For a number of sports, losing weight, and in particular, decreasing body fat, can mean the difference between finishing in the middle of the pack and standing on the stage. Dropping a few pounds may confer an advantage,
because it increases your power-to-weight ratio, a term that describes the amount of power you’re able to generate relative to the pounds you’re packing. The benefits of shedding a few pounds of body fat are certainly attractive on paper, but anyone who has tried to lose weight knows it’s not always simple. If you take the wrong strategy, your speed and agility may be affected, you may get sick more regularly, and the scale may not move,
despite all of your comprimising.
This article gives you the inside skinny on how to lose weight best.
If losing weight was easy, two-thirds of people in America wouldn’t be walking around today overweight or obese. Weight reduction is about calories. If you consume more calories than you spend on a daily basis, you put on weight. If the calories coming in balance with the calories you’re burning, your weight is stable. And if the calories you take in add up to less than what you burn, you lose weight. So if weight loss is on your to-do list, the latter scenario is where you want to be.
When losing weight, you’ll want to cut fat — not muscle. Most of the time, when you lose weight, only a portion of it is actual fat reduction. But you also lose muscle mass. This highlights the concept of power-to-weight ratio again:
Your big-picture goal is to return next season lighter in weight, while maintaining or even gaining in strength and energy. To do this, you’ll want to maintain your muscle mass as much as possible while you trim the body fat.
To pull this off, you’ll need three things: manage your calorie intake, train aerobically at a average intensity, and engage in a program of resistance work out. The combination of controlling calories in and exercising will create the necessary 500–750 calorie per day deficit for weight loss. The moderate-intensity exercise will burn mostly fat and not overly deplete your carbohydrate fuel stores, and the weight lifting will help give your muscles the stimulation they need to remain strong. Plan to exercise aerobically for at least an hour daily at about 60%–70% of your maximum heart rate. During resistance-training workouts, focus broadly on all the muscle groups specific to your sport.
Simple strategies for controlling calories
How do you cut back on calories? The following are tecniques that, if followed, will make it simplier for you to successfully achieve the 500–750 calorie deficit each day:
- Don’t skip meals — break the fast
- A common mistake when trying to manage calorie intake is to skip meals, especially breakfast. The problem with skipping meals is that we humans are pretty good at adapting to a shortage of food. If your body senses that calories are in short supply because of the time going so fast, it readily adapts by reducing your metabolic process. So, you’re thinking that you’re melting the fat away by going hungry, when in fact your body is trying to protect you by slowing down the rate it burns calories.
the day by eating smaller meals more frequently.
- Get it on the side
- Fat calories can quickly add up, so be mindful of sauces, gravies, and dressings that are fat-based. Ask for these on the side. That way, you can choose how much you consume.
- Eat foods that fill you up, not out
- Starting a meal with a bowl of soup, a salad, or a small plate of steamed or fresh vegetables helps take the edge off of your hunger pangs. People who follow this type of dietary pattern feel satisfied at the end of a meal while consuming fewer total calories. Adding broccoli, carrots, tomatoes, or beans to stews, pasta dishes, or chili is also effective. We tend to dish out a set portion size. So if your portion includes lower-calorie, higher-fiber ingredients like vegetables or beans, you end up with fewer total calories consumed.
- Don’t skimp on protein
- Don’t cut your protein intake while you’re cutting calories. You need protein to sustain your muscle mass, and for some individuals, protein foods are particularly satiating. Ensure to consume in the range of about 0.7–0.9 g protein per lb body weight (1.5–2.0 g protein per kg) daily. For a 150-lb (68-kg) individual, that equates to about 105–135 g protein per day.
- Avoid mindless munching
- We often look for food just to break up the routine of whatever we’re doing. Find another diversion, or chew into something that’s low in calories like apple slices, carrot sticks, or pretzels. But when you are truly hungry, eat! Remember that going hours without eating works against you because it tends to slow your metabolism.
- Navigating the fast-food lane
- Eating on the run can be a calorie disaster if you make the wrong options. One way to get around fast foods is to stay out of that lane entirely. If you a have choice between fast food or a sandwich shop, opt for the sandwich: Three slices of turkey breast with jack cheese, lettuce, tomato, sliced olives, bell peppers, and a hefty spread of yellow mustard on a whole-wheat roll adds up to just 325 calories, and it’s filling. In comparison, the ¼-lb cheeseburger and French fry combo at a hamburger joint nails you for almost 900 calories. You can get around Fast Food Boulevard with your calorie deficit unchanged, but it requires that you make smart choices. For example, go with a grilled chicken sandwich at 360 calories, or one of the main course soups — a Cobb salad with grilled chicken comes in at about 400 calories.
- Calorie-smart activities nutrition
- It’s not at all uncommon for anyone focused on losing weight to head off to the gym before taking anything, to push through a workout, and to then head for home completely starving. This situation is a dieting exercise wreck waiting to happen, because when you feel starved, it’s extremely difficult to control your calorie intake. Avoid putting yourself in that position. You do need to fuel in support of your training. The trick is to do it without consuming extra calories needlessly.
Rather than heading off to the gym on an empty stomach, provide your muscles with the carbs and protein they need.
Weight-cutting: What not to do
Weight-cutting or making weight is the exercise of quick weight-loss just before a competition. It’s sometimes practiced by athletes involved in sports that have weight classes, such as wrestling, boxing, martial arts, weight lifting, and rowing. It’s important to note, because it’s definitely not the way to lose weight. Weight-cutting typically involves some method of dehydration just prior to the weigh-in or a competition. Athletes may dehydrate by some mixture of food and fluid restriction, exercise, spending long periods in a sauna, steam room, or heat room, use of diuretics, and use of laxatives.
This approach to weight loss has virtually no effect on body fat. Instead, the weight loss stems from loss of body water. But athletes may also suffer from a depletion of carbohydrate muscle fuel (glycogen stores) and a decrease of muscle mass. This practice not only can have a detrimental effect on your performance, it can have very serious effects on your health as well.
Putting it all together
The goal for a safe weight loss of about 1 lb (0.45 kg) per week is to expend 500–750 more calories than your consume on a daily basis. The best way to create this calorie deficit is through a combination of burning more calories — from aerobic and resistance exercise and cutting back on calories consumed.
The best time to implement your weight loss regimen is during the off-season, when you don’t have the stringent demands of training and competition.
To fill up on fewer calories, put these strategies to good use:
- Don’t skip meals
- Get gravies, sauces, and dressings on the side
- Start a meal with soup, salad, or a small plate of steamed or fresh vegetables
- Add veggies or beans to your mixed dishes
- Eat some protein at each meal
- Have smaller meals more frequently
- Opt for sandwiches or salads when food needs to be fast
- Eat until you no longer feel hungry, not until you feel stuffed
- Avoid mindless munching
- Weigh yourself weekly to track your progress
Visit the90daybody.com for more information.
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