10 diet flubs — and how to fix them

By Liz Plosser

updated 6:22 p.m. ET March 14, 2008

Slimming down is somewhat like boating. You set your course toward a destination (your goal weight), propel yourself with the right fuel (diet and exercise) and end up on an island paradise (in a bikini!). But the tiniest leak in your ship could sink your efforts. We’ve uncovered 10 sneaky ways your workout, your work habits and even your clothing can undermine your diet, and we devised easy fixes for each. Spot what’s holding you back, try our tips and set off toward your ideal body. Then slip into that swimsuit and enjoy!

Diet flub #1: You grocery shop on the fly
Like your boss and karaoke night, some things simply don’t go well together. The supermarket and an empty stomach are similarly mismatched. Shopping when you’re hungry makes you more likely to fill your basket with junk.

Fix it: Skip the checkout line and go online. Dieters who shopped at Web-based groceries bought fewer high-fat foods, a study from the University of Connecticut at Storrs finds. “It makes it easier to stick to your list,” says Amelia Lake, Ph.D., a research fellow at the Human Nutrition Research Centre at Newcastle University in Newcastle Upon Tyne, England. (Go to Self.com/health for a balanced list.) If you shop in person, stick to the store’s perimeter (typically the produce and dairy areas) to avoid impulse buys.

Diet flub #2: You work late
Overtime may help you nab a fatter paycheck, but it could foil your efforts to downsize your figure. Women who worked 40-plus hours per week were more likely to gain weight during the year than those who clocked out earlier, a study in the International Journal of Obesity reports. Stress and fatigue may make desk jockeys more apt to eat fast food and less inclined to exercise. “Women’s bodies are wired to hang on to fat, especially in the abdomen, when they experience chronic stress,” says Kathleen Hall, Ph.D., founder of The Stress Institute in Atlanta.

Fix it: Take mood-lifting breaks. “Pinpoint when during the day you’re most likely to hit a slump,” Hall says. “Then engage in something playful or soothing during that time — doing so produces feel-good endorphins to battle stress.” Put on headphones and download a new song, or recap last night’s reality-TV antics with a friend. Physically active downtime is especially effective, Hall says; stretch, toss a foam ball with an officemate or pump out a set of biceps curls using a dumbbell stashed under your desk.

Diet flub #3: You celebrate workouts with M&M’s
After a tough hour at the gym, do you (A) grab fresh fruit, (B) feel too great to eat or (C) reward yourself with a huge dinner (“I’ll have the Fiesta Nachos, please!”)? If you answered C, you’re not alone. Women ate about 120 more calories following intense exercise than after a lighter workout that burned the same calories, a study from the University of Ottawa reveals. The splurge may feel justified because the workout seemed so difficult.

Fix it: Stow a healthy snack in your gym bag so you don’t overdo your next meal. Mix ¼ cup of dried cranberries with 2 tablespoons of unshelled sunflower seeds in a resealable plastic bag. The mix packs protein and carbs to satisfy your hunger, and cranberries contain antioxidants that help quell postworkout inflammation, says Leslie Bonci, R.D., director of sports medicine nutrition at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.

Diet flub #4: You don’t ever count calories
You may think you’re vigilant about monitoring portions, but mindless bites can equal hundreds of unaccounted-for calories.

Fix it: If dieting were a poker game, logging your food intake would be your ace in the hole. But few women have the discipline (or the time) to record every morsel. Fortunately, simply thinking about your most recent meal can keep overeating in check, a study from the University of Birmingham in England suggests. When women were asked to write down what they had for lunch before they were offered cookies later in the day, they ate fewer treats than those who weren’t asked to remember their meal. “Recalling what you ate may remind you of how filling that food was,” says lead researcher Suzanne Higgs, Ph.D.

Diet flub #5: You’re an e-mail addict
The number of calories you burn e-mailing a coworker? Five. The number it takes to walk over to her? Eleven. Multiply that by how often this scenario plays out in a week (roughly a bazillion), and you see how tech squelches your activity level.

Fix it: Slip movement into your entire day, not only your gym time. Stand up when you’re talking on the phone, and deliver at least five messages a day in person. You can torch about 100 calories daily this way, says James Levine, M.D., an endocrinologist at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. That’s enough to burn off nearly a pound a month!

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