Can’t afford your own personal trainer? Here’s some advice from trainer Jose Ruiz on the most common mistakes that people make when trying to diet:

1. Not eating enough: Not consuming enough food, or enough of the right foods, can hinder your fat loss goals in many ways.

2. Eating too much: Eating too many calories or the wrong types of food and be just as bad.

3. Not eating frequently enough: Not just for metabolism, but for energy balance and to provide your body with a steady state of nutrients so that it can continue to change.

4. Thinking in terms of 24-hour energy balance: Just because you may need to eat 200 grams of carbohydrates per day, it does not mean that all your meals should contain the same number of carbs because your body will only use what it need at the time and store the rest. In example, you need more energy from carbs in the morning when your body is going to be using them for energy throughout the day, than you do just before you go to be when you will be sleeping and storing all that energy as fat!!

5. Not paying attention to meal and nutrient timing: This goes back rule No. 4 and will make a big difference in the way your body burns calories and fat.

6. Not consuming enough fats: Fats are essential for the production of nearly every hormone. They are important for metabolic function, skin health, immune health and many other things. Essential fatty acids, especially omega-3 fatty acids, are largely responsible for many of these benefits. Fish oil, which contains the omega-3 acids DHA and EPA, can provide some outstanding benefits for anyone trying to get the best possible body for summertime.

7. Not drinking enough water: And this does not mean only when you are thirsty. If you are feeling thirsty, that means you are already starting to dehydrate.