There are actually diet rules out there that are meant to be broken? Yes, recently many dated diet guidelines and myths are up for speculation. You’ve probably heard all these silly rules before, but experts weigh-in on the worthiness of these supposed truisms – most of which won’t help you lose weight or make dieting any easier.
5 Diet Rules You Can Ignore:
- Eating at night will pile on the pounds. Look man, a banana is still 100 calories at 9pm as it was at 12pm. Stop thinking that you can’t eat after a certain time of night. The total calories you consume over a 24-hour period or over a week is what causes you to gain weight, and when you eat these calories doesn’t matter. A cool rule of thumb though is to stop eating about an hour to an hour and a half before you go to bed.
- Dieting with a buddy always makes weight loss easier. Yeah that sounds good and all and common goals may pay off but weight loss is a personal journey. Be there for motivation and accountability for your buddy but you have to do the work yourself in order to get the results. Don’t forget, the results you get are from the work you put in.
- Refusing food at a party or when visiting is rude. Turning down food that you know will blow your diet is socially acceptable. If something at a party is going to take you further away from your goals then don’t partake. If this makes you feel bad then don’t go to the party. This is why I coach the 90/10 Rule so you have the leisure to indulge at said events when you are invited without guilt of fear that you are “off” your plan.
- Skipping a meal every now and then will help you lose. Skipping a meal means you will be so hungry at the next meal that you are likely to overeat. This thinking puts people at a disadvantage because we actually underestimate how many calories we consume anyway. Don’t skip meals. If you are not hungry, cool but don’t skip because you think it is going to speed up the weight loss process.
- All calories are equal. This is somewhat true, however; you’ll get more nutrients from a 100-calorie apple than from a 100-calorie portion of white bread. Choose healthier items if you are losing weight, or controlling your hunger.
So now that you have gotten the real story on some diet myths you can tell your friends the real truth. In the end, nutrition doesn’t have to be boring or bland. As long as you are eating according to YOUR goals and following a few simple guidelines then you will meet your goals.