Common Mistake | Don't Make This Mistake

One of the most common mistakes I see when people are trying to lose weight is that they do not start slow.  They get on the treadmill and run.  They get to the point when they get runners high and overdo it the first day (or maybe week). 

The next day they can’t move.
My advice to everyone would be to start slow.  Make sure you stretch before working out.  Wear layers of clothes.  You can always take them off if you get to hot?

What other suggestions do you guys/girls have for beginners starting to lose weight?

I agree with starting slow on exercising. If you're not in shape and you start with exercising like crazy you build lactic acid in your muscles due to an insufficiant amount of oxygen. So you should really start with warm up, stretching, cool down, which can be walking for 10 minutes. This will help rid of the lactc acid build up in your muscles, which is the cause of the soreness. When you get in shape your body gets rid of the lactic acid build up in a couple of minutes.

I suggest cardio along with weights. I do yoga for flexibility and it's a nice way to stretch.

For eating habits, I don't really count much, as long as you don't eat junk snacks or put tons and tons of butter or oil on your food it's fine to eat whatever. Try to cut down on the flour, and eat more protein like almonds or egg whites.

Also try to keep your mind busy, or be preoccupied with things so you don't think about food, it'll cut down on the cravings and binges.

Original Post by littleshellys:

They "Crash Diet" instead of changing their diet to be clean and balanced.

They don't incorporate strength training into their workout.

They don't drink enough water and "drink" to many of their calories.

They don't educate themselves on proper nutrition. They think it is all about "calories" yes, you must count calories to loose but eating the right food and properly nourishing your body is just as important.

 

This is SOOOO true. when you get a good muscle work out your body actually is burning calories during the recovery process. YOu will lose more weight by lifting weights than you will by cardiovascular activity. as a disclaimer, lifting weights can be cardiovascular.

Hi,

I think the common mistake is getting caught up in the emotions surrounding food. It is hard - you have had a bad day and you really want that hot fudge sundae (choose your weakness...)  You forget all the calories that you have counted and the work that you have done.

I have to remember to breathe and walk away for 5 minutes or 2 minutes so that I can gain perspective that this food is not going to fix my day or my life - it is only going to make me unhealthy. Food is not a soution - it is a fuel.  Try to see food as a fuel.

Wow,  this is so great to finally read and listen to people who are going through the exact same thing as I am.  Thank you everyone for the great advice, this site will help me get through this. I have been an on again off again dieter for as long as I remember. I have just recently begun to eat properly and exercise at least four times a week.  I am not a very patient person and want results fast, even though I know that's not the way this works. Its great to know that there is support and information out there.

Once again, Thanks everybody.

I think another mistake is thinking that one day off is going to sabotage your whole week of eating healthy. In reality, if you eat healthy and eat within your calorie range, etc. for 7 days, and on the 8th day you splurge and eat more calories (not necessarily unhealthy food though), it revs up your metabolism to start working a little harder. The trick is not to splurge for more than 1 day every week

Another mistake people can make is telling the negative people in their lives that they are going to try and lose weight. Negative people will drag you down, discourage you or tell you not to bother.

The best thing to do is to "detonate" the negative people from your life, or at least not sy anything to them.

Unfortunately it's your partner sometimes that's negative:(.

The way I start out to lose weight is I first start drinking more water. I shoot for 1.5 liters. This way my body is well dehydrated enough to start working out. Next, I start eating better all whole grain, fresh veggies, lean meants (salmon, turkey, chicken breast). Next I hit the gym. I'll do anywhere from 15-30 minutes cardio, whatever I can handle better just to get my heart going. After I accomplush the cardio I start to hit the weights. Ill lift what I can lift comfortably then Ill move up a few days later. I try to shoot for 3 days a week. I want to accomplish 5 days a week though.

Eating healthy, working your heart out, and weight lifting should start toning you up in 2 weeks. Stay away from the scale if you must weigh yourself try to do it once a week at the same time i.e. Mondays at 9am. Losing weight is like watching paint dry.. so if you quit watching soon enough youll see results.

Somedays I get frustrated its been 2 weeks for me and ive gained 2 lbs!? I'm just hoping its water weight and muscle gain, who knows but If i quit now ill just keep gaining so i got to keep on going!

I think you need both weights and cardio.

Cardio assists in burning the fat while weights assist in building muscle to tone your fat. If you do both you can't go wrong.

I am sooooo with you girlfriend. I have restarted my weight loss so many times in the last year. I used to do so well and now I have to tires around my waist! I am so miserable! My stuff busts out and over all my clothes. It's disgusting!!!! Thanks for the advice!

Thanks for all the great advice!

One thing I have learned to do is control my portions! If I buy a bag of chips I will immediately open the chips and get out my sandwich baggies and put the service size (12 chips, etc.) in each bag. So if I ever do feel like eating chips I will reach for my sandwich baggie and that will limit the amount I am eating. I am one of those people who will grab the bag of chips and eat the whole thing before I realize what I am doing.  This is a great way to control how much you are eating and will allow you to eat your favorite foods - just not overdo it :)

Awesome, all this advice is fantastic!
And there's even some things I haven't heard, shocking lol.

Morganqueen - That's a great idea!
If I lived in my own house and had control over food shopping, I would definitely re-pack all the "treat" foods into 100 calorie snack bags and then perhaps let myself have one treat bag every day.

My contribution to the list of advice:
If cutting out 500 calories from your diet seems to difficult and you find yourself too hungry, do it slowly!
Reduce 100 calories from your diet every week until you have reached your 500 caloric deficit.
This should also give your stomach time to shrink a little at a time so you shouldn't notice it as much.

Happy dieting everyone!
Remember, healthy choices!
Just stick with the healthy choices.

Not giving it enough time - I see this all the time.  After 1 week of eating or working out a certain way, people immediately decide they aren't seeing the results they expected, so they conclude it's not working and give up.  Unless you lose a lot of water the first week, you may not see results right away, that's just the way it is.

Overestimating the amount of calories spent during exercise. I hear so many of my friends say 'oh I've worked out today, I can eat this huge bowl of icecream/pizza/choclate etc I've earnt it' Going to the gym does not automatically mean you can eat whatever you like. I think the best thing to do with exercise is to almost 'forget' you've done it. Eat healthily and normally as you would do everyday and the results will soon show...

hi my name is kim,This is the first time for me to really worry about my weight never care about it,im heavy overwieght and just starting to work on it.Really need suport from people.