Diet Obstacles To Avoid: Why Is Losing Weight So Hard | Weight Loss slideshows | Well Being center

Carbohydrate Withdrawal Symptoms Can Fool You Into Thinking You're Hungrier Than You Are

A reduced-carbohydrate diet can be one of the most effective ways to lose weight there is. But it can also be difficult to get used to. If you're used to the heady rush of a big pile of glucose crashing into your bloodstream after every meal, the pedestrian delights of merely eating enough can be strange. You might also find negative hormonal effects from a reduced carbohydrate diet, since studies indicate that they can lead to reduced testosterone activity. Using intense exercise along with your reduced-carbohydrate diet is the best way to counteract this. Carbohydrate withdrawal symptoms themselves will fade with time, as your body becomes more sensitive to insulin and your metabolism stabilizes.

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Photo courtesy of Brian Ambrozy by Flickr : www.flickr.com/photos/icrontic/6330172401/
www.webmd.com/diet/features/6-weight-loss-obstacles-to-avoid
http://www.prevention.com/weight-loss/weight-loss-tips/14-most-common-diet-obstacles
http://www.diet.com/podcasts/89/Overcoming+5+Common+Diet+Obstacles

Finding it Hard to Break Old Habits Can Slow You Down

Sometimes our old habits can be destructive of our new goals. If you have food habits that you find hard to break, that can stand in the way of your weight loss goals. When something's a habit we're often not consciously aware of it and that makes it harder to change it. That's often true of what we have for breakfast, or what we rely on for snacks. Most of us have a few 'go-to' recipes we'll reach for when we need to get something on the table fast - but how well do those old standbys compare to your diet goals?

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Overloading on Fatty Foods Can Stymie Your Weight Loss Progress

While it isn't fat that causes you to gain body fat, fat is extremely calorie dense. Of the three macronutrients fat is far and away the most calorie dense and additionally is by far the least thermogenic, meaning that it doesn't heat the body as it's digested and therefore more of its calories are delivered into the bloodstream. Fatty foods can be so calorie dense that they can undercut your efforts to cut out sufficient calories to lose body fat, though they're not the only culprit - or the sneakiest. For that, look to sodas that can contain as much as seven teaspoons of sugar per ordinary-sized can, or 'coffees' loaded down with froth and sugar that can contain 300 or more calories. If you're finding it hard to lose weight maybe some calories are 'sneaking in' this way.

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Cutting Too Many Calories Crashes Your Metabolism

Calories in minus calories used = body fat. Get that first number down and you'll lose weight. Right? Well, mostly, but not quite all the way. You need to eat enough calories to keep your basic metabolism ticking over; if you drop below 1200-1500 calories a day your metabolism slows down radically and it becomes even more difficult to lose weight. Drop calorie intake further in a determined attempt to lose weight and your metabolic rate will slow even further, spelling bad news for your organs and general health and dooming your weight loss hopes. Use exercise and sufficient calories - again, never less than 1200-1500 a day - to support a metabolism that can burn body fat.

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Skipping Meals Makes You Too Hungry And Wrecks Your Metabolism

Slipping meals leaves a 'trough' in your energy throughout the day. When you miss a meal, you're hungry when you're on the move, away from your planned meals and approved foods. That means you're more likely to eat junk from takeout stalls or chocolate bars from vending machines, and that's another source of metabolically destructive antinutrients and sneaky calories. Keep a couple of emergency meal substitutes around the house - a pot of yoghurt eaten on the move can do a better job of replacing breakfast than a coffee shop muffin, or worse yet, nothing at all. And if you have the self discipline to just skip a meal entirely, don't do it on purpose or any more often than you have to; missed meals drop your daily caloric intake, slowing your metabolism and stymying your weight loss progress.

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The More You Cut Fat From Your Diet, The More Hungry You'll Be

Eating a low-carbohydrate diet is effective as a weight loss tool because protein and fat are absorbed far more slowly and often found together in the same low-carb foods, like meat and fish. While it seems logical to think that you want to lose body fat, so you shouldn't eat fat, it actually isn't fat that makes you fat. Fat can be a valuable component of a weight loss diet, helping to keep you feeling full and providing a slow-release energy source that doesn't cause blood sugar spikes and troughs. Additionally, when you choose the low-fat 'healthy option' at the supermarket, you're often choosing the high-salt, high sugar option too.

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Low-Fat Sweets Often Aren't Really the Healthy Option

Low fat sweets are marketed as a 'healthy alternative,' but the reality is that they are often higher in salt, flavorings and other undesirable ingredients than their higher-fat counterparts. Past a certain point, you simply can't have your cake and eat it too. It's usually better to just have the normal cake, sweets or desserts in small portions, less often. Think of it this way: they're a treat, not a food group. Additionally, sugar and fat free sweets may not contain any sugar or fat but they do still trigger the brain centers that associate these ingredients with reward, and they keep you in the sweet-eating habit.

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Family Mealtimes Can Play Havoc With Your Diet Goals

Family mealtimes can be a challenge for dieters. If you're not the one in charge of what the family is eating, you can find yourself obliged to eat something that takes you further away from your goals rather than towards them. You can also find yourself obliged to make compromises with people who have different reasons for choosing the foods they do and who don't share your goals. For the majority of people, there's a simple rule of thumb here: you can have as much lean meat and non-starchy vegetables as you like. Take small portions of starchy vegetables or skp them altogether to bring the caloric content of your meal plummeting down without inconveniencing your family.

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Dining Out At Restaurants Makes it Hard To Stick To Nutrition Plans

Restaurant food is made to be as delicious as possible. French restaurants cook everything in butter and cream, and sometimes wine too. Indian restaurants cook everything in ghee, butter with its proteins removed by a special cooing process. The aim is an agreeable dining experience, not a meal in tune with a dieter's weight loss goals. So how to get through it? Watch what you drink; drinks can contain a lot of calories, especially alcoholic drinks. Where possible, order something without a sauce, since it's then sauce that will contain the majority of the food's extra calories. And stick to the meat and veg rule: you can have as much lean meat and non-starchy vegetables as you like, since these foods are very hard to overeat.

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A Freezer Full of Convenience Foods Is A Barrier to Dieting Success

Too much convenience food awaiting your convenience is a surefire way to kill your weight loss goals stone dead. Give it away to someone who will want it and use the space for stews, soups and stock, frozen leftovers from healthy meals that you can microwave when you're in a hurry and other healthy foods that fit in with your weight loss goals. Especially, don't leave chocolates, ice cream portions and other tempting snacks in the freezer. Give them to someone you know who isn't dieting and fill the space with snacks that will lead you toward your goals instead of away from them.