Strategies to Lose Body Fat
Keep it simple. It will take a big commitment, consistency, and time. Here are a few strategies to lose body fat.
- Mindset
- Goals and Plan
- What to eat
- Customizing it
- Role of exercise
- Staying accountable
- How to track progress
- When hiccups arise
Fat Loss Mindset
You have heard it before: fat loss is a lifestyle change. You cannot go back to your old eating habits and maintain your progress.
The mental change will need to happen before you can maintain the physical change.
Goals and Plan
Small goals, small plan equals big changes.
Starting small makes it simpler to stay on track. Add some vegetables to your diet, drink some more water.
It all adds up.
What to Eat
Foods with high satiety and/or low calorie density.
It is not about making perfect choices – the key is to consistently make better choices.
Protein and vegetables should be a staple.
If you want to, treat yourself. Be conscious of the calorie density of what you are consuming.
One doughnut is roughly 80g at 340 calories. While 1kg of watermelon, or strawberries is 300 calories.
Check the link for a more detailed explanation of how much to eat
Customizing It
Pick 10 to 20 foods you enjoy having that fit the criteria and rotate it through the weeks.
Check out my Top foods to Add to Your Diet for some ideas.
Role of Exercise
For fat loss, certain types of exercise can blunt hunger, and preserve lean body mass.
Resistance training helps preserve muscle as you lose fat. Make sure to increase the resistance over time. As you get leaner watch for dips in strength, which could mean muscle loss, and that you are dieting too hard.
Most high intensity activities blunt hunger. 400m sprints, hill sprints, and weighted sled pushes or pulls.
Staying Accountable
Most of the time, you will recognize when you are slipping off your diet. It’s the choices we make.
Top strategy is to remove all the foods you don’t want to eat out of your house.
Next would be to verbally label your action. “I am having more food, though I already feel full.”
Followed by announcing to whoever is in your house that you are done eating or you are slipping.
Tracking Progress
Pick three and make sure to keep the measuring criteria consistent.
If you assess in the morning, then do so for every time.
- Body Weight
- Body Measurements
- Pictures
- How clothes fit
- Mirror
Note: For females, I’ve found it is often best split the assessments into 4 week chunks and compare week 1 with week 1 and week 2 with week 2 for a better picture of progress (due to weight fluctuations caused by hormones).
When Hiccups Arise
There will be times when it is challenging to stick the plan.
You can plan ahead with packing a meal, try to limit damage, or accept it and get back on track when able to.
Check the link for a more detailed explanation of Ways To Keep Eating Well