Choose the end result that you want to create by the end of your program
This is the first, and is definitely the most important weight loss tips that I can give you. The reason for this is simple: Without knowing where you are going you will have a problem getting there. So, in the beginning of your weight loss journey make a decision about exactly what you want to accomplish when your reach the end of your weight loss program.
The end result that I wanted to produce at the end of my weight loss program was this: A lean, healthy body with 10% body fat and visible six-pack abs.
Taking into account that in 1994 my total body weight was 285 pounds and my body fat was over 44%, to be honest, I did not think I would ever reach this major health goal that I set for myself.
But, this is what I truly wanted, so I wrote this goal in my notebook, and took my second step.
Track your current circumstances by looking at exactly what you have in the present
Once you have chosen your end result, your next step toward creating permanent fat loss is to look where you are in the present moment in relation to your primary objective. From the 5 weight loss tips, this one is important because it can help you to understand your starting point in your program.
In my case, I weighed myself, and had an experienced tester measure my body fat percentage. My body fat percentage when I started was 44%. This means that I had 125 pounds of body fat. Obviously this was really shocking to me, and my confidence went way down after hearing this number.
But my desire to create my major health goal was really strong, so I simply wrote how much I weighed, my total body fat weight, and my lean body mass weight at the bottom of my notebook.
I also wrote the most important lessons that I learned from eight years of using low calorie diets, fad diets, and many other weight loss approaches that could not help me to create permanent fat loss.
Create a list of steps that you will take to create permanent fat loss
Once you have decided where you are going and have observed where you are in the current moment, your next step should be to make a list of the steps that you will take to go from where you are today to where you want to be in the near future when you create your final outcome.
From the 5 weight loss tips, this third one will help you to stay focused on the next step that you must take in the direction of your major health goal. Mine was permanent fat loss. This was the primary objective that kept me motivated the whole weight loss phase of my program.
Taking into account that I weighed 285 pounds and I wanted to reach 10% body fat, I calculated that I would have to lose 110 pounds of unwanted body fat while maintaining my lean body mass.
My first step was to consume my daily maintenance calorie intake. This means that the calories that came from my food and beverages would equal the amount that my body could realistically burn during the day.
My second step included using cardio-training four times per week. This was very important because I knew that to lose 110 pounds of unwanted body fat I will have to burn this fat off. Dieting without exercise did not produce results in the past, so I chose to take another path toward creating permanent fat loss.
My third step was to use weight training to maintain my lean muscle mass during the weight loss phase of my program. Since muscle is a metabolically active tissue, our bodies must expand energy (calories) to maintain it, meaning that during the weight loss phase of my program, weight training would help me to keep my metabolism elevated, and it would be easier for me to lose the unwanted body fat.
This was a secret that I learned from my friends in the gym, that used weight training to create their muscular physiques. They told me that while I am losing weight the best approach is to focus on maintaining my current muscle, and when I reach my ideal weight I can adjust my calorie intake and start building new muscle.
Use an effective nutrition strategy to create a small calorie deficit
From the 5 weight loss tips, this one can help you to create the necessary calorie deficit without you having to use low calorie or fad diets. This is very important because these ineffective nutrition strategies lead to an increase of your appetite and massive food cravings.
Since I already knew that a low calorie approach will not work in the long term and will not help me to create permanent fat loss, I chose to consume four average sized meals every four hours.
The size of each meal was calculated by taking my daily maintenance calorie intake, and dividing this number by four. Then using the 50-30-20 nutrient ratio I calculated how many calories I will consume from carbohydrates, protein, and dietary fat.
All my meals were created using only natural food sources, and the only processed food that I allowed myself to eat were during the three weekly cheat meals.
These cheat meals were always eaten in the morning, and this helped me to avoid cravings for my favorite foods.
Another important element of an effective nutrition strategy is to drink plenty of water during the day. I calculated the amount of water to drink using a formula based on my daily calorie intake.
Use an effective exercise strategy to burn unwanted body fat and maintain your muscle
Once I started to consume the optimum amount of daily calories and started to provide my body with all the macro-nutrients and micro-nutrients it needed to function properly, the energy level that was produced is something that was simply amazing.
Doing cardio-training four times per week was always a breeze, and I used walking and a rowing machine to create the necessary calorie deficit to burn the most total calories during my workouts.
Weight training was also easy, and mostly because I used a very simple approach. I lifted heavier weights with fewer repetitions. My workouts were always 20-25 minutes, and afterwards I felt really energized.
The combination of cardio-training and weight training produced magic. In twelve months I reached my ideal weight of 175 pounds and had 10% body fat.
And, for the last 15 years I have maintained this ideal body weight by using these same 5 Ultimate Weight Loss Tips that I have written about!
If you have a true desire to create permanent fat loss, you can accomplish this health goal by taking the same steps that I took, and can produce a similar outcome.
But, I have to warn you, if you want to maintain your ideal weight for life, you will have to keep using these weight loss tips for the rest of your life. If you stop, most likely the weight will creep back on.
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