3 stupid ways you’re accidentally sabotaging your weight loss results
I remember when I was on my weight loss journey, I would work my butt off all week eating well and going to the gym and I was rewarded every Friday when I stepped on that scale. It would show me the number I wanted to see. But then the weekend would hit and when I got back on the scale on Monday it would show me having gained weight. I would get frustrated be really good about what I ate and increase my time in the gym. On Friday, I’d be down again. But then Monday would roll back around and I was up again.
Living in this cycle was driving me insane. It took me a long time to become aware of the stupid mistakes I was making that caused this vicious cycle. But once I realized that these tiny, impulse decisions were not only messing with my weight loss progress, but my mindset around healthy living I knew I needed to give them up asap.
If you feel like you’re stuck on the hamster wheel of weight loss, then take a look at these habits and see if you’re accidentally sabotaging your weight loss results too.
“Cheating” on the weekends
First, I need you to know that I hate the phrase “cheat meals.” It drives me insane! But I know that when I was following restrictive diets I wanted to cheat on them too!
I would be such a good girl, drinking my shakes during the week but when the weekend hit I wanted real food! So I’d have a “cheat meal,” or two, or four… It was the weekend, right?
But that mentality of eating well during the week, then letting loose on the weekends created a lot of resistance in my body and my mind. And it’s going to keep you stuck too! You’re going to be gaining and losing the same 2-3 pounds if you “cheat” on the weekends.
If you’re doing a diet that you need to cheat on to survive, then mama, you’re not going to be able to sustain it! Your body (and mind) are craving consistency. Your body wants to know where its next meal is going to come from. Until it knows that you’re going to give it the energy it needs consistently, it’s going to keep storing fat.
Instead of cheating on the weekends, you need food flexibility throughout the week. You need the freedom to eat good food and even a treat every day. You also need to understand how much food you need to maintain or lose weight, depending on your goals.
That’s what I teach in my Macros Made Easy program. Every mama gets unique calorie and macro goals that fit her needs. Then we work together to find foods and portion sizes that will help her hit those goals while keeping her sanity.
I never tell my clients that they can’t have a certain food. Our first goal is to try and hit our macro goals, but we also learn how to enjoy celebrations, holidays and vacations without feeling like we have to “cheat.”
When you align your weight loss goals with a program that looks at your individual needs and the foods you like you eat it becomes so much easier to “stick to the program” even on the weekends!
A bite here and there
If you’re a busy mama who feels like she doesn’t have time to stop and eat a real meal, then this is probably the culprit behind why you can’t lose weight.
I remember back in the day when I had three littles running around it felt impossible to keep them fed, happy and not fighting. Making myself a real meal seemed laughable. So I would have a bite of their cold, leftover mac and cheese. I’d pop a chicken nugget in my mouth as I plated up their food. And I’d sip my re-heated coffee in between the chaos.
When we aren’t giving our bodies the nutrition it needs, it uses what it can and stores the rest as fat. And when you pair that with chronic undereating, your body holds on to everything!!
Instead of trying to survive off of a bite of food here and there, you need to prioritize your nutrition!
And the first step is making sure you’re getting enough protein. Aside, from a tiny bit of chicken in that nugget, there wasn’t a lot of protein in that scenario I described. And your body is probably craving protein!
Protein is literally the building block of life. It’s used to create cells! We need to make sure we get enough of it! Plus, as busy mamas, protein will keep us fuller longer, so if you don’t have time for six meals a day, a solid serving of protein at each meal or snack will keep you going without having to spend all day eating!
The standard protein goal is .8-1 gram of protein for every pound of body weight. So, if you weigh 150 lbs, you’d want to eat 120-150 grams of protein a day. However, if you’re not eating a lot of protein right now, don’t jump to 1 gram per body pound right away. You’ll hate me for that. Instead, slowly work your way up to that goal. If you need help understanding how much to eat, then let’s chat! I can help you figure it out.
Not getting enough sleep
Mama, I know that a lot of times we wear our lack of sleep as a badge of honor, a way to show the world that we can do it all, but sleep is so important. And it’s not just important to your weight loss - it’s crucial to your long-term health.
While you sleep your body is in repair mode. When you sleep your body works on all of these:
Repairing and growing new tissue and muscle
Restoring energy levels
Balancing hormones
Rids the body of toxins
Retains information in the brain
Boosts immune system
The hormones leptin and ghrelin which are responsible for your full and hunger cues are greatly affected by your sleep. When these hormones don’t get balanced you feel hungrier and are more likely to give in to cravings and overeat.
And the worst part is that mamas rarely get the recommended 8-9 hours of sleep that is required for our bodies to perform all these tasks. Most mamas, depending on the age of their kids, are getting maybe 6-7 hours and that’s not including mamas of newborns who get closer to 3.25 hours of sleep.
If you want to improve your overall health and lose weight then you need to re-prioritize sleep.
I know it’s not exciting or fun to go to bed early, but mama, it will make your life so much better! Start by deciding when you need to wake up in the morning and count backward 7-9 hours to determine when you need to go to bed.
Then create a bedtime routine that will help you wind down and relax so that you can get the sleep your body is craving! I have a free download to help you set up a successful routine in my free Facebook group, Busy Mom Simple Nutrition. Head over there and join the group so you can get the freebie!
Mama, if you’re tired of riding the scale roller coaster; if you’re tired of restricting all week and binging on the weekends; if you’re starving and need real food; or if you’re exhausted and can’t keep going like this, then let’s talk.
I help busy mamas like you lose weight and put themselves first without feeling guilty for it. Schedule a free discovery call today to learn how you can have all of this!
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