The Single Biggest Fat-Loss Mistake MOST People Make
So, You're trying to lose fat, huh? Good for you. No, really - good for you. One hundred sixty million Americans need to lose some serious weight, so fighting the good fight does not go unnoticed by people like myself. Having trained as long as I have, there are few things I find more encouraging than seeing someone succeed with their fat loss goal.
You're not here to have me gas you up though. You're not here for the kudos. You likely came here to read about "The Single Biggest Fat-Loss Mistake MOST People Make" and you're hoping to yourself "I hope I'm not doing it - that would suck." And I am going to tell you, you probably are.
Before we dive in, I want to clarify something. If you are still living in the world where you think carbohydrates, sugar and or insulin is the enemy in fat loss, I cant help you all that much. The primary driver of weight gain is calories. Period. Once you have accepted this fact, fat loss will be much easier.
So, What is THE BIGGEST FAT LOSS MISTAKE MOST PEOPLE MAKE ? It’s easy.
They are not tracking their calorie intake.
Seems obvious right? Well, hear me out.
Here are some VERY real scenarios:
Scenario 1: I have had dozens of clients tell me "I'm tracking my calories" only to find out they are being tracked in their heads as if they are some type of calorie counting math savant with a photographic memory. News flash, you probably cant do that, and You don't have to be a genius to see several problems arising with that approach.
Scenario 2: Then there are the clients who are "tracking" using an app like myfitnesspal, which is a great tool. But they're doing what I call "tailored-tracking". This is eyeballing everything and trying to "tailor" their eyeballed measurements to their calories or macros. "That's about a cup right?", "Eh, that's about six ounces," "That's about as big as the last one, right?" This is also a recipe for disaster.
Scenario 3: There are a few ALL-STARS in the mix that truly take the extra time to weigh out everything the prep, and do an excellent job of tracking. BUT, even this group falls short often with truly tracking EVERYTHING. These clients often get the most frustrated because they are doing a great job of monitoring ALMOST everything - but that 10-20% they miss (usually the handful of X or the extra tablespoon of Y) adds up and ends up knocking them out of that ever so precious calorie deficit.
WHAT TO DO
So do yourself this favor. If you're trying to lose fat, track what goes in your mouth. Everything. If it has calories in it, TRACK it. Try to be as disciplined as possible with this approach for four weeks. That's not asking a whole lot. Just one month of TRULY tracking. If your not losing weight, lower your calories, get some extra sleep, or move a little more. If your losing weight to fast - add a tiny bit more in. And if your gaining weight - don't panic, with weight loss it's all about trends, not any one single weigh in, double down on the discipline if the scale jumps.
Stop lying to yourself that you are "counting" if you are indeed not. Intuitively eating and tracking comes with time and practice, and you will only prolong your weight loss journey by cutting corners when it comes to tracking calories. If you care enough to track your finances, you should care enough to track your calorie intake.
Taking the small amount of time to track what you eat does not have to be forever. But the experience that comes from following calories for a bit when trying to lose weight teaches invaluable discipline and sets you up to be able to adhere to a more flexible style of dieting in the long run. And at the end of the day, that should be the goal of any diet. To finish where you want to be, with the skill to maintain it, all while having a positive relationship with food and the freedom to enjoy life.