It seems like people will try just about anything in an attempt to lose body fat. Crazy strict diets, crazy amounts of cardio, juicing, even turning to weight loss drugs when they might not even be an appropriate candidate for them.
It turns out that losing body fat can actually be more possible (& sustainable) than you might think.
I remember the days of thinking I would never be lean. That I would always be on the puffier side, no matter how much I ran or tried to stay away from “bad” foods.
Now here I am writing this, proudly maintaining the exact body type I never thought I would actually have. And I’ve been maintaining it for several years now. No lucky genetics, no weight loss drugs, no extreme routines.
What’s the secret?
Allow me to share some of the habits I’ve adopted myself, along with some tips that are just gold standards for sustainable weight loss.
Of course, there’s the golden rule of burn more calories than you eat/calorie deficit, but sometimes that’s easier said than done.
Let’s break it down into more simple, actionable shit..
NUTRIENT DENSE FOODS
There are nutrient dense foods, and there are calorie dense foods. Nutrient dense foods are king when it comes to sustainable weight loss.
Weight gain happens when we eat too many calories. And this can happen especially when the foods we’re eating aren’t very good at filling us up. These are typically calorie dense foods.
Ultra processed junk food, refined carbs, chips, desserts, that sort of stuff.
Whereas nutrient dense foods are packed with healthy nutrients, fiber, and water, and are typically lower in calories.
Eating more nutrient dense foods helps to fill you up on fewer calories, leading to simple weight management, or weight loss.
The best source? Whole plant foods.
Fruits, veggies, leafy greens, sweet potatoes, whole grains over refined grains, beans, lentils, and chickpeas are some of the best options.
Incorporating more of these foods daily can be massively beneficial in the pursuit of fat loss.
BE CAUTIOUS OF FOODS HIGH IN FAT
Of course, dietary fat is essential.
However, it’s the most calorically dense macronutrient. And again, eating too many calories is the root cause of weight gain.
Out of the three macronutrients, protein, carbs, and fat, fat has the most calories per gram, at around 9, whereas protein and carbs each have around 4 calories per gram.
This, by default, makes foods that are higher in fat also higher in calories.
Therefore, if your eating pattern has a lot of fat in it, chances are you’re eating more calories than you think, which could be contributing to weight gain or lack of weight loss.
Foods that tend to be higher in fat include: dairy, red meat, butter, junk food, desserts, added oils, nuts, nut butters, avocado.
Some of these foods, such as nuts, nut butters, avocado, and olive oil, are still healthy foods, and healthy sources of fat, but nonetheless are still higher in calories and can more easily contribute to weight gain.
Just something to be mindful of!
INCREASE DAILY MOVEMENT & STEPS
Keeping the body active is crucial for maintaining a healthy metabolism and keeping off excess weight. And it turns out that simply getting more daily steps and overall movement is a great way to do this.
The commonly recommended number of daily steps to aim for is 7,000 – 10,000. But this doesn’t mean that everyone must hit these numbers..
For those who have never really gotten a lot of steps and are more sedentary, simply increasing step count in general will provide benefits. Start small and work your way up! It’s all about progress.
And even small progress is still progress.
LIFT WEIGHTS!!
Resistance training has numerous benefits other than just getting jacked.
One of them is improving metabolism, which is one of the key factors in maintaining a healthy body weight and body composition (muscle mass to fat mass ratio).
Lifting weights tears muscle fibers which have to then be repaired and built back. This requires more energy. Therefore, the body ramps up the metabolism to burn more energy to help repair the muscle tissue.
But this doesn’t mean that everyone has to lift several days a week for hours like a bodybuilder. Following a simple lifting routine can still provide the benefits you need.
An example:
Workout split: full body or upper/lower split
Frequency: 2-3x per week
1-2 exercises per muscle group
2-3 sets each
Or, if you want a more personalized workout routine, I’d be more than happy to help you! Check out my online coaching page for more info!
BEING MINDFUL OF DRINKING YOUR CALORIES
Similar to calorie dense foods, there are also various drinks that contain calories that you might not be aware of, and that can contribute to weight gain.
Alcohol and drinks that contain added sugars are some of the most common culprits. Pop, fancy lattes or coffees, energy drinks, beer, stuff like that.
Not that nobody should ever have these drinks, just that in terms of weight management, their calorie content should be kept in mind.
CHANGING HOW YOU THINK ABOUT FOOD
The mindset around food and eating is one of the most crucial aspects of fat loss.
And when it comes to weight loss, it’s common for people to think that they can’t have foods they enjoy, and then bad relationships with food and even eating disorders can occur. And this is also one of the main reasons why some people don’t achieve their fat loss goals.
Here are some various ideas around food noise I live by:
ITS OKAY TO ENJOY JUNK FOOD
Eat a donut, have that cookie, bust open some vegan Ben & Jerry’s! These foods can be enjoyed and shouldn’t be demonized. However..
DELICIOUS FOOD ISN’T GOING ANYWHERE
Junk food, fast food, and so on, will always be available. So there’s no need to have these kinds of foods all the time, or in large quantities. They’re not going anywhere.
NOT EVERYTHING HAS TO TASTE AMAZING
It’s important that we enjoy our food, of course. But it’s also important that we get proper nutrients and fuel to be healthy and feel good.
If this means eating things you might not like very much, like vegetables, you’re still going to do it. It’s a responsibility we have to our body. And it will help you reach your fat loss goals.
There are many things in life that we “don’t want to do”, and yet, we have to do them anyway. Because they serve a bigger purpose than just “what we want”. And eating foods that may not be the most delicious but still pack a nutritional punch is one of those things.
Just eat your damn vegetables.
OUR TASTEBUDS ADAPT!
An awesome thing about our taste buds and food preferences is that they can adapt and change. It all depends on what we repetitively eat.
Most of us are introduced to tasty, highly palatable foods from a young age. So it’s no wonder those kinds of foods are built into our eating habits as we grow up. It’s because we’ve become adapted to preferring them. But that doesn’t mean our taste adaptations and preferences are permanent.
Studies have been done showing that after 3 weeks to a month of eating certain foods, a person’s taste preferences become more adapted to those foods!
I’ve experienced this myself after eating more and more “bland” foods (veggies, leafy greens, beans, etc) in an attempt to be healthier, and as time went on I found myself actually craving those foods over the foods I used to find delicious.
Now I find a bowl of plain pinto beans, for example, satisfying as hell.
This shift in taste preferences not only makes healthy foods more enjoyable but it also gives you more control over enjoying less healthy foods, like that donut, or cookie.
It really does become easy to have just one. Or to not have any at all, but not because you feel like you can’t have it, but because you genuinely don’t want it.
HOW TO DEFEAT CRAVINGS
When the cravings to eat more, or to full-on binge, kick in, it doesn’t mean you have to give in.
One of the best things you can do to defeat an unwanted craving is to simply wait.
Give yourself 10 – 20 minutes and you just might discover that the craving will fade.
It doesn’t have to control you. You can control it. Just by sitting with the craving, being mindful, and allowing time to pass for it to fade.
Try this out if you experience this. You might break and still give in, even after you’ve waited, but if you continue to practice, you’ll get better and better.
THANKS FOR READING!
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And if you’re looking to take your health and fitness goals to the next level, I’d love to work with you! Check out my online coaching page for more info!