|
 By: Michael Roussell
This will allow you to set accurate goals and measure progress. The most accurate (and available) method of measuring bodyfat percent is the skin fold method. This is a simple process that only requires a scale and a bodyfat caliper. You can find a pair of calipers just about anywhere and the Body for Life website has a great tutorial that walks you through the measurement process.
To begin, if you are looking to drop some body fat, then eating more often allows you to better manage your insulin levels for increased fat burning. Controlling insulin levels when dieting is critical as insulin is the body's most potent blocker of lipolysis (i.e. liberation of stored fat to be used as energy). Another added benefit of controlling insulin levels is consistent energy levels (this is also one of the claim to fame of low carbohydrate diets). Secondly, eating more often will allow you to build more muscle. Now I know that this article is about fat loss and not muscle growth. However, muscle growth or maintenance during dieting is very important.
Muscle is metabolically active tissue, thus allowing you to burn more calories at rest. In contrast, adipose tissue (bodyfat) is metabolically inactive, therefore contributing nothing to your daily caloric expenditure. In conclusion, spreading the traditional "three square meals" into 5-6 smaller meals will allow you to increase your fat burning ability while at the same time providing your body with nutrients required to build muscle.
Let's say you love lifting weights. You might ask, "Why just 3-4 times a week? Professional bodybuilders lift 5-6 days a week double sessions!" The chances are that when dieting you are in a caloric deficient state. This in itself will put your body in a compromised position where you will not be able to completely recover. 3-4 sessions of intense training sessions are perfect for most people to stimulate your muscles and metabolism without beating youself into the ground (or worse a state of overtraining).
Cardiovascular activity performed in a high intensity interval fashion (high intensity is a term relative to your personal fitness level) has been shown to burn more calories from fat than the old school 40 minute cardio sessions. This means you'll be burning more fat, in less time. If you have been doing the longer cardio, don't quickly jump into this higher intensity cardio. Give your body time to adjust over several weeks by slowly replacing the interval sessions for the longer sessions. Most people find that 3-4 interval sessions give them better results than 6+ traditional longer cardio sessions.
This may sound like a good problem to have, but chances are if you are losing more than 2 pounds a week you are losing lean body mass (e.g. muscle). To correct this problem you can look back at your nutritional journal and make the changes necessary to stop your muscle loss. In a couple weeks you will be able to re-evaluate your progress, analyzing changes made and making new ones accordingly.
Fat loss supplements that contain Green Tea extracts are concentrated to get optimal fat loss. Green Tea has also been shown to help reduce heart disease, diabetes, and obesity.
As you may be able to deduce by the name, this is an enzyme in your body responsible for synthesizing fatty acids. The last thing you want your body to do when you are trying to lose fat is to synthesize fat. Just about every fat loss supplement out there contains EGCG but you can get the same result by simply drinking a pot or two of green tea each day (~4-6 cups). In addition, green tea is a great substitute and much better for you than diet soft drinks. But remember green tea is naturally caffeinated so if you are caffeine sensitive or enjoy drinking green tea at night, you should look into the decaf option.
As it gets to be later at night you know you'll be tempted (I know I am!). Don't set yourself up for temptation and failure; create an environment where you can't fail! It can be simple, if the food isn't in your house, then you won't eat it. So, throw out the junk, high sugar, over processed high fat foods!
Dehydration is just a bad situation. Imagine if you could solve all these problems by simply drinking more water. You should drink at least 8-10 glasses of water each day, more if you sweat or drink caffeinated beverages (coffee, tea, soda). A study entitled Water-Induced Thermogenesis was published by the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism in December of 2003. This study showed that drinking 2 Liters of water spread throughout the day will burn up to 400KJ (~100Cal) a day.
You could also assume that by drinking cold water you will burn even more calories because your body has to do more work to bring the water
Eat anything you want: a hot dog, some ice cream, chips, huge plates of pasta, a little fried chicken. It is very good for you to take a mental break from planning and eating six meals a day. How much time you take off varies from person to person. Some people can take a whole day off while others should only take 1-2 meals off. Your free day or meals allows for you to recharge your mental battery and attack the next week with a renewed passion. Taking a day off is also good for your body. During the week your glycogen stores (where your body stores sugar in your liver and muscles) may become depleted due to the low carbohydrate intake often associated with dieting. Taking some "time off" will mean extra carbs and this will help your body replenish these depleted stores. Some people also argue that the increase of calories will also help up-regulate your metabolism. I, however, do not buy into this particular related theory. When dieting for a prolonged amount of time your thyroid will down-regulate your basal metabolic rate (BMR) as an evolutionary survival response to fasting.
Your body is too smart to think that the excess calories from one meal or a day of larger meals means that it is okay to increase your BMR again. It usually takes closer to one or two weeks to up-regulate your BMR back to normal. Even though the free meal/day won't trick your thyroid gland, the extra calories will replenish your body's glycogen stores and eating the foods you craved will give your psyche a much needed break.
Why? I don't know; we all have our reasons. What's your reason? Whatever it is... get over it! Dare to be amazing! Achieve your best body! Now take a second and look at the list... do you actively embrace all these guidelines on the list? What is your bodyfat situation? I can guarantee that there is a direct correlation between how many things on the list you don't do and the amount of excess bodyfat you are carrying around everyday. Am I right? This concept definitely rings true in my own life. Your bodyfat percentage reflects your lifestyle. That is the truest statement around.
I read an article in a Muscle Media magazine from 1993 about 50 ways to lose bodyfat. Then I read an article from a 1997 Muscle Media magazine about the 30 things to do to lose bodyfat. Guess what... the article contained 30 of the ways found in the 1993 article word for word. Now, either the people at Muscle Media are lazy (which could be the case because it was word for word) or, the core of what you need to do to lose bodyfat hasn't changed. I think it is a little of both. The key is application! Don't pick and choose which of the 10 things you are going to apply to your life and then complain when you don't receive the results you want.
Recommend this article to a friend by e-mail here! Visitor Reviews Of This Article!
Related Articles
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Another interesting feature that makes green tea more attractive to dieters comes from a recent study in the March 2004 issue of Life Science where green tea (and 8 other traditional Chinese medicinal herbs) was shown to be a potent inhibitor of fatty acid synthase (FAS).
Sign in for more FREE features and tools!
|
|
Give Us Feedback:
Report A ProblemSite Feedback |
Follow Us:
|
Bodybuilding.com Newsletter
Receive exciting features, |
