by Nordine Zouareg, Nordine "Z"In a high tech world, there's a whole slew of ways to determine whether you're losing body fat on your diet and exercise regimen. The favorite traditional methods of measuring body fat include underwater weighing and skin calipers. The newest rage is a specialized bathroom scale that sends infrared beams through your body to determine how much of your body weight is actually fat and how much is lean body mass; muscle and bones. (How fat are your feet, anyway?)
Still, the most tried and true device, and possibly the most accurate way to determine if your dieting efforts are working - is the old fashion bathroom scale! If you're losing weight on the scale, you're also losing fat. Sure, if you're dropping more than 3 pounds per week or your energy levels are waning, you're likely to be shedding some valuable muscle also along the way.
However, if you're losing 1-2 pounds every 1-3 weeks, and your energy and strength levels are stable, you're likely shedding almost exclusively fat. That said; let's explore the top reasons why people fail to see the body trimming results they hope to achieve.
The 7 roadblocks that keep many frustrated are outlined below. Fix or avoid most of these troublesome 7, and your fat loss will be so smooth.
1) Too Many Carbohydrates.I'm no fan of strict low carb diets, but any additional carbs above and beyond those needed to saturate your muscles with glycogen have a good probability of being stored as body fat. While bodybuilding training requires a high carb intake, many novices and intermediate trainees simply do not train hard enough to justify a massive carb intake. Depending on your size and level of training intensity, split your carb intake into 5 servings per day and aim for 30-60 grams of carbs per meal to shed fat. Start at a higher intake such as 60 grams of carbs per meal. If you lose weight, continue with 60 grams per meal. If you fail to lose, drop to 50 grams per meal.
2) Too Much Protein.Surprise! This factoid is tied to carbohydrate restriction. When dieting to lean down, carbohydrates ought to be slowly reduced. However, many dieters take an overly aggressive approach in hopes of making miracle-type progress and cut back too far in the carb department.
When you restrict carbs, your protein intake should increase. But - and this is a big one - over compensating by eating too much protein can also prevent fat loss by contributing to a calorie surplus. As a rule, shoot for .74 to 1 gram of protein per pound of bodyweight each day while trying to add weight and muscle. When ripping up, start chopping away at your carbs and increase the protein to 1.25 to 1.50 grams per pound of body weight. Anything more- will just be stored as fat.
3) Skip The Late Night Carbs.Don't believe the conflicting research. The fact remains, carbs eaten at night are less likely to be burned off as fuel and are more likely be stored as body fat. That means; forego the pasta, potato or rice at meal 5 (your final meal of the day) for lean proteins like fowl or fish, along with a side dish of veggies. Or enjoy a protein shake which provides quality muscle building whey protein without a lot of carbohydrates. You don't need the carbs at night anyway.
4) Wrong Breakfast.Want to get lean and eat a lot? Chow down at breakfast. Of your 5 daily meals, the one that is least likely to end up on your hips, thighs and lower back is the first one. In the morning, muscle glycogen stores are lower than during any other part of the day. When glycogen stores are low, your body's capacity to take carbohydrates and store them as body fat is hampered. So pack in the carbs at breakfast -along with 20-40 grams of high quality protein to jump-start your day. And don't worry about getting fat.
5) Too Much Cardio.What happens to the guy or gal who performs 1-2 hours of cardio a day? (We know you're out there!) They send their body into a tailspin, a state where the "starvation hormones" secreted by the body skyrocket (it's your body's survival mechanism, a response to too much exercise!) causing fat cells to try to hoard their energy! Moderate cardio is the way to go. Four to five 20-40 minutes sessions per week is all that it takes. Any more than that and you run the risk of losing precious muscle tissue, which negatively affects your metabolic rate and your ability to train.
6) Never "Cheating" on Your Diet.Once in a while you should let loose and give yourself a break from the rigors of dieting and scale watching. In fact, it's helpful in losing weight. That's because continual dieting eventually leads to roadblocks where the body responds by slowing its metabolic rate. Strict dieting also takes its toll on you mentally, and can leave you feeling deprived. That's a bad combination! Taking in a couple of high calorie meals once every 7-10 days not only provides a mental break from dieting, but helps you side-step roadblocks by preventing the body from entering a starvation state where the metabolic rate slows.
7) Paying Attention to the scale only.Ok, this may sound contradictory, but the scale is not the "end-all" measurement of progress. You also monitor a couple of other things, primarily energy and strength. If you're losing weight and you have plenty of energy and strength, you're losing body fat - guaranteed. On the flip side, if you're losing weight yet feeling really tired or are seeing constant drops in the weights you use during your workouts, then you're likely also burning off muscle tissue. If no energy and a loss in strength is the case, then you're likely violating several of the above tips and will need to rectify them to get back on track.
by Karen Schatz,