Whether you count calories or not, to be successful at fat loss, what you take in has to be less than what you expend over a period of time.
It’s not perfect math, and every calculator will work with a different estimate of what it believes your body needs. However, I wanted to take a few moments of your time to cover some areas not directly related to the calorie conversation.
Fat Loss Patience Game
I’ve been coaching fat loss and strength training for busy people for nearly seventeen years. While some people are far more realistic about the fat loss process, everyone wants the pounds off NOW. One tip I like to explore is to give yourself a reasonable timeline…and then double it.
So, if you have XX pounds to lose and think you can whittle them off in about five months, try working within a 10-month timeframe. This allows for hiccups and detours, which are both likely and totally possible.
That doesn’t guarantee you’ll reach your goal in that timeframe. What it does do is help you understand that even when you’re doing all the right things, life will get in the way, and you have to be okay with that. Be patient. We’re in this for the long haul.
Consistency Does Not Equal Perfection
Some people hear “consistent effort,” and they make it synonymous with perfection. For fat loss purposes, consistency means more often than not. Consistency means that if you plan to hit 5k steps daily, you nail it 24 out of 30 days. It means that if you go over your calories for the day, you return to your plan the next day.
If you were using a blotter calendar to chart your progress, there wouldn’t be a lot of empty spaces. Find those non-scale victories by creating and maintaining those trends so you can check them off and feel accomplished.
Fat Loss Rock Solid Support System
Fat loss is hard enough as it is. It would be a challenge if you were single and had time to dedicate to the gym and meal prep. When you add the complexities of family dynamics, work environment, and your personal history with food, you’re navigating a minefield of temptation, egos, and the looming notion that your transformation journey might be perceived as a threat to those closest to you.
Be proactive about this. If you know that the changes you need to make are going to disrupt the status quo (and they will), have conversations with those closest to you about how you can all work together to keep certain aspects of life the same but also modify other areas to help improve your chance of success.
When done successfully, rallying the troops to support your goals is not much different from conversations about finances or parenting. Ensure everyone is on the same page about how they contribute to or potentially block progress.
Go To Bed
One of the world’s most straightforward fat loss tips can be one of the toughest ones to implement. With consideration for parents of young children, those in a caregiving role, and women in the menopause transition, having a consistent sleeping and waking schedule can be monumental towards the progress you make.
Poor sleep can affect your ability to recover appropriately from workouts, leading to cravings the next day and difficulty following your food plan. Do what you can to minimize exposure to electronic devices 30-45 minutes before bedtime. Make sure caffeine doesn’t keep sneaking into your day, and be mindful of how alcohol affects your ability to have deep sleep. Once you lock in your sleep schedule, you’ll be amazed at how many other areas of your life improve.
Be Easy On Yourself
I’m happily married, a father to two sons, and I own my personal training studio, where I spend nearly 60 hours a week. Nothing ever goes perfectly according to plan. I do my best to eat primarily nutritious foods with some fun foods thrown in the mix; I strength train 3-4x/week, I get in a ton of steps, and still, life isn’t perfect.
The most “woo” thing I’ll tell you is that you must give yourself some grace along the way. Make every day an opportunity to improve an area of your life. Tell someone you love or appreciate them, work on your “consistency” streaks, and go to bed each night knowing that you did your best with all you had thrown at you that day. Fat loss should improve the life of the person embarking on that journey. If it isn’t, you may need tools that help you build the strongest, healthiest version of yourself.
Author Bio
Jason Leenaarts owns Revolution Fitness and Therapy (RevFit) in Stow, Ohio. You can read more of his articles here, purchase his books on Amazon, or peruse some of his content on his Instagram page.
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