Mind Body & Soul :: Lose the Fat!

Gaining or losing weight is sometimes explained as a simple balance between calories in and calories out. While that is true, achieving a change in your weight can be influenced by your body type: are you an Ectomorph, a Mesomorph or an Endomorph? Each has different issues with gaining and losing weight, and putting on muscle mass. Your metabolism and your lifestyle are also crucial factors.

Here are some tips on losing body fat - not necessarily a way to lose weight, but a way to get leaner:

1. Get Active

Obviously more activity burns more calories, but it also revs up your metabolism, increases hormones that burn fat, reduces the risks for chronic diseases, improves your mobility and makes it less likely that you will eat out of boredom - you'll have less spare time.

2. Keep a Food Log

Just keeping track of what you eat helps you to make better choices and lose weight.

3. Drink Lots of Water

Hydration is essential for brain function, blood and circulation, and balances all the chemical reactions going on at cell level to move oxygen, nutrients, hormones and waste through the blood and lymph systems. It is hard to feel energetic when you are dehydrated. Not motivated yet? Good hydration increases the volume of ejaculatory fluid too. . .

4. Maintain balanced blood sugar

Eating smaller meals at more frequent intervals keeps blood sugar steady and energy levels high. Make sure you eat protein with every meal, including breakfast and snacks. (Apart from meat, eggs and protein shakes, protein can be found in almonds for a quick snack).

5. Eat the right types of protein

A slow-acting protein, like a casein protein shake, before bedtime will keep you anabolic at night, and avoid 'night starvation'. Fast acting whey protein is best after workouts.

6. Always include protein with every meal.

Never have a snack of just carbohydrates. This causes a spike in insulin levels, which makes it likelier that some of those calories will be stored as fat.

7. Control your intake of high glycemic foods.

These are foods which are rapidly converted to sugars by your digestive system. White foods (sugar, white rice, white potatoes, white pasta) are the main culprits, and they lead to a surge in insulin, which in some individuals can lead to type 2 diabetes.

8. Eat good fats.

Your body needs fats, not least to manufacture your sex hormones. Avoid saturated fats (any fats solid at room temperature) and trans fats (like margarine). Choose instead monounsaturated fats, especially from olive oil, canola oil and oily fish (salmon, sardines, mackerel, mahi mahi).

9. Ingest more fiber.

This will make you feel full without adding calories. More fiber can decrease cholesterol and increase the speed and efficiency of your digestive system - the faster you get the crap out of you the healthier you will be. As you increase fiber, ensure that you drink lots of fluids.

10. Change your mid-afternoon snack.

Try a protein bar or a protein shake, and avoid soda or candy. Don't have a snack at this time? See Tip #4.

11. Choose foods that make you full without too many calories.

Whole grains, brown rice, whole wheat bread, oatmeal, lentils and beans. Swap white potatoes for sweet potatoes. Frosted flakes may look brown, but they contain a lot of sugar - avoid. If you don't currently eat these food items, switch gradually to avoid intestinal disturbance.

12. Eat natural foods.

Fresh fruit and fresh unprocessed vegetables should be your first choice. Processed foods generally contain more calories and less fiber. Avoid ready meals, which usually contain sodium, preservatives, sugars, saturated fats and even trans fats.

Follow these guidelines and you will have a trimmer more attractive body: don't judge by your bathroom scales, but by how you look in the mirror and how loose your waistband is. What's more you will start to enjoy food more because you will be eating fresh ingredients with all the flavor and color intact.