Keep your weight-loss vows

For many people, the New Year's resolution list is bound to include eating better, losing weight and exercising more. Unfortunately, studies suggest that most people end up breaking their diet resolutions, often by the end of February. As motivation wanes, it's easy to fall into patterns that throw you off track and prevent you from reaching your goal.

To help you stay motivated and stick to your resolutions this year, it's important to watch for -- and avoid -- common diet blunders. The following pitfalls can sabotage your healthy eating and weight loss efforts. How many do you recognize?

Unrealistic expectations

A classic mistake is having unrealistic goals. Tackling too many goals, or expecting immediate results, can lead to quitting before you even get started. Write down one or two realistic goals. Written goals provide focus and commitment to making changes to eating and exercise habits.

Not planning ahead

Not being organized is a sure-fire way to sabotage a healthy eating plan.

If you come home from work, tired and hungry, to an empty fridge, chances are you'll order in. Or graze your way through the evening. To eat healthy during a hectic work week, plan meals in advance, make time for grocery shopping and batch cook on the weekend.

Not tracking food intake

If you're determined to eat healthier this year, keep a food diary for the next four weeks. Writing down what you eat and how much you eat provides awareness, focus and motivation. It highlights the foods you are eating and the ones you are not. Tracking your intake will make you think twice about reaching for the office candy jar or eating a second helping at dinner. Assess your food journal daily to identify areas that need improvement.

Cutting calories drastically

A diet that's too low in calories is counterproductive to losing weight. With too little food -- or excessive exercise -- the body slows down its metabolism and burns fewer calories in an effort to conserve body fuel. A very low-calorie diet wipes out important nutrients, too. A healthy weight-loss diet should contain no fewer than 1,200 calories for women and 1,800 calories for men.

Skipping breakfast

Breakfast is a key ingredient in any healthy eating plan, especially one designed for weight loss. The U.S.-based National Weight Control Registry, an ongoing study tracking the eating habits of more than 5,000 people who have successfully lost weight and kept it off, reported that 78 per cent of participants eat breakfast every day of the week.

Eating breakfast helps to kick-start your metabolism and prevents you from getting too hungry before lunch. People who eat breakfast on a regular basis are more likely to have a structured eating plan throughout the day and are less likely to snack on empty-calorie foods.

Avoiding snacks

The no-snacking approach can leave you feeling hungrier at meals and more likely to overeat. Plan to eat every four to five hours to keep your blood sugar stable, your appetite in check, and your portion sizes down. Healthy snack choices include fruit and a small handful of nuts, a smoothie made with low-fat milk and fruit, or a small energy bar.

Not counting nibbles

It is easy to turn a blind eye to that piece of cheese you popped into your mouth when making the kids' lunches, or the repeated tastings when cooking dinner. But the scale keeps track of every calorie. Those mindless bites and sips can add up significantly -- to an entire meal if you're not careful. A small U.S. study revealed that people unable to lose weight on a 1,200-calorie diet were actually nibbling an additional 1,000 calories each day.

Use your food diary to identify mindless nibbling and plan strategies to prevent it. If you sample while you cook, chew sugarless gum or sip on a glass of vegetable juice. If leftovers tempt you, cook only the amount you plan to serve.

Forgetting to exercise

You can lose weight by dieting alone, but if you want to keep those pounds off, exercise is essential. The majority of participants in the National Weight Control Registry (91 per cent) say they exercise regularly to maintain their weight loss. Most combine walking with another type of planned exercise such as aerobics classes, biking or swimming. Regular exercise helps you stay trim by burning calories and increasing your metabolism. It also increases your motivation to eat a more healthful diet.

Dodging the scale

If weight loss tops your resolution list, stepping on the scale once a week helps measure your progress. Monitoring your progress provides motivation and impetus to keep on going.

However, avoid weighing in every day since normal daily fluctuations, mostly due to water weight, can be discouraging.

Data from The National Weight Control Registry indicate that frequent weight monitoring is a critical factor in maintaining weight loss.

Among study participants, 75 per cent say they weigh themselves at least once a week.

Frequent weighing provides an early warning system. It allows you to catch small increases in weight very quickly and take corrective action to prevent further weight gain.

Letting loose on weekends

A key to successful weight loss is consistency.

Among my clients, the most successful are those who stick to their plans during the week and on the weekend.

Research shows that people who don't give themselves a day or two off to cheat are 1.5 times more likely to keep unwanted pounds off. Once you start giving yourself a few breaks on the weekend, you're more likely to ease off on Friday and then Thursday.

Eventually, the breaks accumulate and show up on the bathroom scale.

Source:Leslie Beck, a Toronto-based dietitian at the Medcan Clinic