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You watch what you eat, but the weight isn't coming off. This can be one of the most frustrating situations to be in. However, taking a closer look at your diet, your habits, and your beliefs about food can help you figure out how you can improve your diet.

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    Consider whether you splurge after you exercise. If you work out and burn a lot of calories and then follow that by a reward or cheat food, you may be hurting your diet. Eating high-calorie foods after a workout can hurt your progress. You may not have burned as many calories as you think, so you end up eating more than you worked off.[1]

    • Instead of treating yourself with food, treat yourself in other ways. Buy yourself something extra, go out on the weekend, or let yourself do something fun for half an hour.

  2. 2

    Refrain from drinking any kind of soda. Sodas, diet or regular, can negatively affect your diet. If you are drinking regular sodas, you are flooding your body with sugar and high-fructose corn syrup, which can add pounds. A 20-ounce soda can have hundreds of calories and more than your daily sugar intake. Diet sodas have artificial sweeteners in them, which are chemicals that can trigger a hunger response and make you eat more.[2]

    • Instead of sodas or sugar-filled fruit juices, find alternatives. Try water, seltzer water, or unsweetened tea.
    • Staying hydrated by drinking water can help you feel full. Dehydration is often confused for hunger.

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  3. 3

    Figure out if you eat too fast. Eating fast may be hurting your diet. If you eat too fast, your brain doesn't have time to catch up and let you know that you are full and no longer hungry. After you finish a meal, you may still think you are hungry because your brain and stomach haven't had time to connect yet.[3]

    • Try slowing down and savoring your food. Eat each bite slowly and enjoy the food you are eating.

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    Take a look at your sleep patterns. Another reason your diet may not be working is because you are not getting enough sleep. Being tired makes people want to eat unhealthy foods. Not getting enough sleep can also release the hormone cortisol, which can hinder your weight loss.[4]

    • You should get seven to nine hours of sleep each night.[5]
    • Some activity trackers also keep track of your sleep.

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    Consider whether you stick to your diet on the weekends. Many people will eat healthy during the week, but they will not do the same thing on the weekend. This may be due to going out to eat, meeting up with family and friends, or relaxing and having a good time. Figure out if you are splurging and cheating too much on the weekends.[6]

    • If you go out to eat, you can make healthy choices and practice good portion control. Allow yourself a few tastes if you are at a party or an event, but don't let your weekly meeting with friends give you permission to get off track.

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    Make sure your goal is attainable. Not everyone can be pencil thin. Genetics influences the way our bodies are shaped and how much weight we carry. You may be genetically determined to have wider hips while someone else may have larger legs. The key is to find your healthy weight.[7]

    • Try to find a healthy, attainable goal for your body. Talk to your doctor about what is healthy for you.

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  1. 1

    Decide if you are eating enough. If you do not eat enough calories each day, your metabolism can slow down and make it difficult to lose weight. You should eat at least 1200 calories each day. If you are not eating this many calories, you cannot get all the nutrients you need and your metabolism will slow.[8]

    • Track your calories for a few days to see if you are eating enough. If you are not, increase how much you are eating.

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    Figure out if you've eliminated an entire food group. Many people believe that cutting carbs, fat, dairy, grains, or other food groups will help them lose weight. Generally, cutting an entire food group is not sustainable over the long term. Instead of cutting foods, try to eat a balanced diet that includes healthy choices in each food group.[9]

    • For example, add healthy fats through avocado and olive or coconut oil. Get healthy carbs through fruit or quinoa. Eat healthy dairy like low-fat cottage cheese and milk or Greek yogurt.

  3. 3

    Avoid skipping meals. Some people think skipping meals is a good way to lose weight. Not only does it lower the amount of calories you consume each day, but it confuses your body. If you skip a meal, your body goes into starvation mode because it thinks food is not a readily available option. Therefore, your body won't allow you to feel full because it's afraid it's going to starve.[10]

    • Skipping meals can lead to overeating later. Instead of skipping meals, eat balanced meals each day.

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  1. 1

    Track your food intake. Many people who track their food intake are more effective at losing weight than those who don't. You don't even have to do it each day. Tracking food a few times each week or month can help you stay on track and lose more weight.[11]

    • Tracking your food helps you get a realistic picture of how much you eat each day. To get an honest assessment, make sure you weigh or measure your food at first instead of eyeing portion sizes.
    • Knowing where your calories and nutrients come from can help you make better choices. Identify calorie dense or sugar heavy foods and think of alternatives for the future.
    • If you are following your diet diligently and getting exercise, then you should be losing weight. If it is not working, then take two weeks of your food diary to your doctor and ask for a referral to see a registered dietitian.

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    Enjoy your food. Many people think that dieting means that you can't eat anything that tastes good or that you enjoy. This is incorrect. The word diet can be a misnomer that should be replaced by "healthy eating." There are many ways to eat healthy, stick to your "diet," and enjoy your food. You just have to change your mindset and allow yourself to not look at all food as the enemy and enjoy what you eat.[12]

    • For example, we usually think of hamburgers as being unhealthy. Cook it with low fat, grass-fed, antibiotic and hormone free meat, like 90/10 or 93/7. Place a piece of cheddar on it with ketchup, lettuce, tomato, onions, and even mushrooms on a whole wheat bun. You can eat a healthy hamburger!
    • Cooking with spices and herbs can enhance the flavor of plain chicken breast. Consider making a sauce for the chicken with low-fat sour cream and herbs or tomatoes and cilantro.
    • Don't eat foods you don't like. If you hate Brussel sprouts, don't eat them. Eat green beans, broccoli, and kale instead. As long as you are eating healthy foods, it doesn't matter if you eliminate foods you hate.
    • Look online or buy cookbooks to learn how to cook tasty, fulfilling food in healthy ways so you don't lose flavor in favor of health.

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    Try not to let one slip up turn into an all-day slip up. Many people will cheat or have a diet slip up with one food and think the day is ruined. Because of this, they eat whatever they want all day, which accumulates significantly more calories than one slip up. If you have one cheat moment, get back to your diet the rest of the day.[13]

    • One cheat moment won't totally blow your diet. However, a day of splurging and eating unhealthy can hurt your diet.
    • Also, keep in mind that one cheat day won't totally destroy your diet. If you have a bad day, then learn from your mistakes and start back in the morning.

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    Weigh yourself frequently. Track your weight every day or every week by weighing yourself. You can also look for signs of weight loss, such as your clothes feeling looser.

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  • Make sure you are getting enough exercise. You should aim for at least 150 minutes of activity per week.

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