For many of us, fat loss is frustrating. You lose 5 kilos in a month, and suddenly you cannot seem to lose more weight even though you still go to the gym 6 days a week and keep a close eye on your caloric intake. If your fat loss process has hit a road block, you are probably making one or more of the top 5 fat loss mistakes.

‘Losing weight is not difficult’ – this statement has enraged many of us, especially those of us who are constantly battling being overweight and seem to be getting nowhere. If losing weight is so simple, why can’t we all be thin? We all know that eating right and exercising well is the key to lose weight, but even after we do that we cannot seem to shed the stubborn fat accumulated around our belly. The problem is that most of us are making a few mistakes when it comes to weight loss. So let us find out what are the 5 most common mistakes we all make in order to lose weight, which actually jeopardizes the weight loss process.

1.       Being Desperate And Not Thinking Of Long Term Achievements –

Yes, we understand you are desperate to fit in to those waist 30 jeans you had in college, but that cannot happen within a few weeks if you currently wear a size 34 jeans! Did you gain those extra 8 -10 kilos in 3 weeks? So, how can you expect to lose them in 3 weeks?

Your fat loss approach should leave you feeling fitter and stronger. In you feel weak, fatigued and sick all the time, your fat loss approach is not correct and is detrimental to your health. A better approach is to concentrate on your fitness levels and your strength. So focus on running a kilometer extra while doing cardio, lifting heavier weights during weight training, and doing a few extra reps during strength training exercises. If your diet is clean and well monitored, there is no reason why your fat loss process will not move forward as you put in more efforts at the gym. Don’t be obsessed with the destination, enjoy the journey and you’d be surprised at how soon you fit in to those jeans again!

2.       Workouts Don’t Have Enough Intensity –

Do you regularly walk on your treadmill while watching TV? And is that really your idea of losing weight? To lose weight, your workouts need more intensity. If the exercises you do are too easy for you, they are not intense enough. The idea is to challenge your body, and to not stay at the gym for hours at end doing low intensity exercises but to finish your workouts in 45 minutes and make them challenging enough.

If you have been using those 5 kilo plastic dumbbells for a long, it is time to graduate to some serious weights. Those dumbbells are ok for beginners, but once your muscles have developed some endurance and strength, please move to regular weights. You will get no benefits from doing many reps using those plastic dumbbells, as they just dot challenge your muscles at all and are nothing but a waste of your time.

To lose more weight, focus on compound exercises. Try deadlifts, squats, pushups and pull-ups and try and include a variety of weights in your weight training exercises. Use dumbbells, barbells and kettle bells instead of using more machines, as these condition your muscles much more.

3.       Your Workout Lacks Resistance Training –

There was a time that gym instructors recommended you spend 80% of your time doing cardio if you want to lose weight at the gym. The end result – manufacturers of cardio machines got richer while those looking to lose weight ended up burning fat cells and muscle mass.

The best approach to lose weight fass is to try strength training exercises. These could be exercises done with weight, or even exercises that use your own body weight. Strength training increases your metabolic rate which means you spend more calories throughout the day, not just at the gym. So don’t do slow cardio for 30 to 45 minutes – instead do cardio for 15 minutes and spend 15 to 30 minutes on strength training exercises.

4.       Changing Workout Programs Too Often –

Did you quit that last workout program you were on after 2 weeks because you found another super program that your friend recommended which shows results in just a week? If you often change your workout programs, how can you gauge the progress you make? Chances are, when you keep changing your workouts so often, you will make no improvements even after months of going to the gym. And then you blame the gym and the instructor for not being ‘right’ for you!

If you start on a workout program, you must do it for 4 weeks at least before you decide whether it is giving you the results you desired or not. In fact, pros suggest that a program must be followed for 3 months to derive the best effects from it! Don’t try and find a ‘perfect’ workout – any workout can be perfect for you if you keep your focus on progression.

5.       Lead A Lazy Lifestyle Outside The Gym –

You send an hour at the gym every day, but the remaining 23 hours of your day are spent being a couch potato? If that sounds like you, it is time to make some changes. Being lazy is the very reason you gained all that weight so until and unless you change your basic habits and make lifestyle alterations, you cannot expect just an hour spent at the gym to solve your problems. Be active – make changes. Eat a balanced diet and make sure you get enough activity through the day. You might not believe this, but you can spend as much as 2000 calories per day doing just basic jobs! So use the stairs at work, walk to the supermarket to get your groceries and walk your dog an extra round to get the maximum benefit from your hour spent at the gym. You need to spend an active lifestyle if you want to maximize your weight loss process.