HEY!!
I want to talk today about my personal fat loss tips that I have found helped ME get to the place, physique, and balance I have finally reached!
There happen to be a lot of misconceptions when it comes to fat loss, weight loss, fitness food and the list goes on and on. The tricky thing about all of this information that you all read floating around is that everyone’s body responds differently. What works for person A may not work so well for person B. People ask me all of the time what exercises to do and what to eat, when in truth I can only say what has worked for me and what ‘rules’ I follow in keeping my healthy lifestyle. I never like to give tips or workouts and say “this is the end all or be all” I love to share my workouts and tips with my readers and clients because I find them effective and worth trying. Since training for my first show and going forward I have found some helpful tips that have really helped me shed those 18 pounds from when I began. These tips have also helped me to maintain my physique since that first show back in April to the point where I feel ready to conquer my show in September! These are my tips for fat loss.
I want to talk today about my personal fat loss tips that I have found helped ME get to the place, physique, and balance I have finally reached!
There happen to be a lot of misconceptions when it comes to fat loss, weight loss, fitness food and the list goes on and on. The tricky thing about all of this information that you all read floating around is that everyone’s body responds differently. What works for person A may not work so well for person B. People ask me all of the time what exercises to do and what to eat, when in truth I can only say what has worked for me and what ‘rules’ I follow in keeping my healthy lifestyle. I never like to give tips or workouts and say “this is the end all or be all” I love to share my workouts and tips with my readers and clients because I find them effective and worth trying. Since training for my first show and going forward I have found some helpful tips that have really helped me shed those 18 pounds from when I began. These tips have also helped me to maintain my physique since that first show back in April to the point where I feel ready to conquer my show in September! These are my tips for fat loss.
My Tips for Fat Loss
Lift Heavy Weights
If you work out regularly you KNOW the importance of weight training when it comes to fat loss. Weight training boosts metabolic rate both over the short term as well as over the long term. In the hours after an intense weight-lifting session you will experience an increase in metabolic rate. What’s more, weight lifting will help you maintain your total amount of lean muscle mass, creating a permanent increase in metabolism. I LIFT HEAVY. Yes, I am a woman and I lift weights…not the 3lb plastic coated dumbbells. My goal is to get women away from the cardio which can actually cause a decrease in muscle mass if done too often, but also a decrease in metabolic rate. Glute/Ham Workout? Try it! You can also boost fat loss and metabolism combining heavy lifting with cardio bursts…yes in just 30 minutes!
When you lift a crazy amount of repetitions with 5 pound weights, you will only build muscular endurance, not volume or definition. Change your mindset and grab those heavy weights! Incorporating heavier weights into your workout routine will not only build the lean muscle needed to see visible definition, but it will also affect growth hormone and testosterone which will increase your overall fat burning potential while you are doing nothing at all! Difference between muscular endurance and muscular strength
I want you all to train and mean it. <---Check out that post for tips on how to make the most of your strength workouts!
I want you all to train and mean it. <---Check out that post for tips on how to make the most of your strength workouts!
High Intensity Cardio
I rely on HIIT training when it comes to cardio for the ultimate fat burning workout. I love pushing myself, getting breathless and visualizing how all of my hard work will pay off. I have posted several times about the importance of HIIT training in a weekly workout routine. Just 20 minutes of HIIT training can increase your aerobic capacity dramatically, help you to maintain lean muscle mass, boost metabolism during and after exercise on top of the fact that it burns more fat and calories in a shorter period of time. There is NO boredom when it comes to HIIT training. Try some treadmill HIIT ! The constant switching of intervals, keeps you in the game and prevents your body from hitting a plateau. I love Tabata training to keep my HIIT training fresh and fun! My HIIT for dummies post is a great resource!!
Sprints: I have dramatically changed the look and leanness of my lower body with the help of sprints. I am talking hard core, all out sprints. This is one of my favorite tips I pass onto my clients who are looking to transform their lower body, hamstrings and booty. Of course, squats, dead lifts, leg presses all have their place and should be incorporated into any lower body workout regimen, but sprints are so key when building that booty!
This is a professional long distance runner vs a professional sprinter. I want to clear up the fact that I am NOT putting down long distance running at all. I think it is a great sport for those who enjoy it. I am just pointing out that if you really want to build the muscles in the glutes, you must incorporate sprinting! Long distance running will not help to build those fast twitch fibers and cause that explosive shock to the muscles that sprinting does.
The glutes are the largest muscle in the body. It takes more of an explosive movement to really contract this muscle hard. Sprinting just involves many quick hard contractions that really firm up this muscle with less mass gain.
My Favorite are HILL SPRINTS. Hill sprints are a great way to dramatically increase the caloric expenditure of a simple ‘sprint’ which already burns a great number of calories when performed on flat ground. For all things SPRINTS and more info check out my post dedicated to my all time favorite form of cardio!!
Protein
Eat protein at every meal! Protein helps to satisfy hunger and eating protein helps preserve muscle mass and encourages fat burning WHILE keeping you feeling satiated. Protein also helps you get lean by boosting your metabolic rate, which ultimately leads to burning more fat. My favorite sources of protein include:
- Chicken breast (mmm caramalized onion chicken breast)
- Lean ground beef (Healthy meatballs)
- Lean ground turkey breast (CLEAN turkey meatloaf)
- White fish (tilapia, cod, haddock, shrimp, scallops) (Whole grilled red snapper)
- White albacore tuna packed in water (healthy tuna melt)
- Egg whites (healthified egg salad) (oatmeal + eggwhites)
- Greek Yogurt (Greek yogurt + cinnamon + almonds)
- Low sodium cottage cheese (healthified protein ice cream)
- Homemade no bake protein bars
I love adding raw oats to my protein shakes
Protein post workout has been proven to be the best way to boost muscle protein synthesis at the most critical time of your training day, optimizing the muscle-building and growth process. There is something called the post workout “window” which is about 45 minutes. Be sure to feed your muscles in this time or else you become at risk of breaking down the muscle fibers rather than helping to rebuild them; thus slowing metabolism. Check out my favorite fat burning food staples!
Eat Fruits and Vegetables with every meal Yes I eat veggies with breakfast! I make sure to eat vegetable with every meal that I eat. We all know that fruits and veggies are healthy, but when it comes to fat loss, fruits and vegetables are absolutely necessary! Vegetables are so effective when it comes to fat loss because they provide ‘bulk’ to the diet with very few calories. Your metabolism is able to stay elevated because of the large volume of food and fiber vegetables provide that the body has to process. Vegetables keep blood sugar levels steady so muscle building and fat burning is not affected. Vegetables are extremely nutrient dense and very low in calorie so be sure to add variety!
When it comes to fat loss, fruit can get a bad reputation. I have gotten numerous emails from readers asking me if ‘fruit is bad’ and my answer is “No!” Fruits are healthy! In fact they are top of the top healthy. They are rich in micronutrients, vitamins and minerals, photochemical and antioxidants that all have positive properties when eaten. Fruits are fiber filled and water dense. Now fruit does get tricky when trying to shed fat. Its all about choosing the right types of fruits. I personally always enjoy fruit with protein as well because the protein slows the release of the sugars. Instead of getting a large spike in blood sugar from eating a cup of melon, try eating melon with ½ C cottage cheese or Greek Yogurt and that sugar spike will be lessened.
I Personally LOVE fruit, I could never go without it completely, but when prepping for my show, I did cut back a bit and chose fruits that were lower in GI content such as berries and grapefruit.
I Personally LOVE fruit, I could never go without it completely, but when prepping for my show, I did cut back a bit and chose fruits that were lower in GI content such as berries and grapefruit.
Look at all that gorgeous variety!
Some of my all time favorite berries!
EAT
People, you MUST eat to increase fat loss and keep your metabolism revved up all day long. The biggest misconception is that to lose fat, you must eat dramatically less. This is not the case at all, if anything it is the complete opposite of what you may have heard about ‘not eating to lose fat’ I have found that eating every 2-3 hours BEFORE I get hungry is the key to keeping my body a fat burning machine. If you wait until you are hungry, chances are that you will binge on unhealthy foods and way too much of it! Eat often and eat the right foods; carbs, protein and fats, veggies, fruits. If you are not used to eating this way, it may SEEM like a lot of food at first, but you will notice that your energy levels are higher, workout are better and your body composition will improve.
Sample Meal Schedule
1: 1/3 C cooked oatmeal, 4 egg whites mixed with ½ C veggies, 1/4 C fruit, ½ T fat
2: 1 Ezekial wrap or other complex carb (quinoa, brown rice, sweet potao, ezekial toast) with tons of veggies, few slices avocado, 3 oz lean protein, ½ apple
3: 4oz sweet potato with big salad (lots of veggies) 3oz protein, salad dressing made with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, Italian seasoning spices, handful red grapes
4: (post workout) 1 scoop whey protein in water or almond milk, ½ banana, ¼ C raw oatmeal or 3 rice cakes, 1 C green beans (or other veggie)
5: 3 oz lean protein, 2 C veggies or big salad, 1 tsp fat (sunflower seeds, almonds, walnuts, olive oil dressing, avocado, flax oil) 1/2 sweet potato or 1/2 C cooked quinoa or other whole grain such as brown rice
6: ½ C cottage cheese or greek yogurt with 1 T fat (flax oil, peanut butter or almond butter)
Eat Fat to Lose Fat
Yes, You MUST eat fat to lose fat. Sounds like an oxymoron right? The health benefits of good fats which are found in fish, nuts, seeds, flaxseed oils and olive oils are astounding! Omega-3 fats in particular are super important when trying to shed fat. Benefits such as less risk of heart disease and diabetes, for example–are great on their own. But omega-3 fats contribute to a better physique as well. Omega-3s reduce inflammation throughout your body. That not only prevents heart attacks (inflammation in the tissues surrounding blood vessels is a major cause) but also helps your muscles recover faster from workouts. I take fish oil pills everyday and also incorporate healthy fats such as salmon, olive oil, coconut oil, flaxseed oil, sunflower seeds, avocado, almonds, natural almond butter and peanut butter into my diet every single day.
Healthy fats provide you with a source of energy that will help you feel alive all day long. Muscle burns calories 24 hours a day and if you eat a low fat or no fat diet you will have a hard time building and maintaining muscle. Simple as that! EAT YOUR FATS, FRIENDS!
Slow down:
Slow down when its comes to eating your food! I have been known to eat eat eat and not even think about what is on my plate. Now, I take my time, savor the moment, enjoy the flavors, take pride in the food you cooked or if you are dining out, the flavors used in your dish. You need to get in touch with your hunger in order to better understand your body. Learn when you ‘feel full’ and notice hunger signals. You certainly won’t even know if you are still hungry or full if you just simply finish your food in 3 minutes flat. Think about how long you chew your food and make an effort to chew your food completely to help with the digestive process within your body.
Variety
Eat different foods. Eat those foods at different times of the day. Do not get set into a food rut and boredom by eating the same exact things every single day at the same time. Your body will get used to the foods and the times you eat those foods, just like exercise. You must change it up and shock your body. Take advantage of all of the delicious fruits and vegetables that are in season around you. Try all different types of cooking food as well. Roast, steam, sautee, poach! Also try pairing foods together you would never think about. One of my favorites that always get the “Ohhh really??” from people when I tell them that is delicious is quinoa with cottage cheese or sweet potato’s in my protein shake. Its wierd, but it works and its so delicious. Just try branching out and see where it goes! Your body will thank you.
Yep, I’ve done it….Avocado in oats?! Trust me it was wierd but delicious.
I hope you all learned something from these fat loss tips to take with you! Have a wonderful Tuesday!
Question:
What is one tip (doesn’t have to be fat loss related) That has really helped you stay on track, focus on your workouts, meals etc?
Question:
What is one tip (doesn’t have to be fat loss related) That has really helped you stay on track, focus on your workouts, meals etc?
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