Fat loss, shredding, dieting down, losing weight… call it what you want it’s a major topic of interest as summer nears.
And let’s just lay all our cards out on the table… 99.9% of us are in the market to lose weight this time of year cause we want to look as sexy as we can in our summer clothes and bathing suits.
I have ZERO problem with the vanity side of fitness.
Yup… it’s cool to run faster, lift more, have more energy, but there is no shame in the game of loving the fitness journey to be HOT!
And yes… a gigantic part of that journey is a mental one… and I’ve blogged about that TONS… but today, I don’t want to chat psychology (or hormones).
I want to RESHAPE your food pyramid
SO THAT YOU GET RESULTS!!!!
Meet your FAT LOSS PYRAMID!
Memorize it.
Screen shoot it.
Hit the share button.
I don’t care what diet your are on or not on, NOTHING works until you get the base of your pyramid in CHECK!!!!
I’ve listened to hundreds of men and women STRUGGLE with their weight because they are spending huge amounts of time in details that do not drive big results.
- They’ll over eat avocado pudding desserts b/c they are clean and full of nutrients… never mind the 500 calorie splurge.
- They’ll lose sleep over the sweet potato they ate at 7 p.m. b/c carbs at night are bad.
- They’ll stress themselves into an epic binge because they simply can’t fit in 6 meals per day like a bikini competitor does.
If you want to get a grip on your food and lean out THEN you’ve got to invest your time and effort where it matters most… not just for the short term, but the long term as well.
1. CALORIES – Yes… calories matter. A lot! The problem is that LESS does NOT necessarily equate to better results. Too many calories, you gain. Too few and your hunger hormones get out of whack and you’ll binge eat a pint of ice cream at night.
Fat loss isn’t easy but it’s also not supposed to be a pendulum swing from all out depriving to all out binge eating.
There is a happy place where you are satisfied and at a caloric deficit that doesn’t mess with your hunger hormones and metabolism.
P.S. This zone likely DOES NOT exist in that silly 1200 calories you keep prescribing yourself.
For my active crew at sweatlocal, I will usually start them off by using the Harris-Benedict formula to find BMR and then multiply by 1.2, 1.35, 1.5 or 1.75 depending on how active they are to find their maitenance calories.
From there we create a reasonable calorie deficit. Oh… and it’s NOT A PIN POINT!!! You can achieve fat loss within a SPECTRUM of calories!!!! So we work with a range!
2. MACROS – Many folks that I coach have oftentimes not ever heard of this term. Don’t let it scare you.
It’s just a fancy word that lumps together the protein, fat, and carbs you should eat.
In coaching hundreds of people through fat loss, I can tell you that the most common error I see is people under eating protein.
Once again, for my super active sweatlocal crew, I most often will have you begin to eat your bodyweight in grams of protein. From there, I can help you get more precise on fats and carbs.
Fun fact: Most of my women come in eating only about 30% of the protein they need so they are usually left feeling like OMG how the F*%K do I eat so much protein.
Welcome TO THE JOURNEY!!!!
What do you like to eat? hate to eat? how much time can you spend in the kitchen? do you hate to cook? how much should you outsource? etc…
It takes a while to figure all of this out so PATIENCE!
And if you need a point of reference… I get about 140-180g of protein per day depending on my goals… that’s up to 720 calories per day in protein alone. #moremusclesplease
3. MICROS- Shortened word for micronutrients which to me is a fancy word for CLEAN EATING.
Once I’ve got you consistently eating inside of your fat loss spectrum AND we’ve pinpointed your macros, THEN we can worry about taking away some of the processed stuff and adding more nutrient dense foods into your day.
Sure, you can supplement with a multi-vitamin and green powders but in fat loss you want to EAT FOOD!!!!!
Veggies add volume to your meals which makes for a happy belly, works well with the psychological side of feeling full, and fiber keeps your hunger hormones in check!
So you can see… micronutrients are important in a lean eaters lifestyle so find ways to enjoy your greens, fruits, and veggies.
4 & 5. FREQUENCY AND TIMING – NOW… and only if you want to… and only if you’re really ready… now we can worry about this business of HOW OFTEN YOU EAT and even more persnickety the WHEN you eat particular meals.
Literally… if your calories are not in check… it doesn’t matter worth a damn WHEN you get your protein shake in or WHEN you stop eating carbs.
You will get the biggest bang for your fat loss efforts by giving a big fat middle finger to meal frequency and timing until much later in the game!!!!
Eat 3 times a day or 7 times a day.
Eat carbs all day long or 3 times a day.
WHAT EVER… your metabolism responds VERY LITTLE to that kind of stuff unless the rest is in working order!
- Get your calories in check FIRST.
- learn about how your metabolism works best in terms of protein, carbs, and fats,
- then… clean up the messy parts of your diet… and swap for “cleaner” stuff.
With all that said, I am fully aware all of this is easier said than done.
KNOWLEDGE DOES NOT TRANSLATE INTO ACTION!
There are hiccups, mess ups, and information overload that can get in the way.
Two things you can do if you want more help w/ this stuff…
- Diet Rebellion opens up again in April… so if you want to get coached through this stuff before the pools open, my next session starts April 24th. If you want in on the upcoming details they’ll be delivered to you via email in the next few weeks.
2. Come see me at Sweat. Let’s get to know each other first and go from there in formulating a plan that works for your body, your schedule, and your goals.
