Posts written by Michael J. Mahony

My thoughts on losing weight are that it isn't easy, but it isn't rocket science either. I have written many articles on fat loss and the strategy is the same here. Consistency in the kitchen is the key here. You have to focus on changing your habits and then keeping consistent with your new habits.

Meal Planning

If you are focused on losing weight you must plan your meals. So many people complain about calorie counting because they skip the meal planning step. Meal planning makes it so your food is ready and your calories are already counted. That's right! When you meal prep you are also taking care of calorie counting. Think that through.

During meal prep you determine how much food to prepare and what food to prepare. That delivers a calorie count for you. Meal planning also helps you stick to your nutrition plan. You are less likely to binge eat if you have prepared your meals in advance. Think about how amazing it would be to just go to your refrigerator before work each morning and grab the meals for that day!

Goals

You need to have goals in order to determine the right mix of foods to eat. There are some guidelines that just work and those are where you should begin your journey. Set your goals so that you are eating 40% protein, 40% carbohydrates and 20% fat. For a 2000 calorie diet that would mean 200 grams of protein and carbs and 45 grams of fat. Yes, you need fat to lose weight. Do your best to hit these macro goals and losing weight will become second nature.

Variety

Some people like variety while others do not care. I personally think keeping your eating regimen the same each day is the safest way to go. You know what you are putting into your body daily. It has to work. There are no variables. When you change things up too much with eating, the food profile changes and that changes how your body responds. I prefer to keep things the same with what I know works. Other people like variety when losing weight. I caution those people to be careful with their food choices. I suggest they examine what they are eating and make sure the food profile fits their goals.

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Do you know that you can make the most out of your time and burn fat by squeezing in a bit of exercise while running errands? You can burn fat while going to a convenient store – that’s called killing two birds with one stone. In this article I am going to give you 5 ways you can accomplish this..

1) Running

Run at a constant pace for a longer duration. The rationale here is the lengthier a physical activity is, the more fat your body burns in the process. For running, the ideal pace is achieved when you’re still able to perform normal conversation while maintaining your speed. This way, the sustained motion allows your body to burn fat better.
Remember that your body keeps burning fat for the next 2-3 hours after the run, which is why it’s best if you just consume water or low-protein food during that duration. Running on an empty stomach is also recommended but not for lengthy durations; 40 minutes should be the max limit.

Intense sprinting is ideal for muscle buildup, while slower paced runs burn fat more effectively. You can combine them to get the best results.

Running has a lot of other health benefits. Aside from how it burns fat, it can also help relieve stress, keep you away from depression, and boost your self-confidence to a whole new level.

You can incorporate running into your errands by parking a distance away and jogging to and from the store. This makes more efficient use of your time.

2) Walking

When you walk, you’re using important muscle groups that allow you to sustain physical activities for a certain period of time and burn fat. Your arms, waist, hips, and legs all move to increase heart rate and improve breathing.

Walking burns fat best if you alternate steady brisk walks and faster strides. Interval pacing lets your body use up more calories while improving cardiovascular endurance.

Again, you can incorporate this into your errand time by parking a long way away from the store and walk briskly.

3) Riding a bicycle

Get off that stationary bike and ride a real one. A good 20-minute ride each day is a good starting point. Increase your pace and duration every week until you’re comfortably able to ride continuously for an hour. Cycling at a speed of 15 mph can burn a sizable amount of calories and will burn fat.

Perform interval training when you ride your bicycle. After some time, your body will get used to the physical activity and will require a different challenge to burn fats. Add some variations to your sessions, like going through a different path than usual or cycling at alternating speeds.

Take your bike instead of your car when running errands. You will be getting in some much needed exercise while your body burns fat.

4) Take the stairs

Avoid using the elevator. Taking the stairs help increase energy consumption while building your muscles and helping your body burn fat.

Studies reveal that climbing the stairs burns more calories compared to walking but uses less in relation to running – it’s like the middle ground of the two exercises. This exercise uses your glutes, calves, quads, and hamstrings, strengthening them as you go up against gravity.

A 15-minute workout using alternating patterns of sprinting and walking up and down the stairs is the ideal condition to burn fat better.

5) Carrying grocery items

Ditch that push cart and just lift your grocery bags on the way back home. Think of it as lifting weights outside the gym but for a more practical purpose.

The weight you carry should not be too heavy or too light. The right load should allow you to still walk normally. Otherwise, you’ll just strain your muscles or burn nothing at all. Carry the items for at least a hundred yards, resting for a few seconds before continuing your journey.

The calories your body burns may be less than the other exercises but you still burn fat and that’s the important part.

Take these tips and merge them into your daily routine and you will be surprised at the results. The extra exercise will happen without you even realizing it.

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