David Andres, trainer at Platinum Health and Fitness Club spills his secrets.
Losing body fat can be challenging. Oftentimes, it will require hard work, patience, and dedication. Although you will find countless articles on the internet on how you can fasten the fat loss process such as by getting involved in fad diets and by taking fat loss supplements, maintaining a healthy weight requires a change in lifestyle and this process is far from quick.
We sat down with David Andres, trainer at Platinum Health and Fitness Club and the main trainer during our Challenge for a Healthy Lifestyle, to talk to him about fat loss. He spills the beans on the best 5 fat loss tips to maintain a healthy and sustainable lifestyle.
Understand the issue
You first need to understand the issue in a holistic manner. Why did you gain weight? What has been stopping you from losing weight and following a healthy lifestyle? Is it an issue of genetics, chronic disease or simply a poor lifestyle? It is important to break down the physiological process that your body is going to go through and be aware of the process of fat loss – the number of calories you will be putting into your body vs. the number of calories that your body will be expending. In this way, you will be able to use the fat as a source of energy when the expended calories are going out of your system.
Set up individual and realistic goals
It is important not to be tempted to compare your progress with anyone else’s. People tend to copy and/or get influenced by what others are doing and following such as their diets and form of exercise. Although it might be working for the other person, it might not be the case for you. All bodies are different and they can react differently when we put them under stress.
It’s also important to know that weight loss can take some time. You did not gain all of your extra weight overnight so you will not lose it overnight either. It’s faster to lose weight rather than gain it but it’s still a slow process and it takes time.
Get educated about nutrition
It is important to know what you’re eating and putting into your body. Research about macronutrients (protein, fats and carbohydrates), understand them and why they are beneficial to your body and know the right amounts that you need to set them up. It is important to know that there are empty calories out there. For example, a glass of wine can easily have the same amount of calories as a lunch meal but these calories do not have the right vitamins and minerals and will not help our bodies to be healthy.
Exercise
This doesn’t actually have to be the gym. I like to recommend activities that you like doing, for examples walks, strength training, etc. It can be any exercise that you like. Theoretically, if you are aiming to lose weight, you need to fit in some sort of exercise between 3-5 times per week of sessions lasting between 40 to 60 minutes at a moderate intensity. The key here is to find something that you like to do so that it can fit easily into your lifestyle.
Lifestyle change
If you have done all of the above and have lost the weight but you do not correct the way that you eat and you do not keep up with exercising, you will actually gain it all back and all that hard work will be for nothing. You need to be committed to changing your lifestyle so that you can lose the weight but also keep it off in the long term. Changing your lifestyle will help you steer away from all sorts of chronic diseases.
So, there you have it! Thank you, David for sharing your tips & tricks with us!
