Fat loss made easy

The title is a little misleading, but I made you look, didn’t I?

Losing fat is not easy as it requires discipline, effort, consistency and the ability to fail, put it behind you and then get back up again because fat loss is really hard work.

The truth is there are times in your life when you move less, stress more and all the ice cream and candy seem to disappear into your mouth and the clothes that used to fit easily are now tighter than usual.

You head to the scale and the number is way higher than use to be. Then tears start rolling down your face and the punishment phase begins. The dreaded twosome of diet and exercise.

You start starving yourself and then join a gym to slave for hours on the dreadmill.

However, it doesn’t have to be this way. Sure, it can be difficult, but it can be easier with this collection of tips and tricks that I’ve collected during my time as a fitness professional.

Please read, implement and mix and match these tips to find what works best for you. It will not happen overnight, but it will happen.

1. Eat more fiber. Try to get in 40 grams a day. By focusing on fiber, you will naturally eat less calorie-dense foods and more antioxidant-rich plant foods.

2. Try a version of intermittent fasting to help recognize when you’re actually hungry and not just plain bored.

3. Keep a food journal to keep track of your calories. This may help you think twice about that second bowl of ice cream.

4. Use the 80% rules to keep you on track. The goal is progress not perfection.

• Make 80% of your food choices better quality foods. This leaves room for a
  small “fun food.”
• Serve yourself just 80% of what you would normally put on your plate.
• Eat until you’re 80% full.

5. Hydrate well with water, fruits and vegetables. Hunger is often disguised as thirst. Drinking a glass of water before eating a meal helps you eat less too.

6. Keep more nutritious food in the house to prevent making poor choices when hunger hits. Foods like almonds, jerky and apples rather than chips, candy and ice cream.

7. Use smaller plates and bowls to serve yourself less so you will eat less.

8. Make sleep a priority.

9. Make tiny changes like adding a vegetable a day to your existing diet. Buy a vegetable with pop lid top or pre-cut/pre-washed vegetables. Make it easier to be good.

10. Eat 1 gram of protein per pound of your ideal bodyweight. If you want to be 130 pounds, eat 130 grams of protein per day.

11. Make small, increased active changes to your day. Get outside and enjoy the weather. Park your car further from work, zig zag the supermarket while pushing a heavy cart or take the family outside to play a sport.

12. Drink coffee one hour before exercise and drink a cup after you’re done. This allows you to do more in the gym, helps with recovery and it also assists with the breakdown of fat.

13. Stand more and sit less. It’s has been medically proven to not only improve your health but also your waistline.

14. Focus on strength. Pick a lift like a squat, press, row or deadlift and lift it for lower reps (3-6) and more sets (3-6). Strength training helps retains the muscle you already have while you’re trying to lose fat.

15. High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) will help burn fat without losing valuable muscle. Use body weight exercises and simple calisthenics that can be done anywhere. Try 30 seconds, 30 seconds off for a 10-minute block. This works for cardio machines as well.  Do this once or twice a week.

16. Try aerobic interval training also. After a 3 min warm up on your favorite cardio machine do 3 minutes of out of breath intervals with a 3-minute cool down afterwards. Repeat this 4- 6 times. Both HITT and AIT can help reduce belly fat.

17. The better you are at exercise the less effective the exercise becomes at burning fat. Try exercises that are inefficient instead. Here at a few examples

• Pushups
• Kettlebell swings
• Goblet squats
• Loaded carries
• Getting up and down from the ground

Wrapping up

Being overweight and trying to lose fat is tough but can be made easier with a few changes in habit, environment and the way you exercise. The trick is to stick with it and be consistent.

The only way to fail at fat loss is to quit and you’re not a quitter, right?

If you need any help building your fat loss training contact me here.