Welcome to a world full of weight loss myths. A world where they tell you to starve yourself if you want to lose weight, to diet by pumping up on protein shakes and whatnots, and when you fall sick due to starvation, you are told to include exercises in your daily routine to stay fit. There are tons of myths surrounding a weight loss journey. Before we discuss how to equip yourself with the right information, let’s discuss what these myths are;
How many books and movies have advocated the idea that skipping breakfast transforms your body from a five to a ten or binge-eating on salad while watching your friends take delicious bites out of a lasagna cuts out all the weight?
There are tons of myths surrounding a weight loss journey; most of the myths might work for some people, but then there’s no reason why it should be a stamped fact in the books of diet and exercises.
A fact about weight loss is what works for one person might not work for the other. Trying to lose weight by following every misconception about the weight loss journey can be quite difficult and confusing with zero results to thrust your hands in the air and say, “yeah, I shed that weight!”.
Once you tell the world, “hey, how do I undergo a weight loss journey? Everyone hits you with exercise rules and dietary regulations without diving deeper into the root cause and making appropriate testing. Different people with different tales on losing weight.
One of the common medical myths in the fitness space is that the best way to lose weight is through exercise. Experts say that when it comes to weight loss, making significant changes to your eating habits plays a more significant role than exercise.
However, before you dive into the dieting and workout world, here are few myths that probably won’t give you that summer body you seek, including the correct facts.
Unfortunately, there is no fast way to lose weight, you will have to walk through the process but you can make the journey enjoyable by making some smart decisions.
Contents
- 1 Always stay hungry if you want to lose weight.
- 1.1 Supplements help you lose weight.
- 1.2 The more time you spend at the gym, the more weight you lose.
- 1.3 All calories are the same.
- 1.4 Run away from Carbs if you are serious about your weight loss journey
- 1.5 You can have a targeted weight loss.
- 1.6 Go on a diet if you want to lose weight.
- 1.7 Staying off food after 7 pm is another weight loss myth.
- 1.8 Fat makes you fat is another weightloss myth.
- 1.9 The myth of no sugar allowed.
- 1.10 No cheat days.
- 1.11 Conclusion:
Always stay hungry if you want to lose weight.
Unfortunately, we live in a society that tells us to either eat a little or eating nothing. This myth falls under the impression that ordering a salad every time you visit a diner miraculously burns all the weight you want to lose.
Although that theory is totally not true; Salads are not totally bad food to binge on; they actually do have health benefits.
A WebMD research reports that green salads have the health benefits of increasing your blood levels with a host of powerful antioxidants like Vitamin C, folic acid, and alpha/beta carotene.
There are times we’ve rushed out of our homes for work skipping meals and filling ourselves up with caffeine even without being on a weightless journey.
Later on in the day, we keep downing more cups of coffee, wondering why we feel stressed, which brings us to the point that eating little or nothing affects the body and mental health.
Weight loss is possible with eating; all you need to do is find the right healthy food that works for you and your summer body.
Supplements help you lose weight.
The majority of the weight loss supplement market promises you a dream body within a month if you buy their product and never miss a day of gulping it.
Some supplements have caused controversies and damaged heart valves, such as Fen-Phen, a combination of fenfluramine and Phentermine, a recipe for severe side effects.
This led to the manufacturers being pressured by the FDA to remove the product from the market.
These supplements are hardly effective in making you lose weight; with tons of supplement companies reeling you in with the “before and after” pictures on the product’s cover, it is easy to fall for their marketing tactics.
Although some of these supplements might work a little for a month by working with your metabolism and making you lose few pounds, that’s all there is to them.
Besides, these supplements only make your wallet slimmer but never have any impact on your weight loss journey, leaving you with dramatic side effects.
The more time you spend at the gym, the more weight you lose.
This is a popular myth amongst everyone whether you are trying to lose weight or not. Although working out shouldn’t be a total cancel off your weight loss planner, it also doesn’t mean you should sell your house and move into the gym permanently.
Another myth under this theory is that the more you sweat while working out, the more pounds you lose. This is not entirely true especially if you drink a lot of water to keep yourself hydrated. The more you drink water, the more your kidneys work, the more you sweat.
Hitting the treadmill while holding your waist and sneaking peeks at the monitor to see how far you’ve gone isn’t how it’s done.
Spending time at the gym running on a treadmill or indulging in cardio because that’s what works for some people might not work for you. In the end, you keep putting in your best at the gym without getting any results.
The best thing is to hire an expert trainer who will put you through a workout routine that works effectively for you.
However, don’t emphasize the number reflected on the machine; you will exert too much pressure on yourself, rather focus on the mirror and what it reflects about you.
All calories are the same.
Calories are always emphasized when trying to lose weight; the calorie myth tells you to make a calorie count for every food you munch on.
For instance, in the movie “mean girls,” Regina George places an exaggerated importance on checking the calorie count on the cover of an energy bar before taking a bite out of it.
However, most of these calorie numbers could not be hundred percent accurate; hence it’s best not to get hung up on the numbers.
A popular calorie myth is the saying “all calories are the same.” Calories are a measurement of energy; nonetheless, different food calories differ in effect they have on your weight.
For example, Fat calorie is greater than carbohydrate and protein calories. 1g of fats will produce 9 calories while the same gram of protein and carbohydrate will produce 4 calories each!
Run away from Carbs if you are serious about your weight loss journey
One of the biggest weight loss myths is thou shall not be in close proximity with carbs. Carbs are probably the first weight loss advice you are told to dump in the trash can.
Staying away from carbs isn’t the enemy here, but rather the type of carbs you feast on. Low-diet carbs are effective weight-loss food.
There is healthy carb-based food like those with single ingredients; however, refined carbs like refined grains and sugar are effective in weight gain.
As long as you keep your carb intake low and cycle between healthy protein and carbohydrate intake, you are good to go in shedding those pounds.
You can have a targeted weight loss.
There have been numerous misconceptions about targeting a specific part of your body to shed off weight.
Misconceptions like excessively squatting make your thighs thinner or sticking to sit-ups remove your belly fat completely and make way for the sweet abs.
These exercises strengthen your muscles, and since you can’t squat or sit up without the rest of your body, pressure is exerted on the other parts of the body.
The body works with a synchronized efficiency; one part of the body carries the other alongside any bodily process, hence trying to burn the fat in your belly alone like driving a car without gas.
Regardless of your targeted workout, your body burns the fat in your belly, thighs, arms, and other parts of your body. Besides, isn’t it a better idea to have your whole body weight in sync rather than disorganized?
Go on a diet if you want to lose weight.
If you had a penny for every time, you were told to diet, eh?.
Tons of foods are packaged on high shelves at the mall with the covers screaming “low-fat, fat-free or gluten-free,” beckoning you to place one in your basket.
The truth is that many processed items are advertised to you as healthy; the manufacturers of these products will entice you with keywords necessary to lose weight.
Nevertheless, it is good to keep a skeptical eye around these products because some of them might do the reverse compared to what was promised to you.
Research also reports that 85% of the people who diet tend to regain the lost fat after a while. Dieting won’t be effective if you don’t cut out unhealthy habits and replace them with healthier eating and sleeping routine.
Staying off food after 7 pm is another weight loss myth.
This myth has been around for a while; the idea of turning off the kitchen lights and staying off food after 6 or 7 has zero impact on your weight loss journey.
The body sure doesn’t have terms and conditions which states that; food intake at dusk leads to a high level of weight gain. Thus, if you come back tired and hungry from work and think, “its too late to eat,” think again.
It doesn’t matter what time you eat; what matters is what you take in and how much of it.
Taking juicy bites out of a pizza or a steak at 11 pm totally ruins a weight loss journey concept.
Fat makes you fat is another weightloss myth.
It is a common misconception that the fat stored in your body is the reason behind your weight or that any food that has fat ruins your weight loss plan.
There are two kinds of fat; the healthy and the unhealthy ones. Our body needs fat to function properly, and these are known as healthy fats.
Healthy fats help our bodies absorb fat-soluble vitamins, regulates our hormones, and offer adequate insulation and protection to the nervous system.
They also act as a physical cushion that protects your internal organs from harm and trauma.
However, the unhealthy fat from unhealthy foods is what you should pay attention to and minimize their intake.
The myth of no sugar allowed.
Although sugar has its own calories, there’s no reason why it should be completely cut off from your diet. The same myth surrounding sugar intake reports that artificial sweeteners are allowed.
Artificial sweeteners sure do have low calories, but they have a harmful impact as well.
According to research, constant intake of non-nutritive sweeteners may be associated with increased body mass index and cardiometabolic risk.
Sugars can be healthy and unhealthy depending on your intake; moderation is the best way to handle sugar while on a weight loss journey especially if you are physically active.
No cheat days.
People who spend their time at the gym, sweating off lunges and lifting weights, biting down on good food are often told zero cheat days.
Cheat days mean you can’t gobble up your favorite snacks or even smell the aroma of chicken Alfredo because it contradicts the purpose of losing weight even if you end up doubling your physical activities for the day.
Having a cheat day doesn’t mean feasting on everything you can find; some people have cheat days once a month, while for some, two cheat meals within six months.
What matters is you find what works for you, what tallies with your weight loss journey. Besides, what happens when you lose all the weight? Do you still stay off these meals for the rest of your life?
No, you find the food that works for you and handle it in moderation with corresponding physical activities.
Conclusion:
Today’s world has the internet filled with every information and one topic that has different opinions dropping in centers around weight loss, diet, and nutrition.
Awareness is the key element to carry along when you decide on a weight loss journey. Awareness helps you determine what works for you rather than going with the flow of the internet.
There are weight loss success stories from people in the comfort of their homes. This sums up the fact that you necessarily don’t have to break a bank to or stuck up your fridge with detox tea, green tea, or other weight-loss dietary substance.
You can hire an expert trainer or dietician who, before giving you rules and regulations to follow, dives into your weight gain and finds the right information for you to work it.
If you can’t afford either of the above options, there are credible websites on the internet with correct information about losing weight you can implement in your weight loss journey.
The myths mentioned above will help you navigate through the internet noise and find the right sources.
Would you like to know more about how to lose weight effectively? If yes, click here