Maintain a balanced diet. Get plenty of exercise. Cut down on junk food. All are basic tenets of living a healthy lifestyle. And for good reason.

Get Active!

Exercising regularly can help control weight gain. And there's evidence that being physically active can generally lift your mood. Likewise, eating a healthy mix of protein, fiber and other nutrients is a generally healthy way to go.

But when it comes to actually losing weight and keeping it off, that's complicated, because there's no magical formula for losing weight.

Diet Battles

Sure, there are thousands of diets out there, but the only sure fire method for losing weight is eating fewer calories than you burn. Even if you eat mostly junk food high in sugar and fat, you can lose weight if you limit the calories you take in from that stuff.

And on the flip side, it's all too easy to gain weight eating low sugar, low calorie health food, or eating mostly protein, if you eat too much of it. In fact, some studies have shown that for some people, exercise and healthy eating can lead to weight gain.

Why Does Exercising And Healthy Eating Lead To Weight Gain?

Because it can encourage people to reward themselves with too many extra snacks or treats.

Not that eating mostly junk food is a good idea, even if you eat portions small enough to avoid weight gain. Do that and you'll be lacking important nutrients found in other foods.

So in the end, balance is important for general health. But if losing weight is your goal, the solution is simple: whatever you eat, eat less of it.