Common Dieting Mistakes
It seems that when it comes to dieting, there are a few mistakes with lasting implications that are repeatedly made by people hoping to lead a healthier lifestyle. Hopefully by reading about these mistakes here you will learn to recognize them in advance and avoid them while striving for your own weight loss goals.
The first and most common mistake made when starting a new weight loss plan is not setting a goal. While you do not want to set a goal that will be impossible to achieve, you should also avoid setting a goal that is too small or not setting a goal at all. In fact, it is perfectly acceptable to set multiple goals. An initial goal of ten percent is a common practice among successful dieters. Making your goals known by your friends and loved ones will help to keep you motivated and on track for success.
The second most common dieting mistake is also the one that probably leads to the most failures. That would be having an all or nothing attitude. These are the people that rid there home of all temptation. They embark on a diet that is nearly impossible to maintain and the moment that they stray from their self imposed guidelines they believe that all is lost.
While this may work for some in the short term, they have set themselves up for long term failure, frustration and ill will towards all things ‘diet’. Remember, the long term goal of any diet is to lose weight. There are many ways in which this can be accomplished that do not involve starving yourself or punishing yourself in the process.
This brings us to the next big dieting mistake, depriving yourself of the comfort foods and other foods that you enjoy. When done in moderation, there should be no food that is off limits. Satisfy your hunger with fruits and vegetables but don’t be afraid to indulge occasionally just for the sake of your sanity. Remember, the first bite of chocolate tastes the same as the tenth bite…so just take one bite! There is no law that says that you cannot enjoy eating while on a diet. The problem lies in enjoying too much of the wrong foods.
Another common error is limiting yourself to only a handful of items that you eat on a daily basis. Although humans by nature crave structure and routine in our lives, we do enjoy having variety in our daily menu. Be sure that your diet allows you to enjoy a variety of foods to help prevent boredom and ensure continued success.
The final mistake which is made far too often is throwing in the towel. There will be weeks that you do not lose weight. There will probably even be weeks that you gain a pound or two. Even those that have achieved monumental success in their weight loss goals have had these set backs, the key is that they did not give up. They got past those road bumps, reevaluated their goals and got back on track. Do not let the set backs defeat your personal desire to become healthier.
Instead, you must learn to overcome those set backs and move on. Learn from your mistakes as much as you would from your successes and you will be well on your way to the healthier person that you strive to be. Whether your goal is 10 pounds or 100 pounds, your dedication and determination will be the driving factor that determines your success on the road to a healthier you. You will learn that a healthy you has healthy eating habits that don’t involve starving yourself or binging on things that are not healthy for you. Learn to enjoy your food in moderation and you will be well on your way to the success you seek.
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[…] Original post by OneMorePound.com […]
Great site! Thanks for the effort!
Thank you, Heather. Hope you found what you were looking for!
I really like your site. This is the first time I’ve seen it. It’s VERY informative. It must have taken you a long time to put together. Thank you!
Thanks for the kind words, Lindsay. It has definitely been a challenge and I’m not done yet. I’m still trying to add a couple of restaurants each week. Let me know if there is ever something that you are looking for that I don’t have and I will do my best to put it up for ya.
I love this site! it gives me everything I need from points to resturants and point caculator I love that I can accsess it all from my cell phone! thank you
Thanks Cassie! Comments like yours really make my day! Have a nice Thanksgiving!
Is there a certain amount of fruit and veggies we are supposed to eat a day on WW?
Hi Melissa, on my official WW food journal it has a spot to check off for 5 servings of fruits and veggies each day. That is what I aim for…
Thanks Dan I think I will aim for that too:)
I love your site!!!
Nicely done and very informative! Kudos to you!
That’s great to hear, Christine! Thank you!
I just wanted to let you know that I love this site. I just stumbled upon in the other day and am now on here on a near daily basis because it is so helpful. Thanks and keep up the good work!
Welcome to the site Angela, and thanks for the kind words. I hope you found what you were looking for!
Just stumbled onto this site. Week 5 on WW for me. I have lost a little over 8 pounds. Of course loosing quicker…. would be great but I’m taking baby steps. Each week I try to pinpoint a way to make the following week a more successful week for weight loss by looking at how the previous week went.
Welcome to the site Karen, and congrats on the 8 pounds! You are off to a great start! If you ever stumble upon any tips that you feel would help others, feel free to mention them here in the comments.
Hi Dan!
Great site! I love it! I came to ur site a few weeks ago, I tried to leave a comment but it wouldn’t let me. I tried again today and YAY!
Dan I need ur help…….I did WW on my own and I lost A TON on weight ( I went from 160-125 ) Well just this past OCT 2009 my weight was 125 and I went on a month vacation and OH MY GOSH I GAINED 15 pounds!!!! The scale said 140…..is it even possible to gain that much in such a short time frame?? And the funny thing is I was sick for like 2 weeks of the whole vacation…..I don’t get it. Well I started back on WW right after x-mass and I was doing so good until the end of Jan 2010….but get this I was working out so hard watching what I eat and I didn’t even lose a pound the whole month! I got so sad and I gave up…..since then I cant get back into it…..why is this not working for me….I try every week and something just goes soo wrong and I don’t make it……any words of advise?
Welcome aboard Rada and thanks for visiting. Sorry about the comment thing, I accidentally disabled the comments and did not realize it for a couple of weeks.
First, congrats on successfully losing so much weight. Its amazing how much time and dedication it takes to lose the weight and how quickly that can all come undone with a little bit of ‘vacationing’. I’m going through a similar situation myself since the holidays.
Obviously from your past success, you know what to do to be successful at losing the weight. I would say it’s time to get back to the basics…keep a food journal, drink lots of water and exercise – exercise – exercise. Make sure that you are making healthy food choices.
There are a few links below with some more reading that may help:
Expectations and Plateaus
Stopping Self-Sabotage
Tips & Advice
Hopefully something above will ring a bell for ya. Good luck and keep in touch.
Hi again Dan,
You know what I think those articles did help. Thanks so much! Something did ring a bell, u r so right!! I guess I just have to go back to the basics…..can I ask you something though? When you do go back to step one….do you ever get scared or feel like you wont make it through the first week and that something will just come along and make you ruin all ur hard work?? Or is it only me that feels that way…..
Hi Radha. No, I wouldn’t describe it as being scared. More like discouraged, because of all of the hard work that may have been wasted and having to start over again. Just don’t give up. There will be bad days, just make sure the good ones outnumber the bads.
What a great site!! Thankyou for all of this helpful information !!!
Thank you Liz, it’s always great to hear that!
Wow. I love this site! I’ll definitely be using it. I’ve always wanted to try weight watchers. It never occurred to me that I didn’t have to spend money on a membership, duh! Thank you so much! Wish me luck. Gotta lose 250 pounds!
Thanks for visiting the site Emily! The info on the site can definitely be used to help people do weight watchers on their own, but some people really need to attend the meetings to keep them motivated…I think I’m one of them. My last official meeting was in December and I have lost and found the same pound many times since then…just can’t get rid of it for good.
If you can keep yourself motivated you will have much success. Give us a comment every once in awhile to let us know how you are doing. Good luck!!
Excellent site. I joined WW but coudn’t make head or tail of what to do with it all. This is simple and easy to look at. I’ve also been using the calculator for little things like the odd custard cream and hot cross buns. It really makes you realsie how much you take in without thinking.
I hope WW don’t mind this site existing, I’d hate for it to go.
Well done.
>:-)