What I did to lose fat pounds

Today, let’s take the focus off the food, and put it on physical activity.

If you want to take inches off your waist, any diet worth doing will include exercise.

The question is:

What exercises will help me burn fat pounds and still preserve, or increase muscle mass.

Most people I talked to (even trainers at my gym) suggested lots of cardio, but I hated doing it and it never gave me the results I wanted.

Once I started resistance training, my weight loss became so fast that I was actually worried.

I’m not saying that lifting weights is for everybody. But if you really want to lose those 20 pounds quickly, the key is in building muscle

Lean body mass burns calories for maintenance, so by increasing muscle, we increase our base metabolic rate, and burn more fat even when we are resting.

You can definitely add muscle doing cardio, but be careful to keep it low key. Once you start panting and running out of breath, you’re no longer in the beneficial aerobic zone.

For a good book on this topic, I recommend Fit or Fat by Covert Bailey. I read it in high school. I wasn’t able to utilize it well at the time, but it gave me a good foundation.

and gained it all back…

For those of you out there who love Atkins diet, don’t worry.  This post is not going to say anything negative about the Atkins diet itself, but rather about my ability (inability) to stick with it long term.

I started Atkins on a Wednesday, and checked my weight and waistline every wednesday like clockwork.

In the first week, I had dropped about 8 pounds, and over a 4 month period of time, I had reached pretty close to my target weight.

I thought I could be less stringent about Atkins now, and drink beer every weekend with my friends, but the cravings for beer and carbs came back HARD.

I started ‘cheating’ more and more days each week.  the fat that had burned so easily away started coming back, but initially at such a slow pace I didn’t worry.  I figured I could always go back to induction.

But 1 year later, I was back to where I had been before atkins.  all of the pounds were back, and I was unhappy.

I really think Atkins is a great diet, but it didn’t work for me in the long term.

I’m so exciteing watching my weight drop, that I decided to make a YouTube video.

I’ll admit that it isn’t very good, but I wanted people to be able to see some images of me when I was still very fat, and then see some of me now that I have reduced my waistline.

some of the pictures are a little embarrassing, but I wanted you to see how the inches have just disappeared.

but go ahead and click here to watch the video

please let me know what you think.

And hey! if you’ve got a story about how you lost weight, please leave some comments and let us all know

I love the sports gym I am going to.  I have lost weight before, but people would say to me “those diets don’t work.  You’re just losing water.”  and after I went off the diet, the weight would come back, plus a little more.

I’ve struggled with how to keep the pounds off since I was in the 4th grade.  Throughout my life I have probably heard every slur there is for fat (in both English and Japanese – I now live in Nagasaki).

There were times I was able to lose weight, slim down, even build up my muscles, but I find it hard to stick to most diets, and we all know that once you go back to your old style, your body does too.

But now, at my sports gym, they do a deep body scan every few months.  I was so happy to learn that I have actually lost more pounds of body FAT than of body WEIGHT.  My muscle weight is up almost a pound, and I have a higher percentage of body water (mostly because I have cut back caffeine and heavy drinking).

So when my friends tell me that I am losing weight too quickly and that it’s just water and it will all come back even more quickly, I can show them my scan.

I’m so glad to feel like I am finally in control of my life and able to maintain weight loss, that I started this blog.

I hope you find it useful, and please comment about your experiences trying to burn fat

[ Note: This article was written by fitness and nutrition author Jon Benson. I have his permission to share it with you. ]

You know what?

I like “weird.”

I’ve always been a bit on the fringe side of the fence if you know what I mean.

A bit of a rebel.

So were guys like Einstein, Mozart, and Picasso. Not that I’m putting myself into their category of genius by any stretch… but I love their approach to life.

BE BOLD…OR GO HOME.

Makes sense to me. This life it too darn short for anything less than being bold.

That means taking some risks here and there. That means taking action while the others are content to sit on the couch being the same person they were yesterday.

And the day before…

And the month before…

And the year before.

Do you want to live your years like that? Or do you want to dive into life? Be the greatest “you” possible?

Then be a bit of a rebel.

Here’s some “rebel tips” for fatloss I think you’ll enjoy…

REBEL TIP 1
Flip The Food Pyramid Upside-down

The USDA’s Food Pyramid is an utter joke. It’s origins stink up the joint, let me tell you.

First, the grain industry was in a pinch when the Food Pyramid was created. And wouldn’t you know it… the grain industry increased their “contributions” (read: bribes) to certain politicians to get placement atop the pyramid… or in this case at the very bottom. The “foundation” if you will.

Just think about this for a moment:

The USDA wants you to eat (gasp) MORE starch than vegetables? More bread than fruits, lean meats, and hormone-producing fats?

Are they NUTS??

Yes… they are nuts. (Which, by the way, are no where near the foundation… nuts, that is.)

You’d be better off flipping the sucker upside-down.

That would look like this:

40% of your cals from healthy fats 30% of your cals from protein 30% of your cals from carbs

Roughly, that is.

Sounds… rebellious, right? Well it is.

Too bad I have the science (and the abs) to back it up.

If you want a system laid out for you, then go here:

The Every Other Day Diet     The “Rebel” Fat Loss Plan!

REBEL TIP 2
Cardio Is Not Smart-ee-o

At least the way the so-called “experts” want you to do it.

Look: This isn’t rocket science. Just walk into any gym…take a look at the folks who only do cardio work for 45-60 minutes every day.

Do they look any different from year to year?

Let me save you some time: NO. They do not.

Cardio (unless you are into endurance sports) is a waste of energy done this way. First, it increases your carbohydrate cravings. For most people that’s not a good thing. Why? Because cardio at this pace burns mostly SUGAR, not bodyfat.

What do you want to burn?

Exactly. Bodyfat.

Finally, cardio is no where near as efficient as resistance training at dissolving bodyfat… and certainly not even CLOSE to resistance training when it comes to shaping lean muscle and getting the look all these cardio bunnies are after.

Now, I ‘do’ have a rebel cardio trick… and it takes 9-15 minutes 2-3 times a week to perform.

That’s it. And you get ALL the benefits heart-wise of long-session cardio.

Combine that with some brisk walking and my overall fitness plan and presto: No more bodyfat.

Here’s what is cool: I put my new in-home version of this resistance-based workout online for a few days at a major discount… but it’s only for people who pick up this:

The Every Other Day Diet     The “Rebel” Fat Loss Plan!

This is completely illustrated with photos too… and you do not need anything but resistance bands and perhaps some cheap dumbbells to do this in-home. Or you can use the gym-based workouts (included with videos.)

Train like this just 3-5 days a week and you can kiss long, boring cardio goodbye.

REBEL TIP 3
Do Not Overwork Your Abs

Here’s a mistake I see most people make in the gym: They do endless sets of crunches, leg raises, and (gasp again) sit-ups… all geared toward seeing those toned abs they want.

Guess what?

Waste of time.

In fact, it’s worse than that… it can literally shut down your recovery ability. You’ll slow your progress in the gym (or at home)… and your fat-burning too.

And you may give up your plan entirely because of it.

Here’s the brutal truth: Ab ‘muscles’ are easy to build. It only takes about 3 minutes 2-3 times a week… that’s it.

( Note: I included my “3 Minute Abs” in the fitness book I just told you about… it’s only for those who get EODD though… )

The muscles are not what make your stomach flatter… it’s the nutrition plan folks.

You’re just building muscle underneath layers of bodyfat… not good.

I do very little direct ab training. When I do it’s usually 3-5 minutes tops 2 days a week. And my abs are… well… good. : )

I rely on resistance training and my special “favorite foods dietplan” to get and stay lean.

More about it all here:

The Every Other Day Diet     The “Rebel” Fat Loss Plan!

So be a rebel.

Thumb your nose at the establishment and step out on your own.

Trust me: You’ll be a leader in every sense of the word if you do.