But why do most people believe in them? Because it’s convincing and it sounds true to our ears especially if it were uttered from the mouth of a very influencing person. This is the nature of the human condition.

Before you plan on losing weight you have to know the truth about weight loss. And by truth we mean the facts. Repetition of a word or an idea in your mind does not make it the true so better stop convincing yourself. Know what the weight loss myths are before you fall for them.

To help you distinguish one from the other, here is a short compilation of common weight loss myths.

Myth: Fasting is the best way that yields results – Yes, probably. But this is just short term. You can’t just go cold turkey. If you stop eating right there and then or if you decide to skip meals as a means of losing weight then think again. Fasting makes you even hungrier thus you crave more food. You may eat twice daily or once a day but the volume, the amount that you eat will be doubled or tripled. It is instinct.

Have you noticed that when you don’t eat lunch because you were too busy doing something, the minute you finished your work you start to feel the hunger and you eat all these food to satisfy yourself? When you deprive your body of the food that it is used to consuming then tendency is you eat twice as much the next meal.

Myth: Eliminate Carbohydrates to lose weight – This is one of the weight loss myths that are commonly mistaken as the truth. What you hear is that carbohydrates make you fat or help contribute to making you fat. This is not entirely true. Your body needs carbohydrates also. When broken down, these carbohydrates are converted into energy. And you need that energy. Just remember to keep things in moderation.

Myth: Never Eat Sweets – Speaking of moderation, the next myth that we are going to talk about involves sweets. Most people would say that you should avoid sweets completely. However, truth is you really don’t have to deprive yourself once in a while. Just keep things in moderation. You want to feel satisfied not only physically but also emotionally. It also keeps you motivated when you know that you have a reward for yourself for a job well done. Every couple of days should be fine.

The ideal time to eat sweets would be after a workout. Your body metabolizes that simple sugar and doesn’t store the calories. A good post workout meal would be a few gummy worms and a protein shake.

Myth: Eating Less Means You Don’t Have to Exercise – You don’t have to exercise as long as you reduce the amount of food that you eat. This is not true either. Did you know that exercise helps in your metabolism? When you exercise you develop muscles and shed those extra fats that you have. Not only will you look good but you’ll also feel healthier as well.

It is very important that you know and learn how to distinguish facts from myths. Equip yourself with the knowledge of what is the truth. These weight loss myths should help you get started. Since you already know that these are just myths then you can start planning or altering that plan of yours.

If you’re not a nutritionist, it can be tough to tell what is healthy for you and what is not. But there are some hard and fast rules you can apply to your life today to generally improve your overall healthy diet.

Cut the soda and juice – Soda is a diet killer. There are about 40 grams of sugar per one 12oz can of soda. You could lose 1-4 lbs a month alone if you cut this out of your diet. Most juices aren’t any healthier. Check the nutrition labels and you’ll see their sugar levels are on par with sodas.

Replace sodas and juices with ice cold water. It might be hard to get used to at first, but eventually you won’t be able to go back to soda and juices knowing how bad they are for you! You’ll actually start to enjoy the taste of food more.

Turn Chips in Pretzels – If you’re a potato chip eater, replace them with pretzels. One serving of chips has 60 calories more than pretzels, and 10 times more fat grams. This can help you lose half a pound this month. That said, pretzels are incredibly high in sodium. If you switched that snack to baby carrots, expect to lose another half-pound and be a whole lot healthier!

Stop Eating Fast Food – It took years and years for laws to come into place that forced fast food restaurants to provide their nutritional information. There’s a reason for that: They don’t want you to know! The average menu at your fast food restaurant is full of fat and carbohydrates and very little nutrition The best solution is to stop all together, but if you absolutely have to have fast food, stick with their healthier options. Always go for a smaller size (value “pricing” is designed to get you to order more!) and cut out the soft drink (replace it with water).

Fixing Breakfast – You must always eat breakfast! Some people tend to think by skipping this very important meal, they are helping their diet. That’s not the case. Eating breakfast allows you to get more nutrition and energy throughout the day, while helping you avoid cravings for bigger meals had you avoided breakfast.

Aim for lower calorie breakfast choices like 1% milk, low fat cottage cheese (with fruit or all-fruit jelly), and healthier cereal (Kashi is an absolutely amazing brand of cereal!)

Skin the Fat – This goes for all the chicken lovers out there – Always have broiled or grilled chicken over the very unhealthy alternative: Fried chicken. Chicken skin is incredibly high in calories and fat – about 200 calories per average serving.