don't make this mistake

One of the common mistakes many do when trying to lose weight is eating too little. Yes you do need to eat less to lose weight, but less doesn’t mean starvation. Less doesn’t mean eat as little as possible.

One of the common things I see when people are working out their calories to be in a calorie deficit is they’ll set a number, say their TDEE is 1900kcal so they aim for 1600kcal to lose weight, but then they’ll be eating 1000-1200kcal only thinking that it’ll make them lose weight faster.

Sure, no doubt eating 1000-1200kcal is gonna make you lose weight faster in the short term, but it’s also likely gonna make you gain it all back pretty quickly too.

Why?

Cos it’s unsustainable.

You’re unnecessarily eating too little. Eating too little means you’re dealing with a lot of hunger all the time and eventually it will just end up in a binge. If you worked out your calorie deficit to be 1600kcal, stick to 1600kcal. The goal is to eat as much as possible while in a calorie deficit, not try to win some kind of starvation contest.

It goes deeper too.

A common question I get is, “I still have 100-200kcal before I hit my limit but I’m not hungry. Should I still eat those calories?”

I think the question is are you truly not hungry or are you just afraid to eat more cos you think it’ll somehow mess up your progress? The fear of eating more and convincing yourself that you’re full and that you don’t want to eat anymore can work a few times, but in the end it’s gonna end up as a bounce back as well.

Why?

Cos you’re eating too little unnecessarily.

You’re playing mind games with yourself convincing yourself that you’re full when you’re not and over time you just have this hunger you can’t satiate and that’s when binges happen. You’re not full. You’re afraid to eat more. But not eating more to maximize your calories is actually what’s costing you your progress in your journey.

Losing weight is all about consistency and you have the highest chance to be consistent when you make the journey as “easy” as possible. Intensity gets you no where, it hurts your progress more than it helps.

Think of it like a marathon race.

If you’re running a marathon and decide from the start sprint full speed, sure it may seem like you’re winning for the first 2 minutes. After that you start to slow down cos you went too hard too fast and everyone starts to pass you and your chances of being last place becomes way higher than being first place.

It’s the same with a weight loss journey.

You wanna go at a pace you can keep up with for months and years, not a pace where you’ll quit in 1-2 weeks.

Eating too little will make you quit very quickly.

I know it’s way way easier said than done, but you gotta stop fearing food. Eat as much as possible while in a calorie deficit. That’s the quickest way to your weight loss goals.