A Leaner Body In Three Easy Steps

Probably the most common fitness goal of most folks who wander into the gym is that of having a leaner body without much fat on it and with an athletic look to it. So if it’s such a common goal why do so few people actually have a lean and athletic physique? While it’s a common goal there are still a lot of misconceptions about what it takes to build a lean and athletic body. In this article you’ll learn three tips you can implement today to get you started on the right path to weight loss, fat loss and the body you always dreamed of.

Since losing weight is the first thing most folks look at let’s look at the one way you can dramatically reduce the number of calories you consume without making any changes to your diet. Drink water. Instead of drinking soda and other drinks that contain insane amounts of sugar, drink water instead. Water doesn’t have any calories so you’ll lose weight because of the calorie deficit in addition to all of the other benefits that water provides.

Most people don’t know this but 9 times out of 10 when you’re feeling hungry between meals you’re not actually hungry but you’re actually thirsty. So start taking bottled water to work and try drinking a bottle of water before you start snacking. Overall water is just better for your health but it is also terribly effective at reducing your caloric intake, it hydrates your body and supports a lot of natural bodily functions and if you use it like we mention above then it will also greatly reduce the amount of sugar you consume.

Unfortunately losing weight and having a lean body requires discipline and when it comes to weight loss discipline comes in the form of sugar. Ah yes sugar we all love it and most of us have a horrible time trying to stay away from it. Stay disciplined and strong as often as possible and follow the workout detailed below to get rid of the fat that’s already around your waist and to burn off that sugar you had after dinner last night.

Once you reduce the amount of calories you consume, you can accelerate your fat and weight loss by exercising. Exercising will not only burn more calories while you’re doing it but it usually also increases your metabolism for a better portion of the day and if you do what is recommended here you’ll reap the benefits of a revved up metabolism for the entire day.

First thing in the morning before you’ve eaten anything is the ideal time to workout and strip your body of any fat that is left on it. When you wake up after a full nights rest you’ve basically just fasted for 8 hours and your body is starving and your stomach is most likely empty! Doing a cardio workout at this time will force your body to burn its fat as fuel and that means you’ll end up with a leaner body.

It is important to do your cardio workout at the right pace however. If you go to hard and with too much intensity you’ll most likely not burn any fat. The important thing is that you realize that to burn fay you have to keep your exercise at a moderate pace. The rule of thumb is if you can maintain a conversation with someone the you’re working at a good pace. Slow down and burn fat.

If you can’t decide between a fat burning workout and a cardio workout for your hear then interval training is for you. Interval training has been around for several years now and basically combines fat burning exercises with cardio exercise. In a nutshell you go hard for a couple of minutes then you go slow for a couple of minutes and you do that back and forth for about twenty minutes.

Finally since you’re already attacking the fat that’s on your body and losing weight since you’re consuming fewer calories per day, it’s time to look at preventing any more fat from being stored around your hopefully soon to be visible mid section. The best tip we can offer here is to not eat any carbohydrates and preferably not any food 2-3 hours before bed time.

The food you consume before you go to bed normally gets converted to fat. Your body pretty much has nothing else to do with it since most of your bodily functions shut down while you’re sleeping. So don’t give your body anything to have to store away. Again if you’re feeling hungry at night try a cold glass of water before resorting to snacking.

So there you have it. It all begins with reducing the amount of calories you consume per day by drinking water. That’s you spark weight loss. The you burn more calories, spark your metabolism and burn fat by exercising in the morning. Finally you do some “preventative maintenance” by not consuming any food 2-3 hours before you go to sleep. These 3 tips when combined will give you an excellent foundation for developing a leaner more athletic looking body.

Even Successful Weight Loss Programs Usually Forget This…

Dieting - losing weight - trimming the waistline, whatever you want to call it, if - You Don’t Know What You Are Doing Wrong - You Can’t Change! Successful weight loss programs should always include a journal.

Simply put, anything that can’t be measured can’t be improved! So to find the most efficient and quick ways to lose weight, you first have to know what caused it.

Getting safe, healthy and fast results from our weight loss efforts is a step-by-step procedure. The first basic step is finding out exactly what we’ve been doing wrong - then we can change!

When attempting to lose weight, the first, smartest and easiest step you can take is to start keeping a daily food journal. A food journal is basically what it sounds like…a record of your daily food intake. Your journal can be as simple or complex as you wish. You can record lots of details or just keep it clean and basic. But either way, a journal is a terrific way to help yourself stick to your successful weight loss programs.

Your food journal can record a whole host of valuable information. First, how about listing your daily food intake? Just this simple and basic step can provide you with a lot of unexpected data. It will help you to actually see what you eat on any given day - and you’ll start to notice patterns of unhealthy eating that you had never previously considered.

It’s our daily habits and patterns that kill us. We do things without even noticing. Once you start writing them down, they come to light and you can take steps to change. That’s when you will find the successful weight loss programs to lose weight.

Many people find it valuable to record calories, protein, fiber, fat, and other nutrients. Portion sizes could be recorded as well. This is a lot of work, but it is definitely worth the effort. You won’t have to do it very long before you start to find HUGE gaping mistakes in what, when, why, how much and the way you eat.

You could move from the strictly factual journal into more of a diary format. You could write down triggers that make you eat even when it’s not for hunger. You can record your cravings, how your weight loss program is affecting you on a daily basis and your inner feelings. There are many formats and things you can write. The key to keep in mind is that it’s YOURS! Make it any way you want.

No one else would have any reason to want to read your food journal - so it’s not like a traditional diary kept under lock and key and hidden away. After all, it isn’t exactly tabloid fodder to read a list of everything you ate in a day. (Unless you’re famous, then you should hide your journal.)

In the actual creation of your journal, use whatever tools work best for you. You don’t need to go out and buy some fancy leather bound journal. (Unless that’s what you WANT.) A simple pad of paper and a pencil will work just fine. You could even keep your journal on your computer. Just fire up your word processing program or an Excel type spreadsheet and keep the icon on your desktop for easy access.

You could keep your food journal on a laptop or palm pilot, you could use a voice recorder or slip a notebook into your bag during the day…whatever works best for your lifestyle. The key is to make it something that you will keep up on a daily basis.

Your journal is incredibly more valuable as a tool to lose weight than your scale would ever be. Finding your unwanted habits and patterns and tracking your progress is as simple as keeping your journal up to date and reviewing it once a week.

When you hit certain weight loss goals, give yourself a big “ATTABOY” or “ATTAGIRL” It may seem hokey, but buy some gold star stickers and award yourself one whenever you reach a goal. (Seems dumb, but try it - those stars can become pretty important to you.) Skip the tub of ice cream and reward yourself with a non-fattening gold star. Try to set a goal that you can reach every day - so pretty soon your journal is filled with stars. It works.

If you back slide, study your journal and find out what went wrong! It’s all there! You can fix your mistakes and move on to the next gold star.

Your doctor can offer a lot of good advice and keep you healthy and safe. Be sure to take your food journal with you, and show it to them, when you visit your doctor. Also, always get a physical before starting any diet or exercise regimen.

It’s a little extra work, but a food journal works wonders for most of the people who keep one. Consider starting yours today- it’s the best method for finding quick ways to lose weight!

Accelerated Fat Loss Method Revealed!

My girlfriend is obsessed with The Biggest Loser. No, Im not referring to myself! Im referring to the very popular television show in which people compete to lose as much weight as possible, as quickly as they can. I dont think that she has missed a single episode. She loves to see the dramatic weight loss progress that the contestants make each week. She is so passionate about the show, she convinced me to watch it with her each week. I must admit, the show is quite entertaining and I do enjoy watching it with her.

But, from a weight loss standpoint, Im not impressed. The goal of the show is to lose weight as fast as possible. In order to do this, the contestants engage in very extreme programs that are designed to cause rapid reductions in bodyweight. Rapid weight loss is great, right? Not so fast! This is not necessarily the case. Heres why:

A common misconception is that weight loss and fat loss are the same thing-if only it were that easy, right? Usually the weight loss achieved by these people is actually just weight loss (water, lean muscle mass, very little fat) and not true fat loss. Even though the scale says you are dropping weight if you are losing lean muscle mass you are actually slowing down your metabolism rather than speed it up to ensure “fat” loss.

A rapid reduction in bodyweight can result in a greater chance of weight regain which isn’t something that anyone wants-but we all definitely want rapid weight loss, right? Well not if you want long term fat loss! We all want to lose fat as quickly as we can but this must be done carefully and scientifically or you will simply result in weight loss and not fat loss.

When a sound fat loss program is executed properly, one can lose excess body fat at an astonishing rate while maintaining ones lean muscle. Maintaining muscle is essential to keeping your metabolic rate elevated, which is a MUST if permanent fat loss is going to be possible. This is what impresses me; the maintenance of your fat loss. I dont care how much weight you can lose if its just going to come right back again. I want to see you change your body forever!

So my advice to you is to pay attention to what the long term maintainers have done to achieve and maintain their goals. These are the people who have truly achieved real fat loss success. The difference between big losers and maintainers:

First, successful maintainers engage in a regular exercise program. More specifically, I have found that maintainers perform 30 minutes or more daily exercise. This exercise regimen should consist of resistance training in addition to cardiovascular training.

As far as diet is concerned a “big loser” and a maintainer’s habits will vary greatly. Big losers usually follow the fad diets and perform limited exercise or simply perform aerobic work with no resistance training. Also, the self-monitoring methods used by big losers and maintainers differ as well such as measuring bodyweight and body fat percentages and also measuring calories.

Unfortunately, self-monitoring, especially weighing and/or measuring food and counting calories, is among the most avoided and even criticized weight loss techniques. Many weight loss gurus even claim that it’s too inconvenient to follow these restrictive recommendations. However, the truth is that these self-monitoring behaviors can literally make the difference between success and failure.

4 Fat Loss Success Techniques!

1. Become more active everyday! Daily exercise is crucial for weight maintenance and weight loss.

2. Resistance training is a crucial part of your workout regimen and even more important for maintaining fat loss.

3. Keep close eye on your calories and portion sizes. I know this can seem time consuming but try to measure for a couple of days then just estimate the correct sizes in the future.

4. Make FAT loss and not WEIGHT loss your focus. If you are measuring your body fat periodically then you will know how much fat, not simply weight, is being shed.

Follow my 4 fat loss strategies and you too will stop being a big loser and become a long term fat loss maintainer!