There’s a lot of conflicting advice out there when it comes to fitness and nutrition, and it can be difficult to figure out what’s best to follow – especially if one of your main goals is weight loss.

Sifting through it all is not only overwhelming; when you’re leading a busy life you don’t have the time to be following programmes and methods that can slow down your progress or even cause harm.

It’s time we bust some of them! We’re addressing 10 common weight loss and dieting myths to empower you with the truth so you can make better informed choices on your journey to a healthier you.

1. MYTH: Calories are all that matters

Fact: You may have heard the weight loss equation of calories in vs. calories out.

• If you consume more calories than your body burns throughout the day, you will put on body fat.
• If you consume fewer calories than your body burns off, you will lose body fat.

This tends to get overcomplicated when people start to talk about metabolism, health conditions, hormones and many other things, but although those things can impact how many calories you burn, this equation is still what rings true overall for weight loss.

Your calorie intake comes from whatever food and drink you consume and it’s a measure of energy. 100 calories of apple is the same as 100 calories of cake or 100 calories of pasta, however, those foods aren’t the same nutritionally. If your goal is for deeper, sustainable health, you want to be looking at more than just the calorie content.

2. MYTH: You can only lose weight with intense exercise

Fact: Now you know about calorie intake, let’s talk calorie expenditure (how you use up the energy from your food and drink).

This happens through movement (both purposeful like a gym training session, and incidental like taking the stairs instead of an elevator), and your basal metabolic rate (BMR) which is the minimum amount of calories your body needs to survive.

This also happens through thermogenic foods and body growth, but we typically look at the other two for things we can control that make the most difference when it comes to weight loss.

To lose weight, we need to ‘spend’ more calories than we consume. Knowing this, it doesn’t matter whether you train short sessions or long, high intensity or low, you just need to burn more than you consume. High intensity exercise is one way to get there, but you can do any type of exercise as long as it fits the equation.

3. MYTH: You have to get it right all the time

Fact: Getting it right all the time is exhausting. Aiming for perfection is one of the key causes for diet and fitness routine burnout, so it’s important to allow some flexibility with what you’re doing. You’re a product of what you do consistently – not perfectly – so continue to work towards healthier habits that fit in with your lifestyle in a way that you can maintain it the majority of the time.

Nobody gets anywhere by giving up, and the only other option is to keep going! Small positive choices over time can cumulatively add up to big results.

4. MYTH: Carbs are the enemy

Fact: Carbohydrates often get a bad reputation. Our body is actually designed to want them as they’re our primary source of energy and help to fuel us for exercise and general movement. They are one of the main macronutrients, so keeping them in balance with the other macros should be our goal.

The problem is usually that people consume too much carbohydrate in general, but that doesn’t mean we should cut it out completely. Instead, we should focus on portion sizes and quality.

It’s important to note that not all carbs are created equal. Foods such as cookies, cakes, chocolates and lollies are great as treats, but are considered ‘empty’ nutritionally as they add calories to our diet without much health value. By including fruits, vegetables and wholefood carbohydrate sources in our diet, we get vitamins, minerals, and dietary fibre that helps keep our body healthy.

5. MYTH: You can spot-reduce body fat

Fact: While you can work towards toning specific muscles, you can’t target body fat in one particular area (and muscle lies underneath body fat so you may not see that muscle definition unless you lose the fat closer to the surface). Sorry, this means 100 crunches a day aren’t necessarily going to get you a six pack, even if you’re feeling it in the right place!

It’s like tipping water out of a bucket – it’s not possible to tip water out of one part of it. Instead, aim for nutrition and fitness activities that help with fat loss. A combination of cardiovascular and resistance exercise, alongside a balanced, sustainable healthy diet.

BONUS TIP: Cardio exercise if often peoples’ first go-to for weight loss – activities that make you huff and puff like running, walking, cycling, swimming. Resistance training helps build muscle that raises your metabolism so you’ll burn more calories even while you’re at rest!

6. MYTH: Low fat foods help you lose weight

Fact: Fat adds flavour to your food. When foods have no fat, you typically have to add flavour some other way to make it appealing and in the case of processed foods you’ll often find they do that through adding sugar.

Your body actually needs fat to survive as it helps with brain health plus it also helps keep you full, so it’s important to learn what foods contain healthier sources of fats. Learning how to read nutritional labels can also empower you to look past the marketing spiel on packaging and make better informed choices.

7. MYTH: Weight loss is about willpower

Fact: Willpower is overrated. If you use this as a key weight loss strategy, you’re basically testing yourself every day and will likely end up beating yourself up as a result when it inevitably doesn’t work. Why do that to yourself?

Use strategies that are more likely to set you up for success. For example, if you love chocolate but find yourself eating the whole block if you’ve got it in the house, you don’t have to exclude chocolate from your diet completely. Instead, keep a small bar available, look into substitutes with the same flavour, or if it’s still problematic you could use it as an occasional treat when you go out instead. No deprivation, just a workaround.

8. MYTH: Weight loss is all about fitness and nutrition

Fact: While these two things are super important for weight loss, stress management, rest and recovery are often overlooked and are a key component to losing weight. If your self-care isn’t prioritised it can lead to injury, overtraining, unwanted food cravings (when your body tries to fill your energy needs), higher likelihood of injury, burnout, not to mention stress hormones can contribute to body fat retention.

Aim for a balanced, holistic programme that caters for all these elements to get the best results and a great quality of life.

9. MYTH: Skipping meals helps you lose weight

Fact: Intermittent fasting is more likely to mess with your healthy eating habits than help you lose weight. It does work for some people, but for the vast majority it won’t as the benefits are typically offset by overeating later in the day to compensate.

Skipping meals can drive up your hunger hormones while decreasing your satisfaction hormones, so you can see the problem this might cause – especially if you are hoping to maintain long term results. Instead, aim to eat smaller portions throughout the day to keep your metabolism ticking over.

10. MYTH: You have to eat clean

Fact: The idea of only eating foods that are good for your body and no junk or processed foods sounds like a great starting point to help with weight loss. However, remember the weight loss equation? You don’t have to only eat clean foods to make that happen.

Overly restrictive diets tend to lead to yoyo dieting, food anxiety and other disordered eating behaviours, so it’s best to work towards an everything-in-moderation diet that is flexible, fits in with your lifestyle and your food preferences.

It’s important to note that our current culture has lauded clean eating to the point that a new eating disorder is being increasingly diagnosed – orthorexia – which is when clean eating becomes obsessive. No diet should make you feel panicked, distressed, anxious, worried, fixated or guilty.

To sum up

There are so many fad diets and fast fixes out there, but they will only do you a disservice if you want long term results. It’s important to separate fact from fiction and you don’t have time to waste on myths like the ones we’ve covered that don’t serve your goals.

Learning more about the truth behind these common misconceptions can help you make better informed decisions that align with your lifestyle, leading to sustainable weight loss and a healthier, more balanced life.

Remember, there’s a lot of value in keeping things simple and continuing to make steady progress over time.

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