A consolidated version of what I’ve posted elsewhere. You might find some references out of place or uncalled for due to it. This doesn’t exactly cover the exercise aspect, but it has enough to help you lose weight and keep it off.
** Its all about calories IN vs calories OUT.**
To lose weight, you spend more than what you eat (calories = energy). thats pretty much the golden rule. Conversely, to gain weight, you have to eat more than you spend.
In layman terms, you can either;
- Eat less, keep activity constant
- Eat same, increase activity
- Eat less, increase activity (best of both worlds)
The safest, quickest and most sound way to lose fat is through a careful and monitored caloric reduction and increase in exercise. Instead of relying on pills, potions or cocktails, get control of your diet and push that intensity through the roof with your workouts and cardio sessions.
Before I move on, I feel the need to make it absolutely clear. i have no degree, no certification, and neither a practitioners license - Ive just amassed all this information over a number of years. Some of it is logic, some common sense and some are pretty much bound by rules. What I post is all I’ve tried and tested as well as backed by evidence. If you have doubts, please feel free to question.
My end of the deal is to provide you with answers/guidelines (as best as my limited knowledge can provide) And in return, all i ask for is for you to display some will power, a little bit of determination and most of all, consistency. Else no point in starting something you may not finish.
So here it goes.
I’ll start off with the most common weight reduction tools (found in almost every kitchen) that people have used with some success.
Calcium – A recent study found that an increase in dietary calcium intake, together with a normal protein intake, increased fecal fat and energy excretion by about 350 calories per day. So yes, there are lots of studies that support it. The bottom line is that increasing calcium intake is a boon to those who want to not only lose weight, but to lose fat, improve body composition, and keep that fat and weight from coming back. Calcium is useless without Vitamin D, Vitamin D helps the body absorb calcium, almost all calcium supplements come with vitamin D. So yes, switch to Nesvita if you have to.
Caffeine – Once again, do not rely on coffee, too much of it has its negative side effects. It’s the cornerstone of many fat loss supplements because of its well documented effects on thermogenesis (production of heat in the body) and lipolysis (fat burning). But at the same time, it is not necessarily considered as a stand alone product intended to enhance fat loss, much rather, it is included with other ingredients with the intention of producing a synergistic effect. Also, having a cup of coffee before a cardio session (jogging, swimming, running etc) programs the body to draw energy for the exercise from fat reserves.
Green Tea - research suggests that supplementing with green tea can raise your resting metabolic rate by 3%. In order to get this benefit you must have about 3 glasses a day. ofcourse without the sugar. Jasmine green tea FTW, It tastes good and has a host of other benefits.
There are no short cuts to losing weight, don’t rely solely on calcium, caffeine and green tea, just supplement with them. There is absolutely no substitute to cutting calories and burning more, its the safest and only fool proof way to lose weight effectively keeping your long term health as priority. Yes, fat burners exist as well, and the pros rely on them, but it doesn’t end there, they spend 60 – 90 minutes a day, minimum on the tread mill, not to mention they compete on an international level (wear skimpy underwear, wax body, apply oil, squeeze, smile, hold that pose)
The different kinds of fats.
The Good Fats - Monounsaturated fat and polyunsaturated fat. Monounsaturated fats are mainly found in natural foods like nuts, olive, corn oil, canola oil. and polyunsaturated fats in vegetable oils, sunflower and cottonseed oil.
Omega 3 - Salmon, tuna, walnuts, flax seeds, soy bean oil etc
Omega 6 - Corn oil, sunflower, walnuts etc
Bad Fats - Saturated fat - this type is most often found in animal products (meat, seafood, whole-milk dairy products - cheese, milk, and ice cream - poultry skin, and egg yolks)
Trans Fat - Junk, cookies cake, grease.
There are a several Do’s and Dont’s. and by just following the dont’s, you will witness incredible results. oh and for the record - a safe and healthy mount of weight (fat) to lose is 1.5-2lbs a week. anything more than that, and you’re jeopardizing your health and probably losing muscle along with it.
You want to avoid junk food, soft drinks, white bread, rice ( Okay to have rice for lunch), sweet stuff, oily and greasy stuff.
Bodybuilding - Whether its for muscle gaining or losing fat, it is 70% diet. you are what u eat. don’t have anything heavy, sweet 3-4 hours before sleeping. Because what happens when u sleep, your body’s metabolic rate slows down, so its tendency to burn calories is lowered and hence stores the food as fat.
Quick Carbohydrates - Those that give instant energy - bananas, white bread, chocolates, potatoes and other sweet stuff.
Slow Carbohydrates - Those that provide a steady supply of energy. Ideal to have for breakfast (with a mix of quick Carbs), pastas, brown rice and most fruits and veges, roti, brown bread, wheat bread, oatmeal.
Sweet stuff - Sugar, softdrinks, chocolates. Most of this is to be avoided. because what happens is that when we have something sweet, insulin is released, which is a powerful anabolic muscle building hormone as well as a fat storing hormone. So when your insulin level spikes, it contributes to fat storage. but, the most profitable time to have something sweet is after working out and before working out. Because the spike in insulin will give u a lot of energy and contributes to muscle recovery, and this is harmless in the gym and after the gym. as the body needs refueling, so at this time, it wont hurt to have sweet stuff. Ofcourse we cant rely on sweet stuff as it comes with a lot of fat usually. The unhealthy fat so to speak. So its okay to have a a piece of chocolate after working out, but not all of it. the rest of your requirement should come from quick carbs (bananas, white bread, potatoes, or perhaps a combo of all). With them, the spike in insulin will give u rapid energy to refuel your body.
Also, don’t go long periods without food. Always have something in your stomach to keep the body’s digestive system active. And if you go long periods without food, the body kicks into survival mode, so whatever food it gets next, it stores as fat, in anticipation for the next period of famine. thats why most people gain weight in Ramzan, as opposed to losing it. So break up your lunch, dinner, breakfast into portions.
Join a gym, use weights, build some muscle. Because the more muscle u have, the more calories u burn just by sitting idle. Focus on compound exercises.
Here are the ideal breakfast combos. I wont add any for lunch or dinner, because most of us are at work or in college during those times. So make it a point to have breakfast. We’ll come up with lunch/dinner combos when u give me the options that are available to you.
- Omelet (veges), brown bread with cheese
- Oatmeal, or any other cereal with low fat milk, juice
- Cereal and omelet (3-4 egg whites) and juice (ideal combo) coffee and chai are good to go.
Pre workout - you can have coffee with very little sugar, and lots of water
Post workout - A banana, white bread, milk, eggwhites. Or a combo of all. here the ‘quick’ carbs that i asked you to avoid, are ideal as they refuel your body and begin the muscle building.
By doing 10000 crunches for abs, you will burn all the fat on your stomach and bring out abs. thats a lie, misconception. Fat is burned from all over the body at a predetermined rate and pattern. Only way to bring out those miraculous abs is by controlling your intake and working on your abs 2-3 times a week.
Cardio - Set a target and jog till you break a sweat/lose breath. Next day, jog a bit more than you did the previous day, and so on. Say jog 50 meters more, or 15 seconds more than your last time.
** Exercises (For Men) **
On day 1 do your chest/shoulders/triceps. This is the ‘press’ day, as you’re pressing the weight away from you. Bench ‘press’, military ‘press’, tricep ‘press’. press or push, same thing.
Day 2 is pull day. i.e. back/biceps.
Day 3 is leg day, squats, hamstrings and calves.
Do 12-16 sets for the chest, back, shoulders and leg (hams included) muscles and 8-12 sets for biceps, triceps, forearms, traps (aka collars) and calves
Exercises (For Women)
Elliptical trainers - 600 calories Burnt in an hour.
Step Aerobics - 800 calories/hour.
Bicycling - 500 to 1000 calories/hour (Depending on intensity).
Swimming (Most pleasant when it comes to losing weight) - 800 calories/hour.
Racquetball - 800 calories/hour.
Exercise is king, nutrition is queen. Put them together, and u have a beautiful kingdom. Which means you cant do one without the other. Whether you want to gain weight or lose weight - its completely about your discipline in and out of the kitchen.
Surely, this can’t be healthy nor permanent!
Mods can split into two if they like.