The Fat Truth About Fat Loss:
“I want to lose my belly fat”. A sentence that 90% of us have probably said at one point, and 100% of us have heard someone else say. When the idea of losing fat enters our minds, the first thing that seems to follow is cut my calories. Before you go slashing calories left, and right though there are a few things you need to realize about fat loss.
To lose “fat” or “weight” one obvious change needs to be diet. More importantly, there needs to be a caloric deficit (Less calories consumed than burned). What happens though when that is taken to the extreme? Is the number the scale shows us really depicting the truth on what our body is truly doing?
The fat storage allowed us to pocket away fatty acids that could be sent through the bloodstream to provide the gas our body needed to function when food wasn’t available.In the body everyone has fat cells, these little guys have the big duty of storing energy. Back in the good old days when food was “scarce” this worked well for humans. What happened then, and why does this no longer work for most humans? Well in today’s society food is EVERYWHERE, and with no sign of a zombie apocalypse due to our quaint living conditions we have now encountered a problem of obesity. With added fat cells, more work being done sitting, and less movement… we are creating a recipe for disaster.
In order to burn fat, we first have to get moving! Now it should be noted that does NOT mean hop on the cardio bunny train wagon. We need to create more mighty-mitochondria (energy powerhouses) easiest way to do this is through HIIT workouts or resistance training. Once we have more of these guys, we can allow the brain to signal our body to not only release the fat cells for fuel, but also limit making more of them!
How do you burn fat effectively then without hindering too much muscle loss?
Adequate amounts or protein
Strength training program
Sleep and recovery on point
Don’t slash your calories too much (250 is a good starting point)
Carbs are your friends still, and having fat won’t make you fat
Tips or signs you’re losing muscle vs. fat:
Losing more than 2 lbs per week (1 lb probably if you’re a woman)
Energy levels are decreasing
You’re primary focus is just cardio
Immunity decrease
Strength is decreasing
While it is inevitable to not lose some muscle during a fat loss phase, there are certain precautions that can be done to minimize the amount. When looking to start a fat lose phase, one make sure your body has not already been in drastic deficit for too long. Slashing more calories to a metabolism that is shot already will only derail your progress / cause more issues.
Make sure you’re keeping track of your weight / recovery and how your body feels. Lastly go about this with a long-term plan, cutting carbs for a quick fix is not going to help keep muscle on you. The goal is a healthy lifestyle; so take the time to be smart about what you’re choosing to do.
I hope you found this helpful!
For questions or comments, email PetersL93@yahoo.com
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Xo,
Leah Peters
Leahpetersfitness.com