FAT LOSS RULES

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TweetFat Loss Rule #1:

Consume fewer calories than your body burns for five days a week. You need to consume approximately 500 calories less than your body burns (maintenance amount) because if you do not create a caloric deficit, no matter what you do, you will not lose fat! However, it is important that over the weekends you increase your calories by 700 over the maintenance amount. This is necessary in order to prevent the metabolism from slowing down.

Fat Loss Rule #2:

Be more concerned with the way you look in the mirror (or in pictures) and your waist size rather than with your total body weight on the scale as such measurement does not distinguish between the amount of fat and muscle that you have.

Trainees often say they need to lose anywhere between 20-40 pounds. However, I would not be nearly as concerned with the weight as I would be with the way you look in the mirror and your waist size.

The reason for that is the fact that as you begin your weight training you will start gaining muscle mass. As you gain muscle mass you look slimmer but actually weigh more as muscle weighs more than fat.

Hence, your scale will tell you that you are still overweight and that your weight is not moving when you are actually making progress by losing fat and gaining muscle. Concern yourself with the way you look (pictures are a great way to track this) and stop obsessing about your weight.

Fat Loss Rule #3: Concentrate on weight training exercise for losing fat.

Excessive cardio is not the best way to lose fat! When you use cardio as your sole source of exercise you will lose equal amounts of fat and muscle. The end result will be a smaller fat version of yourself with a lower metabolism (due to the muscle loss).

Gaining muscle is really the secret to permanent fat loss as the more muscle you have, the more calories you burn at rest on any given day. In addition, gaining muscle is the key to achieving the firm good looking body that everybody wants. Dieting and cardio alone will not provide that no matter what they tell you on the nightly news.

Fat Loss Rule #4: If possible, attempt to exercise first thing in the morning on an empty stomach.

The reason for this is that your body's glycogen reserves have been exhausted due to the overnight fast, so the body has to rely on burning fats for fuel. Besides, that way I have the rest of the day to eat, recover, and grow.

However, if you do not like to weight train first thing in the morning at least try a quick 15 minute intense aerobic activity (this could be a quick stationary bike ride or a vigorous walk) as well as 5 minutes of abdominal exercise done in superset fashion. Such a "good-morning" program can easily become a good habit and give you a total short 20 minute aerobic workout that jump starts your fat burning mechanisms early in the day.

Fat Loss Rule #5: Eat smaller more frequent meals throughout the day.

The first thing that most dieters do is start a crash diet where they only eat once or twice a day. Again, this is a sure-fire way to lose muscle and lower your metabolism. As we already know, less muscle and a lower metabolism is not the way to achieve your goal.

In order to keep the metabolism going at full speed and the blood sugar levels under control in order to keep energy levels high and cravings away, 4 to 6 small balanced meals a day is the way to go.

Balanced means each meal should contain all of the macronutrients (carbs, protein and fats) in a specific ratio. While metabolisms differ, a ratio of 40-45% carbs, 40-35% protein, and no more than 20% fats is generally the most effective.

This ratio is optimal for keeping insulin and blood sugar under perfect control. In addition, this ratio creates a favorable hormonal environment that leads to muscle growth and fat loss.

Fat Loss Rule #6: Let water be your main beverage.

Time and time again I have noticed that dieters start their diets with a sincere effort and even count all the calories of the foods that they consume. However, most totally forget about the fact that fruit juices, sodas and other beverages contain calories as well. Therefore, avoid any type of drink that contains calories and concentrate on drinking plain water instead. By doing this you will get the following benefits:


Your appetite will be suppressed as water helps control your appetite. Sometimes when you feel hungry after a good meal this sensation indicates a lack of water. Drinking water at that time would take the craving away.

You will get a metabolic boost as cold water increases your metabolism.

The fat loss process will be operating at full peak as water is needed in order for fat loss to occur.

You will not be drinking unnecessary calories as water has no calories.

Fat Loss Rule #7: Be prepared. Pack your meals in advance.

One thing that totally kills dieters is going to work. Work, however, is not the culprit. The culprit is the lunch hour. If the dieter does not pre-pack his/her food, lunch comes along and the person ends up going to the nearest fast food joint.

The best way to stay on a sensible eating regimen (and also avoid losing meals) is to pre-pack everything in such a way that when a meal time comes, it is relatively easy to have access to high-quality, nutritious food.

Fat Loss Rule #8: Go to bed early.

There are two reasons for this:

Lack of sleep increases your hormone cortisol, which is a hormone that stores fat and burns muscle (in other words, it does the exact opposite of what you are trying to accomplish), and decreases your testosterone levels (which need to be high in order to keep your fat burning/muscle gaining processes going at full speed). While sleep requirements vary, seven to nine hours of sleep is generally a good rule of thumb.

The probability of succumbing to late night cravings increases exponentially for every late hour of the day that you stay awake.

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Tweetgood read!