LIFE IS TOUGH…. TRAIN ACCORDINGLY.
Summer is pretty much here (fingers crossed) and we’ve had loads of questions from members and PT clients about how to lose body fat and hit their body goals before we MAY actually be able to leave the country and lie on a beach at some point this year.
So, here’s a couple of tips from us, to help you fine tune your nutrition and lifestyle to ensure you hit those goals before you jet off, or even drive off around the UK on your summer holiday.
1) Get enough sleep
Too little sleep swells concentrations of a hormone that makes you feel hungry (Ghrelin) while suppressing a companion hormone that otherwise signals food satisfaction (Leptin). Despite being full, you still want to eat more. It’s a proven recipe for weight gain in sleep-deficient adults and children alike. Worse, should you attempt to diet but don’t get enough sleep while doing so, it is futile, since most of the weight you lose will come from lean body mass, not fat.
2) Weekend Wisely
If you love a weekend drink or big cheat weekend, this could be hindering your fat loss goals. If you are on a nutrition plan and your goal is to lose body fat, you can still have those meals at the weekends and have a few drinks but it needs to be balanced. See your calories across the week rather than resetting each day. If you know you are going to be having dinner with friends on a Friday and Saturday, try and reduce your calories Monday to Thursday so you have more to play with when you order that bottle of rose.
3) Calories in vs calories out
When it comes to fat loss, it really is as simple as calories in vs calories out. It’s a calculation, there’s no magic diet or magic food group you can eat to lose weight. You can still eat carbs, have fats and even a glass of wine or two and lose fat. If you eat more calories than you burn in a day, you will gain body fat, if you eat less calories than you burn, you will lose body fat, if you eat the same calories as you burn, you will maintain your weight. If you are unsure of how many calories you are eating, a good way to figure it out is to track for a week or two to understand you current diet.
4) Balance Strength and Cardio training
Don’t hammer one type of training and ignore another, we all have our preference when it comes to weights vs cardio, but a balance of both will lead to the best fat loss results. When it comes to cardio, a one hour session may burn more calories and leave you in a puddle of sweat at the time, but weight training is more effective than cardio at building muscle, and muscle burns more calories at rest than fat. So balance out your week with both those heart pumping sessions and the heavy lifting.
5) Prioritise protein!
After calories, protein is the second most important thing when it comes to your diet and fat loss. Firstly, it has enhanced thermogenic effects (it’s a nutrient that burns a lot of calories when being broken down and digested. Secondly it helps build lean muscle, which as we mentioned above, the more muscle, the more calories burnt at rest. Finally it’s satiating, it keeps you fuller for longer so you are less likely to snack and overeat.
