5 Critical Weight Loss Mistakes

1. Not Planning Ahead
When hunger strikes and you're not prepared, that's when unhealthy decisions are made. Planning ahead is a vital part of helping you make healthy choices during the busy week. Take 10 minutes once a week to plan out your weeks worth of meals and snacks. Always having healthy choices at your disposal will make you feel like you are progressing towards your weight management goals. It will also significantly reduce the temptation to eat junk food. You will save yourself hundreds of calories every week.

2. Keeping it to Yourself
If it ever feels like the people closest to you are unknowingly sabotaging your healthy eating efforts, consider whether you've shared your goals with them. Tell your family, friends, or co-workers that you're trying to lose weight. Instead of going out to an all-you-can eat buffet, they'll invite you to make a healthy dinner at their house. In addition, people will offer you words of encouragement and root you on as you progress with your weight loss goals.

3. Too Much Protein or Not Enough
While carb-free, high-protein diets are all the rage, and they do offer results, it's not sustainable or healthy for the long term, as you're missing out on vital nutrients from fruits, veggies, beans, nuts, seeds, and whole grains. This variety of healthy foods helps keep your gut bacteria happy, your digestive system regular, and keeps you feeling satisfied. Not eating enough protein can also cause weight gain. Since protein helps you to stay satisfied, it is important to make sure you are eating it at every meal.

4. Compensating For Eating with Exercise
Whether you think that run earns you the right to inhale four slices of pizza, or you hit the gym just so you can eat whatever you want later, you're not only promoting an unhealthy relationship with food, but it can also lead to weight gain. You only burn 150 calories with a 20 minute run. Therefore if you consume a 350 calorie cheeseburger then you are gaining weight instead of losing it. Use workouts to complement your healthy diet.

5. Skipping Dinner for Cocktails
This is detrimental to weight management for a number of reasons. Drinking on an empty stomach can lead to quicker intoxication, so even if you planned to just enjoy a few drinks, you'll end up losing the ability to make healthy choices and are more likely to consume additional calories. Some people think that skipping dinner will compensate for a night out of drinking. Not only will they miss out on important vitamins and minerals, their blood sugar levels will drop. If you want to meet friends for some drinks make sure you limit your consumption as much as possible. Remember drinks can add hundreds of additional calories making you feel unsatisfied.