The Surprisingly Most Unhealthy Ways to Lose Weight

By Lizzie Streit, MS, RDN, LD 

For many people, losing weight can greatly improve their health and reduce the risk of conditions associated with overweight and obesity, such as type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure. 

But how you achieve weight loss and the strategies you use to reach your goals can also impact overall health. There are countless unhealthy ways to lose weight, including the total restriction or overconsumption of certain macronutrients, exercising too much, or relying on shakes and meal replacements instead of actual food. 

Here’s our list of the 9 unhealthiest ways to lose weight, with tips on how to implement healthier and more sustainable strategies. 

1 – Overly restricting carbs. 

Low carb diets are nothing new, but their increasing popularity in recent years suggests that they are one of the most followed diets for weight loss. Restricting carbohydrate consumption can certainly lead to weight loss, especially in the beginning, but it’s not necessary and is usually unsustainable. 

Limiting intake of refined carbohydrates and sugar is good for your waistline and overall health, but avoiding good sources of carbohydrates, such as vegetables, fruits, and whole grains is unnecessary. In fact, these foods are rich in several vitamins, minerals, and beneficial plant compounds that fight disease. Perhaps most importantly, they are excellent sources of fiber, the indigestible carbohydrate that is vital for healthy bowel movements and has been associated with a reduced risk of heart disease.  

Overall, all carbs are not created equal. Veggies, fruits, and whole grains are highly nutritious and should be incorporated, alongside proteins and healthy fats, into a balanced diet that promotes weight loss. On the other hand, sodas, desserts, and refined flour should be reserved for occasional treats. 

2 – Cutting out entire food groups. 

Similar to the low carb mentality is the idea that you need to cut out entire food groups to drop unwanted pounds. 

For example, fruit is often demonized in the weight loss world as a high sugar food, while dairy is portrayed as inflammatory. Some fad diets go so far to suggest that these foods should be avoided entirely. In reality, completely cutting out foods is an unhealthy weight loss strategy that can lead to cycles of restricting and overeating. You may also miss out on important nutrients that certain food groups provide, such as fiber, vitamins, and minerals from fruit. (Note: This does not apply to individuals who need to avoid foods due to food allergies and intolerances.) 

In a nutritionally balanced diet that primarily emphasizes plant foods, lean proteins, and healthy fats, all foods can have a place. Giving yourself permission to enjoy foods from every food group can help you develop a good mindset when it comes to eating for health and weight loss. 

3 – Skipping meals. 

It’s no surprise that skipping meals is a commonly employed tactic for weight loss. After all, if consuming fewer calories than you burn is key to losing weight, doesn’t it make sense to skip a meal?  

Wrong! Eating every three to four hours, whether it’s a balanced snack or meal, can help you stay energized and consume enough calories to promote weight loss. Sticking to a consistent eating schedule will also prevent you from getting “hangry” and overeating or making unhealthy food choices as a result. 

4 – Going gluten-free. 

If you don’t have celiac disease or non-celiac gluten sensitivity (NCGS), there’s no reason to avoid gluten in your diet. Still, eating gluten-free is often touted as a way to lose weight. 

Eating more naturally gluten-free foods, like fruits, veggies, legumes, and lean proteins, while limiting foods like refined breads, refined pastas, and baked goods, all of which happen to contain gluten, can certainly be helpful when it comes to weight loss. However, the presence or absence of gluten is not what makes a diet unhealthy or healthy. There are countless highly processed foods, like crackers, chips, and cookies, that have a gluten-free label but are high in additives, sugar, salt, and calories.  

Instead of getting wrapped up in the idea that avoiding gluten is necessary to lose weight, focus on all of the nutritious foods that you can add to your diet. If you want to enjoy pasta from time to time as part of a balanced meal, go for it! Check out our post on this topic for more info. 

5 – Eating “fat-free” everything. 

The low fat and fat-free fads took the US by storm in the ‘90s and early 2000s. Since fat is higher in calories per gram than proteins and carbs, it was thought that restricting fat in the diet would lead to weight loss. 

However, as science has shown, losing weight is not just about limiting one macronutrient more than another. Rather, eating a diet that’s abundant in nutritious foods and includes a balance of macronutrients can lead to healthy weight loss. Overly restricting fat often gives way to an overconsumption of carbohydrates that may cause weight gain in the end. Furthermore, fat is vital for absorbing nutrients from food and helps keep you full after eating. 

6 – Trading meals for shakes or bars.  

Many popular weight loss programs recommend meal replacement shakes or bars. While these may help you drop a few pounds in the short term, they’re not a sustainable strategy. 

Shakes and bars are often nutritionally inferior to full meals and can leave you hungry and searching for more calories, even though they seem convenient and filling at first. For healthy weight loss, don’t become reliant on meal replacements and instead focus on eating a variety of healthy foods and incorporating regular physical activity. 

7 – Working out too long and too intensely. 

Exercise burns calories, so more exercise = more weight loss, right? In short, no! 

Regular exercise is an important part of weight loss strategy, and it can offer a number of other health benefits, like improved sleep, reduced stress, and a lower risk of some diseases. But overdoing it can result in more harm than good. Too much exercise, especially without time for recovery, can make it harder for the body to burn fat. 

Instead of increasing the time you spend at the gym, focus on shorter workouts that get your heart rate up and build endurance and strength. And remember, don’t just rely on cardio. Adding strength training, such as weight lifting and circuit training, into your routine is important for maintaining and building muscle mass. Muscle is more metabolically active than fat, which means it burns more calories at rest.  

8 – Eating too much protein. 

Including a source of protein at every meal is a helpful tip for losing weight. This is because protein promotes satiety and helps the body burn more calories. But should the majority of your diet be protein? Nope.  

Make sure you eat enough protein, such as three to six ounces of a lean meat at a meal, but don’t go overboard. Excess calories from protein can end up being stored as fat. 

9 – Overly restricting calories. 

Eating less is often considered synonymous with weight loss, but not eating enough can prevent you from reaching your goals. 

Over time, your body becomes very efficient at running on a reduced energy intake. When you don’t consume enough calories, it goes into starvation mode, which prevents weight loss. To assess how healthy a food is for you, think about all of the nutrients it provides and don’t harp on the number of calories. Avocados, nuts, and seeds are foods that may seem “high calorie” on the surface, but they are all incredibly nutritious options to include in your diet for healthy weight loss. 

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