I have been asked tons of questions about fitness, nutrition, and health over my career.
Most of these questions have been related specifically to fat loss.
the answers you are about to see will give you clarity on what you should be focusing on to help you shed fat for good!
These question, come right from current clients, past clients, friends, family, and people I have spoken with online.
So, rather than keep all of these fat loss secrets to myself, I want to share them with you!
Question 1: What is the most effective diet for me to lose fat?
There is no one magic diet for fat loss, the diet/way of eating that keeps you in a caloric deficit, while maintaining your protein in take will be the most effective.
Question 2: What type of training should I do for fat loss?
Similar to question 1, there is no magic training.
Training should prioritize mainting lean muscle and overall cardiovascular function.
Your dietary choices will be the most important for fat loss.
Question 3: Will intermittent fasting help me with weight loss?
Intermittent fasting can be helpful for you with weight loss.
Intermittent fasting can serve as a way to control how many calories you eat throughout the day.
Intermittent fasting works by only eating during certain times during the day.
For example, you may choose to only eat between 12 pm and 7 pm, and you do not eat anything in the hours before.
Question 4: How does my sleep play a role in fat loss?
Yes, sleep will impact your ability to lose fat.
Sleep can impact the levels of two important appetite regulating hormones, leptin, and ghrelin.
Leptin will lower your appetite and desire to eat, while ghrelin will signal to your brain and body that you are hungry and need to eat.
Not getting enough sleep will lower the amount of leptin and raise the amount of ghrelin.
Making you want to eat more, which would make it harder for you to maintain a caloric deficit.
Question 5: How many calories should I eat for fat loss?
For fat loss, the easiest way to find your calories is to take your goal body weight and multiply that by 12.
For example, if you weigh 180 lbs., and are trying to weigh 170, you will take 170 and multiply that by 12.
This would get you 2,040 calories each day.
A word of caution though, this is not exact.
But it provides you with a great starting point.
Monitor your progress to determine weather or not you need to make adjustments to your calories.
Question 6: Are there supplements that could help me with fat loss?
There are some supplements that have become popular for their weight loss benefits.
For example, L-carnitine and berberine are two common ones out now.
However, these are not necessary for fat loss.
Supplements should be used to support a well-rounded diet.
Question 7: If I've hit a plateau, how do I progress?
Hitting a plateau in your weight loss journey is common.
Here are my 3 solutions if that happens.
1. Patience.
Unfortunately, in today’s world, people want things immediately. However, fat loss does not happen that way. Before you drastically change everything or give up, give yourself time to allow your body change. I wouldn’t make any drastic changes unless you have not seen progress in at least 4 weeks. The drastic changes I don’t want you to do are switching diets completely, stop eating, or stop trying to achieve your goals because you think you did something wrong.
2. Assess your food intake.
If we are not losing weight and or fat, we may not be in a true caloric deficit. When clients of mine are not seeing progress, I make the suggestion to track their food intake for 3 days. Most of the time they quickly realize that they may have been underestimating their calories. You can track your food by using just writing them out, you can use hand portions, or you can track measuring out your food. You can find more information on tracking in my 10 Steps to Better Nutrition Ebook!
Click here for your free copy!
3. See where you can add a little more activity.
If you have been walking or exercising for 30 minutes 4 days per week, see if you can add in a 5th day or add an extra 10 -15 minutes to your current routine. Walking is such a great tool for fat loss and maintaining a caloric deficit. If you can’t add more activity because of your schedule, see what you can do during your day to add increase the amount of calories you burn each day. For example, take the stairs, park farther away from the store, spend more time standing at work or at the office, walk and talk on the phone.
Question 8: How much protein should I be eating for fat loss?
You should aim for 1 gram of protein per lb. of body weight.
If you are trying to lose fat, use your starting weight.
For example, for a 180 lb. person who is trying to lose weight, they would be aiming for 180 grams of protein.
Question 9: Does eating more protein help with fat loss?
Protein will help you lose fat loss in two ways.
First, protein helps to maintain our lean muscle, connective tissue, certain hormones, and enzymes used in hundreds if not thousands of biochemical reactions.
Second, it helps to keep us full, which is crucial for fat loss and hunger management.
Protein intake is crucial for fat loss!
Question 10: Is strength training or cardio better for fat loss?
Both can be help you lose fat.
Both will add to your total calories burned throughout the day, which will help you maintain your caloric deficit.
Cardio will be beneficial for your cardiovascular system and overall health.
Strength training will serve to maintain your muscle mass and keep your muscle active.
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