If you use a gym the chances are you may be one of the many people trying to figure out how to lose weight and stay in shape. Today you are in luck. As a personal trainer I am regularly asked this question in the gym and today I'm going to share my five proven rules to a slimmer, fitter body.
We've all heard the stories before. We've all had a friend or family member trying to tell you that they simply cannot lose any size no matter what they eat or how hard they train. Well, they may not like to hear this, but the fact is unless you have a medical issue it's simply not true. Most of us are overlooking the basic proven facts of a solid diet. These tips will not cost you a thing.
By the end of today's article you should feel a lot more confident and a lot more equipped in your battle against the bulge.
The path to great results doesn't start in the gym. It doesn't even start in the kitchen. It starts with a piece of paper and a calculator, believe it or not! The first thing you need to do is to establish your daily calorie target. We don't want you to become one of those celeb diet addicted, yo-yo dieters who goes from quick fix plan to quick fix plan time and time again, piling the weight straight back on each time.
To find a good target calorie intake simply work out your desired body weight in lbs and multiply the figure by twelve. This gives you a 'ballpark' figure to aim for. Don't become a calorie counter, if you go over or under slightly it isn't going to matter.
The real trick comes in getting your macronutrients (protein, carbs and fats) sorted out. This is where most people don't pay enough attention to their diet but, trust me, it's where the results are there for the taking. For instance, a guy eating a healthy 2000 calorie per day meal plan would get far superior results to a guy eating a unhealthy 2000 calorie per day meal plan, right? Of course he would.
A healthy way to split your macronutrients is 40% protein, 40% carbohydrate and 20% fat. This is known as the 4-4-2 system (a soccer formation, to make it easier to remember!). So this is how you would work out your daily intake of each:
Protein - Work out 40% of your daily calorie target. Now divide that figure by 4 (that's how many calories are in one gram of protein) to find out how many grams of protein you should eat each day.
Carbohydrates - Again, establish 40% of your total calorie goal and divide the result by four. This tells you how many grams of carbohydrates to aim for on a daily basis.
With your fat intake just figure out 20% of your total calorie target and divide the answer by nine. Now you know how many grams of fat are necessary each day as well.
As long as you are able to hit your daily intake of protein, carbohydrates and fats you will notice this is far more important than counting each calorie. In fact, the only reason we set a calorie goal was to enable us to do the equation above to set our macronutrients up.
Now you have the facts for a better diet all laid out in front of you, you should be starting to feel different about your goal. All of a sudden it's not a dream anymore. If you stick to your targets you will achieve it and make it a reality, it's as simple as that!
So there you have it! It wasn't as hard as you were thinking, right? You've just set up your own optimal eating plan with a personal trainer and you did it in no time at all. The vast majority of people using your local gym don't do this and that's why they toil away endlessly without results. From now on you're in an excellent position and you can move forward from here with confidence!
We've all heard the stories before. We've all had a friend or family member trying to tell you that they simply cannot lose any size no matter what they eat or how hard they train. Well, they may not like to hear this, but the fact is unless you have a medical issue it's simply not true. Most of us are overlooking the basic proven facts of a solid diet. These tips will not cost you a thing.
By the end of today's article you should feel a lot more confident and a lot more equipped in your battle against the bulge.
The path to great results doesn't start in the gym. It doesn't even start in the kitchen. It starts with a piece of paper and a calculator, believe it or not! The first thing you need to do is to establish your daily calorie target. We don't want you to become one of those celeb diet addicted, yo-yo dieters who goes from quick fix plan to quick fix plan time and time again, piling the weight straight back on each time.
To find a good target calorie intake simply work out your desired body weight in lbs and multiply the figure by twelve. This gives you a 'ballpark' figure to aim for. Don't become a calorie counter, if you go over or under slightly it isn't going to matter.
The real trick comes in getting your macronutrients (protein, carbs and fats) sorted out. This is where most people don't pay enough attention to their diet but, trust me, it's where the results are there for the taking. For instance, a guy eating a healthy 2000 calorie per day meal plan would get far superior results to a guy eating a unhealthy 2000 calorie per day meal plan, right? Of course he would.
A healthy way to split your macronutrients is 40% protein, 40% carbohydrate and 20% fat. This is known as the 4-4-2 system (a soccer formation, to make it easier to remember!). So this is how you would work out your daily intake of each:
Protein - Work out 40% of your daily calorie target. Now divide that figure by 4 (that's how many calories are in one gram of protein) to find out how many grams of protein you should eat each day.
Carbohydrates - Again, establish 40% of your total calorie goal and divide the result by four. This tells you how many grams of carbohydrates to aim for on a daily basis.
With your fat intake just figure out 20% of your total calorie target and divide the answer by nine. Now you know how many grams of fat are necessary each day as well.
As long as you are able to hit your daily intake of protein, carbohydrates and fats you will notice this is far more important than counting each calorie. In fact, the only reason we set a calorie goal was to enable us to do the equation above to set our macronutrients up.
Now you have the facts for a better diet all laid out in front of you, you should be starting to feel different about your goal. All of a sudden it's not a dream anymore. If you stick to your targets you will achieve it and make it a reality, it's as simple as that!
So there you have it! It wasn't as hard as you were thinking, right? You've just set up your own optimal eating plan with a personal trainer and you did it in no time at all. The vast majority of people using your local gym don't do this and that's why they toil away endlessly without results. From now on you're in an excellent position and you can move forward from here with confidence!
About the Author:
Publisher: Russ Howe PTI is a fitness coach who teaches others how to lose weight every day in the gym. Catch more free lessons from the UK's most followed Personal Trainer if you're trying to build a better body this year.
