Stop what you are doing right now and read this… I have the secret for you. The secret to getting the “hot bod” you always dreamed of. Everyone always asks me, how can I lose weight and get fit? Well today’s your lucky day, because I’ve got the answer for you. But, it’s not as complicated as you might think… there are only two steps.
Step One: Eat a clean diet.
This means no processed foods. When you look at the ingredients label of a food item, there should be no tricky ingredients or excess sugar in there. No artificial sugars either! You should be eating lots of vegetables, fruits, fiber/healthy carbohydrates, protein, and healthy fats! The best way to keep track of what you’re eating is by keeping a food journal. Food journals are great because they are honest. If you eat something, you have to write it down. At the end of the day, if you are ashamed of your list, you know there is something to change for tomorrow. Evaluate how you feel at the end of each day while you look over your journal – if you are feeling really good, try to eat like that more days.
There is no special diet that is going to give you a long-term healthy body. Sure, some diet where you cut out all carbs will help you lose weight fast. But, that kind of diet is hard to maintain, and once you go back to eating normally again, you will gain all of that weight back. Not to mention your initial weight loss on a diet like that is all water weight. You should never completely cut something out of your diet. If you want to take a certain food product out of your diet, I suggest doing so gradually. If you are used to drinking a soda a day, cut it down to every few days, then every week, every month … eventually you just won’t crave it anymore. Retrain your taste buds; I promise it really does work.
Step Two: Train your body for change.
A combination of strength training and cardio are what it is going to take to get a truly fit body. You can do one without the other, but your results won’t be as good. Did you know that the more muscle you have in your body, the faster you burn fat? So, if your goal is to lose weight and “get skinny” why aren’t you lifting weights?! If you are going for the huge muscled body look, you will probably lift more weights than most people. But, cardio is still important for your health. (Remember, getting healthy is why we do these things… not just to look good naked. Even though looking good naked is a good reason too)
You don’t always need to do the same type of cardio or strength training. You can do endurance based cardio or high-intensity interval training (HIIT). It’s good to incorporate both into your workout routine. There is even a way to do cardio and strength workouts at the same time – it’s called circuit training. Create a circuit and take very little rest between exercises. It will get your heart rate up as you build muscle. And any time your heart rate is up, you are burning calories and fat. Running on a treadmill isn’t the only type of cardio out there. Get creative.
Always switch up your workouts. Your body needs to be consistently challenged. If you are doing the same exact workout everyday – your body will get used to it and stop being challenged, which means it will stop changing. Go for a run on Monday, do a strength workout for you legs on Tuesday, try a boxing class on Wednesday, do a chest and back workout Thursday, HIIT on Friday, yoga on Saturday… the options are endless. Make working out exciting. The variation isn’t just good for your body, it will also make exercise more fun for you.
One thought on “2 Steps To A New Body”
Great article and tips! Your advice is candid and helpful for people of all ages and body types. Thank you!