First Posted: 4/20/2015
Not seeing results despite hard work can be truly frustrating. Here are five things that could be completely ruining your workouts:
1. Sugar, of any kind (excluding fruit).
Sugar is highly addictive and void of any viable nutritional benefits. See if you can give it up in all forms for 40 days. That means, no sugar in coffee, no cake at birthdays and no sugar-laden foods like salad dressings and bagels. Skip the artificial sweeteners, too.
2. Alcohol. No, one drink won’t kill your results. But, are you really having only one? Want to be beach ready- give it up for 40 days.
3. Pizza. America’s favorite food is making us fat. Unless you’re eating whole-wheat pizza with vegetables- it’s secretly keeping that fat on your frame.
4. The feeling of being full. If you’re trying to shed body fat, you need to get used to the feeling of always being a little hungry. A lot of us eat out of boredom. The problem with feeling full is that if your body sends signals of feeling full, you’re probably more fed than you need to be.
5. Late night TV eating. If you’re bored and can’t sleep, don’t raid the fridge. Stop associating food with boredom. This is the worst habit of all time. If you really are hungry, eat something that will give you the most nutritional value.
Here are three tips for improving your body composition
1. Learn the difference between real food vs. crap food. If it grows in the ground, on a tree, came out of the sea, ran on the land, or flew through the air, it’s likely real food. If it started out as real food then went through 13 steps to get to the point where you are about to eat it, it’s crap.
2. You can’t out run your fork. If you’re trying to get into shape, no amount of exercise will erase poor eating habits. Improve your eating habits and you’ll improve your body composition.
3. If you’re looking to kick start your weight loss journey with healthy eating, start by swapping out processed refined carbohydrates for more natural foods. Depending on your level of commitment and your ability to handle change, you might be better off making one small change every other week rather than a whole bunch of changes simultaneously.
You’re making permanent, lasting changes in your diet and your life. Better to take it slowly and be successful than to try way too much at once and fail miserably.
