weightloss tips

Erik's Weekly Fitness Tip | Cardio Is Not The Answer!

 

How NOT To Lose Weight

If you want to lose weight, doing cardio every day for hours at a time is NOT the way to do it.

How TO Lose Weight

Instead, try lifting heavy weights.

What does lifting do for your body besides make you stronger? It helps you build lean mass. Muscle building burns calories. 

When most people try to lose body fat, they tend to make the same mistake; they go all out on the elliptical but never make their way to the weight room. You will lose weight this way, but you will also lose important lean muscle mass. Your number one priority when attempting to lose weight is to maintain the muscle mass you have. Lifting heavy weights will help you maintain that muscle mass.

Fun Fact

Ten pounds of muscle burns 50 calories per day (that’s 350 calories a week)!

Call me to help with your strength training 310.251.7420 

Image Credit: Molly Taylor

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Erik's Weekly Fitness Tip | Weight Loss Stalled?

 

In the beginning stages of weight loss most people will find:

  • a 1-2 pound loss on the scale each week
  • better energy
  • motivation to continue the journey 

Momentum Falls Off

You have been riding on the momentum of the weight loss wave until the last few weeks hit.  That damn scale hasn’t moved a fraction of an inch and you are stuck.  Panic is starting to set in and you are thinking of taking drastic measures to ensure you reach your goal.  Take a breath and let’s take a logical approach to dealing with the inevitable plateau.  

If you have gone more than 2 weeks without the scale budging it’s time to change things up. 

Bust Through That Plateau

1.  Decrease Calorie intake - The easiest place to start is to cut more calories out of your daily allowance.  The mistake most people make is they cut too many calories out at once.  Instead take a conservative approach, decrease your calories by 100 per day.  You must make sure that you are eating adequate protein and fat levels every day, so to cut calories, decrease the amount of carbs you are eating.

2.  Lace up your shoes - The 2nd place to help promote fat loss is by increasing your cardio.  How much cardio should you be doing and what types of cardio should you be doing - HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) or LIIS (Low Intensity Steady State)?

The answer is both, but I give HIIT the advantage.  2-3 days of HIIT is more than enough to accomplish the job.  An example of this would be 5-8 reps for 25-45 seconds at a 90% + effort is plenty to get the job done.  You will need to rest for 1:30-2+ minutes before attempting another rep. 

HIIT Workouts

  • spin bike
  • sprints
  • sled
  • tire flips
  • stairs
  • rowing
  • running hills

LIIS workouts

For those less experienced exercisers or for those cardio haters LIIS probably is a better way to go.  3-5 times a week, 45-60 minutes.

  • stroll
  • easy bike ride
  • recumbent bike

3.  Change your goals - Maybe it is time to switch things up.  Being in calorie deficit can take a toll on you psychologically and affect your social life.  Let’s assume you now have healthy levels of body fat, maybe it is time to focus on another goal that is motivating and has you excited. 

One of the better fitness goals that I can tell you to do is to focus on strength training, the benefits of being strong are endless.  Remember skinny does not mean fit.  Your strength has a direct affect on how you interact with your environment.  Strength training will do the following:

  • increase bone density
  • improve your posture
  • improve your work capacity
  • build some serious self-confidence

Let It Go

Strength training is the best thing you can do when taking on father time. 

Constant dieting can be a daunting task. It might be time to let go of the idea of perfection.  If you have been at it for a while change things up and focus on just eating well, exercising, moving everyday, and having some fun. 

Contact me if you need help getting over the weight loss hump. I can design a personalized fitness & nutrition plan for you. 310.251.7420

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Erik's Weekly Fitness Tip | The Battle To Lose Weight

 

It's Hard

The battle to lose weight is without a doubt one of the hardest battles I see on a regular basis.  There are so many layers when it comes to weight issues: emotional, physical, genetics and misinformation just to name a few.  Weight issues can be a constant battle that takes over a person’s life. I’ve seen firsthand the emotional pain that people suffer over it. 

These issues and layers are above my pay grade, but I can offer you some quick tips that I have seen work. 

What Works

1.     Awareness!  How much are you really eating?  What are your triggers that cause you to stress eat? Are you exercising?

2.     Walking is a perfect place to start.  Before work, on your lunch break, or after dinner.  Walking is a great way to clear your head, get some fresh air, and burn some calories.  Spring is here, it's time to get outside!

3.     Cut sugar! Even be aware of how much fruit you are consuming.

4.     Shop for your food.  Eating out leads to overeating.  Head to the grocery store and buy food that needs to be prepared and stay on the perimeter of the store. Do yourself a solid and make extra for lunch the next day.   Read more here.

5.     Set realistic and short-term goals that you will be able to accomplish. 

6.     Performance!  Look for something you have to work towards besides losing weight.  Walk a 5K, bike around the neighborhood faster than you did 6 weeks ago, walk 7000 steps everyday for a month straight.  Chase down that performance, it’s motivating, fun, and there is nothing better than seeing progression!

7.     Whatever you choose to do, have fun and have a positive attitude! You can do this!

8.    Need more tips? Check out this past newsletter & this one too.

Numbers

I will leave you with these staggering stats:

Diabetes has nearly quadrupled over the last the 35 years.  There are now 422 million people who are diabetic compared to 108 million back in 1980.  A very scary statistic! 

Need help with your nutrition or fitness? CALL ME TO SET UP AN IN-PERSON OR ONLINE APPOINTMENT 310.251.7420

Image credit: Trần Quốc Dương on Unsplash

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