8 Mistakes That Don’t Allow You to Burn Fat Faster
No matter what you do, no matter how hard you workout, you are still unable to lose that stubborn fat! If you can relate to this, you are not alone. Millions of people are striving to lose weight and failing. Believe it or not, 600 million adults and 100 million children are obese.
Bright Side put together a list of 8 common mistakes that make it harder for you to get that perfect toned body that you’ve always desired no matter how much you sweat it out at the gym.
You treat all calories equally.
All calories are not equal. Eating 100 calories of vegetables is not the same as eating 100 calories of ice-cream, and they are not going to have the same effect on the body. With respect to weight loss, it is essential to consider how much insulin is released by the body based on the type of calories we’re taking in.
When a lot of insulin is released by the body consistently throughout the day, not only does it prevent fat loss, but it also encourages the body to store energy as body fat. The types of calories that spike insulin the most are those from carbohydrates in the form of simple sugar. So if you want to eat carbohydrates, stick to healthy carbohydrates from food that gets digested slowly. Along with carbohydrates, protein can also spike your insulin levels, especially those from dairy-based sources like skim milk and yogurt.
You don’t focus enough on lean body mass.
If you find yourself cutting down your calories and doing cardio, yet your extra fat is still sticking around, it may be a good idea to focus on your lean body mass. Increasing lean body mass wakes up your resting metabolism. It also affects many different hormones in the body like insulin, leptin, and ghrelin. These hormones communicate with your cells and instruct them about whether it’s time to store fat or release it.
You believe that eating more meals throughout the day will help you lose weight and burn fat.
There’s a special diet called fasting and it’s an amazing way to burn fat. Fasting also lowers the insulin levels more than other dietary methods do. Fasting causes the body to release glucagon to draw energy from your cells, including your fat cells. Rather than having a few 400 calorie meals in a day, it is better to have one 1,600 calorie meal at the end of the day.
You believe doing a lot of cardio is the only way to lose fat.
Since doing cardio exercise is not as interesting as other exercises, people think it’s the only way to lose weight. But because it can get rather boring, people stop putting in the effort to lose weight altogether. The good news is, there are other ways to burn fat without having to spend long hours on the treadmill. The best way to reap the benefits of cardio is to incorporate it with weight-training.
Your trainer can help create special sessions designed around your own fitness goals.
You believe advertisements about magical fat burning pills.
There are no shortcuts to fat-loss. Fat burning supplements will just increase your resting heart-rate to very high, unhealthy levels. Our advice is to stay away from pills like this and stick to a healthy lifestyle instead.
You’re not getting enough sleep.
Lack of sleep throws your body’s hormone levels off balance which then impacts your hunger levels the next day. The 2 hormones that affect our appetite are ghrelin (the hormone that makes us feel hungry) and leptin (the hormone that makes us feel full). When we don’t get enough sleep, the level of ghrelin rises while our leptin levels drop. This causes you to feel hungry and overeat.
To get sound sleep, try getting to bed a little earlier than you usually do, and sleep for at least 7-8 hours.
You’re feeling stressed.
Feeling stressed can wreak havoc on our bodies. Stress causes the body to produce a steroid hormone called cortisol, which increases the craving for sugary foods that provide instant energy and pleasure. When our cortisol levels remain high for a long amount of time, it can increase the amount of fat that your belly stores.
You’re trying too hard.
The body needs a healthy balance of exercise and rest. Exercising too much prevents the body from shifting excess fat. Exercising without getting proper rest impacts the level of cortisol in your body causing an increase in the stubborn fat stored in the belly.
Are you making these mistakes? If yes, then it is time for a change! Share this article with your friends to spread the word and let us know in the comments which of these mistakes you are making.
Illustrated by Alena Tsarkova for BrightSide.me
