The Top 10 Myths of Weight Loss

Are misconceptions keeping you from success?

We’re a country desperate for the answer to weight-loss success, and that desperation can make us gullible. We’re informed -- or misinformed -- by articles and broadcasts about eye-catching scientific studies and “breakthroughs” that are often lacking in scientific context. And we’re subjected to plenty of advertising from the diet industry, which can profit from our desperation and gullibility.

To help you sort fact from fiction, here are our top 10 myths of weight loss:

1. The best way to lose weight is with a very strict diet. Very restrictive diets tend to be scientifically unsound and, because they’re impossible to stay on, ineffective in the long run. Because it’s so easy to fall off the wagon, you’re likely to feel like a failure afterward. Then you might repeat the cycle, thinking you’re at fault when the diet is really the problem. The WebMD Weight Loss clinic program suggests a moderate approach that includes foods you like. We also provide enough calories to help you avoid the bingeing that comes from being famished.

2. My genes are to blame. Genetics play a role in your weight, but not as big a role as people think. James O. Hill, PhD, director of the Center for Human Nutrition at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, says genes don’t determine your weight so much as your body’s natural range of possible weights: “For example, you might be able to achieve any weight between 150 and 300 pounds.” So while you may never be able to get below 150 no matter what, you still have a wide range of possible weights. Where you are within that range is determined by your lifestyle: how much you eat and how much you exercise.

3. Carbohydrates are the enemy! Experts who talked with WebMD say proponents of protein diets are giving carbohydrates a bad rap. The bottom line in weight control is the number of calories that you eat, regardless of where they come from. Carbohydrates, from sources such as whole grains, legumes, fruits, and vegetables, provide energy and are relatively low in calories.

4. I don’t eat much and I exercise plenty, but I still can’t lose weight. You may be eating more than you know. People tend to underestimate portion sizes, and we all tend to absent-mindedly eat. The only way to really know what you’re eating is to keep up with your food journal, noting exactly what and how much you’re eating. Awareness is the first step to change, and one indicator of how successful people are at losing weight is whether they keep a journal.

5. All I need to do to lose weight is eat less fat. While experts generally agree a low-fat diet is important for your health, it isn’t enough. Many believe that one reason Americans kept gaining weight in the 1990s, despite the introduction of countless low-fat products, is that we thought we could eat limitless amounts of anything labeled “low-fat.” But low-fat versions of snacks often have as many calories as their traditional counterparts -- sometimes more. Many experts recommend a moderately low-fat diet. Fat helps keep you feeling full, and limiting it too much can lead to overeating other foods.

6. I can’t eat out if I’m trying to lose weight. Not so, says WebMD Weight Loss Clinic “Recipe Doctor” Elaine Magee: “When it comes to eating out and staying on our healthy eating track, it all comes down to choices, choices, choices.” We choose which restaurant or fast-food chain we go to. We choose which menu items to order. We choose what condiments and sauces and how much are added to our food items. And we choose whether we eat until we are ‘stuffed’ or comfortable.” To stay on track when you eat out:

• Select restaurants or fast-food outlets you know have healthful choices.
• Choose lighter menu options.
• Eat reasonable servings (not those super-sized portions many restaurants serve -- take half home in a doggy bag!)
• Use lower-calorie condiments such as mustard, ketchup, and reduced-fat salad dressing instead of mayonnaise, tartar sauce, and regular dressing.

7. I can lose weight by skipping meals. Theoretically, cutting out a meal each day would reduce the number of calories you’re eating. But that’s only in theory. Often, if you skip a meal during the day, you’ll end up eating more calories when you finally sit down to eat.

8. I’m nearly certain to gain back any weight I lose. While many people regain weight, it’s not a law of nature. “Many people do succeed in losing weight and keeping it off,” says Hill, who co-founded the National Weight Control Registry, a registry of over 4,000 people who have maintained a weight loss for at least a year. “These people have lost an average of 67 pounds and kept it off for an average of six years.” How do they do it? Typically, members of the registry exercise daily and eat a diet high in carbohydrates and low in fat.

9. It’s possible to spot-reduce my body’s “problem areas.” While you can tone the muscles in any part of the body that you exercise, you can’t control how your body distributes fat. For instance, no matter how diligently you do crunches, you can’t make fat disappear from your abdomen specifically. Instead, the weight loss from exercise will occur throughout your body.

10. It’s possible to lose weight without exercising or changing my diet! Whether it’s a pill, a cream, or a contraption, anything purported to have miraculous powers of weight loss is almost certainly bogus. “Losing weight and keeping it off is hard,” Hill says. “The people who are successful have to work at it and will likely have to continue working at it for the rest of their lives. The quick, easy fixes do not work.”

The truth -- as boring as it may be -- is simple: The only way to lose weight is to modify your diet and exercise so that you burn more calories than you eat. It’s not as easy as smearing on an ointment or clipping on an electric stimulation belt. But it works.

Published September 22, 2003.
Reviewed by Charlotte Grayson, MD.

SOURCE: WebMD Weight Loss Clinic article: “The Top 10 Myths of Weight Loss,” by R. Morgan Griffin, April 1, 2003.