Common Dieting Mindset Mistakes

Despite the plethora of weight loss information available, these common dieting mindset mistakes are being made over and over every day. I'm not talking about little slipups where you stole a french fry off of hubbies plate, but big mindset mistakes that distract you from your weight loss goals and accidentally lead to self-sabotage.

Understanding these errors can help you develop the attitude that will not only help you reach your goals but lead to permanent weight loss.

All Or Nothing Attitude

All or nothing dieters will often pick out a complicated diet that is almost impossible for them to maintain. Before beginning, they will search the kitchen for anything that does not fit the plan and throw it in the garbage.

Dieters with this mindset are planning to be the perfect dieter, and so they will be, for one day, three days, seven days, or even a couple of weeks. Then, inevitably, something happens which means they break a diet rule once, and immediately the whole thing is ruined in their eyes and the diet is over.

They go to the store and buy all the things that went into the garbage last week and proceed to gain back all the weight that they lost, as fast as possible.

If you are this kind of dieter you need to ask yourself some tough questions. Do you really want to lose weight permanently, or just lose a few pounds so that you can enjoy putting them back on again?

The way forward is to choose the right plan for you. This may mean the difference between a low-fat, whole-food, primal, gluten-free, allergen-free, clean keto, or low-carb lifestyle. Which plan is the right plan all depends on your specific biology. Make small changes to what you eat so that you have a slow but steady weight loss.

Attitude of Sacrifice

Another common mistake is viewing your diet as a period of sacrifice. You do not allow yourself the foods that you enjoy most while you are on your way to your target weight.

You may have a great diet plan and be very successful in losing weight, but what happens when you reach your goal?

You have not learned to eat 'bad foods' in moderation so as soon as you start, you are likely to lose control. It may better to include a little of everything in your diet and learn to enjoy it in small quantities.

Now, don't use this as an excuse to eat cake once a month. You must define what is ok for you and what is not. Some people are able to moderate intake and can eat off-plan here or there and then get right back on plan and succeed. Others fall right off the wagon face-first into the bakery if they even think about the taste of an off-plan food. Figure out what works for you and create your own plan.

Are you a moderator or an abstainer? You need to know this about yourself in order to put together a plan that you will be successful with.

Unrealistic Goals

Setting achievable goals is vital in any weight loss plan. Goals should be clear, realistic, and set out in writing.

While you probably do have an ideal weight in your mind, unless you are only very slightly overweight it is probably too distant to be useful. A more useful goal would be to lose two pounds per week for the first five weeks and then one pound per week after that.

Some weeks you will lose more and some less, some weeks you may even gain, but if you track your progress on a graph you will see that ups and downs are natural and do not stop you from progressing steadily toward your major goal.

If you have been making these mistakes, don't worry. The most important point in dieting, as in so many other things, is to move on. Learn from your failures as well as your successes and do not use a mistake as an excuse to give up.

The only way to achieve your goal permanently is to make a commitment to become a healthier person. Remember that eating normally includes eating more some days and fewer others. Learn to enjoy food in moderation and you have every chance of avoiding these common dieting mindset mistakes.