How to trick your body into shedding fat
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I recently learned some really cool tricks to shed fat while still eating carbs and not working out too hard. Interested?!? First, let me fill you in on some background. It all started when I met my new boyfriend. As hes a surgeon his brain thinks very scientifically, but hes also a mixed martial arts fighter. Hot, I know! :-) The thing with MMA is that you have to be a certain weight to compete so Mauricio became an expert at shedding fat without losing strength. And since hes a science buff, he was able to explain to me just HOW the body and hormones function together to achieve the maximum fat burn in the shortest period of time I've been using his food and exercise tips daily, and I thought they might help you too. Now, there are TWO techniques here. One is for people who DO NOT like to work out. The other is for those who DO. I love working out but I know I'm not like most people. The good news is that you can trick your body into shedding fat without ever stepping foot into a gym. Fat burning for the non-gym-bunnies: First thing in the morning, you wake up in what's called a fasted state when your fuel tank is on empty because you haven't eaten for 8+ hours. This state is the perfect fat burning zone! In order to burn fat, you want to take advantage of this fasted state by going for a long walk before you eat breakfast. As you haven't eaten all night your body is depleted of the carbohydrates it uses for energy, so while you are on your walk your body has no choice but to use your fat for energy. Now, there is a trick to this: the energy from your fat is only burned when your heart rate reaches between 60-70%, which is a fast paced walk or a very slow jog. A heart rate monitor is helpful so you know if youre in the fat burning zone. Start with just 25 minutes and work your way up to 45 minutes. Do NOT exceed 45 minutes otherwise your body enters a catabolic state, which in very simple terms means the body starts to eat away at your muscle tissues and organs for fuel. (Trust me, I did this to myself and ended up with stage 3 adrenal fatigue. Not fun!!) And thats the technique! Simple. By doing this youll burn the maximum amount of fat in a short period of time. Obviously if you eat like a crazy person for the rest of the day, you wont see results, but if you get into the habit of doing this 3-4 times per week while eating a healthy diet, you WILL notice a huge difference. Fat burning for exercise buffs: When I think of working out in a gym, I do NOT think of sitting on a cardio machine for hours. If youre doing that, STOP IT RIGHT NOW! You are hurting your body and your hormones as well as making weight loss almost impossible. Instead, youre going to work out for 20-30 minutes with weights first, followed by 20-30 minutes of cardio to finish up. Before exercising its important to eat a good amount of protein and carbs. I like protein shakes because they are fast and easy to make, but if you have some leftovers from the night before, thats great too. Complex carbs last longer and are better for burning off at the gym. Here are some of my favorites:
Sweet potato Yams Squash Pumpkin Steamed brown or wild rice Lentils Kashi Bulgur Beans (black, kidney) Corn
(Some of these foods are genetically modified in the US so I encourage you to buy organic when you can.) If youre thinking that you'll burn more fat if you leave out the carbs, youre wrong! Your body needs fuel to function healthily and you can hurt it if you don't feed the machine beforehand. Weight training has been such a game changer for me! Not only does it cut my workout time in half, it makes it much easier for me to keep excess weight off. Because what you may not know is that weight training breaks down the fibers of your muscles, which need to be repaired through eating protein and carbs after your workout. This actually strengthens your muscles and increases your metabolism in the long term. Weight training also eliminates water and fat in your muscles, which lowers your body fat. The more muscle you have, the less fat you have on your body! And dont worry, you're not going to get too big and chunky. You might notice your muscles swell for the first few weeks but if you stick to this routine, your body will become smaller and smaller. Only do this workout 3 days per week. Monday, Wednesday and Friday works well for me. Your body NEEDS a rest day between workouts. Without this opportunity to recover you risk injuring your body and also decreasing its ability to burn fat. Each workout with weights should include two or three different body areas per day, for example:
Monday: upper body, chest, shoulders Wednesday: lower body, legs, calves Friday: upper body, back and arms
Aim for 2-3 exercises per body part with a maximum 15-20 reps for each set. You should be using enough weight so that the last few reps are really hard! If you can do more than 20 reps you need to lift heavier weights, if you can't reach 15 you need to lift less weight. For examples of different exercises for I use a handy little app called Full Fitness. To shed fat you need to walk at 60-70% heart rate once you've completed your weight workout. The weights burn off all your carbs and walking will then put you in fat burning mode as your body has to use its own fat for energy. Its important to maintain a heart rate of 60-70%, which is a fast walk or very slow jog. If you start running, your body will go into a catabolic state and start drawing on your muscles for energy. Start with 20 minutes and increase up to a maximum of 45 minutes. An average of 30 minutes would be perfect. Most of my posts cover the psychology of weight loss and the blocks that keep us from shedding excess pounds. If you have a weight loss blocker it's highly likely you'll start sabotaging yourself when you see results. And that's what we focus on in my Think and Thin program: removing those blocks for good so that you can successfully implement strategies like the one in this post. I really hope you find this useful! Try it out and let me know how it works for you! xoxo Britt
