Today I want to talk to you about what you need to start doing right now in the gym, in order to see some amazing progress. And I want to share my top 5 rules and secrets to fat loss success. It’s time for you to looking like what you’re working so hard for day in and day out. And I’m going to show you how.
Being frustrated and discouraged should NOT be a part of your fitness journey. Here are my top 5 tips to getting the scale moving again – and this time for good.
Fat Loss Success Rule #1: Plan Ahead. Then Prepare to Abandon It
It definitely goes without saying that failing to plan IS planning to fail. But here’s where a lot of folks go wrong with this mindset, and where you could well be yourself!
It’s one thing to draft up a game plan for your success in your efforts. But here’s how life works… Sh*t happens! All the time.
And what I sometimes notice with folks is that they often get thrown off – tremendously. Especially when they are forced to be thrown off of their perfectly crafted plan.
And then once THAT occurs, they end up throwing their hands up and saying “F” it, “F” the world, I give up… I’m eating cake!
Well, to that I say STOP. Stop it right now.
The best kind of plan you can create is one that is flexible, and one that understands that you will not always be in complete control. And it is at those moments where you have to be OKAY with yourself to let go. To be ok with going with the flow, and then get this…
Simply pick up once again where you left off – and try to do it as soon as possible.
It is when you start to adopt that kind of mindset that you begin to see TRUE success at this game. This is when it all becomes more about being a true lifestyle. And one that fits snugly into your typical daily flow.
Fat Loss Success Rule #2: Allow Flexibility in both Your Meal Plan and Your Training Program
Ok so with this one, I get it… I really do!
You want to embark on your plan and be as absolutely perfect as possible. Because after all, it’s that kind of discipline that gets you real results.
So, you decide, no cheating, follow your plan AND THAT ONLY! Absolutely no variety! And, you must go to the gym every single day for X amount of hours a day – no days off.
Well, just like I told you before being too “married to” a plan can be one of the most detrimental things you can do, the same applies here with the amount of flexibility you allow in your programming.
What if I told you that sticking to your diet 90% of the time is all you truly need to be successful at your efforts?
I know in the back of your mind, you probably can’t comprehend why someone would tell you not to give 100% at all times. And how slacking off can ever possibly lead to success… But hear me out on this one.
It’s no secret by now that modern nutrition research supports the idea that cheat meals are an important part of the entire dieting process. This is due to its effect on leptin – and how boosting this hormone while dieting can and does improve your fat loss efforts.
So if you have been dieting for a while, and seem to have hit a stall, throwing in a cheat meal once a week, to every other week, can help to get the ball rolling again.
And to take things beyond the power of cheat meals… You can also rest assured that adding variety to you meal plan is another tactic that can find you seeing better results over time. Dietary variety is one of those tactics that is really pretty easy, and pretty subtle in action. But, it can have a huge impact on whether or not you are able to stick to a plan at all.
Now, I know you’ve been in situations where you probably have eaten the same exact thing every single day!
All while trying to do what’s right in getting to your goals. And I know YOU know how boring that can be after a while. And how putting yourself in that kind of predicament is a surefire way to just throw your hands up and quit altogether.
Well, guess what… There IS a better way.
Adding variety is a great way to be able to keep your calories roughly the same as they would be on your set plan. But even further, allowing you the freedom to change your food choices as your palate evolves and desires.
When I talk about adding variety, I mean that you can swap things out like chicken for fish, or steak for a nice grilled piece of pork. Maybe you were craving some pasta! So, instead of your typical yam or white baked potato, you have a calorically equal serving size of spaghetti.
Maybe instead of your usual serving of almonds, you want to have some yummy triple cream brie or Camembert cheese with your midday snack.
The possibilities really are endless, and limited by only your imagination. The only thing you have to do is make sure that whatever you are swapping foods out for match calorically with what’s on your plan – and preferably are in the same food group. So you’d sub out a protein with another protein, a fat for another fat, or carbs for another carb.
And it doesn’t have to be something you do daily.
Simply something you do whenever you have the whim to. But knowing that the ability to do this is in fact there AND real, makes it a hell of a lot easier to stick to your diet in the long term. And not only that – will allow you to be able to establish the lifestyle habits to keep the weight you lose off for a lifetime.
Fat Loss Success Rule #3: Fat loss starts in the kitchen – everything else is just a supporting player
You’ve heard this one before, so I don’t want to go on a tangent and lecture you…
HOWEVER, it goes without saying, you’ll never get to your goal if you don’t actually put your plan in action in the kitchen.
Let’s face it – your diet will dictate progress, and there’s really no way you can get around that. But it can be hard at times to really buckle down and do what you need to do to see results.
Trust me, I know! I’ve been there.
And I can tell you there’s no magic formula or pill that can change that. And instead, your hunger to succeed must be greater than the hunger and urges in your belly to eat foods you know aren’t going to get you ANY closer to your goals.
Fat Loss Success Rule #4: Write down your goals – make what you want tangible
This one is an important one – and something you should make a true habit of!
I cannot tell you how much I am a strong believer in writing down goals. And a lot of it stems from the fact that I’ve seen for myself how truly effective this is in actually attaining what you want in life.
I like to tell clients to keep a notebook to track their training. And on the first page of that notebook, write down their driving factor behind their efforts.
To take things even further, I want you to not only write it down on the first page of your training journal, but to also read it before you begin your workouts. Can you imagine how driven you’d be if you had in clear focus what’s driving you to begin with…
But not only that, allowing to to fuel your process in motion – in that moment. During every rep, set, exercise for that day. Trust me, the sheer POWER in this simple task is undeniable. And I urge you to try it out this week and see how much it kicks up your goals – and what you’re able to actually achieve.
Fat Loss Success Rule #5: Understand how genetics play a role in the equation. So let your body dictate change and progress.
The final thing I want to touch upon is to keep in mind that each and every one of us is different. We each have what works, and what simply doesn’t. And being that there are just SOO many theories on how you can approach your diet and training… It’s important that you find out what simply works for YOU!
The number one piece of advice I would say is that you really need to first do your research. Don’t take everything you hear at face value. If there is a dieting or training tactic you want to apply, see if you can find any studies done on that approach. See if there are articles that cover the pros and cons. Ask those whom you know and trust within the industry (like ME!) if it’s a good idea.
If you read or hear something, and you want to apply it – write your question in the comments of my posts. I can give you the best advice I can.
But all and all, you want to still keep in mind that just because something works for one person – it doesn’t mean it will work for you.
So don’t give up! Whatever you decide to try – do it for AT LEAST 12 weeks to ascertain if it is working. The only exception to this is if you are doing something that is generally deemed extreme. Or if you simply feel like crap following the advice you’ve decided to take on.
At the core of all of this though is exactly what I told you in that last sentence… GIVE IT SOME TIME! Be patient, be consistent, and allow your body the time it needs to transform and change.
Progress doesn’t happen overnight. It happens through the fruit of your labor – day in and day out.
