6 packs and firm bums!

Some say weight loss is as simple as calories in < calories out.

And those people are right.

However, do you really want to lose weight?

Or do you want to lose fat?

After all, that's the ugly stuff that no one likes right?

Now to lose fat, not weight, it's NOT - calories in vs calories out..

BUT

WHAT calories in vs WHAT calories out.

You see, a calorie is NOT just a calorie when it comes to what your body does with those calories.

I had quite a heated debate recently with another ''trainer'' who was making these comments to newbie gym goers..

''I can get you losing weight by eating mars bars, and putting weight on by eating broccoli!''

(Talk about sending the wrong message!)

Now before you ask me for his number because that sounds like the kinda diet you want to go on...

Let me tell you a little bit about what your body does with different types of calories..

Fat calories:  used for insulation, metabolism of fat, used for energy, transportation of nutrients.

Protein Calories: used for cell repair and growth.

Carbohydrate/Sugar calories: Used to provide energy for high intensity exercise, stored in fat cells if not utilized properly and over consumption can de-sensitize insulin leading to conditions such as type 2 diabetes.


Before we go any further with this, let's take the average westerners lifestyle and try to find out why we aren't all walking around with 6 packs and firm bums!

The average westerner probably starts their day by getting up and eating cereal (sat down) if they have time for it.

They then drive to work (sat down)

Then they sit at work and maybe snack on some form of processed bar of something,

Then, they sit and have a carbohydrate dense lunch, something like a sandwich and a sugary drink,

Then they drive home,

Maybe go to the gym and plod away for 45 minutes on a treadmill or some other form of monotonous, poor posture promoting single plane movement machine that raises cortisol levels so high it's impossible to burn belly fat, (Eddie Izzard springs to mind again.. 47 marathons in 51 days and was still fat at the end, here's proof...) 

Then they drive home, sit on the couch while their carbohydrate packed dinner cooks in the microwave,

They then sit and eat aforementioned meal in front of the TV before tootling off to bed sometime just before midnight before they repeat the same thing the next day.

BUT WAIT!

Then it gets to Friday night and because Mr/Mrs Westerner has had a stressful week they then sit down and eat a carb laden takeaway washed down with some form of alcoholic (sugary) beverage, or 5!

**Because it's the weekend and they've worked hard all week and maybe hit the gym a couple of times**

They now feel they can reward themselves, like we reward our pets, with more processed, carbohydrate heavy food and more alcoholic beverages. 

In a nut shell, the main macro-nutrient being consumed by Mr/Mrs westerner is Carbohydrates or sugar (cereal, bread, pasta, alcohol)! 

And as over consumption of carbohydrates, especially the wrong types of carbohydrates, is responsible for desensitising insulin (the hormone that basically decides whether or not those carbs get strored as glycogen or fat)...

It's easy to see why the western world has an obesity problem.

Now if Mr/Mrs westerner, or anyone for that matter, takes in less calories and simply moves more thus having more calories go out, then they will lose ''weight''.

However, the weight they are losing will mostly be muscle mass, a lot of water and some fat (their body will keep fat because this is more important than muscle when it comes to survival)

Now if Mr/Mrs westerner were to eliminate the wrong calories (Processed sugary foods/drink, alcohol), kept the right calories (healthy fats, proteins, fibrous carbohydrates and MOST single ingredient whole organic foods)

AND

Performed shorter, higher intensity bouts of exercise that focuses on using all the muscles in the body...

This would lead to fat metabolism!

How?

Because Mr/Mrs westerner would be training their body to increase lean muscle mass thus promoting the use of fat as energy as opposed to carbohydrates, especially when resting!

Here are a host of other benefits to eating healthy, whole foods and actually exercising less..

Muscle maintenance/ increase (when combined with the right training program)

Increased health,

Reduced stress levels (great for belly fat reduction and lower risk of heart disease)

Higher energy levels

But best of all...

Jealousy from friends, family and co-workers because you will have what they've always dreamed of..

A fully functioning, firm, healthy, energetic, head turning, confidence raising, fat burning machine of a BODY!

So the next time you're thinking of going on a diet, joining a 'weight loss group' that counts points, calories, uses traffic lights systems, blending everything in sight or whatever fad comes out next, 

Spare a thought for what you actually want to achieve at the end of the process..

Weight loss.

OR, and I'll say it again,

A fully functioning, firm, healthy, energetic, head turning, confidence raising, fat burning machine of a BODY!

It's your choice.

Now here's a coincidence... I actually run a program that is specifically designed to get the results listed above!

If you're on it then you'll be seeing the benefits I've described and if you're not and want to know more, just send me an email to info@mattsmithfitness.co.uk and I'll tell you all about it!!

Get and stay healthy,

Matt

ps. I would love to hear your personal struggles with food and exercise and if I can help, I will! So feel free to email me with any queries you have about that too..