How to Lose the Stubborn Pounds, Part 3

Okay, so in Part 1 you decided whether or not you even need to lose 10-15 pounds. In Part 2, you found out that nutrition is vital for fat loss success. If you haven’t read Parts 1 and 2, do now before continuing with this section.

After eating properly, the next important component for fat loss is training. You need to follow a well designed strength training program for effective fat loss. Yes, you could get fat loss results with diet alone, but, you will lose more than fat; you will also lose muscle. Strength training will keep you from losing muscle and also allow you to build lean muscle. Lean muscle gives you an athletic, healthy look. That’s why you want, after all, right?

You must engage in some form of strength training—either lifting weights and/or your own bodyweight. Leave the endless hours of running to the marathoners and Biggest Loser contestants.

Your best ways to fast fat loss are total body routines that you perform 3 days per week on non-consecutive days. Remember to use big, compound movements like squats, deadlifts, lunges, push-ups, bench presses, overhead presses, rows, chin-ups, planks, and the variations to these exercises.

If you want to train at home without wasting money and time going to a gym, then I strongly recommend Fat Loss Anywhere. <==Click on the link for more information.

You can perform those workouts at home with minimal equipment. I use these myself when I can’t find time to get to the gym. In fact, I’m going on vacation and will be using the bodyweight workouts while I’m away from home.

Remember: nutrition is the most important component of fat loss, after that, you need to engage in smart strength training.

Leave your questions and comments below.

Quick Training Information

I just finished an awesome lower body workout a little while ago, and I set a new PR (personal record) with the sumo deadlift. I pulled 245 for 5 reps, for 2 sets.

Make sure you are constantly setting PRs; that is the quickest way to get results whether you are training for fat loss, strength, or muscle mass.

I also did good mornings, pull thrus, and dumbbell step ups. I either did more weight or more reps with each exercise. Never do the exact same thing twice.

Train hard. Train smart. Get results.

How to Lose the Stubborn Pounds, Part 2

If you didn’t read the first part to this mini-series, go back and read it right now.

By now you have decided whether or not you have some stubborn fat you want to lose. If you do want to lose those last stubborn pounds, there are a couple different directions you can take.

First, you absolutely need to get your nutrition in check. I have heard that fat loss is 90% diet, 80% diet, and 70% diet. Look, I don’t give a damn if fat loss is 78.57240952% diet; all I know is that it is imperative that you eat right.

So, you have a few options here as far as diet goes. For the record, I hate the term “diet” because you really should be trying to make a lifestyle change. Instead of looking to “go on a diet” for 12 weeks, try to find eating habits you can maintain with ease for the long term. That is how you get long lasting success. Most diets are meant to fail so you keep going back to them.

As I have mentioned numerous times, you need to eat whole, natural, unprocessed foods. Also, limit your grain intake to post workout meals only. This will allow your body to use the carbohydrates for muscle repair and replenishing your glycogen stores. If you don’t workout today, then don’t eat any grain products (bread, cereal, pasta, etc).

Nutrition is not my forte, so if you truly need some detailed guidance on making smart food choices and deciding on how to structure your eating, then I would suggest you check out Fat Loss Troubleshoot by clicking on the blue link. That is by far more detailed and Leigh has fat loss success down to a science.

And, if you want to try a completely untraditional fat loss method, then check out Eat Stop Eat for one of the easiest “diets” I have ever used. In fact, I’ll be going back to this method myself in the next couple of weeks. More on that later . . .

There are no ways around the fact that you must eat right for fat loss. Find healthy eating habits that are convenient for you and stick to them. Remember, they don’t have to be hard and difficult. Don’t adopt eating habits that are inconvenient or overly time consuming. Set yourself up for success.

Next time I will discuss how you should train for fat loss.

Leave your questions and comments below.

Losing Those Stubborn Pounds

I received a few emails recently asking how to lose the last 10-15 pounds. This always seems to be a sticking point where people stagnate.

So the all important question hangs in the balance: how do I lose these last stubborn pounds?

First, you need to ask yourself this: do I really need to lose 10 pounds?

Yes, you need to ask yourself that question. A lot of people (especially women) get caught up on wanting to weigh a specific number. If they don’t weigh (put a weight here), then they won’t be happy.

Why is this?

Whenever a client tells me they want to weigh (put a weight here), I always ask them “Why?” If his/her answer is, “That is what I weighed in high school or college,” then they need to come up with a better answer. That one is not acceptable.

Just because you weighed 130 pounds at 20 years old does not mean you should weigh 130 pounds at 40 years old.

Let me explain.

Let’s say you have been training hard for the past several months (lifting weights and doing bodyweight exercises, of course) and you feel damn good. Your clothes are looser, you look great, and you feel wonderful. Then, you step on to the scale and immediately the smile on your face disappears.

Why?

This happens to so many women. Just because the scale reveals a number that is 10 pounds more than what they want, they automatically are not satisfied.

Look, I’m going to be blunt: forget the damn number on the scale. Focus instead on how you feel and how your clothes are fitting. Take measurements and get your body fat tested. Focus on your performance in the gym. Those are much better methods to go by and to determine your health.

I have seen women diet themselves almost to death and workout multiple hours a day just to reach that “ideal” number. Yes, they reach that weight, but, they still are not happy.

Why?

They are not happy because it takes so much effort to remain at that weight. They have to constantly diet and exercise to maintain that weight.

Wouldn’t you rather be at a weight that is easy to maintain? Wouldn’t you rather be able to enjoy the foods you love and only have to workout 3-5 hours per week? Wouldn’t you rather focus your time and energy on more important things than eating and working out?

Next time I will tell you how you can lose those last 10-15 pounds if you are sure that is the direction you want and need to go. But, before then, think long and hard about why you desire to drop those pounds.

Yes, maybe you want to lose excess fat, and there is nothing wrong with that. But don’t get overly focused on a number on a scale.

Until then, train smart. Focus on improving your performance in the gym. Eat natural, unprocessed foods. Have a meal or two once a week that you don’t stress over. Enjoy life.

Remember: your eating pattern and exercise habits should revolve around your life, not the other way around.

Leave your questions and comments below.

Today's Gym Lesson

Row the right way.

Whenever you do a dumbbell, cable, bent over, chest supported row and any other variation, you need to make sure you are getting the most out of the exercise. This also applies to chin-up and pull-up variations.

Let's take the cable row as an example.

At the beginning of the movement, your arms should be completely straight and your scapulae should be protracted (separated). As you initiate the movement, you should pull through your elbows, first off all. Also, make sure you focus on squeezing your shoulder blades back and down. If you aren't retracting (squeezing together) your scapulae, then you are not doing the movement correctly. At the end of the movement, they should be squeezed back hard.

Those same instructions apply to chin-ups and pull-ups.

Make sure you follow these instructions for these exercises. If you want to get the benefits of these exercises, make sure you do them properly.

Why The Biggest Loser Sucks

I’ll admit it, I do watch The Biggest Loser, but it’s not for the reason most people watch it. I watch it because I know other people watch it. A lot of people think that working out to lose fat has to be as hard and dramatic as it appears on the show. They think that is reality. Well, it is not.

This season I tried to watch The Biggest Loser with an open mind, but I can’t help but get defensive. Just recently I saw Jillian have one of the women stand on a bosu ball (that is the “half a ball” they stand on) and do a dumbbell row. That is worthless and you shouldn’t do it. I don’t care if she says “it works your core.” That is crap. If you want to “work your core,” do a plank.


Those type of exercises just look cool because they are different. Here’s the kicker: you have to use very light weight to perform that exercise because you can’t use maximal weight while you’re on an unstable surface. If you want maximal results, you should pick exercises that allow you to use a heavy load. Lesson 1: stay off the damn bosu ball.

This is just random, but this week I saw Jillian tell one of the women to kiss the ground during a pushup. That is stupid. Real trainers would not ask you to do that. Once again, that was just for dramatics. Lesson 2: some trainers are just ignorant.

A couple of weeks ago there was finally an injury on The Biggest Loser. One of the contestants developed a stress fracture. Really? I’m surprised it took that long. The trainers have these overweight people do copious amounts of high impact activities for long duration. That is the perfect recipe for a stress fracture. Lesson 3: lots of cardio is not the best way to lose fat.

That show is just like most shows on TV: they are meant to make things “look larger than life.” That is why they use fancy equipment and crazy exercises. They want people to watch the show! Think about it: would it be as entertaining to watch people do squats, chin-ups, push-ups (without kissing the ground), lunges, deadlifts, dips, and bodyweight intervals? No! But, that is by far the safest and most effective way to get fast fat loss.

I’ll admit, the contestants on the show do lose a lot of fat, but, here’s Lesson 4: you can lose fat with as little as 4 hours of training per week in a much safer way.

So, if you watch The Biggest Loser, please keep those facts in mind. Just because those trainers are on TV does not mean they are the most qualified and intelligent.

Today's (Fat Loss) Gym Lesson

What do you drink after your workout?

-Chocolate milk
-Powders with a mixture of carbohydrates and protein
-Plain protein powder
-Gatorade
-Etc

Drinking protein (or a carb/protein combination)after workouts is a debated topic, so I will give you my opinion on this matter.

If you are trying to increase your muscle mass and/or increase your strength, then I think a post workout drink is beneficial.

If, however, you are trying to lose fat, I would not drink anything (except water). In my opinion, you are better off just eating a solid food, healthy meal sometime after your training session. When you're trying to lose fat, more than likely you are reducing calories, so why would you want to have an extra 300 or so calories from a post workout shake that has a good amount of sugar?

Here's another point: you must earn your post workout drink/shake. If you go to the gym and you only train your arms, then you do not need to drink anything except water. If you have a tough workout that consists of squats, lunges, and romanian deadlifts, then you can drink a post workout shake.

Too many people buy into the hype and think they have to drink expensive shakes after any physical activity. Don't buy into that. Like I said, if you are trying to build some lean muscle, then work very hard in the gym, and have a post workout drink.

Leave your opinion and comments below.