1) You’re Eating Too Many Calories
This should be pretty obvious to most people, but there are still those who are claiming that you can eat all you want as long as you avoid carbs.
That’s just not true. At the end of the day, you need to eat less. It’s the fundamental law of thermodynamics.
If your body weight is not coming down and you want it to you are simply eating too many calories. Break out some measuring cups for a couple of days and you will see your portions are more than you need. Most people eat way more than they think they do.
Eating less is challenging at first sure. That’s why most people look for another answer. But it's 70% of your weight loss results and anything worth accomplishing will be challenging especially at first.
When you’re not losing fat the way you want to the solution is pretty simple. Eat a little less food.
2) You’re Not Eating Enough Calories
This is the opposite side of the coin, obviously. But some people go too far and diet too hard, drop their calories too low and in turn, basically shut down their metabolism.
When you cut calories too low your thyroid will shut down and losing fat will become very difficult. One easy way to monitor this is by taking your temperature when you wake up. If it starts dipping way below normal you’ll know you’ve royally messed up your metabolism.
At that point, the best thing you can do is eat a little more for a few days, or even weeks until you get back to normal temperature. Health comes before weight loss.
3) You’re Looking for the Quick Fix or Latest Celebrity Diet
How long did it take you to get overweight? How much time and effort went into it? How many unhealthy meals did you have to eat and how many workouts did you have to miss?
Add all that up and you’ll get an estimate of how long it’s going to take you to lose that weight.
There are no quick fixes. Stopping for a few months, starting for a few weeks, being afraid to commit to something and yo-yoing doesn’t work and you always rebound and gain the fat back later, even more. The only thing that works is a complete lifestyle change with accountability and expert support.
That and accepting the fact that it’s going to take some hard work and time.
4) You’re Eating Too Much Fat
Speaking of trendy diets…
Some people got to the extreme of low carb works so no carbs work better. They cut carbs and assume that they’re good to go and there’s nothing else to worry about. Unfortunately, the low/no carb diet isn’t as much fun as Dr. Atkins made it out to be.
You can’t just eat Paleo muffins, eat pounds of bacon and mayonnaise with reckless abandon and think that you’ll magically end up lean.
Fat contains calories; nine per gram to be exact. That’s more than twice the calories of a gram of protein or carbs. At the end of the day, total calories still matter, and if you’re eating more than you burn you’re never going to get leaner and lighter.
Please don’t mistake this as my advocating a low-fat diet. That’s just as bad as eating too much fat.
About 20% of your calories (and at the most, 30%) should come from healthy fats like free-range egg yolks, wild-caught fish, fish oil, grass-fed beef and coconut oil to ensure optimal health. Just be careful about going overboard with it and thinking that low to no carbs automatically leads to lower weight.
You still need to keep a handle on things like total calories.
5) You’re Snacking Too Much Between Meals
3 good meals a day of real food, with 1 snack or shake should be enough for most. Unless you're highly active and up really early in the morning, eating every 4 hours is enough.
6) You’re Eating Too Many Nuts
Nuts have a lot of calories that can add up quickly. When working for fat loss you’re better off filling up on nutritionally dense foods that don’t pack a lot of calories, like green vegetables.
Not too many people can eat ten almonds and stop lol. And that’s about the most you’d be allowed per day on a fat loss plan. Most people eat ten handfuls of almonds! That can easily put you over your daily calorie and fat limit.
Nuts can also be problematic/allergenic for a lot of people, especially those with digestive or autoimmune issues. Nuts should be used the same way you use cheese or condiments- sparingly.
7) You’re Not Exercising Properly
Most busy people don't have time to do an hour of weight training and then another 30-60 mins of boring cardio. That's why lifting weights is super beneficial because you increase your metabolism long after the workout is done, not just chasing the calories burned during.
your compliance is higher because you can actually fit it into your schedule at least 3/5 times a week.
When focusing on fat loss, focus on building lean strong muscle. Muscle IS your metabolism, and the stronger you get the bigger metabolic stress you exert, but your weight, body fat and inches come down.
8) You’re Overdoing Cardio
Traditional forms of cardio are largely useless for fat loss. You're better off taking 30 minutes to prep a healthy meal.
But useless is even okay, it’s when it starts to be counterproductive that we have a real problem. Excessive amounts of cardio lead to an overproduction of cortisol which leads to abdominal fat, thick legs and numerous joint and health problems.
If you want to do cardio that won’t actually hurt you and could do you some good, go for a long walk, swim or hike.
9) You're Not Getting Professional Help
I wouldn't trust myself to fix my car, do the electrical in my house or create legal documents. So why do people think they can design an effective progressive workout program and controlled nutrition plan just baffles me. I've "only" spent thousands and thousands on my education and 20 years of experience becoming a fitness professional. You want something done right that you are not an expert in, you hire a professional to get the best results, and like any service yes you get what you pay for, so don't cheap out when it comes to your one and only body.
10) You’re Not Managing Stress Properly
When you get stressed out your body produces a hormone known as cortisol. This increases body fat storage if it’s not controlled. Most people are stressed out all day long which means their cortisol levels are always high. That leads to an increase in body fat even if your diet and training are perfect. So make sure to take the time for stress management every single day. It HAS to be built into your routine the same way that brushing your teeth or eating is. It’s that
important.
In the hierarchy of fat loss stress management may actually be the single most important factor.
Here are some good ways to manage your stress:
* Meditate
* Keep a gratitude journal
* Get a pet
* Learn to say no to other people's demands
* Don’t let surfing too much social media steal your time
* Cut out the negative people in your life
* Get rid of the word can't
* Spend more time outdoors
* Make time for laughter every day
* Schedule more fun stuff with friends and family
* Volunteer
* Stop watching the negative news
* Listen to relaxing music
* Get regular massages
* Walk in the woods
Stress management is an essential key to fat loss.
11) You’re Not Getting Enough Sleep
When you’re short on sleep your insulin sensitivity decreases and your cortisol goes up. Both things lead to less than optimal fat loss. In fact, sleep deprivation can actually lead to fat gain.
You also miss out on the critically anti-ageing and important Growth Hormone boost that comes each night during deep sleep. If you want to lose more fat you have to get more sleep. Most people will ignore this and some of you are probably reading this at 11 pm.
Unfortunately, this just might be the most important thing on the whole list.
Some tips to improve your sleep are:
* Get outside in natural light for 15-30 minutes daily.
* Work out earlier in the day.
* Don’t have caffeine after 12pm.
* Turn the lights down in your house after dark.
* Don’t look at your phone or computer screens two hours before bed.
* Remove electronics from the bedroom.
* Use the bed only for the two S's ;)
* Make your bedroom as dark as possible.
* Invest in a really good bed. You spend 1/3 of your life in bed. So it’s worth investing in the best bed you can afford.
* Keep the bedroom cool. 68 degrees seems to be about right for most people.
More sleep improves EVERYTHING. Make it a priority.
12) You’re Not Sticking to the Plan
In the age of information overload, the biggest roadblock to fat loss is program ADD. One week you’re doing high fat, the next week you’re doing high carbs, then no cardio, followed by cardio every day, and on and on.
Fat loss is simple science. There is a proven path that works. You just have to stick with it long enough to see results. The most you can lose is about 1-2 pounds of fat per week. Unless you’re over 300 pounds. In that case, you’ll lose more. If you’re leaner you’ll be able to lose less. Nothing you can do will change that. It’s human physiology.
Bodybuilders and field athletes are the leanest people on earth. What do they do each week:
* Eat protein, vegetables and starch every day
* Never go too low on carbs
* Resistance Training 3-4 times
* Cardio and Conditioning 1-3 times
* Expend more calories than they consume
* Manage stress
* Sleep
The last thing I’d add is to simply walk more. Get a FitBit or use the Health app on your iPhone and shoot for 10,000 steps per day.
Don’t sit when you can stand, and build movement into your daily routine. A sedentary life equals death.
This was a long email, but well worth it and hope you found great value in it, I want YOU to succeed :)
It’s a simple but powerful plan, easy to follow, and it works.
Forget the quick fixes and make it a lifestyle.
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