There are a lot of misconceptions when it comes to weight loss. Burning fat isn’t just as easy as working out a couple of times a week. A healthy weight loss journey involves a variety of factors such as what you put into your body, how you expend energy from food, and other controllable lifestyle habits. For those who have tried trimming fat, but haven’t seen results, there are small things here and there that are holding you back. This blog will discuss five of the most common fat burning mistakes and what you can do to avoid them.
Common Fat Burning Mistakes to Avoid
Heavily Restricting Calories
Perhaps the most common misconception when it comes to fat loss is that limiting your calories to the smallest possible quantity will work. In fact, this method is counterproductive as it can lead to metabolic issues.
Today’s world is too obsessed with calories, but as our Founder always says…not all calories are created equal. People try to stimulate fat loss by severely restricting their calorie consumption. Not only can this lead to a slower metabolism, but also serious nutrient deficiencies. It will also leave your body begging for essential proteins, fats, and complex carbohydrates.
Rather than drastically reducing the calories you consume, you should ensure the food you eat is optimal for your health goals. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with limiting portion sizes, but we recommend that you focus more on the timing of when you eat.
Limiting Water Consumption
Forgetting to drink water throughout the day, or intentionally limiting water consumption because of “water weight”, puts your body at a disadvantage. Water is essential for our overall health and physical performance. Staying hydrated is important in the fat burning process because it can control your appetite, boost your metabolism, and make exercise more efficient. According to the Mayo Clinic, men should drink about 15 cups (roughly a gallon) of water a day and women should drink about 11 cups. Looking at these numbers and comparing to the average person’s water consumption tells us that we are all chronically dehydrated.
Completely Cutting Out Fats
For decades, fat has been known as the worst enemy of a healthy diet. However, this macronutrient is essential to your normal bodily functions and shouldn’t be completely cut out. Of course, foods like potato chips or fried chicken contain fats that aren’t beneficial to weight loss or overall health, but there are plenty of natural, dietary fats which support your well-being.
Some fats that support a healthy diet are omega-3 and monounsaturated fats. The body has a much easier time breaking these down compared to saturated fats. Food that carries omega-3 and monounsaturated fats include:
- Salmon
- Avocado
- Egg yolk
- Almonds
- Olives
It’s best to avoid fried and greasy foods, but completely cutting out fat from your diet is not the route to take. Our brain is made up of predominantly fat and water, so cutting out fat can have a detrimental effect on your cognitive function. Fats and Cholesterols are also essential to create proper hormone levels in our bodies, which can throw the hormone balances out of balance and this too can lead to increased body fat and decreased muscle mass.
Only Doing Cardio
You may think that just doing cardio would help burn calories and assist in fat loss, but incorporating some degree of resistance training is most optimal. If you only focus on cardio, it can impede your weight loss progress because running is a catabolic activity that can lead to muscle tissue loss.
When you incorporate strength training into your workout routine, it helps build lean muscle—a highly metabolic tissue. For those who want to reduce body fat percentage without losing a bunch of weight, strength training, combined with cardio, is a must.
Weighing-In Daily
When attempting to burn fat, it’s tempting to step on the scale and check your weight every day. However, normal weight fluctuation is a daily occurrence that has nothing to do with fat loss. Plus, just because your weight goes up or down doesn’t mean you’ve gained or lost any fat. Instead of constantly worrying about your weight, skip the scale and appreciate the hard work you’ve put in. If you stick to a well-rounded diet, exercise regularly, and practice healthy living habits, constantly checking your weight won’t be necessary.
Start Your Weight Loss Journey With BioCure
No matter who you are, trimming down fat is a challenging task that takes lots of dedication. That’s why our team of professionals has developed BioCure’s Medical Weight Loss Program to help you lose weight in a healthy manner.
Our weight loss program includes comprehensive patient intake, complete blood work analysis, semaglutide peptide therapy, a 10-day detox program, and health coach visits. With our vast knowledge of weight loss and metabolic medicine, we can help you reach your health goals. Please contact us today to set up an appointment and see how we can help support your well-being.
