7 Worst Fat Burning Mistakes

So many fitness enthusiasts tell the same story. They work out for hours in the gym and yet nothing happens to their body shape, it stays the same. There could be any number of possible explanations for that, but here are 7 of the worst fat burning mistakes that you should avoid.

1. Skipping breakfast or food

You wouldn’t drive a car without petrol in so why fling yourself into an hour of cardio without having had breakfast or something to eat ? The body needs fuel to function efficiently. If you don’t get something into your system before you work out, your workout just won’t be as good.

For some people, skipping breakfast can cause them to be more hungry and therefore eat more at lunch in order to compensate for the breakfast that was skipped, so ideally if you can eat when you rise in the morning then do so. Even if you don't have time to eat breakfast first thing you could at least try and eat something convenient like a banana when on the move, such as during your morning commute.

2. Sticking to the same cardio workout

An extremely wise old owl came up with the phrase; ‘Do what you’ve always done and you’ll get what you’ve always got’. The same is true of exercise. If you are one of those people who complain about the amount of exercise they do and the lack of change to your weight/body shape, it could be because you’re doing the wrong workout. So ditch the hours of the same cardio in favour of a mix of workouts, which could include cardio, exercise classes and resistance training.

You’ll be amazed at the difference just making a change like that can have. You’ll be mentally refreshed and your body will instantly be tested by new challenges.

3. Ignoring resistance or weight training

So many people, especially women, shy away from weight training because of a pre-conceived notion that they will gain weight and muscle bulk. But the reality is that nothing burns more fat more efficiently than weight and resistance training. Because you are using so many muscles at the same time in conjunction with a variety of exercises, your body has to work extra hard to deliver oxygen to all of those muscles. That means you burn calories for fun both during and after the workout.

Your metabolism will also get a kick in the behind as a result and the arrival of extra muscle tissue will also make your body produce more organelles, which also burn fat. Basically it’s win win on the fat burning stakes, which means you need to rush out and buy a kettlebell immediately!

4. Just doing the same exercises in isolation

This leads nicely into the next point which is about doing the same specific exercise over and over. Weight training uses tons of different muscles at the same time, which is why it’s so effective. But you can’t expect to get muscular arms or a six pack just by doing one exercise over and over again. To get arms to die for you need to be doing a variety of different weights from bicep curls to bench presses.

The same is true of a six pack. Doing 50 sit ups a day will not give you a ripped stomach sadly because the muscles you use doing that exercise will get used to them. If however, you do a variety of things from press ups, to lunges, planks, crunches and kettlebell swings, you can say hello washboard.

5. Lifestyle overhaul

If you are launching yourself at a fat busting programme remember this has to come hand in hand with a healthy eating plan  and a sensible lifestyle. You need to be sleeping, eating and thinking properly about your exercise and weight loss plan. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that three intense workouts a week will do the trick and that the weight will just fall off, because it won’t, especially if you’re living on a diet of chocolate, crisps and fizzy drinks.

Cut out all the things that are bad for you and cut back on high intake of carbohydrates and protein. But don’t cut them out altogether. A little bit of everything in moderation is fine, but keep an eye on what you’re eating and drinking, get lots of sleep and you will find you have more energy than you know what to do with. That excess energy can be channelled into your many and varied workouts and the weight and fat will fly off.

6. You’re skipping social media

If you haven’t taken part in the social revolution and don’t have a clue what a hashtag is, you’re making a fat burning mistake. According to scientists at the University of South Carolina’s Arnold School of Public Health, Twitter can help us all shed pounds. The lead researcher from the study, Brie Turner-McGrievy, said that: "The results show that those who regularly utilised Twitter as part of a mobile weight loss program lost more weight”.

The study, which was published in Translational Behavioural Medicine, found that those participants that were already on a weight loss programme and who used Twitter to receive informational and emotional support, lost more than those participants that did not use Twitter. In fact, for every 10 health related tweets sent the participants on average lost 0.5 per cent more weight.

7. Not eating whole grain foods

If you’re avoiding eating foods like pasta and bread because you think it will prevent you from losing weight, you’re making a fat burning mistake. According to the Whole Grains Council, eating whole grain foods (such as bread and pasta made using whole wheat) can not only help you to reduce your risk of stroke, type 2 diabetes and heart disease, but they can also help you to lose weight.

A study published in the Public Health Nutrition found that of 119,829 participants those that ate more whole grains per day (at least three servings) had lower BMIs and less abdominal fat than those participants who ate less than three servings of whole grain foods per day. Similarly, researchers from the University of Rhode Island published a study in the Journal of The American Dietetic Association that found that eating whole grain foods encouraged weight loss in the 180 overweight adult participants.