Top-7 Popular Misconceptions about the Weight Loss

At all times, humanity, especially its beautiful half, worried about the weight loss issues. Today, so much has been written and read about this, that, at times, you cannot figure out where the myth is, and where the truth is.

Many women consider themselves to be real experts in losing weight. As a rule, the knowledge that we have about the loss of excess weight, are obtained not from professional nutritionists, but from friends and acquaintances. In fact, most of the information can be misleading. Modern dietology has reconsidered views on many things. And meanwhile, delusions not only prevent you from losing weight but make any attempt to lose weight a real torture! In this article, you will find out more about misconceptions about losing weight.

Misconception number 1: “To lose weight, you need to eat a little”
Misconception number 2: “You mustn’t eat after 6 pm”
Misconception number 3. “Pasta is a terrible enemy of a figure”
Misconception number 4. “Fruits are the best products for weight loss”
Misconception number 5: “The strictest diets are the most effective”
Misconception number 6: Excess weight is a genetic problem
Misconception number 7: The result of combining several methods of weight loss significantly exceeds the use of one diet
The Plate Model: How to Plan Your Meals Correctly?
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Misconception number 1: “To lose weight, you need to eat a little”

This is, perhaps, the most common misconception among all others. Since childhood, we have developed a stereotype: a fat person always eats a lot, and one who has a subtlety, pecking like a bird. In fact, this is not so! A thin person can eat anything and in any quantity and stay at the same weight, and a person who has an excess weight eats not much but gains weight fast. What can be the reason of such unfair situation?

Here, the most important thing that has an impact on weight gain or loss is metabolism. If we eat little or rarely, the metabolism simply slows down: all metabolic processes proceed slowly, including the processes of fat-to-energy conversion. Therefore, according to experts like the ones in a medical weight loss clinic, you need to eat, even if you are on a diet. The main thing is to give preference to health food.

However, if you eat really much, it will be better if you cut your diet in quantitative terms, that is, start eating less, carefully analyzing it in terms of quality. You do not need to be a great specialist to immediately identify the harmful products:

various kinds of fast food,
fried,
fatty,
smoked,
pickles,
mayonnaise, various sauces, etc.

All this should be ruthlessly excluded from your diet and replaced with vegetables and fruits as you won’t gain weight eating them.

Important: However, even low-calorie foods should not be overeaten, so as not to stretch the stomach – if to eat less constantly, then to fill your stomach you will need a smaller amount of food.
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Misconception number 2: “You mustn’t eat after 6 pm”

Why you can’t eat after 6, where did this figure come from? There are at least two versions of this strict limitation.

Version 1: after 18.00, the average person experiences impaired physical activity. Many of us come home from work, sit down at the table, eagerly read the press or watch TV. Thus, loading the stomach with food after 6 pm, we do not have time to spend the energy potential. Undisplaced calories are known to be sent to the fat depot. It is from here that the beginning of obesity.
Version 2: after 18.00 (or rather, after 19.00) the digestive organs go into rest. The food consumed at a later time is simply not absorbed by the body and lies heavily in the stomach until the very morning. During this period, the processes of putrefaction begin, which most negatively affects the entire body.

However, not all people rest after 6 pm – many are working in this period. Some go to the gym or for a walk in the evening. There are also those who lead a nocturnal lifestyle, spending time in clubs and discos.

If you, like pupils of the nursery group of the kindergarten, go to bed at 20.30, then, of course, you shouldn’t eat in the evening. If you go to the bed closer to 23.00, then at 20.00 you can have a snack. But not sandwiches and fried potatoes, of course. Light vegetable salad or low-fat cottage cheese will not damage the figure.

Important: Remember the main rule: you may have a snack 2 hours before sleep. But the “fast” carbohydrates and even some fruits are really better not to eat after 18.00.
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Misconception number 3. “Pasta is a terrible enemy of a figure”

The fact is that ordinary pasta, made from wheat flour, nutritionists refer to fast carbohydrates and do not recommend to use it to those who want to lose weight. But there is a category of pasta, which you can still eat on a diet. Products from durum wheat, welded “al dente” (soft outside and elastic inside), long digested in the body and don’t become fat.

But one important nuance: pasta, even from hard wheat, will not help with losing weight if you eat it for breakfast, lunch and dinner, combining with different sauces. Any diet will be effective only when moderation in eating is observed. Carbonara paste, bolognese sauce, plain cream sauce are all high-calorie foods, which only professional athletes can afford, and even then only on holidays.

If it is a question of pasta with butter, cheese and sauce, then, of course, you should avoid it. However, pasta from durum wheat without any additives for breakfast is an excellent source of carbohydrates. This dish will energize for the whole day and will not affect your weight.

Moreover, nutritionists have found out that you can eat macaroni on a diet. However, pasta can be not only an additional part of the diet, but also its main component.

The basic requirements of pasta diet:

you can eat only pasta of solid wheat varieties;
Pasta can be eaten only with vegetables or empty;
during the day you can eat all vegetables (both raw and stewed) and fruits;
use of olive oil, seafood, chicken meat;
under an interdiction: butter, bakery products, smoked products, sausages, sauces, canned food, products in which sugar is present;
should limit the use of salt, fatty meat;
you need to drink at least 1 liter of water per day, and you can also drink green tea without sugar.

Diet on macaroni of solid wheat varieties is considered to be sparing and has a balanced diet, so there is no need to expect a quick effect from it.

Important: With strict compliance with all the above requirements, you can lose on such a diet from 2 kg to 5 kg (depending on the individual characteristics of the body).
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Misconception number 4. “Fruits are the best products for weight loss”

Various kinds of fruit diets have been popular for many years, but are they so effective? The fact is that they do not fit everyone. The fact is that fruits are obliged to their fruit, fructose – all the same sugar. You can eat fruits, of course, but within reasonable limits and in the morning.

There are some interesting facts about fruit and juices:

In natural juices, all the fructose that is in the solid fruit is dissolved in the liquid. At the same time, juices take up little space in the stomach: the person does not feel any satiety. Meanwhile, after you drink the juice, blood sugar rises and you want to eat even more.
Having eaten, for example, a couple of kilograms of apples on a fasting day, you are sure that you have only benefited your body. But in fact – you have had too many calories! Particularly caloric are bananas and grapes, so do not be surprised if you put on weight, eating only these fruits.
Another interesting fact: By constantly eating sweet fruit, you raise the blood glucose level. Because of this, the pancreas starts to work more actively. As a result, insulin is produced, which provokes a feeling of hunger- the worst enemy of diet.

Scientists insist on their opinion: for the human body, living in the middle band, it is much more useful that those fruits that grow nearby, that is, apples, and not pineapples with bananas. The fact is that the enzymes of gastrointestinal tract break down the habitual fruits much better. That’s why it is recommended to give preference to those fruits that are grown in your country.

Despite the fact that peaches and grapes contain a lot of glucose, fructose and sucrose, you do less harm to the figure eating them than cakes and sweets. By the way, people who are overweight are recommended to eat mainly apples, pears, citrus fruits and various berries. If your extra pounds are not calculated in tens, but in units, you can afford sweet fruit. Only without fanaticism!

Important: Remember that fruits in unreasonable amounts are also ballast substances that interfere with the full functioning of the gastrointestinal tract. If you have decided to lose weight with the help of fruit, at least do not eat them without stopping, and divide the entire amount into several receptions – for example, every 3 hours.
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Misconception number 5: “The strictest diets are the most effective”

Due to this misconception various mono diets are of incredible popularity. In fact, mono-foods deplete the body, they are very easy to break off, and even the lost kilograms return very quickly. It is best to lose weight on a balanced diet and gradually!

Mono diets offer for a while to limit your diet to one food product (less often with a minimal addition of several products). There are a lot of such diets:

watermelon,
grapefruit,
kefir,
rice,
buckwheat
and even chocolate diets.

Fast diets and fasting also promise in just 4-7 days getting rid of 5 to 10 kilograms. The result is achieved due to the fact that the body experiences a shock from a sharp change (depletion) of the diet, so it is recommended to keep to the mono diets and express diets not more often 2-3 times a year and preferably after consulting a specialist.

What is the harm of such diets? Our body needs a daily full-fledged set of proteins, fats, carbohydrates and vitamins. Mono diet, express diet and fasting deprive us of this, causing stress, decreased immunity, indigestion. The body, without getting the right substances from food, begins to literally “eat” itself: the condition of teeth, gums, hair and nails, and muscle tissue deteriorates.

Important: After a diet the organism reacts with appetite increase, therefore the lost kgs can return as easily as they left, moreover with an increase. Lovers of rapid weight loss must always remember that when you abuse following such diets you will do harm to your body.
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Misconception number 6: Excess weight is a genetic problem

A person whose parents faced the problem of obesity really has a tendency to excess weight. However, if he adheres to the “non-fatty” diet, he will be able to avoid the occurrence of excess fatty deposits.

All food products can be divided into three groups:

fatty,
intermediate
and non-fatty.

The category of fatty products includes: various oils, margarines, fatty meat, pelmeni, a variety of sand products, dairy products with a high fat content – all that can quickly lead to weight gain.

Non-fatty products are lean meat (poultry, rabbit), fish, dairy products with low fat content, potatoes, cereals, marshmallows, honey.

Important: A balanced diet, in which the basis of products from the second group, will help to avoid problems with excess weight, and not only to people with a genetic predisposition to excess weight.
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Misconception number 7: The result of combining several methods of weight loss significantly exceeds the use of one diet

This is a terribly dangerous delusion due to the following reasons:

First, a significant number of diets simply contradict each other.
Secondly, as a rule, combining different diets, people cannot sustain such a diet.

To benefit from some diet you should follow only one of them, avoiding fast and hungry diets, which harm your health and lead to the quick weight gain after the diet has finished. It is better to get a professional consultation before choosing the most suitable diet as each body has its peculiarities and it is much more effective to choose a diet taking into account your own characteristics.

Stick to only one method of losing weight to enjoy its benefits. However, it is recommended to combine such effective methods of losing weight as healthy nutrition and physical exercises. You can also combine treatments such as coolsculpting in Torrance, CA or tummy tuck in Chicago, IL for faster, more visible results.

Important: If you chose the most suitable method of losing weight, for example, a diet tailored to your personal needs, then you will be able to achieve success safely.
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The Plate Model: How to Plan Your Meals Correctly?

There is a an effective modern model plate based on the system of the correct weight loss.

The era of strict, unbearable diets has passed. It’s time for proper nutrition. And in order not to guess what to consider a varied and balanced diet, use the “plate model”.

Choose your food according to the following criteria:

Various (the diet should include bread, cereals, vegetables, fruits, dairy products, meat, fish, eggs and vegetable oil),
balanced (the food should be matched in the right proportions and provide us with energy, vitamins, minerals and fiber),
moderate (food should not contain more energy than we are able to spend),
tasty ( you should enjoy what you are eating)

It seems that we know everything about proper nutrition. But how to apply this knowledge in practice? How much should you eat vegetables, potatoes and pasta? What does a “slimming” portion of meat or fish look like? And is it possible to have a dessert after lunch?

The universal answer to all these questions is the “plate model” developed by Finnish dieticians, the effectiveness of which has been proven all over the world.

Benefits:

You do not need to count calories.
No need to think about the ratio of proteins, fats and carbohydrates.
The plate model is easy to use in various life situations and is great for different types of dishes.
In addition, it helps us to correctly calculate the size of a serving – with the proviso that we will not deceive ourselves and buy the largest dish in the store.

Following the model of a plate twice a day for a year you will lose weight by 26 kg.

The plate is filled in three stages.

Vegetables: Start with vegetables, which occupy at least half of the plate. Something to replace or exclude them is impossible – on the contrary, you can add to the “non-vegetable” part, thereby reducing the total caloric value of the dish. Important note: the abundant watering of oil or flavoring with fatty sauces should not be gifts of nature – otherwise they will turn from a light snack into a caloric bomb.
Garnish: Divide the other half of the plate mentally in half, and put a garnish on one quarter of it: potatoes (it does not apply to vegetables), rice, pasta, noodles, buckwheat, etc. How much will fit on a quarter of a plate? Approximately 120-150 g (2 potatoes or 3/4 cup cooked pasta, cereal, rice). That’s what a “weight-loss” garnish should weigh. Prepare it with a minimum amount of oil, pour low-fat, light sauces. And only in very rare cases, you can replace with a piece of rye or whole grain bread.
Second course: The second quarter of the plate should be filled with lean meat or fish, seafood, dishes from eggs, mushrooms or legumes. The main dish weighs 100-120 g – a piece of meat or fish will be the size of a deck of playing cards. All visible fat is cut off from them.

Recommendations of nutritionists

Following a model of the plate you should eat twice a day – at the lunchtime and in the evening – with an interval of not more than 4 hours. To the main dish, you can add a glass of low-fat milk or kefir, a slice of rye or whole wheat bread. And dessert is a glass of berries or fruit.

As for sweets: sweets and smoked products, they are acceptable. Candy, a pair of marshmallows without glaze, a slice (just a piece, not a piece) of sausages, eaten after the main course, will brighten up our life, and the speed of losing weight will be little affected.

Subsequently, you can consider the whole day in the form of a plate model and vary the amount of protein and vegetables in the main meals. For example, if there were few vegetables at lunch, it makes sense to add them for dinner. And if you eat a vegetable soup without meat in the morning, you will do it right if you have a bite of low-fat cottage cheese.

Approximate menu for one day:

7.00-9.00 First breakfast: cereal or muesli, a glass of berries or fruit, tea or coffee.
11.00-12.00 The second breakfast: skim curd with 1 tsp. honey.
14.00-15.00 Lunch on the model plates, a glass of 0.5% milk, 1% kefir or fruit jelly, 1 pastille or marshmallow.
16.00-17.00 Snack: a sandwich (a slice of whole grain bread with vegetables), fruit, tea or coffee.
19.00-21.00 Dinner on the model of the plate, a glass of low-fat yogurt.

Important: Before going to be you may have low-fat cottage cheese with vegetables, herbal or fruit tea.
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