One of the most common reasons people have for joining a gym is to lose excess weight. The problem is there is a lot of information that is either misinterpreted, intentionally misleading or just untrue. A lot of times this is due to an agenda, either a supplement, a fad diet plan or a fad training style being sold. This leads people to ask questions like “What foods are best for weight loss?” and “What exercises do I need to do to lose weight?”.
Fat Loss foods
Working in the fitness industry one of the most common questions I hear is “What food is best to lose belly fat?”. People want a miracle, instant solution which has been sold to them by different health brands and supplement companies. The truth is there is no single food which you can eat which will help you lose fat around your stomach. The most important thing is you are eating a variety of fruit and vegetables to ensure you are getting a sufficient amount of vitamins and minerals. After that, you need to ensure you are getting enough protein and fats to regulate bodily functions and enough water to maintain fluid balance. If you do this correctly you will easily create a significant enough calorie deficit to result in weight loss. This can be kept track of and monitored through apps like “MyFitnessPal” and “Cronometer”.
Exercise - NEAT
So another common question is “What exercises should I be doing loss my belly fat?”. The truth to this one is, ALL OF IT. Now that does not mean you need to be in the gym 2 hours a day 7 days a week. However, it does mean you should spend as much time moving as possible. This is about more than just gym training.
NEAT is basically the exercise you do that you don’t really count, for example standing up, walking around, etc. If you have a journey that is under 1 mile or 2 km, why not walk there? If you are under a time constraint, cycle there. With the traffic which affects most cities, it’s around the same time to cycle somewhere as it would be to take public transport and slightly longer than driving depending on your location.
This extra bit of daily activity will help you burn extra calories and will be a great help in creating your calorie deficit. Also due to this type of activity having a relatively low intensity, it should help your body adapt to utilising fat cells as an energy source more effectively, meaning you burn more fat overall.
Gym Training
Although low to moderate-intensity cardiovascular training, for example, jogging, walking up stairs, cycling, and rowing, can aid in weight loss and fat loss they are not the only way and do not even have to be done. You can also utilize resistance training, with an emphasis on hypertrophy. This is due to the fact that if you have a higher fat-free body mass, in which muscle mass is included, then your Resting metabolic rate will increase. Therefore you will burn more calories throughout the day, further helping to create a calorie deficit. The main thing is that your body is using more calories than it’s intaking. Fitness races, or “Cross-fit” are another method of resistance training people use. The high-intensity cardiovascular load along with the high resistance results in an increase in muscle mass as well as your body’s ability to utilise energy and burn calories. There is also more of a competitive nature in this type of training due to certain workouts being races against your peers or the clock. if you are motivated by competition then this may be a good training method for you.
Activity, Calories, and Macros
Putting all this together, you need a way to keep track of the activities you are doing and what you are eating. Your NEAT exercise can be tracked using a Fitbit, apple watch, or any similar device which records your heart rate, and eating through “MyFitnessPal”. If you would like our support in your fat loss journey fill in our form here and ask for a consultation.