Your Mini Guide to Fat Loss Nutrition
Fitness and nutrition can be mentally draining. It is simple, but definitely not easy, especially for the busy adult! I struggle myself even as a Trainer being certified as a Nutrition Coach!
It can be a frustrating journey because we are inundated with sedentary lifestyles and ease of access to delicious foods.
We are also so busy which makes it feel impossible to stretch our mental bandwidth EVEN FURTHER after a long day of work and family responsibility. But don't just give up, there is hope!
Nutrition can be a complex nuanced topic, but for the conversation about fat loss, we will just focus on the idea of the goal of losing weight and mostly fat. Not nutrition for an acute medical issue.
Let’s Start with how Fat Loss occurs first:
CALORIE DEFICIT
As I said, Nutrition is very nuanced and complex, so I am going to over-simplify it in this analogy.
Calories are simply a unit of energy but let’s think of Calories as Money: When we have too many calories that your body does not burn up, it gets stored in a “Savings Account” called Adipose Tissue (Fat) and Muscle.
(I know, a big savings account that you don’t want?! What a mindf*ck).
When we are on an Exercise Program and Diet, we go into a “Calorie Deficit” in which our body has to “Dip into the savings account” to make up for lost calories. Resulting in weight loss, some Muscle and some fat. Ideally mostly Fat. Training Hard makes sure that we build and keep on as much Muscle as possible when weight loss occurs.
Most of your daily calories are burned up keeping the organs running and you moving through the day. Actual focused exercise burns only a small fraction of this.
The goal in a Fat loss Phase is to maintain a Calorie Deficit in order for Fat Loss to Occur.
Assuming you are already training in some capacity, let’s talk about some simple tips that we can focus on to build muscle and burn body fat with nutrition.
TIP 1: FOCUS ON PROTEIN
Instead of trying to track all of the proteins, carbs and fats religiously, one simple step you can do is to just track protein. Aim for a protein goal and try to manage carbs and fats around the proteins in your meals.
When we are gaining or losing weight, we lose a portion of fat and muscle. The goal during a MUSCLE-GAIN phase is to make sure as much of the weight gained as possible is muscle. And during a FAT-LOSS phase, we want to make sure most of the weight loss is fat mass and retain every ounce of muscle.
Consume .8-1 gram of protein for every pound of bodyweight DAILY (180lbs person = 180g protein.)
Assuming you are not trying to add body fat with a body comp change, the way to make sure we gain/retain muscle is through strength training at an appropriate high intensity and sufficient protein.
Most people are under-consuming protein. When training hard, we should be eating .8-1g of protein per pound of bodyweight. This sounds like a lot because it is at first, especially for someone who has been under consuming protein.
If you are under-consuming protein, you are leaving much muscle gain/retention on the table and your hard work in the gym goes slightly down the drain.
Protein is satiating and keeps you full which will keep you from overeating calorie-wise on foods that would not support your goals.
Tip 2: HYDRATION
DRINK half your bodyweight in ounces daily. This is not going to make you lose weight on it’s own, but being well-hydrated will help you maintain energy, you are moving more inadvertently (to fill up your water bottle and pee) and it helps curb hunger.
(180 lbs person = 90oz of water).
Most of us walk around relatively dehydrated, but don’t feel like you NEED a full gallon per day UNLESS you weigh 250+.
Drinking a little more water is good for you. We know this. Use a 32 oz water bottle and try to finish 2 or 3 of those. Find simple ways to help you hit the goal and it will be easier to maintain!
Tip 3: TRACKING
Use a smart watch of sorts (Fitbit, Garmin, Apple Watch) to track your steps daily. Get a baseline for your normal activity. If super low, you know you have room to add in activity to increase daily calorie burn.
Once you find your baseline, I want you to try and aim for 8-10k steps PER DAY minimum. For the average person who is sedentary at work 8 hours a day, this can be a tough task but DISCIPLINE yourself and you will thank yourself!
Knowing your average daily activity makes it easier to know your energy output. The higher your energy output, the more calories you are burning.
When we know this average, you can adjust your nutrition or increase your steps to meet your goal!
What gets measured gets managed! Tracking nutrition and activity gives you an idea of a baseline. This way you can make adjustments in the direction you want to go.
Track your nutrition and try to measure your portions, even if by cup or with a plate that has separated portions. Think of the earlier tip and focus on protein, but try to have the same meals so it is easier to remember your average caloric intake.
If you aren’t doing these 3 things already, I challenge you to commit to a 30 Day Challenge of diligently doing this, and you will notice some changes. Feeling better, losing weight and having more energy. Obviously if you are weight training and your exercise level is even just moderate, you will see even greater results!
Now, information is NOT the problem. Many people know some of these guidelines. And all of the information that one could need is available at your fingertips for FREE (Like this very article :) ).
But why don’t we just do the dang thing?
This is where we get into the mental health and mindset part of the conversation.
It is so important to have a STRONG WHY behind your goals, be it fat loss, muscle gain, or simply just feeling better about your health so you can show up with energy for your family.
Otherwise, you’ll never find the resolve to stick with it to see the fruits of your labor. Write down what it would mean to you to achieve your goal and paint a vivid picture.
Keep a calendar reminder in your phone with this goal in it so you see it daily!
Find a supportive system and jump on this challenge! Consistency is key!
Thank you for checking out some of my writing. I hope you find it useful and have some takeaways!
If you are STRUGGLING with constantly being in and out of a fitness routine, you aren’t alone. The information is out there. We know what we need to do (for the most part). But still most people struggle and cannot keep it up for a long-period of time.
If this sounds familiar, let me help you create a long-term relationship with fitness with my programs. Fill out a Contact Form and I will get right to you!
If you are local to the Lehigh Valley, PA area; Find me at Competitive Edge Power and Fitness!
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