The 11 Worst Diet Tips to Follow

You Need More Willpower

Jackie London, MS, RD, CDN author of Dressing on the Side (and Other Diet Myths Debunked): 11 Science Based Ways to Eat More, Stress Less, and Feel Great About Your Body debunks this diet tip, saying, “In initial sessions with clients, I always find that one or all of these three reasons fuels overeating, or tricks people into believing that they have ‘no willpower,’ when really it’s got absolutely zero to do with anything!” These include not eating enough or any breakfast, skipping meals or snacks, and not being accountable for yourself.

Instead: Learn to manage these pitfalls. Eat a good breakfast combining protein, fat, and fiber-filled carbs, eat every 3-4 hours by utilizing healthy snacks, make yourself accountable, and utilize technology to help with meal timing and scheduling.  

Get Rid of the Yolk

“There’s nothing ‘bad’ about eating just the egg whites, but you’ll be missing out on several key nutrients if you do!” says registered dietitian, Natalie Rizzo, MS, RD, and author of The No-Brainer Nutrition Guide For Every Runner.  Rizzo explains that over 40 perent of an egg’s protein is found in the yolk, as well as fat-soluble vitamins, like Vitamin D, E, A and choline. The fat found in the yolk helps with the absorption of these important nutrients. Lastly, the yolk contains two antioxidants – lutein and zeaxanthin – which are believed to slow the progression of age-related macular degeneration, a disease that develops as you get older.

Instead: Rizzo recommends, “no matter which way you like to enjoy it, skip the egg whites and eat the entire egg!”

Cut the Sugar!

London says, “One of the biggest trends I’ve noticed among clients is that many assume they have a personal ‘problem’ with sugar, when actually, they’re doing one or all of these three things.”

First, consuming sugar from unlikely food sources without knowing that those foods contain sugar, like condiments and sauces. Second, attempting to Band-Aid a love of sugar with items that are just not going to cut it (like a banana when you want a donut) and subsequently eating way more than they need over the course of a day as a result of “avoiding sugar.” Lastly, not filling up enough on nutrient-dense foods at those meals to keep you satisfied enough to consciously eat real dessert without worry. 

Instead: Making a conscious decision to eat quality sugars is most important. London says, “For most of us, sugar adds up in our diets in ways that have much more to do with our lifestyle than they do with our making a conscious decision to have something sweet.”

Cut Out Pulses

“Many fad diets such as the keto diet suggest cutting out pulses—chickpeas, lentils, beans, and dried peas—because of their carbohydrate content,” says Amy Gorin, MS, RDN, a nutrition partner with USA Pulses. “But pulses are beneficial for you in many ways. They’re a good source of filling protein and an excellent source of fiber, which also helps to satiate you and can help keep your digestion healthy.” Pulses are also nutritious, and you can include small portions on a keto diet, according to Gorin.

For instance, a quarter cup of cooked black beans contains just 10 grams of carbs, which is definitely workable with the keto diet. “You might also see nutrition advice to avoid pulses because they contain anti-nutrients,” says Gorin. “These are natural plant compounds found in pulses that can actually help your health, as some function as antioxidants. You don’t need to worry about these because most anti-nutrients are inactivated by soaking or cooking—and many are found in foods that you wouldn’t eat raw.”

Instead: Make pulses part of your healthy eating plan and throw in some hummus, a three-bean chili or lentil soup.

Don’t Eat at Night

Anyone ever tell you not to eat after 7 or 8 p.m.? Eating at night can sabotage weight loss efforts if you already consumed all your needed calories. However, if you haven’t eaten enough during the day, or if you only have time to work out at night, you should be eating a pre- or post-workout meal or snack. Your meal or snack should be healthy and well balanced, as high fat foods (like fried food) can sabotage a good night’s sleep. “No matter how late you exercise, you need to be fueled,” says Dana Angelo White, MS, RD, ATC, certified athletic trainer and sports dietitian at Quinnipiac University in Hamden, CT and ambassador for F45 Training in Fairfield, CT. “If you haven’t eaten properly leading up to a workout, you risk lousy energy levels, poor performance, and worse case, burning muscle instead of building it. 

Instead: Take a look at what you eat throughout the day and make a judgment call. If you don’t eat enough during the day or exercise at night, eating in the evening may be for you. “It’s all about timing—making time for evening exercise might mean you shift meal times around,” says White. “Get some calories in before the workout and when you’re finished, recovery with a meal or snack that contains protein, healthy carbs and fluid.”

Cleanse to Trim Down

Fewer calories and taking diuretics and/or enemas for a week or more will lead to weight loss, but those pounds will climb right back up again. In addition, you won’t be learning how to change your long-term behaviors to healthy ones. It’s also a misconception that a cleanse will help rid or detox your body of chemicals and other “bad things” floating around in your body. Luckily, that’s the job of your liver and other organs in the body.

Instead: Opt for small healthy changes to your diet every week, to help you build lifelong healthy habits. It may take a little longer to lose weight, but the weight loss should be sustainable long-term.

Cut Out Grains

You may have gotten advice to cut out all grains, with assurance that you can get all the fiber you need from fruits and vegetables. However, according to Melissa Joy Dobbins MS, RDN, CDE, there are different types of fiber with various roles or functions. “Grains provide certain types of fiber that fruits and vegetables do not,” says Dobbins. “You need both whole grains and enriched grains to get the variety of nutrients including fiber, vitamins and minerals that each group provides.” Interestingly, Dobbins also explains that some nutrients, such as folic acid or iron, are found in higher amounts or are better absorbed in enriched grains than whole grains.  

Instead: You don’t have to avoid grains or only choose whole grains. Aim for three servings of whole grains per day, and also include a few servings of enriched grains, such as breads, cereals, and rice.

Cheat Once a Week

The definition of the word cheat is to violate the rules deliberately, to mislead, and to deprive by trickery. All these terms are negative—food, weight loss, and healthy eating should never be equated to trickery or deprivation. In addition, cheat days can lead to overindulging so much that you ruin all the hard work you’ve done throughout the week.

Instead: Instead of eating anything you want in one day, opt to eat a small indulgence once a day. For example, grab two small cookies or a slice of pie for dessert.

More Exercise Equals Weight Loss

Just because you hit the gym hard this week doesn’t mean you should be indulging in a fried chicken dinner with all the high fat sides that go along with it. Oftentimes the calories you take in after an indulgent meal is much more than the exercise you just did. Additionally, eating artery-clogging meals high in calories is no way to learn healthy eating habits, which should balance your exercise regimen.

Instead: Balance exercise with healthy meals and snacks throughout the day. If you are still hungry after a meal, have more lean protein, vegetables, or even whole grains.

Cut Out Fruit to Cut Down Carbs

With sugar being demonized, some are recommending to avoid fruit because it has sugar. The logic goes that sugar makes you fat and if fruit has sugar, then it will make you gain weight. Unfortunately, individual foods don’t make you fat. What matters is the quality and quantity of the food. Foods with added sugar like donuts and cookies have tons of added sugar and provide empty calories and little nutrition. A typical frosted donut can run about 280 calories, 15 grams of fat, 7 grams saturated fat, 40 grams of carbs, and 20 grams sugar. As an alternative, take one medium orange, which provides 69 calories, no fat or saturated fat, 17.6 grams of carbs, and 12 grams of sugar.

The major difference? Those 69 calories flavored with natural sugar also comes with 138 percent of the daily recommended amount of the antioxidant vitamin C, 12 percent the recommended amount of both folate and fiber, and lesser amounts of B-vitamins, potassium, and calcium.

Oranges also provide natural plant compounds, phytochemicals, that help fight and prevent disease. The 2015-2020 dietary guidelines for Americans recommends fruit be part of a balanced diet, and they do provide nutrients that most Americans don’t get enough of, including potassium and fiber. Additionally, 2011 study published in Metabolism examined the effects two groups, one which decreased all sugars, including fruit while a second group decreased all sugar, including natural sugar in fruit. The group that ate less fruit and added sugar lost an average of 6.5 pounds, while the group who ate less added sugar but still consumed fruit lost an average of nine. 

Fruit can and should be part of a healthy, well-balanced muscle-building diet so reap all the benefits of the nutrition fruit has to offer.

Protein Shakes Cut Overall Calorie Intake

Drinking shakes to replace food can lead to weight loss, but it shouldn’t be assumed that drinking juices and shakes will help cut back on calories. Protein shakes you make at home can tip the scale at 650 or more calories. When you consume two or three a day, it doesn’t necessarily mean that you will eat less overall—especially if you are adding them to your regular eating regimen. It can actually make you consumer more calories, which can lead to weight gain.

It’s tough to get all the nutrition you need from a shake—many nutrients work in conjunction with each other while others negate one another, so eating meals with foods throughout the day (including snacks) is the better way to go than just downing shakes every day. Other side effects may include digestive discomfort, deficiency in fiber and other nutrients, and harmful additions including supplements.

A 2012 Consumer Report examination of protein supplements found that consuming three servings per day of several, tested protein supplements could expose individuals to more than the maximum limit for contaminants, including arsenic, cadmium, lead, and mercury.  

Instead: Eat moderate-sized meals and snacks throughout the day that are well-balanced in calories and nutrients. If you would like to add a protein shake to complement the diet that is a personal decision, but it should be accounted for in overall calories and balanced with other meals you eat throughout the day.