When it comes to dieting, I’ve done it all. I’ve lost and gained weight more times than Lady Gaga has changed outfits. I’ve counted points, eaten like a cavewoman, dined at South Beach, lived on cabbage soup, been in the Zone and eaten for Ketosis.

Well-intentioned dieters can fall victim to false weight loss facts that ruin their entire eating plan. Are you going to be one of them? It’s easy to believe certain diet “facts” because they are repeated at book club, LIVE on Facebook and seen on YouTube.

But if you dig a little deeper, you’ll find that many of these weight loss facts and truisms are misunderstood. Scan this list of diet myths to make sure you have your facts in order to get into your pants and live thin. You have to get Smart To Get Skinny!

1. Diets DON’T Work: People who want to lose weight may avoid traditional diets (like calorie counting) because they believe that diets don’t work. In fact, diet DO work. Restrictive diets don’t work. The truth is that if you want to lose weight, you mustchange what you eat. And that’s a diet. If a weight loss program advertises that you can eat whatever you want (even of healthy foods) and still slim down, it’s not likely to work.
2. Starchy Foods Cause Weight Gain: Do you love potatoes and bread? If you’re trying to slim down, you might avoid these foods because you’ve read that they cause you to gain weight. Not true.  Starchy foods don’t actually causeyou to gain weight, unless you eat too much of them. And some starchy carbohydrate foods, like potatoes, do provide nutrients. So you can include them in a calorie-controlled eating plan for healthy weight loss.
3. Eating Small, Frequent Meals Promotes Weight Loss: Eating small meals and snacks every few hours may help you to slim down. But some studies have shown that when we increase the number of eating occasions throughout the day, we may open up our hunger floodgates, desire to eat and calorie intake. There is no right way to structure your eating times throughout the day. Some dieters find that they keep hunger at bay if they eat small frequent meals. But other dieters find that they prefer 2-3 larger meals. One method is not necessarily better than the other.
4. Starvation Mode Causes Weight Gain: Do you eat 1200-1500 calories to avoid “starvation mode?” There is a common belief among some dieters that if you don’t eat enough, your body’s metabolism grinds to a halt and you start to gain weight. It is true that your body will adapt to changing eating patterns such as a lower calorie level, and your metabolism may slow slightly to preserve calories, but not to the point where you gain weight. As you eat less and lose weight, it is normal for your metabolism to change. And remember, the thinner you are the less calories you get to lose weight! No weight loss professional would recommend starving yourself to lose weight, but very few people need to be worried about starvation mode.
5. Low Glycemic Foods Are Better For Your Diet: The Glycemic Index is used as the basis for a number of popular low carb diets, including Whole 30 and South Beach. So you might be tempted to eat low glycemic foods to slim down. But not all low glycemic foods are low in calories and not all of them are a smart part of a weight loss program. Ice cream, for example, is a low glycemic food. But very few successful dieters eat ice cream on a regular basis. Some low glycemic foods are also low in calories and good for a weight loss program. But not all of them. Make sure you know the difference before you use the popular food index to slim down.

6. Eating Breakfast Boosts Metabolism: Many dieters lose weight and keep the pounds off eating a good, healthy breakfast each morning. A smart morning meal can help to curb late morning cravings and help you to avoid vending machine snacks and trips to your local coffee shop that can send your daily calorie count through the roof. But eating breakfast doesn’t boost your metabolism. Many dieters skip breakfast or eat a tiny breakfast with success. Other dieters find that breakfast is an essential part of their complete weight loss program.  Your total calorie intake throughout the day will determine your weight loss success, not the timing of the meals.
7. You Should Always Eat More Protein: Protein foods help you to feel full for a longer period of time and helps you to maintain muscle mass. If your goal is a strength-training program, protein helps you build muscle as well. But for weight loss, more protein is not always better. What’s most important for WEIGHT LOSS is to control your overall calorie intake- no matter if the macronutrients come from protein, carbs or fats.
8. Natural Foods Are Better For Your Diet: Smart shoppers usually buy groceries that are natural for better health. After all, natural foods are better for your weight loss diet, right? Wrong! There is no regulated definition of the word “natural.” So food manufacturers can use the word on food packages even if the food isn’t really natural in the way that you might expect it to be. In addition, if weight loss is your goal you need to be especially careful. Some foods that are natural and healthy are also very high in calories. Avocados and nuts are a perfect example. Before you buy into the “natural” health halo craze, make sure these all natural foods are portioned controlled and also ones that won’t compromise your pant size.
9. Dieting and Eating Healthy is EASY; It can be hard for new dieters to face the fact that weight loss is really hard. So, most of us are tempted to believe the advertisements, books and program endorsements that tell us that weight loss is easy. But the truth is that changing any habit is HARD. Changing our thinking about food, overeating and dieting is HARD. Changing our eating habits is HARD. But learning a new way is possible. It will take time and practice.

Is it worth the effort? Yes, absolutely.