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15 FAT LOSS TIPS That Changed My Life

15 FAT LOSS TIPS That Changed My Life

by | Apr 17, 2022 | Blog, Diet, fat loss-featured

Struggling to lose weight? Need that little tip to kickstart your results?

Well let me save you a lot of wasted time and effort experimenting to find what works and share 15 tips I’ve found to make all the difference in my results.

CHECK OUT THE FULL VIDDEO BLOG BELOW:

1: Working In Foods You Love First

For me this is dessert.

Often the thing we love most is the least healthy for us so we cut it out first. But we need to do the opposite and actually PLAN IT IN FIRST to work everything else around it and create a lifestyle balance.

When we cut out the foods we love, we sabotage ourselves. Restricting them just leads to us wanting them more and ultimately binging on them and falling off our plan.

Work in the foods you love so you want to stay consistent with the healthy lifestyle you are building!

2: Quality Does, And Doesn’t, Matter

Obviously whole natural foods are best for our health.

But you can STILL overeat healthy foods.

If you’ve been frustrated not seeing weight loss results while thinking “My diet is healthy and clean,” realize that your portions could still be off.

And we also need to stop making ourselves feel guilty for enjoying some not so quality foods as we strike the balance right for us.

Follow the 80/20 rule, consuming whole, natural, nutrient dense foods 80% of the time while still enjoying the not as quality foods you love.

And remember, portions still really matter!

3: It’s Not Forever

Nothing works forever.

While we want to make true habit and lifestyle changes, we need to realize that our needs and goals will change with time and our diet and exercise routines will need to adjust and adapt as well.

You’re building a foundation with the changes you’re making but you can’t get so tied to something you aren’t willing to adjust with time.

Focus on truly LEARNING the fundamentals and basics so you understand how things work for you so you can adjust as you need when your lifestyle and goals change.

4: Keep It Simple, Butthead

It’s so easy to get caught up in all of the options out there. And it isn’t stupid to want to overcomplicate things.

But we do need to keep it SIMPLE if we want the best results. As the more details we add all at once, the more our attention gets divided and the harder we make it on ourselves to dial in the big picture plan, which matters most.

We’re being a butthead, and I mean that as a slight term of endearment, if we start worrying about details like meal timing and supplements and best foods for fat loss before we first simply get consistent with our workout routine while dialing in our overall macros and calories for the day.

So set a few big picture things to start with and get consistent with before you worry about anything else!

5: Stop Overcorrecting

We’re human.

There will be days that don’t go as planned, days we just aren’t motivated, days that we just “mess up.”

But instead of feeling guilty, instead of trying to do more the next day to make up for it, we just need to get right back to those habits.

We need to do what we can as soon as we can to just MOVE FORWARD.

It’s like if we get a flat tire, we don’t slash the other three! Nope. We fix the flat or call a tow truck so we can get moving forward as fast as possible. Don’t make the situation worse.

Don’t try to do more to correct it as that will also often backfire.

Just move forward.

6: Focus On Strength Training Over Cardio

Our workouts should be about more than just burning calories. So while we may burn more calories in a single cardio session over a strength session, this shouldn’t really be our focus.

Training is about becoming functional stronger and moving our best.

And if we want to really improve our weight loss efforts, we need to focus less on how many calories we burn in a single session and more on how we can increase our lean muscle mass to raise our metabolic rate and burn more calories even at rest.

So focus on strength training to actually see better results faster, especially as we get older. Since it becomes harder to build and retain lean muscle, we want to do everything we can to promote better muscle hypertrophy!

7: You Can’t Just Listen To Your Body

We wouldn’t be struggling to lose weight if we could just eat intuitively. Intuitive eating needs to be learned.

So if you’re trying to achieve body recomposition, you won’t be able to just listen to your body and eat according to its cues.

Our body don’t like change and they believe the state they’ve been in, the weight you’ve been at, is normal. So your body will resist any weight loss efforts.

You’ll feel hungry.

There will be mental struggles as you make changes to habits you’ve always done.

But change requires change.

8: There’s No Quick Fix

Plain and simple, change doesn’t happen overnight. And even expecting to reverse 10 years of weight gain in a single year, is truly overnight results.

The longer we’ve had the weight on, the longer we’ve been repeating habits that don’t work, the longer it will take to see changes.

And often the closer we get to our goal, the slower the progress will be especially if we are trying to see true fat loss and not just quickly lose weight on the scale through glycogen depletion and water weight being lost!

So get ready to focus on consistency over doing more to get results faster. We can’t out exercise or out diet time!

9: Recovery Is Key

Often we try to do more by training longer and harder and cutting out more from our diet.

But often the MORE we really need is more rest and recovery.

Those “easy” recovery sessions, when we relax and sleep and de-stress, that is when we are actually repairing and seeing the benefits of our hard training sessions and changes in macro ratios.

Without recovery time, you are just going to keep beating yourself down instead of ever allowing your results to build up!

So prioritize sleep. Plan in rest days. Do that rehab work! It may not “feel” beneficial but it is truly what makes your hard work add up!

10: Avoid Restriction

Often we cut out more in an attempt to get results faster. But all this does is make our habits unsustainable.

It’s what makes us feel like we just don’t have the discipline, self control or willpower to see the results we want.

When really we just aren’t being realistic. We aren’t basing things off of our needs and goals.

Don’t focus on cutting out. First focus on small swaps that feel like the smallest changes and realize there can be a balance.

Even start by doing the MINIMUM, knowing results will snowball.

11: Be Active

The more you do, the more you do. And when we stay active, we often want to do more things that keep us moving in a positive direction.

It’s much easier to get lazy and eat extra crap when you’re just lazing around.

So get moving.

Go out for walks. They’re a great way to burn more fat and get in more movement without stressing your body.

But get active and stay.

Especially the leaner you get and closer to your goal you get, as you’ve been in a deficit for longer, the more your body may actually move less to conserve energy.

Be conscious of this and make sure to make an effort to stay active throughout the day!

12: Macros Over Calories

Macros matter most for sustainable results. The ratio you use may impact the calories right for you and impact how full you feel.

And higher protein ratios can help prevent unwanted fat gain if you are in a surplus while helping aid in muscle mass retention during a deficit.

Actually high protein ratios are the only ones shown to even help you build muscle while in a deficit.

So let your macros then dictate how you dial in your calories. Don’t just focus on calories in vs. calories out!

13: You’re Not An All Or Nothing Person

Often we think if we can’t do everything at once, there is no point in doing anything.

This not only gives us an excuse not to start but it makes us feel like we’ve failed if one thing doesn’t go as planned.

But results don’t happen because of what we do when we are perfect. From doing more for a week.

They happen because we stick with the minimum consistently day after day.

Remember that small changes build. And that the more we can ingrain one habit, the easier it becomes to replicate even on days we don’t feel like it.

So focus on those small changes and set some minimums you know you can hit so results can snowball.

14: Stop Doing More

The simple fact of the matter is, you can’t out exercise or out diet time.

And often the more we try to rush results, the more we simple deplete our self control and willpower so we can’t stay consistent long term.

Many of us have repeated this restriction, binge, guilt cycle.

We do so much, burn ourselves out with the restriction, end up binging, feel guilty, fall off, then can’t get back on track for a bit and even dig ourselves more of a hole to crawl out of.

Focus on small sustainable changes. Realize results simply take time and get ready for the long haul celebrating those daily habits as wins themselves.

And I saved the best for last…

15: Tracking

I know people hate on tracking for being restrictive, tedious, boring, annoying, time consuming, frustrating.

But what we measure, we can manage.

Tracking gives you an accurate picture of what you’re doing both diet-wise and in your workouts so you can make accurate adjustments.

If you want to create the right portion sizes for you without having to cut out the foods you love, you need to track.

If you want to make sure you’re getting stronger and progressing in your workouts, you need to track.

So as unsexy and annoying as it is to start, it truly is the best way to avoid wasting time and know what is and isn’t working!

SUMMARY:

So if you’ve been struggling to see results, start with even just one of these tips as your focus and BUILD. Because the hardest part is getting started and the more you do, the more you’ll want to do.

We just often need to get that ball rolling!

Ready to create your own recipe for results?

–> The 3-Step Recipe For Fabulous Fat Loss Results

Can’t LOSE Fat? Try These 2 Tips

Can’t LOSE Fat? Try These 2 Tips

by | May 21, 2021 | Blog, Diet, Exercises

Trying to lose weight as quickly as possible on the scale is a completely different focus than fat loss.

And often the faster we strive to see weight loss, the more we really don’t control for fat loss nor optimize our body recomposition.

Actually the more we can negatively impact our body recomposition results!

Because often in our attempt to lose weight faster, we slash our calories super low and try to exercise more.

This results in, yes more weight being lost, but this weight is not only fat but also MUSCLE.

It can also cause us to create metabolic adaptations and hormonal changes that can make us look SOFTER, which is the opposite of what we want to happen.

And this is especially the case when we’re working to lose those last 5 to 10 pounds.

You simply can’t out diet or out exercise TIME.

And while, yes, calories in vs calories out matters, we can’t focus on purely trying to starve ourselves by slashing our calories super low or creating more of a deficit through our training.

Actually we need to stop focusing on our training as a way to burn calories at all.

And we need to stop purely focusing on our calorie intake if we want the best fat loss results possible.

These improper weight loss practices, and even at times extreme deprivation diets and overtraining, are what lead to that horrible yo-yo dieting cycle.

They lead to potentially rapid weight loss on the scale, but also that weight rebound.

Through these fad diets, we create unsustainable habits, thrown our bodies out of whack and often create metabolic adaptations that make it even harder to lose the weight the next time we attempt to.

So if you’ve ever thought to yourself, “My age just makes it so much harder?”

Or “It’s so much harder than it used to be to lose weight!”

Well that might have less to do with getting older, and more to do with the improper dieting practices you’ve implemented previously!

The great part is though, we CAN reverse much of the “damage” we’ve done.

We can retrain our body to eat more and lose fat while restoring our metabolic health.

But we have to stop looking for a fast fix.

Instead we sort of have to do the OPPOSITE of what we’ve been told to do…

We need to focus on these two key things…

1. Macros
2. Strength Training

And then we need to focus on something we can truly maintain long-term.

Because motivation and willpower are fleeting.

We need to use those times we are motivated to put in new healthy habits that are sustainable. Because through those routines and habits that don’t take as much willpower to implement, we will keep doing what we need to do to get results even on those days we aren’t as motivated.

We need to focus less on creating a calorie deficit and more on doing the things that keep our metabolic rate higher while learning to fuel in a way that leaves us feeling energized while needing to utilized stored energy aka fat to fuel.

And that means we need to focus on macros and strength training.

So why are these two things so key?

First let’s talk about MACROS…

Before you even adjust your calorie intake, I recommend you focus on your macronutrient ratios – what portion of your calories come from proteins, carbs and fats?

How you adjust your macros can impact your energy levels and your fat loss results without you even consciously adjusting your calories.

It can even impact the number of calories you feel you need to be fueled while creating a small deficit just because of the differing thermic effects of each macronutrient.

When we fuel properly too, we help prevent unnecessary metabolic adaptations and we keep our body running efficiently.

Not to mention we maintain our energy so we want to live the lifestyle we enjoy!

When first focusing on macros, start by adjusting your PROTEIN intake.

Honestly, if you want the best fat loss results, protein is the main thing that matters.

A review of studies, showed that really protein intake is what determined what ratio worked best for weight loss. Whether you went high fat or low fat, high carb or low carb, the ratio that always produced the best results was the one higher in protein.

And it’s because protein can keep you feeling full and fueled.

Not to mention the thermic effect can only further aid in fat loss without you needing to create any more of a technical calorie deficit.

Protein takes the most energy to digest with about 20-30% of the total calories in protein eaten going to digesting it while carbs take about 5-10% and fats take 0-3%.

Studies have shown protein to have a thermogenic effect 5 times greater than carbs or fat!

Basically you burn more calories to utilize protein than the other two macros!

Increasing your protein can also help you build and retain lean muscle mass even while in a deficit.

Studies have shown that a high protein diet is the only diet to help you do so. Not to mention it can even help you prevent gaining fat when in a calorie surplus!

It’s so key we do EVERYTHING we can to avoid muscle mass loss, not only to age well, but to keep our metabolic rate higher and avoid the metabolic adaptations we often see with extreme diets.

Retaining lean muscle mass will help you burn more calories at rest not to mention, muscle makes you look LEANER as you lose that fat!

And the cherry on top of all of this, and just another reason to focus on protein…

Consuming protein can increase levels of glucagon, a hormone in your body that can help control body fat.

When glucagon is released, the liver breaks down stored glycogen into glucose for the body to use.

It can also help liberate free fatty acids from fat tissues aka provide fuel for cells and make that body fat do something useful instead of hiding our six pack.

Ok so you’re sold on focusing on macros…now why should you focus on strength training over cardio?

We focus so much on the calories we burn from exercise and trying to create a deficit through our training.

Which can be great for beginners just starting out looking to make a lifestyle change who find moving more, or adding in some workouts, easier to start than looking at their diet.

Just by adding in more activity they will create a calorie deficit without changing their diet.

This focus on a calorie deficit is also why many people turn to cardio when they want to lose weight. It has a higher calorie burn per session.

But our bodies adapt over time, meaning we don’t burn as many calories from these sessions (no matter what your very inaccurate fitness tracker tells you). And unless you keep training longer and harder, which there is a limit to, you won’t be able to out train your diet long-term.

So you WILL inevitably need to make dietary changes. Sorry. Trust me I’ve tried out training your diet.

It never leads to lasting results and often leads to burnout and injury.

Also, endurance training can be catabolic to muscle tissue, especially if you aren’t very conscious of your fueling.

So while you may be burning a few more calories in your training sessions by doing cardio especially to start, you aren’t doing anything to raise your resting metabolic rate, which impacts the calories you burn throughout the day.

And your resting metabolic rate has way more potential to help you burn more calories on a daily basis long-term and create LASTING results and long-term fat loss maintenance.

Not to mention you may only perpetuate muscle loss, especially if you’re slashing your calories super low, which will result in worse body composition and potentially metabolic adaptations that make it harder and harder to lose weight as we get older.

And this is why strength training is so key.

Not only can you increase your resting metabolic rate by building muscle because muscle requires more energy to maintain than fat, BUT you also are going to be functional stronger, look leaner AND preserve that muscle mass more while in a deficit and trying to lose fat.

If you want to eat more, look leaner and prevent a lot of the adaptations we often associate with getting older?

You need to be focusing your training on STRENGTH TRAINING.

Now if you enjoy cardio, you don’t need to cut it out.

But just STOP focusing on workouts as purely about the calorie burn from that single session.

Stop focusing on trying to do more to leave yourself feeling slaughtered.

Stop trying to out train your diet.

And instead see your workouts as a chance to build the lean physique you’ll reveal by how you fuel.

Use your training sessions to build lean muscle to keep your metabolism humming and look leaner long-term. Use your sessions not for that quick fix, but to help you better maintain your fat loss long term.

SUMMARY:

I know it’s tempting to want to do MORE to get results faster, but we have to remember that often the faster we lose weight on the scale, the less we are truly focusing on that body recomposition.

As much as it stinks to hear, slow and steady wins the race.

Focus on just those two key things of MACROS and STRENGTH TRAINING and find a routine you can follow consistently if you want amazing body recomposition results!

If you’re ready to dial in your workouts AND your nutrition to achieve amazing results with a plan that is actually SUSTAINABLE, apply to my 1:1 Online Coaching below.

–> Apply To 1:1 Coaching

 

A Carb Is A Carb Is A Carb

A Carb Is A Carb Is A Carb

by | Apr 15, 2019 | Blog, Diet

That carb…well…it’s just a carb!

Ok before you start getting all mad that I’m saying all carbs are created equal….hear me out.

And I could have said all fats are created equal or proteins…but it probably wouldn’t have made you as mad or as curious 😛 (Just kidding….but seriously…)

Sooo….how can I claim all carbs are created equal?

Because guess what?

If you dial in your macro ratios correctly, and according to your goals, as long as you stay within those ratios, you’ll get results regardless of whether your carbs are all fruits and vegetables or they’re only sugar and white bread.

Yup…weight loss and body composition goals are really all about calories and macros.

Quality…well it doesn’t really matter.

Now I’m not giving you an excuse to just eat crap. BUT…

If your macros are off, you may not see the results you want no matter how “healthy” your diet is or how high a “quality” the foods you are eating are.

Now I’m not saying focusing on whole, natural foods…more NUTRIENT DENSE foods…isn’t important.

They 100% are for your health.

And I do think you function better and feel fuller when your diet is made up of foods that give your body the nutrients it needs.

Focusing on whole, natural foods only helps you get better results faster.

BUT I also think sometimes we get so focused on depriving ourselves of the foods we enjoy, stressing over QUALITY, that we sabotage ourselves.

While we are killing ourselves eating “well,” our macro ratio and calorie intake aren’t in line with our goals so we don’t end up seeing the results we want.

No wonder we get frustrated and give up, feeling like nothing will ever work!

So what am I telling you?

Basically, if your macro ratios are out of whack, it doesn’t matter that you’re eating nutrient dense foods.

That sweet potato…well those calories and CARBS are still going to count as much toward your calories and carbs as that white bread will.

Basically, that carb is just that…a carb.

Eat too much of either type of carb and you’re not going to get the results you want.

So stop stressing over “clean” eating.

(Honestly….”clean” is going to be soooo dependent on your dietary preference and 9 different people will tell you different foods are evil that you could drive yourself insane obsessing over this….)

Stop depriving yourself of all of the foods you love so you end up binging each and every weekend after being worn out from the constant restriction (hmm just thinking about how maybe this happened this week, huh!?).

Find a BALANCE where you focus on nutrient dense foods, but also still enjoy the foods you love.

Because if you want to change your body composition and lose weight or even gain muscle?

It’s really all about FOCUSING ON THOSE MACROS!

(And guess what? When you dial in your macro ratios, often we do overall dial in the whole, natural foods more but in a way that is less restrictive so we end up being more consistent which is TRULY the key to overall wellbeing!)

Need a macro ratio you can use to track and log with?

Take my Macro Cycling Quiz to help you get started!

–> Take The Macro Cycling Quiz

P.S. Yes, the quiz is free and you can plug in that ratio to My Fitness Pal or any other food tracker to help guide you this week!

Cinnamon Vanilla Protein Balls

Cinnamon Vanilla Protein Balls

by | Jul 7, 2017 | Blog, Recipes

I love healthy snacks that don’t taste “healthy” aka like crap. I like snacks that you can have around that taste delicious, satisfy your cravings while also helping you hit your macros.

And it’s even better if they are easy to make so you don’t add on to your meal prep and can even squeeze in making them during a busy, stressful week. (I love snacks you can make and even freeze for a few weeks so you always have something on hand!)

Because let’s face it…When you’re stressed and tired and bored…and simply want to eat, you’ll reach for whatever is around. Which most often ISN’T healthy. Because most of the time the healthy food we keep around when we are “on a diet” is well…not satisfying.

But if you can have something TASTY AND HEALTHY easily available, you’ll not only satisfy your cravings but also keep yourself on track.

That is why I love these Cinnamon Vanilla Protein Balls.

They are basically a one-bowl recipe. AKA you put all of the ingredients in one bowl, mix, roll into balls and eat! You can freeze them for a few weeks so you always have something around and they are easy to take with you to work or out and about if you’ve got errands to run.

So if you need a quick and healthy treat to satisfy those cravings, you’ll love these protein balls from my Macro Cycling Shred Book!

Cinnamon Vanilla Protein Balls

Servings 16 (1 ball per serving)

INGREDIENTS:
1 tsp Vanilla Extract
3/4 cup Gluten-Free Oat Flour (take oatmeal in a food processor to grind up)
1/4 cup All-Natural Nut Butter of choice
1/4 cup Almond Meal/Flour
2 tbsp Raw Local Honey
2 scoops Vanilla Whey Protein Powder
1 tbsp Cinnamon

***Note you may need to slowly add tbsp of water depending on the whey, oats and almond meal you use to reach the desired consistency.

First make sure to grind up oats in a food processor or buy oat flour.

Then add oat flour, almond meal, whey, cinnamon and nut butter to a bowl. Stir all of the ingredients together.

Then add honey and vanilla extract. Mix well again with hands until dough comes together,

If needed, slowly add a tbsp of water at a time until dough complete comes together.

Then roll into 1-1.5 inch balls and place on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. You can choose to roll in additional cinnamon and even vanilla whey if desired.

Freeze for 20-30 minutes then transfer to a ziplock bag. You can freeze them for up to 6 weeks!

MACRO BREAKDOWN:
1 ball
Calories: 108
Protein: 7 grams
Carbs: 12 grams
Fat: 4 grams

Looking to dial in your diet? Love the idea of a diet where no foods are off limits? Curious about Macro Cycling and how you can get the lean, strong body you want with a diet that fits your lifestyle?

Here’s more information on Macro Cycling –>