8th Rule: Implement Strength Training,

                                     
    
     Written by: Tony Schober,

     It's time to lose weight. What are you going to do for exercise? If you're
like many people, you immediately start thinking about walking,
running, or some other form of cardio. Steady-state cardio is great for
you and your endurance, but it's not the most effective form of exercise
for weight loss - strength training is.

     Let's go ahead and clear up some confusion. Many people separate
strength training from cardio. They assume you have to do both. You
do not. If you perform your strength training with enough intensity, it
can be very "cardiovascular" in nature. Your heart does not know the
difference between running on a treadmill and lifting weights. It only
knows perceived stress. Push yourself hard enough, and your heart
rate can go well above what it would doing long-duration, steady-state
cardio.

     All that being said, don't go and stop doing your steady-state cardio.
Instead, if you're doing only cardio every day, swap out some cardio
days for strength training days. Strength training is the real key to
successful body transformation. It's what's going to rev up your
metabolism, build muscle, and create a highly favorable metabolic
environment for fat loss.

     Many people assume you should be exercising in the fat-burning zone
to burn fat. While you might burn a higher proportion of calories from
fat during exercise by keeping your heart rate down, you do not
necessarily burn more total fat calories. You definitely don't burn more
fat calories the rest of your day when you aren’t exercising.
The physical activity you perform is about creating a favorable
metabolic environment for fat loss so that proper nutrition can help you
drop body fat. Without muscle and a good hormonal profile, you are
fighting an uphill battle to lose fat.

     Strength training boosts testosterone and growth hormone, and
improves insulin sensitivity. These hormones (testosterone, growth
hormone, insulin) are three of the most powerful fat loss and muscle
building hormones that you want on your side. Yes, that goes for
women too!

     You don't need a gym to strength train either. Nor do you have to use
weights (although I highly recommend it). You can always use your
body weight for resistance. Whichever method you choose for strength
training, the key is to make sure you are pushing yourself out of your
comfort zone, with a goal to get stronger from workout to workout.
Whether that means you're lifting more weight, doing more reps, or
decreasing the amount of rest time between sets, the point is that
you're getting stronger, building muscle, and putting your body in a
good position to drop body fat.

     Don't be afraid to strength train. You are not going to bulk up from it.
You bulk up from a bad diet and excess calories. Strength training
does nothing but help you reach your goals. Make sure you're adding
this powerful weapon to your weight loss arsenal.

7th Rule: Make small Changes,

                                               

   Written by: Tony Schober,  

     This forgotten rule seems so simple, yet the majority of people don't
even give it any thought. It's most likely a result of over-enthusiasm
towards undergoing a new fitness program. Many people's desire to
get fit sparks from a single moment of motivation. This motivation is
great, but can set you up for failure if you don't learn how to harness its
effects.

     Make small changes until they become habit, and then make another
small change. Repeat. That is the real secret to developing new
healthy habits. It's not about doing everything now that you're going to
be doing 6 months from now. It's about knowing what you're going to
be doing 6 months from now, and taking small steps that will eventually
add up to get you there.

     The great news is that making small changes is much easier to do than
going full bore from day one. On top of that, the odds of you sticking
with your new lifestyle increase exponentially once each new change
becomes habit.

     Is it impossible to lose weight making all the changes at once? Of
course not. It might be the fastest way to get from point A to point B,
but faster is not always better. If there's one thing you need to learn,
it's that weight loss will test your patience. Patience and consistency
are major keys to your success.

     What does this "small changes" process look like? If you're a diet soda
drinker, and you drink 1 diet soda a day, try to cut back to 2 per week
for the first week. Don't make any other changes. Your only goal for the
week is to go from 7 to 2 diet sodas a week. Once you've
accomplished that, it's time to make the next small change. Next up
might be to add veggies to each of your meals. The following week you
might start adding in 2 days of exercise a week. The next week you
increase your protein intake. The next? Increase your workout days to
3.

     I think you see the progression. Most importantly though, do not move
on to the next small change until you've mastered the small change
you're working on. You might not get it right the first week. Don't worry
about it. This isn't a race. The next week you're going to do it again. It's
your only goal for the week, and if you focus on it, you're going to
eventually accomplish it.

     Once those small changes start adding up, you start to realize that
things start getting easier to change. Eventually, you can't believe you
were ever living that old lifestyle. You're a new person now, and you
can never go back to the old you.

     Keep making those small changes. Before you even notice it, that
amazing side effect of being healthy - weight loss, starts to change
your body right before your eyes. It's a great feeling, and the best thing
is that those new habits have become a lifestyle that will change you
and last forever.

6th Rule: Eat Enough Calories to Lose Weight!

                  

Written By: Tony Schober,

     So you're ready to embark on this new fitness lifestyle, and you do
what most people do when they want to lose weight - exercise more,
and eat less. Unfortunately, most people sabotage their weight loss
efforts before they even get started. They do this by not eating enough
calories to lose weight.

     Seem like a bit of an oxymoron? After all, we've been taught that if we
eat less we'll lose weight. This is true, but with several conditional
statements. There is a sweet spot with calorie intake that will make it
much easier for you to lose fat and hold onto valuable muscle. While
there are those people that still eat too much to lose weight, there's an
even greater amount of people who eat too little.
 
     When you eat too little food, you restrict the amount of nutrients your
body gets. Not only that, but you end up having to fight an uphill battle
against fat loss that almost always ends in you losing. Eating too few
calories slows down your thyroid, negatively impacts hormones, and
slows down your metabolism - and that's just the short list.
 
     How many calories should you eat to lose weight? That's the million
dollar question. Those calorie calculators might give you a good
starting point, but none of them are going to nail down your required
calorie intake. How could they? There are millions of unique people,
with unique metabolisms, with unique lifestyles, that are inputting
numbers into a calculator that uses a single formula to determine
calorie intake. They give you a great starting point, but that's all they
do.

I Personally Use and Recommend the BodyMedia Fit Armband To
Track My Daily Calorie Burn and Accurately Set My Calorie Intake.

      When you start a new fitness program, you start placing a new and
large amount of stress on your body. You more than likely went from a
sedentary lifestyle to exercising nearly every day. This is not the time
to get impatient with weight loss and start drastically cutting calories.
Eating less and less food is not going to give you faster results. Just
the opposite actually.
 
     Always aim high with your calories. It is much easier to come down in
calories than it is to come up. Always eat as much food as possible to
lose weight. Try setting your calories at 10-12 times your body weight.
Eat that many calories for at least two weeks before you even think
about lowering them.
 
     Do not gauge your progress over that time with the scale. Buy a cheap 
pair of body fat calipers and take body fat measurements. If your
body fat has decreased over those two weeks, but your weight is still
the same - don't change a thing. This means you are adding muscle
and losing body fat, which is what every fitness lover hopes to
accomplish. You are changing your body composition for the better.
 
     In time, you might have to lower your calories, but I think you might be
surprised at the drastic changes your body is undergoing, and you
might not have to change a thing. Instead, you've just experienced an
epiphany and noticed the difference between fat loss and weight loss
first hand. Vary rarely does anyone need to go below 10 times their
body weight in calories to lose weight. Start high, be patient, and your
body will start changing right in front of your eyes.

Read more about how to determine how many calories you 
should eat.

5th Rule: There is No Magical Macronutrient Ratio.

             

Written by: Tony Schober,

     How many carbohydrates should you eat? How much fat? How much
protein? Those are questions just about everyone asks as they get
ready to embark on their weight loss program. Three simple questions,
yet anyone who has looked for the answers, knows that the answers
aren't quite so simple after all.

     That's because there is no one-size-fits-all macronutrient ratio for fat loss.
I've seen people lose weight eating 60% carbohydrates. and I've
seen people lose weight eating close to 0 grams of carbohydrates. Fat
and protein grams have been all over the spectrum too. There are very
few absolutes when it comes to macronutrient ratios, but there are
some very basic guidelines that everyone needs to follow if they want
to be successful.

     Protein is an essential macronutrient, and is needed in larger quantities
for active people (that doesn’t mean to overdo it though). In addition, a
higher protein intake can help prevent muscle loss in a hypo-caloric
environment. Try aiming for .75 - 1 gram per pound of lean body mass.
If you don't hit that number every day, that's OK, but be conscious of
how much protein you're getting. Make sure that you're eating a source
of protein at each of your meals.

     Fat is also an essential macronutrient. More specifically, essential fatty
acids are. Those on an extremely low fat diet may have a difficult time
getting in this nutrient. Fat is important for many vital functions, and is
absolutely necessary if you want to lose fat. Try eating food sources
that are high in omega-3 fatty acids. Foods like fatty fish, nuts, eggs,
seeds, flax oil, and fish oil can help you reach your essential fat
requirements.

Again here is the omega-3 oil personally use and recommend..

     No other macronutrient has caused more confusion than
carbohydrates. Carbohydrate intake has become like religion for many
people. They will defend their view on high carb or low carb to the
grave. Here's the thing though. People have been successful eating all
quantities of carbs.

     What I have found though, is that you have to be careful that you aren't
eating too many carbohydrates for your activity level. If you are a
highly active individual, eat them! If you're not very active, you aren't
going to need as many.

     Carbohydrates fuel high-intensity exercise and brain function. More
specifically, glucose does, but carbohydrates are the primary and most
efficient source of glucose in people's diets. Set your carbohydrate
intake at a level that is commensurate to your activity level. Don't eat 0
carbs because that's the fad diet of the year, and don't eat several
hundred of them every day because your favorite athlete does. Find
your intake that is personalized for you.

     There you have it - your basic rundown of your macronutrient
requirements. As you can see, there are no solid numbers. Losing
weight and living a healthy lifestyle is not about a daily mathematical
formula. It's about eating the right foods and emphasizing certain
macronutrients based on your goals.

     Feeling a lack of energy during your workouts? Eat more
carbohydrates. Not recovering good enough? Try upping your protein
intake. It's about eating more and eating less, not about eating 152
grams of protein, 137 grams of carbs, and 77 grams of fat. Be realistic.
Focus on eating quality food, and leave all the macronutrient ratios to
the people writing the diet books.

4th Rule: Calorie Quality, Not Quantity

                                     

     

Written by: Tony Schober,

     I'm eating x,xxx amount of calories and I still can't lose weight. Sound like you? Don't get me wrong, calorie quantity is important – very important actually, but that's not all that matters - the quality of those calories are just as important.

     Take two extremes, a 1500 calorie diet comprised of nothing but sugar, and a 1500 calorie diet comprised of lean protein, healthy fats, and low-glycemic carbohydrates. Do you think that the all-sugar diet will give you the same results
 as the more balanced diet?

     Obviously, this is an extreme example used to make a point, but the point still 
stands even when the extremes aren't so extreme. Your body doesn't just need calories, 
it also needs nutrients. Calories are energy, but nutrients are what provide your body 
with the necessary ingredients for efficient fat burning, hormone production, and nearly
 every other function of the human body.

     Certain nutrients are essential. Essential fatty acids, vitamins, and minerals all need 
to be ingested through your diet for proper body function. Your body is a very smart 
machine. It is not going to start ridding itself of stored energy if it's not getting all the 
nutrients it requires.

     

     Not eating enough essential fatty acids? Your body will send out hunger signals 
until you do consume enough of these. Too little protein? Your mood and ability to build
muscle and boost your metabolism will suffer.

     I recommend this specific Carlson's Omega-3 Oil if you need help getting in your 
essential fatty acids.

     Focus on eating a nutrient dense diet. Keep an eye on your calorie intake, but if 
you're eating a diet consisting of whole foods and you're strength training and getting 
active, I think you'd be surprised at how difficult it is to remain at a high body fat. It's 
just not that easy to consume too many calories eating nothing but whole foods. You 
really have to try if you want to put on weight.

     Eat your veggies. Eat your protein. Eat your essential fatty acids. Eat enough 
carbohydrates to fuel your exercise. Make the most of the calories you're eating.

     Be patient, and the weight loss will come naturally.

3rd Rule: Forget About Targeting Fat Loss

                                                

      
Written by: Tony Schober,

 

      It's one of the most
common myths out there
- the ability to target fat
loss in any one area.
People will do sit-ups in
vain trying to get a firmer
stomach. They'll do all
kinds of leg and butt
exercises to tone up the
area. Unfortunately, you didn't get to choose
where the fat went on, and you don't get to choose where it comes off.

     Fat loss is systemic in nature. It is not localized. When you exercise or are in
a caloric deficit, your body releases fat mobilizing hormones to fuel its function.
Within a few seconds and heartbeats, those hormones are dispersed throughout
your entire body. From there, they start mobilizing fat stores to be used as energy.

     We all store fat differently. Where we tend to store it most is a function of many
variables. Testosterone, estrogen, genetics, and insulin sensitivity are just a few
of those variables that help determine where your excess calories are going to be
stored. On top of that, how you put fat on could be very different from how you
take it back off.

     Start thinking of body fat as one giant mass instead of the combination of
many parts. It is not butt fat, ab fat, leg fat, or arm fat. It is body fat. Your body has
a certain percentage of body fat on it, and that number can be manipulated, but
you are never going to have six pack abs, while at the same time have a high
body fat percentage.

     Focus on lowering your body fat percentage, and the muscles you've been
working so hard to build will start to show through. We all have six pack abs
already. Some of us just have a layer of fat covering them. If you want those abs
to show through, forget about doing ab exercises, and start focusing on your
nutrition.

     As the saying goes - abs are made in the kitchen. Your diet is going to play the
biggest role in controlling your body fat percentage. If you want to target fat loss
(change your body fat percentage), your diet is the key.

2nd Rule: Put the Scale Away

                               

Written by: Tony Schober,

     How much do you weigh? Just about
everyone knows that number. Unfortunately,
that number is close to being as meaningless
as can be. What is weight? It's a measurement
of the force of gravity on your body. It tells you
how heavy a particular mass is. Why does this
matter? If I put two people side by side that
both weigh 150 pounds, but one person has
8% body fat, and the other has 40% body fat, will the scale be able
to tell the difference? NO!
   
     Now, the scale does have some benefits, and we'll get to that in a
minute. However, for the purpose of tracking your fitness progress, no
other measuring tool has caused more physical and emotional
destruction than the scale. It has caused depression and feelings of
hopelessness. It has made people want to give up and throw in the
towel. It has made our society obsessed over weight.
The thing is, you don't really want to lose weight. You want to lose fat.
While these two things can be one in the same, they aren't always.

     When someone says they lost 10 pounds, how much of that was
actually body fat, and how much of that was muscle mass? Someone
who lost 10 pounds of fat is going to look a lot different than someone
who lost 5 pounds of fat and 5 pounds of muscle. The scale can't tell
you this.
Do yourself a favor and go put your scale out of site for the next month.

     Don't even take it out again for another 30 days. Do you feel like you
can do that? If you can't, you might have an unhealthy obsession with
weight. Don't let the scale rule your life. The scale is just one of many
tools to track your progress.

     What is the scale good for? It's good for determining body fat mass for
when you're taking body fat readings. You can't take body fat readings
with a scale. You need calipers, or you need to go and get a body scan
of some sort. Once you have your weight, you can measure body fat
percentage. From there, you can calculate body fat mass and lean
body mass. These are the two numbers that really matter.

     At some point during this week, make a goal to take some before
measurements. You can do this several ways. You can take a before
picture. You can take body fat caliper measurements. You can use a
tape measure to measure the circumference of your waist, chest, hips,
and thighs. You can also simply take notice of how your clothes fit.

     All of these methods for measuring progress are better than using the
scale. The scale should be a motivational tool, but not motivation that
is grown from fear and depression of being overweight, but of
motivation developed from seeing your hard work paying off.


Stay off the scale. Your mind and body will thank you.
Here is a cheap pair of body fat calipers you can use to accurately
measure your body fat with.                              

The 10 Forgotten Rules of Weight Loss

                                  

     Written by: Tony Schober, CPT (Founder, Coach Calorie)
    
                                                  1st Rule: Don't Diet

    It sounds like a bit of an oxymoron, 
but the key to successful long-term 
weight loss is to not diet. Diets have 
end dates. They conjure up images of 
flavorless food, and feelings of hunger 
and deprivation. Don't get me wrong. 
I'm actually a big fan of diets. I think 
they teach you a lot about nutrition, 
and even about yourself. They teach 
you how to determine proper portion 
sizes. They teach you how to count 
calories. They teach you how to deal with your relationship with food.

     However, diets are short-term solutions to long-term problems.

What happens when that diet is over? Are you as lost as you were

when you started? Did you even make it to the end of the diet? Do you

think you could be on this diet for the rest of your life?

The only way to successfully lose weight for the long-term is to

undergo a lifestyle change. It was your lifestyle that got you to where

you are now, and it's your lifestyle that's going to get you to where you

want to be.

     Stop looking at nutrition as a "what am I going to eat on Sunday,

Monday, Tuesday, etc" thing, and start looking at it as a "is this a good,

healthy food choice" thing. Proper nutrition comes from making the

right food choices. Once you get rid of all the processed food in your

diet, the weight loss is a pleasant side effect.

     That's right, weight loss is a sideeffect. Focus on having a goal of

being healthy. Treat nutrition as fuel for your body. Fuel to exercise.

Fuel to build muscle. Fuel to ward off disease, and fuel for every other

1,000,000 functions your body completes.

     Once you start making good food choices and forming healthy habits,

and stop thinking about eating right as an act of restriction, you can

start seeing the bigger picture, and your body will react in kind by

ridding itself of the extra fat and calories it no longer needs.

It's not a diet, it's a lifestyle change.