There aren’t many secrets when it comes to weight loss. Simply put, eat a healthy diet, get regular exercise, and the pounds will inevitably come off.

Unfortunately, there are certain times when you will hit a plateau; times where you are doing everything right but the fat just won’t budge. We would like to help you get past those rough spots, so we are going to offer some tips on how to bypass 5 common weight loss hurtles…

Do You Always Eat Healthy?

We all know that eating right is good for us, but it’s not always easy to do.

If you are trying to be good and stick to a healthy diet, but normally still feel hungry, there may be a good reason for that.

A study from Yale University says that when you think of your meal as being a light option, your brain will actually begin to produce more of a hormone called ghrelin. This hormone will actually cause you to feel less full, and it will also signal your metabolism to slow down. Obviously, that’s not good for anyone who is trying to lose weight.

One way to keep ghrelin levels balanced, is to focus on the parts of your meal that can be considered an indulgence. For example, if you are eating a salad, don’t think about the lettuce so much. Try to focus on the nuts, cheese, or other ingredients.

It might also be helpful to choose foods that may seem like a treat but are also quite healthy. A turkey sandwich on whole grain bread or a nice bowl of soup, for example.

Do You Pay with a Credit Card?

How can paying for your groceries with a credit card possibly impact your weight loss? There was a study in the Journal of Consumer Research that shows that when people go grocery shopping with plastic, they tend to buy a significantly larger amount of unhealthy foods than those who pay with cash.

Although shoppers are aware that they are buying unhealthy foods and exactly how much those products cost, the experts suspect that people will typically purchase them anyway because they don’t feel the immediate financial hit like when they use cash.

Do You Think about Exercise A Lot?

Exercise is a great way to rev up your metabolism and burn off unwanted pounds. If you spend too much time thinking about working out, however, you may be sabotaging your weight loss.

A French study indicates that people who think about exercise a lot tend to eat as much as 50% more than those who don’t. By thinking about an upcoming workout, people tend to feel as though they are entitled to an extra snack. If you are going to have a snack before a session, make sure that it is a healthy one, and try to keep it small – 150 cal. or less.

Are You Laser-Focused at Work?

Researchers at the University of Missouri-Columbia found that just by sitting for a few hours, your body will stop producing lipase, a fat-inhibiting enzyme.

According to research published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, if you stand up and stretch every hour or so, you will boost your metabolism by approximately 13%. It’s great to be focused at work and get your job done, but it’s also important to move your body, even if it is just a little bit.

Do You Sleep Too Little?

People who don’t get enough sleep, tend to have cravings for carbs and fat more than those who are getting in their eight hours.

The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that women who get less than 4 hours of sleep per night, consume a whole 300 calories and 21 grams of fat more the next day than they would if they had gotten the required 7-8 hours. A healthy diet and exercise are critical when you are trying to lose weight, but make that sure you are getting enough sleep, too.

Hope these tips will help you out!