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Posted by: Charli on 2010-03-12, 14:33:20
If your diet is too restricted, you're bound to binge at some point. You need a diet that satisfies you. Losing 1-2lbs a week is the best way to go. This way, you are losing mostly fat, rather than water and muscle. Faster weight loss is not better, nor is it sustainable. Diet should be what you look at first for weight loss- this is what will enable you to drop fat. Try a balanced diet made up of mostly natural whole foods, with high protein, moderate carbs and moderate fats. You need to know how many calories you burn- you can use an online calculator for a rough estimate. Aim for 10-20% calories fewer than you burn daily (too large a deficit will be counterproductive in the longer term). Don't worry about complicated diets or cutting things out. You can enjoy anything in moderation, as long as the majority of your diet is healthy. Base your meals around: Lean protein (e.g. chicken, tuna, lean beef, fat-free cottage cheese, egg whites) Wholegrains (e.g. wholewheat bread, oats, bran cereals, rice) Healthy fats (e.g. nuts, seeds, olive oil, avocado, salmon, whole eggs, flaxseed) Fruit and veg And drink lots of water. Second in importance to diet, is heavy resistance training- this is what will allow you to preserve muscle so you look 'toned' and defined once you've dropped the fat (rather than just a smaller version of how you look now, with the same bits you're unhappy with). More muscle also means a higher metabolism, so you definitely want to hold on to, or increase the muscle base you have, for fat loss. You need to work ALL your major muscle groups- you can't spot reduce. Do this sort of training 3-4 times a week. A good place to start could be: -Three days a week doing full-body workouts. Leave at least a day between each workout. -OR four days a week alternating upper and lower body. Don't work out more than two days in a row if possible. Then you can look at extras like cardio to help create a calorie deficit. But cardio is by far the least important of these three, and you can lose fat effectively without it. Make sure you're getting at least one rest day a week with no exercise at all. Focus on losing inches/ dress sizes rather than actual scale weight- it's how slim you look that matters, not how little you weigh. |
