FHP 601 – New Year, Old Me
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WATCH HERE
In this episode we’ll discuss starting a new year and how perception is reality!
How to Lose Fat AND Gain Muscle At The Same Time (Step By Step)
What should I do first…I want to build muscle and lose fat?
The great thing is…
You CAN do both at the same time!
But how you do that may depend on where you are currently in your fitness and body composition journey.
While you can achieve both goals, you do need to set a primary focus as that will impact how you adjust your diet to start.
That’s why in this video I want to break down two different nutritional approaches to body recomp whether you want to lose fat as you retain and gain lean muscle or you want to gain muscle as you maintain your level of leanness while potentially getting even leaner!
And then I want to share a bonus workout tip to help you make sure your diet and workouts are working together.
Now if you’re thinking, “But I heard this wasn’t possible to lose fat and gain muscle at the same time.”
I’m going to let you in on a little secret…
It is possible.
It just takes embracing something that so many of us want to run from…
A habit so many of us have labeled boring and tedious and hard…
Tracking macros!
Now before you just write this off and click back saying tracking macros isn’t for you, I want to explain why it is so key and a SIMPLIFIED approach that can yield amazing results…
So that person that has said to you…“You can’t lose fat and gain muscle at the same time?”
It’s probably because they’ve always dieted by just cutting their calories super low.
They lost weight, but probably often have also lost muscle in the process.
They may have even gotten skinny without really looking more toned.
So they decide they want to build muscle to get more defined, so they eat in a surplus.
They end up, yes, putting on muscle. But also gaining fat.
So they then go back in a calorie deficit, repeating the same rollercoaster over and over again.
They may try a bigger deficit to lose faster or a bigger surplus to gain.
More is better right?
WRONG.
These bigger extremes may actually lead to their body composition becoming WORSE.
It is because while we can lose or gain weight simply by creating a calorie deficit or surplus, we aren’t controlling for what we are losing or gaining.
We aren’t controlling for fat loss or muscle mass retention.
This is something we CAN control by adjusting our macros.
And one macro in particular – our protein intake.
Increasing our protein intake is key.
High protein diets have been the only diets shown to not only help us retain lean muscle but even GAIN lean muscle mass while in a deficit.
And increasing your protein intake while in a surplus, due to the thermic effect of this macro, can help you avoid gaining unwanted fat while making it easier to build muscle due to the extra energy consumption.
So if you’ve struggled to embrace tracking macros in the past but really want to see those defined abs and arms…
It’s time to start tracking…at least your protein intake!
While in a calorie surplus, you may get away with slightly lower protein intakes than in a deficit as long as you are consuming enough carbs as well as instant fuel, going even higher while in a deficit due to the fact that you’re not really consuming enough of anything is key.
While you may consume about 30-35% of your calories from protein in a surplus, you will want to bump that to more like 40% of your calories from protein while in a deficit.
Starting out don’t worry where your carbs or fat fall.
Just first only focus on that protein intake.
Doing this alone will lead to amazing results and you’ll be surprised by how much you see those inches being lost and the definition popping through in your progress photos.
But that high protein really is what yields that body recomp magic.
So even if you’ve been resisting tracking macros, set that percentage to hit of your calories from protein and adjust the current foods you eat through small tweaks to see results.
Here’s a video that has 7 tips to help you easily bump protein!
But before you decide on exactly what protein percentage to use, you have to determine your calories.
Which should you be in – a calorie deficit or a surplus?
And that depends on your main focus.
While the goal is to lose fat as you gain muscle or gain muscle as you lose fat, you have to have a primary target.
What is your main focus?
This will be based on your current leanness level.
Are you currently basically as lean as you’d like and would like to add more muscle while just staying lean?
Or do you have more weight to lose but really want that muscle definition especially to stay strong as you get older?
If you’re already lean, consider a calorie surplus to focus a bit more on gaining muscle without any fluff.
If you’re not yet at your weight loss goal, consider a calorie deficit to start to help you lose fat without losing muscle.
Exactly how great a calorie surplus or deficit you create can also impact the results you get and be based on where you are in your fitness journey.
If you have more weight to lose, 500 calories is the most extreme you want to go with a deficit below your maintenance. But this is really aggressive and best only done if you have more than 50lbs to lose and aren’t as active.
Otherwise to help focus on losing fat without also costing you muscle, consider a deficit of only 100-300 calories at max. Think closer to 300 if you have over 15 pounds to lose and more like 100-200 if you have less than 15 pounds are are super active!
If you are already basically as lean as you’d like or even as thin as you’d like although you wouldn’t mind more definition, you will want to consider a small surplus.
Since you don’t really have energy stores to tap into, and you want to be able to push hard in your training to create that progression and stimulus for muscle growth, the extra calories will help you make sure you’re retaining that lean muscle.
Think 100-200 calories above maintenance unless you’re truly as lean as you’d like and really increasing your activity level – then go 300-400 calories.
Especially if you are just coming out of a deficit, slowly increase those calories only 100 at a time!
As essential as your diet is to losing fat and gaining muscle at the same time, the best results happen when our diet and workouts work together.
And without that stimulus for muscle growth in our training, we won’t see our nutritional changes fully pay off.
That’s why I wanted to share a bonus tip with you about what workouts are best to see body recomp.
Bonus Tip:
Now you may be thinking, do I need workouts for fat loss or for gaining muscle.
And I had a client even email me recently, “How do I know if a workout is for fat loss or building muscle?”
My email back said, “A good fat loss workout should be focused on building muscle.”
Muscle is metabolism magic.
Our training shouldn’t be about burning calories in our sessions and feeling destroyed.
It should be focused on building lean muscle.
We need that training stimulus for growth if our diet is going to have an impact.
And the more muscle we have, the more calories we will burn during the day, making it easier to lose fat.
Muscle stokes our metabolic fire and helps us avoid metabolic adaptations as we lean down.
So your training should be focused on building lean muscle no matter your aesthetic goal focus.
Sure if you love endurance sports, you don’t have to ditch them.
But even then strength training will only help you get stronger at what you love.
So focus on building strength in your training no matter what.
And for a great workout design to help you see those strength gains, check out my 6-12-25 protocol.
This is an amazing way to build muscle and strength no matter you age!
Using these tips you can build muscle and lose fat…or lose fat as you gain muscle.
You can see the body recomp you deserve but you need to TRACK.
What gets measured gets managed so we can adjust and see better results faster!
Ready to achieve amazing body recomp, losing that stubborn fat?
FHP 550 – Should You Eat Before Bed? Breaking Down Bad Habits
There are certain habits, like late night snacking, that we’d ideally like to stop doing.
While not necessarily bad…they aren’t serving us or helping us get the results we want.
That’s why in this episode I want to go over how to change those habits to help you see better results faster.
Michelle is going to dive into late night snacking specifically and why and when it can hinder how progress and how to break that habit!
I’ll also go over why the weekends so often sabotage us as well as workout habit mistakes that often hold us back from seeing those strength gains!
But first…I want to go over why we’ve got to stop beating ourselves up if we want to truly move forward!
18 Underrated Core Exercises
Often we fall back into using the same old moves, forgetting all of the options and variations out there. But having different variations of exercises to target the same area can help us create progression through the same but different.
It can help us even activate different muscles to different extents!
That’s why I want to throw back to the origins of my YouTube channel and share a Core Exercise Variations video with all of you.
These exercises work your entire core, frontside and backside.
Because sometimes we just need that library of move options to help remind us of all of the tools out there we have to meet our needs and goals and design the workouts that help us rock those results!
18 Underrated Core Moves
Balance Toe Touches 00:37
Cross Body Knees 00:54
Twist And Pivot 01:13
Wall Push 01:26
Side Balance Oblique Twists 01:35
Side Plank Clams 01:56
Plank with Reach Back and Out 02:12
Bulldog Reaches 02:34
Plank Snow Angels 02:55
Sit Thrus 03:39
3-Way Sit Up And Reach 03:59
Seated Hinges 04:24
C-Sit With Knees 04:42
Bridge to Boat 04:57
Banana Rolls 05:17
Butterfly Crunches 05:41
Frog Kickouts 05:57
Leg Wipers 06:12
BONUS!
15-Minute Core Burner
Complete 2-3 rounds through each circuit without resting. Rest no more than 30 seconds between circuits if possible.
CIRCUIT #1:
30 seconds Twist And Pivot
30 seconds per side Plank With Reach Back And Out
30 seconds C-Sit With Knees
30 seconds Frog Kickouts
CIRCUIT #2:
30 seconds per side Cross Body Knees
30 seconds Plank Snow Angels
30 seconds 3-Way Sit Up And Reach
30 seconds Bridge To Boat
For more amazing workouts to match your needs, goals and schedule, check out Dynamic Strength!
–> LEARN MORE
The Limits of Age and Exercise (Control What You Can Control)
“I feel like I’m moving better than I did in my 20s and 30s!”
Want to know what led to my client saying this?
In this video I’ll go over not only the workout adjustments but also nutritional changes we made to help her feel her most fabulous.
Because we need to stop just blaming our age and ACCEPTING pain!
The simple fact is…you can’t change your age. You can’t stop getting older.
And yes, there are changes to our body as we get older.
But so often we just write off those changes as out of our control when so often there are lifestyle factors we can CHANGE that do have an impact.
Yes, as we get older, our recovery times change.
Aches and pains have had more time to accumulate…especially as often we haven’t truly taken care to rebuild from previous injuries.
Even the hormonal changes of perimenopause and menopause can lead to increased inflammation making our joints achier.
But through adjustments to our training and nutrition, we can reduce the aches and pains and even feel like we move better than ever!
That’s why in this video I want to go over controlling what you can control and adjusting your lifestyle to move your best at any age!
Let’s start with adjusting our workout routines.
I wanted to outline the 2 key things I implement with clients in their workouts that have led to many saying…
“I feel better than I did in my 20s and 30s!”
First, We Include That Prehab Process Every Warm Up
Injuries…Daily postures… Daily posture
They can change our mobility and flexibility. They can change our recruitment patterns or how we use muscles to perform movements.
And so often, even when we’ve done rehab for previous problems, we STOP doing what made us better.
This leads to us defaulting back into incorrect movement and recruitment patterns and can lead to aches and pains again adding up.
And while we may have “gotten away with this” when we were younger, it is also why aches and pains are adding up more now!
We start overusing muscles and joints not meant to carry the load. It’s why we may feel like lunges or squats only constantly hurt our knees!
That’s why that full 3-part prehab process of foam rolling, stretching and activation in every warm up is so key.
It addresses any mobility, flexibility or stability issues we have, and preps our body to work that day.
And it’s key we use the system as a whole. Too often we pull out parts of things we “like,” and then are surprised when the benefits aren’t there.
But this process works because of all 3 components together and in that order!
Before you workout, foam roll tight and overactive muscles that may impact your workout or hinder you from performing moves fully.
This then will help you better mobilize your joints with the stretches.
So if you’ve had hip pain and struggle to engage your glutes or squat deeply, you may roll out a hip flexor and quad muscle that is tight like the rectus femoris.
Then include dynamic stretches to warm up your body and mobilize your joints.
As you do these stretches, focus on the opposing muscle group engaging to drive the stretch.
To stretch out your chest in suspension trainer snow angels, focus on engaging your back to feel that stretch more.
Finally include activation moves that isolate muscles that are weaker or that you struggle to use correctly.
If you’ve had hip issues or lower back pain, you may focus on things like single leg reverse hypers or lying lateral raises to really target those glutes and engage them.
But this prep work in your warm up, and even the rolling and stretching in your cool down, will help you not only move better in your workouts to get more out of those sessions but also recover better for the next workout!
However, we can’t just do our mobility work then rush through our workouts if we want to avoid aches and pains.
That’s why the second thing I focus on with clients is…
Seeing Every Movement As An Assessment!
Every rep of an exercise is you practicing that movement.
If those reps are rushed and we aren’t focus on the quality of our movement, we aren’t going to get the full benefit of those exercises and may even end up injuring ourselves.
And if you’re thinking, “My form is great! I’m experienced with these moves.”
“Good form” doesn’t mean you aren’t cheating.
Often the more advanced an exerciser we are, the more we can cheat and overuse muscles or seek out mobility from other joints to mimic a movement.
We know what it SHOULD look like and our body is good at replicating what we want even if it means overloading muscles that shouldn’t be carrying the load.
It’s why you may be able to do that deadlift or pull up, BUT you’re also ending up constantly with lower back or neck and shoulder pain.
That’s why I have every client see every movement as an assessment and always ask themselves…
“What do I feel working?”
Because the muscles we feel DURING the exercise, are what are powering the movement.
If the correct muscles are working, we’re going to see those results build.
However, if we are feeling muscles taking over that shouldn’t be the prime movers, we are going to end up with injury.
When we are able to feel this happening, we can regress to progress, adjust our form or cueing and even modify the movements to get the correct muscles working.
Even if we can do a squat with one weight, we may find increasing to a point then changes what we feel working.
It’s why you want to be intentional in your training over just zoning out or rushing through.
Even changes in the TYPE of exercise, say a back squat vs a front squat, could impact how the move feels.
The more we are conscious of what is working, the more we can make sure we are truly maximizing each movement and even working through the fullest range of motion possible.
Because we can’t out mobility work the movements we are doing in our workouts.
If you want to keep that flexibility you are working so hard on, you need to strength through that range of motion.
You can’t hope to improve your hip mobility while doing a two inch squat because you’re trying to go heavy!
So be intentional with your training and you’ll see those movements improve and those aches and pains go away.
Not to mention you’ll even see improvements to your strength and muscle gains faster!
Next let’s talk about our nutrition and how we can adjust that as well to reduce those aches and pains.
And I’m going to start by telling you something you don’t want to hear…
But that has been eye opening for my clients…
First and foremost…Track your food.
So often we only think about tracking what we’re eating when we want to reach an aesthetic goal.
But tracking can help us truly understand the impact our diet is having on our health and even those aches and pains.
By tracking you may realize you aren’t eating enough protein to support optimal recovery or getting in the antioxidants or omega-3s you need to reduce inflammation and support optimal joint and muscle functioning.
Protein is key.
As we get older we are less able to utilize it as efficiently which means we need MORE of it to get the same muscle building response.
And protein isn’t just used to build muscle, it makes up all of the tissues of our body and even helps promote healthy bones and hormonal balance.
Without enough protein to properly repair, we are going to see more aches and pains add up!
Not to mention put ourselves at greater risk for other injuries such as falls and fractures.
And it isn’t just our macros we want to track but those micros and the types of each macro we consume.
Antioxidants like vitamins C and E, as well as beta-carotene, can help protect joint tissues from oxidative stress and inflammation.
This is why we want to track to make sure we’re consuming plenty of colorful fruits and vegetables, such as berries, citrus fruits, and leafy greens.
And then we don’t want to fear FATS in our diet either. Especially Omega-3s. Omega-3 fatty acids have anti-inflammatory properties that can help reduce joint pain and stiffness.
Tracking to make sure we’re including fatty fish such as salmon, mackerel, sardines as well as plant-based sources such as flaxseeds, chia seeds, and walnuts is key!
And then second, we focus on hydration and even tracking that water intake.
Many of us have even set the goal to drink more water…and it’s a surprisingly hard habit to change!
It’s why I love to add this in as something clients also track in their daily logs for accountability.
What gets measured gets managed.
But increasing your water intake as you get older keeps those joints, as well as our other body tissues, healthy and happy.
It also helps us recover faster!
And it’s key we actually shoot for MORE water as we get older, especially if you’re increasing your protein intake to assist in better recovery and muscle gains!
When you increase your protein intake, you want to increase your water intake to help with absorption and digestion of the protein.
We also have to recognize that, as we get older and go through menopause, we simply need more water too to stay hydrated.
With decreasing estrogen levels, we often need to increase our water intake.
Not to mention during menopause you may find you do better on lower carb ratios.
Carbs help us retain the water we need.
So fewer carbs in our system may mean increasing our water intake and even being conscious or our electrolyte balance.
This is why shooting for 70% of your bodyweight (in pounds) in ounces is key.
And you want to track to get this over the day.
You’re not seeking to have your pee be clear either with this. You want that light lemonade color.
But this focus on proper hydration helps keep cartilage, the cushioning material for your joints, lubricated and functioning optimally.
You can move and feel your best at any age. But it does mean addressing what your body needs right now instead of focusing just on what used to work.
But stop blaming your age.
Control what you can control and make these changes to your workouts and your diet to feel amazing at every age!
Learn more about how to create the perfect plan for YOU and see the results you deserve…
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