By Judy Weitzman

Are you planning to lose a few pounds for swimsuit season? There are lots of ways you can get de-railed. Here are ten of the most common mistakes we make on the way to our weight loss goals:

1. No Accountability: By reporting the food you track and reporting what you weigh to a friend or professional, you will ensure your success. In my experiences over the years, when clients avoid the scale, they gain weight. While losing weight, you should write down everything you eat daily and weigh-in once a week on a designated day.

2. No patience: Expecting to lose five pounds every week is not realistic, 1-2 lbs per week is the healthiest pace. Fast weight loss almost always comes back the minute you return to your old habits. Hit a plateau and not staying the course can also de-rail your efforts. You didn’t gain the weight overnight and you won’t lose it overnight – slow-and-steady wins the race.

3. Skipping Meals. Many studies have proven that people who skip breakfast weigh more than breakfast eaters. Your best bet is to eat six times a day so you are never starving. A healthy breakfast should consist of protein and fiber. For example, either have an egg with high fiber toast or Greek yogurt with high fiber cereal.

4. Too Many Liquid Calories. whether you are drinking alcohol, fancy coffees, juice or other high calorie drinks, be mindful. A recent study found that Americans get about 21% of their calories from beverages. Water is your best friend. Flat or sparkling. If you are not a big fan of water, add a splash of juice…..or add a lemon, lime or cucumber to give it some flavor.

5. Portion control: Resign the ‘Clean Plate Club’. In the past 25 years our portions have nearly doubled in size; always leave at least a third to half on your plate. No one will starve because you didn’t finish your meal. Promise. I recommend my clients measure their portions every Monday so they are more mindful when they serve themselves throughout the week.

6. Choosing Unhealthy Add-Ons. Do you think having a salad is the best choice when you are losing weight? Not always. Toppings like bacon, avocado, craisins, candied nuts, cheese, croutons etc, can make a healthy salad, a disaster. Keep it simple, and eat salads with lots of veggies. The more colors, the more nutrients. Forget about the fatty toppings…..or use them sparingly. Most importantly, limit the salad dressing, a tablespoon of regular dressing is 75-100 calories – use the fork method to minimize the amount you use.

7. Free food and drive-by snacks. This happens at Costco when they have samples at every turn, when your child does not finish what is on their plate, at cocktail parties when they are passing hors d’oeurves….the list goes on and on. Unless you are sitting with a plate in front of you and you have a fork or spoon in your hand, consider the food off limits. You know that cute utensil made up of your first finger and thumb? It just went into retirement.

Four random bites a day is 100 extra calories. In a month’s time, that’s nearly a pound of extra weight.  Each bite is about 25 cal, whether you are reaching for some nuts, tasting while cooking, picking while cleaning up…there are so many ways food sneak its way into your day. If you need to nosh, pick on veggies, they are practically calorie free. Drinking water or other sugar free drinks is another way to feel full without adding calories.

8. Taking the weekends off. 
When you are on maintenance, you can splurge more on the weekends, but to lose consistently you need to be diligent 24/7. For every lapse, you will set yourself back a week…..nothing feels as good as watching the scale go south, so minimize the treats and splurges till you can manage them after you reach your goal.

9. Not getting enough sleep. Be tired and not being hydrated can make you think your are hungry when you are not. Studies have proven that getting 7-8 hours of sleep per night will help you lose weight. If you are thinking snacks and it is after 9pm, you probably are not hungry. Instead of adding a few hundred calories to your day, simply go to bed!!!

10. Give up candy – no way!!! Chocolate is a major food group in my opinion. Rationing out a small portion to enjoy will keep you from binging or over doing candy or other sweets. The way my clients succeed at this is by taking a small portion, about 1-3 squares of your favorite chocolate (approx. 50-100 calories worth), preferably a high quality chocolate– then break into smaller pieces and eat it one piece at a time. To truly savor it, put a small piece in your mouth and suck on it (no biting or chewing ) till it disappears. It will last longer and you will be very satiated.