you’re having, just change the total calorie content and help you move closer to your end goal. Sometimes it’s the smallest changes that can make the biggest difference so always look for these first in your diet plan before making larger-scale changes.

Tips to Succeed With Keeping Weight Off

One of the most important things that you must do after you’ve finished your fat loss plan is move into successful maintenance. Really, a diet is not successful unless it allows you to keep the weight off that you’ve lost for good. Otherwise, you just found a temporary fix to a long-term problem.

Many people do often struggle with maintenance which is why they find themselves back in the diet seat shortly after they come off their diet plan.

Fortunately, with a few key tricks you can succeed with maintaining your new body and enjoy all the hard work that you put in.

Let’s have a quick peak at some of the top maintenance tips to remember.

Keep A Tight Weight Range

The very first thing that successful maintainers do is set a narrow weight range that they will allow themselves to fluctuate between. For instance, if your goal weight is 125 pounds, you might only let yourself get up to 128 before you start taking action.

Remember, it’s far easier to shed 3 pounds of weight gained with a few simple diet modifications than it is to shed 20 that you’ve let yourself gain back.

As soon as you see yourself creeping upwards, take action and tighten up your diet or a week. It’ll be gone in no time.

Diet During The Week

The second thing that you might consider to help you with maintenance is to maintain a lower calorie intake during the week. What this does is creates a mini-calorie deficit that you can then use during the weekend when you are more social and the chances of you consuming more calories are greater.

Since most people do struggle with the weekends a lot more than weekdays, this gives you some leeway for going out to social functions or just treating yourself to something that you desire.

Maintain Your Exercise Levels

Another key thing for successful maintenance is making sure that you maintain your exercise levels. Exercise is one of the biggest factors that will predict long-term weight maintenance so stick with that workout program.

This will help you maintain a higher metabolic rate overall to prevent fat gain and also help you maintain lean muscle mass, which naturally burns more calories all day long.

Indulge Once Per Day

Finally, if you decide that you do need to treat yourself on any given day, make sure that you limit yourself to just one treat per day. If you let yourself get too out of control and are treating here and there all day long, it will add up to weight gain.

If you’re craving chocolate, have a small piece, enjoy it, and then put the box away. A 100 calorie treat really won’t have much influence on your weight but six or seven of them will. Remember that and you’ll keep yourself in check.

So there you have the top things to note for successful maintenance. If you work hard at it and make sure you keep yourself accountable, you can maintain your new body for years to come.

Maintaining A Healthy Relationship With Food While Dieting

If you’re on a fat loss diet plan, there may be a chance that you could come to ‘fear’ certain foods after so long. You’ve been conditioned to know which foods are ‘good’ and which foods are ‘bad’ and do everything you can to stay away from the bad ones and only eat the good ones.

The big problem with this good and bad thinking however is that it forms a negative association in your mind regarding certain foods in the diet. If you’re not careful, this could lead to eating disorders over time, which are very serious and could require extensive treatment to overcome.

Let’s take a quick look at some of the important things that you should remember that will help you maintain a more positive relationship with food while dieting.

Think In Terms Of Healthy Or Not Healthy

The very first thing that you should be doing to maintain a healthy relationship with food is think in terms of healthy or not healthy rather than good or bad. This shifts the perspective and allows you to focus on the health benefits that certain foods provide, which is a much healthier association.

Try filling your diet with the most nutritious foods that you can, not because they are low in calories but because they will do the most for you from a nutritional point of view.

Plan For Cheat Meals

Next, another thing that you should be doing is planning some cheat meals into your program. Cheat meals are great because they give you psychological relief from strict diets and help you see that eating a food that’s ‘off’ your diet list won’t automatically make you gain all the fat you’ve lost right back.

This is key for maintaining that healthy relationship with food. Cheat meals should be scheduled once every week or two for maximum benefits. More frequently may not be a good idea as it could hinder progress, but making sure to get them in every so often is important.

Periodically Take Diet Breaks

Finally, the last thing to keep in mind is that you should periodically add some diet breaks as well. This is key for helping you learn your new maintenance calorie intake so you don’t start thinking that you must maintain a very low calorie intake in order to succeed with keeping the weight off.

Often what occurs is that as you progress on the diet, your metabolism slows down so you start decreasing your calorie intake further to spark more fat loss, but over time, this leads to a very low calorie intake.

Before you know it you’re scared of eating more again for fear all the weight will come rushing back on.

Diet breaks will not only help to reset your metabolism but also teach you that you can eat more food and still maintain your body weight.

So there you have the most important things to note about maintaining a healthy relationship with food while dieting. For your psychological health, this is a must.

How To Deal With An Injury

There’s no question that one of the most frustrating times is when you suffer an injury. You were highly motivated with your program, giving it your all each and every session and then out of nowhere, you become injured.

Now you’re sidelined, frustrated, and feel like all that hard work is flying right out the window.

How do you deal?

Fortunately, an injury doesn’t have to mean a terribly large set-back if you know how to approach it properly.

Let’s look at some key things that you should be doing now that you’re in this situation. Remember that prevention is always the best strategy so maintaining proper form during your workouts is a must. If you do that, you can avoid this situation altogether.

But since you’re here now, let’s look at what you should do.

Consider An Altered Workout

The very first thing that you should do is assess whether you may still be able to continue with portions of your workout that are unaffected by your injury. For example, if it’s knee paint hat you’re experiencing, this doesn’t mean that you have to forgo your upper body workouts.

You should still try and get those in on a regular basis as this will help to keep your metabolism high and prevent muscle mass loss.

Try and make the most of what you can do and you’ll feel a lot less frustrated about the whole situation.

Increase Your Knowledge Base

If you are in fact going to be completely sidelined for whatever reason, then it’s time to turn your focus elsewhere. To prevent getting too down about the scenario, use this time to enhance your knowledge base and learn some new workout facts to help you improve further.

Research up on the latest workout techniques and diet programs that you can implement in your routine to take your progress even further.

Knowledge is power when it comes to weight loss progress so use the downtime wisely.

Focus On Your Diet

Another important thing to do at this point is cut back on your diet plan slightly. Since you won’t be hitting the gym as often, you won’t be burning off as many calories as you normally do. To prevent weight gain from occurring, knock your calorie intake back by 200-400 per day according to how long and hard your workout sessions were.