There are five nutrition myths that can and do sabotage many of our weight loss goals. This is what we know so far:

Myth #1: Good weight loss programs must be complicated, with special charts and graphs, and calorie cycling. Limit what to eat and when to eat based on your specific metabolic type/blood type/birthstone/horoscope sign.

FACT: The simpler the program, the better the results. The more restrictive the diet, the more likely you are to fail. A bad weight loss plan will be complicated and difficult to follow, practically guaranteeing failure.

Myth #2 – You should deny yourself anything that tastes good. Weight loss comes from WHAT you eat, not HOW MUCH you eat. You must be in full control of what you eat.

FACT: As soon as you find a simple way to eat fewer calories, you’ve won the battle, stressing about special ways of eating and special types of food will NOT improve your weight loss. The bottom line is that to lose weight you simply MUST eat fewer calories than you burn.

Myth #3: Intermittent fasting is just another type of fad diet. More only the young can do it.

FACT: From 53-year-old doctors to professional fitness models, a staggering number of people are switching to flexible intermittent fasting. There is a lot of research supporting intermittent fasting and showing that it is effective for many people of all ages and lifestyles.

Myth #4 – There are special ‘fat burning hormones’ that are better than other nutrients for weight loss.

Fact: Protein really isn’t that special, fat isn’t bad, and carbs are okay to eat too, even sugar! (Moderation is key).

Myth #5 – If you don’t eat every two to three hours, you’ll lose muscle instead of fat.

FACT: As long as you follow a well-designed training plan, you won’t lose muscle if you skip a meal. or you skip an entire day of meals.

The bottom line is that weight loss doesn’t have to be frustrating, complicated, or involve secret food combinations. We just need to be “armed” with the truth and the desire to win.