What are the main pitfalls for a beginner?

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  • MizTerry
    MizTerry Posts: 3,763 Member
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    If you fall off the horse, get back on immediately, don't wait until the next day to "start anew." That's a big one.

    Adding chia seeds helped me. I add it to my yogurt so I don't feel hungry.

    Discipline. Get some.
  • dopeysmelly
    dopeysmelly Posts: 1,390 Member
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    Agree with most of what's written here, particularly on getting the food sorted out before you make any other changes.

    Some beginners don't look at this as something for the rest of the their lives and start by making changes they couldn't possibly live with for ever. There is no "end" - it just carries on.

    Also, some fail to understand that their body is unique. MFP and all the other "plans" out their (IIFYM etc.) are just estimates reflecting how much weight your body could lose under certain conditions but there's only one way to find out, and that's to just do it. Log everything accurately, weigh yourself regularly, stay consistent in your activity level and then at the end of a month or two, have a look and calculate how much you've lost. Only then, with your data in front of you, decide if you want to make any changes.

    Finally I would add I see so many people get hugely emotional and let it take over their lives. Logging becomes a 10-15 min daily activity after a while, and the rest are just habits. Life carries on and if you don't log a meal, if you miss a workout or eat "too much" on vacation, it doesn't make you a failure. Learning about nutrition, how my body responds to what I ask it to do and becoming healthier, as well as what happens when I go on a 1 week business trip and have to learn how to apply what I've learned under less controlled conditions has been a hugely enjoyable experience for me. I think some people start by thinking this won't be fun, so it isn't.
  • WinoGelato
    WinoGelato Posts: 13,454 Member
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    Really Pitfall isn't too difficult. Watch out for the fast-rolling logs. And I would beware of the scorpions in the tunnel. They'll change direction on you while you're jumping over them.

    atari-pitfall.jpg

    LOL love that game!
  • dennis_n
    dennis_n Posts: 29
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    What a great advice from everybody! I'm keeping a lot of notes!
  • ekz13
    ekz13 Posts: 725 Member
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    A reality check… (be honest with yourself and expectations)

    It doesn’t matter that your cousin’s uncle’s brother’s former roommate purchased these low gravity upside down ultraviolet Himalayan tomatoes that were hand massaged by Tibetan monks to remove the calories and that your xlarge pizza was made from it.. That pizza doesn’t have 50 cal for the whole pie..
  • 1Cor1510
    1Cor1510 Posts: 413 Member
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    Didn't read the other comments, but impatience is your biggest foe. Set a goal of days ie: I will do this for 100 days. After that, see how quickly you have been losing, instead of a goal of 1.5 lbs per week. Your weight will fluctuate. It takes a long period of time (month to month) to see it actually working, at least it did for me.

    This time around, I am only losing 1 lb every 10 days. But I'm not starving, I'm exercising, and I'm generally healthier. That's the ultimate goal IMHO.

    After the time frame you set, look back to where you began. Take progress pictures and measurements. You will see progress, and you will be glad that you are no longer where you started. THAT is motivation to go the next 100 days and so on...

    So yeah, patience was the key for me to make the change permanent. Good luck to you :drinker:
  • 1Cor1510
    1Cor1510 Posts: 413 Member
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    I'm passing by so I'm not sure what has been mentioned but here are a few of mine:

    1. Don't try to do too much too soon, especially with exercise. You may injure yourself even if you feel you are doing fine.

    2. Don't restrict yourself too much with food if you know you will burn out. If you don't feel comfortable at a certain calorie level after a week or two of getting used to it, losing the weight a little slower is not the end of the world. Increase your budget until it's challenging enough but not too hard.

    3. Don't eat back all the calories of exercise, the calories mentioned are your gross (exercise calories + calories your body burns just by living), you need to either find your net calories (exercise calories alone) or just log 50%-75% of the time you spent exercising. (don't double eat back, MFP is set to automatically add your exercise calories so all you need is to log some of your exercise time and the calories you are allowed will increase on their own)

    4. Invest in a measuring scale and measure every single bite. It's very easy to eat 200-500 extra calories a day just by overmeasuring with cups.

    5. Don't beat yourself up if you happen to have a less than perfect day, it will only lead to throwing the towel. Just pick yourself up and continue where you left off without feeling guilty. One bad day does not undo 10 good ones.

    6. Keep mental notes about the food you eat. What makes you full? What keeps you full? What provides a nice bang for your calorie buck? What foods is the majority of your calories coming from? If it happens to be a food that does not satisfy you and has a lot of calories, what can you do to manage smaller portions (like bulking it up with vegetables or only eating it after a meal..etc)?

    7. You do not need to restrict sugar/bread/carbs/gluten/dairy/processed food or anything else for that matter unless you have a medical issue or you feel you absolutely lose control around it. You can have anything and everything if it fits into your daily (or weekly) budget. Be reasonable, though. Eating 90% of your calories in cookies will not give you all the macro/ micronutrients your body needs. Try to add a healthy balance of nutrient rich foods.

    8. The scale is not always your friend. Sometimes it may seem like it's stuck on the same number when in reality there other other processes in the body that affect your weight like food that is still there, retaining water, constipation, extra sodium, a feast the day before.. etc. Don't let it discourage you if you don't see the numbers you want on some weeks. You may even see gain, but it will level out within 3-5 days.

    9. Don't let other people around you get to you when they say things like "should you be eating that?" or "have you tried the xx fad diet?" or "why aren't you eating that?"... be mentally prepared to stick to what is working for you.

    10. Do not be the grinch at parties and outings. Enjoy your time, have a bit of this and a bit of that, chat around, have a small drink.. Allow yourself to eat at maintenance on these days. This way even if you don't lose weight for a day, at least you don't gain it. Having a normal life on a diet makes you more likely to keep being mindful even after you lose all the weight.

    This is awesome :smile:
  • WalkingAlong
    WalkingAlong Posts: 4,926 Member
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    So much good advice here. I will add a couple based on your initial post.

    1- Your body isn't going to fight you. It doesn't want to be overweight. When the scale doesn't move at the pace you wanted, it's very, very likely not because you're undereating. It's a lot more likely to be lack of patience, expecting linear weight loss and believing your logging is perfect and your TDEE estimate is perfect (they're not).

    2- Exercise isn't going to do it. You have to fix the intake part. If you go from nothing to TONS of exercise or to intense exercise, you will see the scale plateau for a while. Take it easy. Take some walks. Do a couple strength workouts a week. Leave P90X and Insanity and the 10-mile runs for later on, when you've gotten the intake part licked.

    Good luck!
  • nicailyzee
    nicailyzee Posts: 183 Member
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    The most important reason beginners fail in my opinion is that they don't listen to any opinion but their own. They ask for advice but do not apply it. I also feel that having unrealistic expectations is a big down fall and not working a plan that changes their overall lifestyle. Nothing against what works for someone else but I found that I could not count points forever, or eat another diet bar, just saying~ This may not be the plan but working on something until you find out if it is is super important, I wish you the best in this journey!
  • goinalltheway
    goinalltheway Posts: 8 Member
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    The word DIET is harmful to our brain, we tend to think of the word DIET negatively because of its role in society. I don't believe in diet's I believe in changing eating habits, by incorporating more natural foods less processed or just simply eating in moderation. I also believe time change from 1980's to now is totally different. We've adapted to these lifestyles which our bodies aren't made for. American's have a real issue with perception, they always distort it in a negative blown up way. Back in 1900's when Coca-Cola came out a glass bottle was less than 10 oz's, and now a bottle is standard of 20 oz or more, depending on how much you consume. now if you think about it in calories, that's a huge difference. I believe that MFP is great for when your tracking your food, it gets you thinking about how much is really a healthy portion. Also when you look at physical activity back in the 1900's we didn't have as many machines to help us out as we do today, so we had more activity then and we do now.

    I believe that self-reflection is helpful when trying to figure out what works for your lifestyle. Also do research on what has or even hasn't worked for others, everyone's body is different so experimenting with different things will help you along your journey as well. Personally I use bodybuilding.com to look up advice for what's worked or what's the best way to do things, when you get into exercise, you'll want to do some weight lifting to help shred fat, you'll learn that muscle burns more calories than fat does.

    When in doubt remember to self reflect on why you want to be healthier, fitter, sexier, whatever your heart desires. It helps with motivation and keeping focused.
  • leggup
    leggup Posts: 2,942 Member
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    Everyone has given great advice thusfar.

    The biggest pitfall I have seen beginners face, causing them to give up after 2-4 weeks is expecting weight loss to be linear/constant/predictable. I highly recommend weighing frequently at first and then only view it from a 2-month perspective. In 2 months, a downward trend should be obvious. I weigh myself every day and only look at the 2 month report. This week I lost 0 lbs. If I looked at even the 1 month report, I might get disheartened.
  • Chevy_Quest
    Chevy_Quest Posts: 2,012 Member
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    Hi There... everyone has given great advice. I have an interesting view because I am

    5'7" male, 190 lbs, about 30% bf, trying to lose 30-40 lbs

    I am eating about 2200-2600 calories per day, Netting between 2000 and 2400 per day

    I have been losing about 1-2 lbs per month.

    I tried to go the eat 1200-1400 calories a few years ago and I bombed. Now I am enjoying the ride.

    Feel free to friend.:drinker:
  • _runnerbean_
    _runnerbean_ Posts: 640 Member
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    Starting a diet you can't stick with.

    Healthy eating is important, but unless you are willing to live of steamed veggies and chicken breast the rest of your life find a balance between what you want to eat and what is good for you to eat. Of course if you want to do the veggie thing forever have at it.

    I know major generalization but you get the point.

    I would start a "diet" by cutting out anything "bad" (sweets, breads, fatty stuff) and only eat the veggies and lean meats. The weight would fly off,.. and then when I would get tired of it and quit. Or reach my goal and quit. Than gain it back.

    Eat like you know you want to eat, just be more sensible about portions and ingredients. Don't deny yourself,..you'll just go nuts later.

    I agree with this. Forget the "diet" mentality of the past where you say I can't eat chocolate, I can't have a beer etc. If you really love chocolate then plan that into your daily intake. Find something that comes as small portions (if you might be tempted to overeat). Log it and make sure you stay within your daily calories. You won't feel so miserable if you eat a little of what you fancy and it is more realistic in the long term.

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