So, the New Year is upon us and you’ve decided that this is
the year that you're really going to get fit and lose the weight.
So how are you going to go about doing it?
There are numerous ways, many of which have proved very
successful with lots of my clients, but on balance, the following method has
proved to be the most fruitful and therefore the reason I want to share it with
you.
1. Set yourself a target.
Just as a game of archery without a target proves futile,
for many people (not all) so does trying to lose weight without having a calorie
target.
So how do you set yourself a target? Some experts recommend
you base it on your current weight, others recommend you base it on your target
weight, that is the weight you’d like to be in future.
Either way there are numerous apps out there that will do the maths for you! But if you do fancy yourself as a bit of a Carol Vorderman (minus the Botox) a relatively quick and easy ESTIMATE as recommended by leading nutrition expert Lyle McDonald is 10-12 calories, per 1lb of body weight per day. Note that I highlighted the word estimate because it is just that, and will likely have to be adjusted.
As with all methods of calorie estimation be they done using an app or the method used above or something similar, they will probably have to be adjusted based on how you respond to the diet. For example, if you are extremely active you may have to increase the total, if you are really inactive or drastically overweight you’ll probably have to reduce the total. But at the very least it’s a starting point from which you can work from.
Either way there are numerous apps out there that will do the maths for you! But if you do fancy yourself as a bit of a Carol Vorderman (minus the Botox) a relatively quick and easy ESTIMATE as recommended by leading nutrition expert Lyle McDonald is 10-12 calories, per 1lb of body weight per day. Note that I highlighted the word estimate because it is just that, and will likely have to be adjusted.
As with all methods of calorie estimation be they done using an app or the method used above or something similar, they will probably have to be adjusted based on how you respond to the diet. For example, if you are extremely active you may have to increase the total, if you are really inactive or drastically overweight you’ll probably have to reduce the total. But at the very least it’s a starting point from which you can work from.
At this point, I would also recommend setting a
macronutrient target, that is working out what percentage of the total daily
calories should come from fats, proteins and carbohydrates, but I realise this
may be a little to detailed so please do not hesitate to get in touch with me
if you’d like some help with this. But at the very least, try to get plenty of
your calories from protein (the reasons for which I've written about HERE previously).
2. Act like your nosy, curtain twitching neighbour and track everything.
Now that you’ve got a calorie target, spend the next few
weeks tracking what you eat. Inspect food labels, weigh your food, work out
portion sizes, in fact do whatever you can to make sure you become more aware
of how many calories you are consuming and exactly where those calories are
coming from.
Now I know this may seem about as much fun as a night out
with Tory MP Jacob Rees-Mogg (don’t know who this fella is? Google him, he
makes Michael Owen look like Keith Richards) but you won’t have to do it for
long, just for a few weeks. From then on you can begin to guestimate
things based on your new-found knowledge rather than measuring all the
time.
3. Train like an Olympian (well kind of).
In an ideal world, you’d have the physical capacity, as well
as the time to begin training like an Olympian, that is, be able to do plenty
of weight training and plenty of cardio without any repercussions to your
health. But we don’t live in an ideal world (if we did, I’d be Brad Pitt rather than just an
exceptionally good lookalike) and many of us simply can’t train at the same
level of intensity as an Olympian (as I've written about HERE previously). So at the very least try to find some form
physical or sporting activity which you enjoy doing and aim to do it roughly
2-3 times per week and if you could throw in some form of weight training too
that would be a real bonus!
4. Be like Madonna and holiday (not fall over at the Brit Awards, or wear a cone-shaped bra).
As Madonna famously sung ‘If we took a holiday…it would be so nice’ and as we all know, a holiday is nice. But don’t worry I’m not suggesting that you book 2 weeks in Barbados but I do recommend that 6 – 8 weeks into your diet you should book yourself a 1 week break away from it.
And in that diet break don’t treat it as an ‘all-inclusive’
where you shovel food and drink down your old Gregory Peck (neck) with reckless
abandon, but approach it as time where you can relax a little and treat
yourself to, well a few extra treats here and there! Now I know this may seem
counterintuitive to some, but taking a diet break allows you to relax and ready
yourself psychologically for the further dieting that is to come.
5. Go back to the start and repeat the process.
After your diet break, revaluate your calorie target and get
straight back on with your diet and training. After all, by virtue of the fact
that you have been on a diet for at least the previous month and a half, there
should be less of you i.e. you should have lost weight and now be smaller in
size than you were at the start of the diet, meaning you now require less
calories each day.
Once you’ve set yourself a new calorie target revaluate your exercise too. Could you increase this a little? And of course, don’t forget to plan yourself another diet break somewhere in the forthcoming weeks.
Once you’ve set yourself a new calorie target revaluate your exercise too. Could you increase this a little? And of course, don’t forget to plan yourself another diet break somewhere in the forthcoming weeks.
Thanks for reading.
If you’re interested in finding out more about other methods
of weight loss which have worked well with my clients please get in touch.
TO BOOK YOUR FREE HEALTH AND FITNESS ASSESSMENT, OR YOUR FREE PERSONAL TRAINING SESSION, OR TO BOOK A PLACE AT MY BOOT CAMP CLASS, PLEASE DON’T HESITATE TO GET IN TOUCH.
Matt
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