Information is power. This is an important concept that you need to keep in mind if you want to be successful in your quest to lose the fat. In the area of fitness and weight loss, myths and misconceptions abound. Many times, what has popularly been believed turns out to be the exact opposite of what is really true and often runs counterproductive to your weight loss efforts. Thus, it is important that you educate yourself thoroughly before embarking on any fat loss regimen so you don't waste precious time doing things that do not work or put yourself in dangerous situations that can often cause injury and pain.

To help you in this regard, here are five weight loss facts to keep in mind:

1. Severe calorie restriction won't make you lose weight. In fact, it does just the opposite. When you are constantly hungry, your body will switch to "survival mode" and conserve calories and fat in order to be able to help the body cope. To do this, it will deliberately slow down metabolism and as a result, your body will also burn calories more slowly. When you can't sustain your severely restrictive diet, you will have to go back to your previous meal intake, but since your metabolic rate has already slowed in response to your prior mistaken attempt at starving yourself thin, most of what you eat will be converted as stored fat. This makes you gain more weight instead of losing fat.

2. The healthiest weight loss goal that you should strive for is one to two pounds a week. There are so many diets that promise a weight loss of ten pounds in a week's time. While this is possible, it comes at the expense of your health and is never sustainable. That is why there is no such thing as a healthy and sustainable quick weight loss program. For weight loss to occur for the long-term, it has to be gradual and should involve no overly restrictive diets that can wreck your body systems out of whack.

3. Muscle weighs more than fat. Dieters sometimes wonder why they don't register any significant change in the weighing scale after a period of faithful adherence to an exercise program. That's simply because your fat has been converted to muscle and muscle weighs more than fat. So instead of buying a new bathroom scale, check yourself in the mirror or try putting on your baggy pants and you'll notice that it has wonderfully grown way too large for you.

4. Making lifestyle changes is the only way to a sustainable weight loss program. What does a lifestyle change mean? It means committing to healthier eating habits and working out regularly. It means managing your stress, keeping yourself hydrated and getting enough sleep. Simply cutting down on your favorite foods won't let you lose weight. Rather, it will only make you crave for them. So eat healthy balanced meals and give in to the occasional calls for chocolate. However, make sure that you do not binge on them and do work off the excess calories afterwards.

5. You can speed up your metabolism. Eat more frequent meals and foods that naturally burn fat. Exercise. All these will help speed up your metabolic rate so you can lose more weight.