Losing fat & maintaining muscle at the same time.
Losing fat & maintaining muscle at the same time.
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Losing fat & maintaining muscle at the same time.
It is generally thought that one cannot "gain muscle" and "lose fat" at the same time. This is not necessarily true as there are ways of doing this. Whether it be through the use of supplements such as GABA or diet/exercise manipulation, one can gain muscle and lose fat to varying degrees.
THE SECRET OF LOSING BODYFAT SAFELY AND PERMANENTLY!
However, what we are going to discuss is losing fat and "maintaining muscle" at the same time.
The general idea here is stop storing fat by eating in a way so as not to have (too much of) foods which turn to fat. These being, in order, fat, carbohydrates and protein. It goes without saying that you should avoid fatty foods! But there is a more important way of losing fat.
COMPLEX-CARBOHYDRATE MANIPULATION (CCM) IS THE KEY TO LOSING BODYFAT!
It takes an average of 6 hours for a complex carbohydrate meal to get absorbed into your body. Say if you had a high carbohydrate meal (pasta, rice, bread or potatoes) at 6:00 p.m., then this food is ready for use at around 12:00 a.m. What do you do at that time? Chances are, the majority of you will be in snoozeland!
Although some of that complex carbohydrate meal will be stored as energy, a great part of it will be stored as fat!
So the first step to losing bodyfat is not having a complex carbohydrate meal after around 5:00 p.m. - or earlier if you can!
You have a choice at night of having all the protein (meat, dairy products, protein powders etc.) and vegetables you want. (A word of advice: try to avoid fruit late in the evening also, as the simple sugars in fruit cause an insulin release which means storing fat!)
The old saying "have breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a pauper" can be applied to carbohydrates. Have lots of carbs. earlier in the day and gradually reduce their intake as the day progresses. The more frequently you eat in the day (but smaller meals!) the more you will put your metabolism into high gear (fat-shifting gear). It would also be ideal if you could do your training earlier in the day, as that way, you could replenish your glycogen stores by feeding your body complex carbohydrates for the rest of the day.
As long as you stick to the above, you are on your way to losing bodyfat. Don't decrease your protein intake. Have lots of meat, eggs and good quality Ionic Exchanged Whey Proteins and you will be in an anabolic, but at the same time "fat-inhibiting" state. Now that you know how to stop the body from gaining extra fat, let's move on to getting rid of the fat you've already stored!
HOW TO BLAST THE FAT AWAY!
Before we get going, let's get a few things straight!
No matter how much you try to spot-reduce, you will not get rid of fat by doing random body exercises, such as crunches. Yes, you may get a little tone on your abs. Or if you do hundreds of crunches, you may lose a little fat as it starts turning into an aerobic exercise, but the body will not discriminate certain areas when it comes to fat-reduction
You cannot lose too much fat, too quickly! It may be possible for a few people, but you will almost be guaranteed more fat within a few months. Don't forget, the body wants to store fat - it's a survival thing! You may lose a great deal of water quickly, which might give you a thinner appearance, but if you lose too much actual bodyfat too quickly, then you are asking for trouble
In general, men tend to have more fat cells on their abdominal region and women on their thighs. Although in some people this crosses over! The best way of getting rid of fat in these cells, is "Aerobic Exercise".
AEROBIC EXERCISE IS THE KEY TO LOSING BODYFAT AND KEEPING IT AWAY!
Do Aerobic Exercise 4-5 times a week for at least 45 minutes. The best exercises are stationary cycling, rowing, fast walking or stepping.
You only tap into your fat reserves after around 20 minutes of aerobic exercise. So for those of you who think 20 minutes on the bike is OK, think again! If you can manage an hour, 4-5 times a day, then you will be on your way to some serious fat loss! It is also better to exercise first thing in the morning as there will be no immediate food for energy use and your body will have to start looking elsewhere (fat cells) for energy! Success won't be overnight, but this way, it will be achieved the "right way" and permanently, as long as you maintain some kind of regime afterwards.
THE TARGET HEART RANGE
The aerobic exercises should be performed in the "target heart range". Now, many of you will not have access to heart monitors etc. So the best way of monitoring yourself is the following:
If whilst exercising, you can maintain a conversation without any difficulty at all, then you are under-exercising. If you can't say a word and have to gasp for breath, then you are over-doing it. If you can say a few words every few seconds, then you are in the right target range that is ideal for fat- burning!
BODYBUILDING EXERCISES
Keep to high reps, minimum rest between sets and lots of sets! This will ensure that your workouts become more aerobic and therefore "fat-burning". Don't forget, here we are not talking about building serious muscle, we are trying to get rid of fat and "maintain muscle" at the same time.
