What next? Primer on losing weight.

Right, so you've been reading my blog so far. That's good. You came here looking to lose a few pounds, and you didn't know where to begin.

You came here because you looked down at your flat tire and realized you had enough. Now, when you leave, I want you to repeat this one line:

"I am no longer the unfit, lazy and unhealthy person I was a moment ago".

I want you to believe it. And I want you to act upon it.

The power of action.

In life, you'll see a lot of people complaining about their situation but doing nothing about it. "It's so hard to lose weight, I've tried everything" is a common one- but it is rarely genuinely true. You haven't tried everything; in your eyes, 'everything' just includes the 3 week diet plans that you find in women's magazines, revolving around banana smoothies and doing calf raises while brushing your teeth.

It is not your fault.

The BS that we see in the fitness industry nowadays is just plain appalling. Magazines and TV shows spew lies and bullshit everywhere just to make a quick buck, and we all believe it because we do not know better. Sometimes, though, just rarely- the truth is clear, but it is also very hard to digest for many people. Most people don't want to bust their ass in the gym and go hungry for a little while- so they ignore genuine advice, try something stupid like liquid diets for a few days and then tell their friends how difficult it is to lose weight, how hard it is to man up and just lose the fat, et cetera.

From now on, everything you do, you will hold yourself accountable.

I hope that by reading this blog you've learned enough to sort the nonsense from the truth when it comes to losing weight- that all you have to do is lower your calories and exercise properly. If you do not start soon, you will never start- I guarantee you that. You'll forget about even reading this by next weekend, and maybe a few months from now you'll be a pound or two fatter than today. After new year you'll have another guilt trip about letting yourself go for another 12 months and will promptly start looking for a weight loss plan over the internet again. You might stumble upon this blog, or another fitness site- whatever it is, you'll ignore the advice and this cycle will go on until it really is too late.

So you make the choice- do you want to change your life TODAY, or do you want to stay fat FOREVER?

Myth busters 1 - Eating before bed.

Late night snacking is not the culprit
Source: theage.com.au

If you've spent any time looking for secrets of weight loss you would have probably encountered many so-called internet experts claiming that you shouldn't eat before bed.

This is simply not true. There is no evidence behind it. It was deduced from a study that correlates late night eating with people who suffer from obesity. The people that were studied in the experiment who were found to be late night snackers also happened to eat more than the average person. As you can see here, it was just a case of causation vs correlation. In fact, there is even a scientific study conducted later on that disproves this myth. You can read about it here.

The only way to slim down is to count calories for weight loss.

Source: dreamstime.com

Food doesn't magically multiply when it goes down your throat late at night. That's the cold hard fact. Hungry before bed? Don't hesitate to have a tasty mango smoothie or any other meal for that matter as long as you manage a caloric deficit throughout the day. If you're used to eating before bed, some foods such as a bit of dark chocolates or a sugar-free banana milkshake can help you get to sleep thanks to their sleep-inducing qualities

The bottom line? Eat before bed if you like, but make sure you still follow the golden rule of weight loss- maintaining a calorie deficit.

Exercise for weight loss

Running is a great way to lose fat.
Image: Nicole Rae Fitness

In the last article I mentioned that the only thing you need to lose weight is to create a deficit in your calorie intake. Exercise is not a must for fat loss at all. But if you want quicker results, you should exercise. Here's why:

Exercising burns calories. This makes weight loss quicker because you're already eating less than you burn- and on top of that, you're also burning calories through exercise! That will make you reach your fat loss goals in an even shorter time.You can get that six pack or flat belly that you always dreamed of even  quicker than you plan to.

It promote muscle gain. When you exercise, your body starts putting on muscle. Just remember though, females cannot put much muscle on naturally so if you females readers are worried you'll end up looking masculine- don't. It'll never happen. 

Weight lifting is a great way to build muscle.
Source: Askmen

For guys- this means that if you want to reveal a muscular body under your fat, start hitting the gym weights. Weight lifting not only promotes muscle gain but it also burns calories just like any other exercise, so you can have the best of both worlds.

It increases your daily calorie requirement. This is welcome news for those of us who love to eat. If you want to be precise, do your research and find out how many calories you are burning by undertaking the physical activity you do on a regular basis. Luckily, treadmills already have a little gadget that tells you how many calories you've burned during your session. Remember though, just because you jogged for an hour doesn't mean you can pig out on calorie dense food! Make sure you are still eating less than you burn. For more info, click here.

It releases "happy chemicals". Exercise is a great mood elevator and has been scientifically proven to release some of the chemicals responsible for a good mood, such as serotonin or endorphin based hormones. It has been scientifically proven that regular exercise results to a healthier state of mind.

So, now the importance of exercise in your journey to a desirable figure has been made clear. What are you waiting for, then? Put your runners on and enjoy a jog in the fresh air outside!

The body fat chart - Where do you stand?

This is a general guideline to help you figure out what your body fat. These are just estimates.

The chart for females is at the bottom of this post

Note that in the chart below, the lower body fat figures also pack on decent muscle so if you are fairly skinny but do not look like them, you are probably the same body fat percentage.

To see a six pack you must reach 11% body fat (this is the general guideline for males)

Measuring body fat on females is somewhat inaccurate but you could utilize a BMI calculator (easily found online) to calculate whether you are overweight. 

Note to girls looking to get visible abs: You would need to cut down to approximately 16% body fat. If you still want to measure your body fat, it is recommended that you buy calipers such as the ones featured here.

Counting calories for weight loss

My last article told you that all calories are the same no matter where they come from

This article is going to show you how to count calories and why you should do it.

The number one fat loss secret is to count your calories and make sure you burn more than you eat!

Simple as that, no gimmicks involved.



So how do you do it? Go to this site here and fill out the quick and easy weight loss calculator.


That will tell you what your 'maintenance rate' is- how much food you need to eat to stay the same weight. Eat more than that and you'll gain weight. Eat less and you'll lose weight.

Now that you've found the right rate you should subtract 500 from it. If you pack on a lot of fat, you can go ahead and take away 1000 calories.

That's how many calories you'll eat every day from now on. It's not difficult at all. If you have basic math skills and have a kitchen scale at home, you can achieve the body of your dreams. A great tool to track your daily calories is fitday.com.

Keep following my blog and you'll be slim in no time! You could even lose extra fat without exercising.

The concept of calories and why you should care

You can lose weight eating sugary candy all day.

That’s right, you read it correctly. But it does not mean you should.

Sugary candy is made of the same stuff as fruit- carbohydrates. 

Theoretically it is possible to lose weight if you were to eat only a handful of candy every day and nothing else. The explanation lies in understanding the ‘calorie’- a unit of energy often used to measure a certain food’s value as a fuel source. More calories translate to more energy, but it can also mean more body fat if you are not the burning excess energy that comes from overeating.

In my last article I mentioned that the secret to weight loss is to “move more and eat less”. In the context of what I said earlier, I’m asking you to burn more calories by exercising more and consume fewer calories by eating less. It does not matter where these calories come from. Sounds surprisingly simple, doesn’t it? So then why are there such things as “low carb” diets? The bottom line is that those are just simple dieting tricks that will help a dieter lessen their total calorie intake.

So if all calories are the same, why should you eat an apple rather than its caloric worth in candy? Because apples are more beneficial for your health and you’ll never be able to eat enough candy to keep you full unless you were to go over your daily calorie requirements. Apples also contain many nutritious chemicals that help your body function better. On top of that, it has a high fibre content which will keep you filled for longer. An apple a day indeed does keep the doctor away.

My next article will explain how to calculate your daily calorie requirement so you can find out how much (or how little) you need to eat to lose weight.

The right way to lose weight

It's time to trim the fat

So, you’ve finally decided that enough is enough.

You are here because you want to lose weight.

You’ve tried fad diets inside weekly fitness magazines and weight loss pills from your local nutrition store. You’ve done everything from zero-carb meal plans to a thousand crunches a day.

But nothing seems to be yielding results. That’s why you’re here- to learn the secret of weight loss.

And now, I’m asking you to forget everything you were taught from the corporate thieves trying to get you to buy their 2 week weight loss plans.

Sculpt the six pack you've always wanted

So why should this blog be any different? I aim to deliver the best weight loss guides you’ve ever come across. And I’m going to do it for free. But first I must warn you- it is probably going to be a challenging journey.

“How do I lose weight, then?” you ask? That's what this blog is for. Read my guide on weight loss here. It's a guide that aims to deliver the cold hard facts about proper weight loss. You will need to put your own work in though. Like I said; if you’re looking for a magical quick fix that’ll give you a six pack in a month this is not for you. But if you’re willing to be a dedicated and hardworking individual who wants to turn their life around, I welcome you with open arms.