There are some very common diet pitfalls that few people know about. You may very well have fallen prey to one of them. Read on and see if any of these sound familiar.
You Eat on the Run
In our society, we take everything at top speed. Breakfast is taken on the run and wolfed down while applying mascara, driving to work and talking on the phone. Chances are you were doing so many other things when you ate breakfast that you don’t even remember what (or how much) you ate! We don’t take time to eat any more and that means the 20 minutes that it takes for your stomach to tell your brain it is full is about 19 minutes too long to wait. Try eating slowly and without distractions like TV or driving. You’ll enjoy your meals much more and you’ll probably eat far less.
You Aren’t Eating Protein
You could easily eat six or seven large vegetable salads and still not eat as many calories as you would with one large chicken breast but the fact is the calories in each just don’t work the same. Cutting meat and other protein sources out of your diet in an effort to cut calories makes your body conserve calories rather than burn them. Since we need protein on a daily basis our bodies will get it one way or another and the other isn’t good. If you don’t consume your protein, your body will consume its own muscle to get the protein it needs to operate. This means that you’ll lose muscle and, since muscle is the basis for our metabolism, your metabolism will drop. This begins a vicious cycle. Don’t do it! Make sure you get 1 gram of protein for each pound of body weight every day. Not only will this spare your current muscle but it will also help you to avoid hunger while dieting.
You aren’t Sleeping Enough
If you aren’t getting at least eight hours of sleep every 24 hours, you aren’t getting enough! Not getting enough sleep will completely stop any weight loss made possible by dieting and exercising. Research has proven that healthy adults who get seven hours of sleep a night or less will have higher insulin levels in their blood. Since insulin boosts body-fat storage there is no chance you’ll lose any bodyfat when you aren’t getting enough sleep.
You aren’t Getting Enough Fiber
Fiber isn’t just about regularity. Fiber is calorie-free and helps you to feel full. It also helps to control blood sugar and insulin levels. Get plenty of fiber by eating vegetables or fruit with every meal and choosing whole grain breads instead of white. If you can’t get 30 grams of fiber a day that way, consider adding a fiber supplement to your daily routine.
These are just a few of the basic diet pitfalls. Chances are, if you think you are exercising and eating right but you just can’t lose weight, one of these is to blame.