When it comes to dieting, we are inundated with information about what we should do while losing weight. But what about diet don’ts? What diet no-nos should we avoid to lose weight healthily? In today’s post, we are listing down all the things you have you to avoid when you are on a diet:
Eating Too Fast
Eating too fast is not good for the waistline regardless if you are dieting or not. When you eat too fast, the body consumes more calories. Why? It takes at least 20 minutes before the brain signals fullness. Inhaling your meal will only lead to overeating.
But if you think this fact does not apply when you’re eating diet meals, think again. If you are sticking to a specific portion of food because you are dieting, eating too fast will leave you dissatisfied with your meal. And when you are not satisfied with your meal, there is a good chance that you’ll feel extra hunger later in the day. To avoid racing to the finish, savor your meal. Chew slowly, taste every bite and enjoy the flavors.
Skipping Meals
If you think you will get faster results by skipping meals, think again. Skipping meals can cause you to consume an extra 300 calories as the day progresses. Missing a meal, especially an important one like breakfast won’t save calories. This bad habit could backfire on you. When you consume fewer calories in the morning, you will feel hungrier by midmorning. Caving to your cravings could cause you to overeat!
To ensure that you won’t skip meals, prep your meals ahead of time. Always start the day with a healthy, low-calorie breakfast. This way, you won’t feel famished before lunch time.
Purging
Some dieters may feel frustrated after not seeing faster results when sticking to a specific program. But do not practice purging just to speed things up. Forcing yourself to vomit after binge eating, taking laxatives and chewing and spitting food to lose weight are very dangerous habits. These habits could lead to an eating disorder and mental issues.
Do note that purging leaves the stomach vulnerable to stomach acids that could destroy soft tissues. When you are sitting down for a meal, the stomach produces more gastric juices. Purging forces the stomach juices upwards to the esophagus, causing inflammation on soft tissues. When the stomach is empty, it will start digesting itself, causing serious conditions like ulcer. Taking laxatives can lead to dehydration and electrolyte imbalances.
Extreme Exercising
Going on a strict diet means reducing the body’s caloric consumption. Although exercising and dieting could speed up your progress, too much exercising have grave consequences. It could cause muscle stress, deteriorating soft tissues, and even joint problems. It also increases the risk of dehydration, injuries, and electrolyte imbalance. Exhibiting obsessive-compulsive behavior could also lead one to turn to exercise as a form of punishment for eating.
Losing weight through diet and exercise healthily starts at finding the right balance. If you are on a strict diet, you only need to perform light to moderate exercises to tone the muscles. Remember, the muscles are at their weakest when you are dieting. Excessive exercising could speed up muscle deterioration.
