Who doesn’t want to look and feel their best physically, spiritually, and emotionally? Becoming your best self begins from within. You must first come to love and believe in yourself. We all have our ups and downs, but it’s when we get stuck in an “emotional rut” that it seems life tends to run amuck, and the scale tends to go up or come to a complete halt.
Why You Must Embrace Fitness
If you lack the motivation to work out, begin by visualizing yourself working out, even if for only 20 minutes a few times a week. Your mind is your greatest resource to get in shape and lose weight. If you don’t see yourself working out regularly and eating healthy in your mind’s eye, you won’t feel the urge to take the actions necessary to accomplish having a healthier, leaner physique. When you come to embrace fitness, you will be well on your way to improving all aspects of your life.
Committing to living an active lifestyle to enable you to shed weight fast doesn’t mean you have to jump in with both feet. Take baby steps at first. With time, you will soon get the “fitness bug,” which will increase your desire to be active to become healthy and fit and that will help you lose weight. The more you honor your goals and stay the course of reaching your ideal body weight and size, the sooner you’ll shed those unwanted pounds.
You can begin by buying some dumbbells to work out with. You don’t have to have an expensive gym membership to work out; you can work out at home with dumbbells. When creating your workout space, be sure you have a full-length mirror and a sturdy chair or an incline bench to do dumbbell exercises on. I love home gyms; I haven’t stepped in a public gym since I got engaged to my husband over 2o years ago. Creating a home gym will become your safe place to exercise in and reflect on your fitness and wellness goals and dreams. My home gym is my favorite room in my home. I look forward to walking down to my basement to exercise. Having a home gym also saves time and money.
I also highly recommend following a workout DVD when exercising (especially if you’re new to lifting weights) and having upbeat music to work out with to stay energized and amped up. In addition, post workout exercise routine images on your wall where you exercise to keep your mind focused on the task at hand, in addition to having images to refer to for proper form.
8 Top Fat-Blasting Tips
To help you look and feel your best, here are 8 top fat-blasting tips I’ve used through the years that have helped me shed fat fast and stay in tip-top shape. Following these tips can also benefit you in reaching your fitness goals.
1. Combine Weight Training And Intervals
Doing a weightlifting program coupled with interval training will blast fat fast! Intervals are alternating high-intensity bursts of energy with a recovery cool-down period, which are repeated a few times. Intervals are tough, as is weight training, so take it slow and only do what you feel comfortable doing. As with all new exercise routines, consult your physician prior to starting a new workout regimen. You can do interval training on any cardio machine or while jogging. You can do them on separate days or following your weight training sessions to save time and burn more calories.
2. Stay Hydrated
Drink plenty of purified water with branched chain amino acids (BCAAs) before, during, and after you exercise. BCAAs are the building blocks for muscle. Keeping your body well hydrated with added BCAAs will fuel your muscles and aid in warding off fatigue as well as remove toxins from the body as you sweat. In addition, drink at least 80 oz of water through the day. Drinking water as your beverage of choice will help your body shed weight faster. Being well hydrated will raise your metabolism and keep hunger pangs at bay between meals. Drinking plenty of water also aids in digestion; keeping your digestive track moving will also aid in losing weight.
3. Strength Train Often
Strength training is an essential aspect of blasting fat quickly. Alternate doing upper body and lower body strength-training exercises at least 3 days a week. Trust me when I say strength training (on an empty stomach) will kick your body into a fat-blasting machine! Weightlifting burns more fat than aerobic exercise does. That’s because the more muscle you have, the higher your basal metabolic rate, which means you burn more calories at rest. Use free weights for the most effective way to lift as that uses more muscle groups during any one exercise — machines are designed for the use of only one muscle group.
4. Lift Heavy To Sculpt
Women often choose to lift with light weights because they’re afraid they’ll get too big. The truth is, only professional women bodybuilders who have the brute strength to lift heavy enough weights build major size and volume — and they generally take supplements to boost their testosterone level. Be smart about lifting heavy and only do 10 to 12 reps with proper form; when your muscles get too fatigued to do another set, you’re done with that set. Lifting heavy will cause your muscles to break down as needed to repair and shape your muscle tissues, which is how to truly transform your physique. And as mentioned above, the more lean body mass (and less fat) you have, the higher your metabolism. It’s a beautiful thing!
5. Increase The Weight And/Or Reps
Increase the weights and/or repetitions per set. Use two different weight sizes. For the warm-up set, use dumbbells that you can lift for 10 to 15 repetitions. Then go with the next size up to do your main workout, followed by using the lighter dumbbells and doing more reps for your final set. Do 10 reps for the first warm-up set, then 12 reps, then 15 reps (do as many sets as you wish) and then go back to the lighter weights and do 20 reps for your final set.
6. Proper Form Is Everything
Proper form is everything when lifting weights. Always lift in front of a mirror. If you aren’t sure how to lift correctly, look up the exercise online. There are a plethora of articles and images to choose from. Print off the exercises you need assistance with and place them where you can refer to them easily or hire a fitness coach to help you learn how to lift correctly. You can avoid injury by lifting properly. Also, lift slowly and methodically — it burns more calories, which means you’ll burn more fat while strength training. Use the power of your mind to focus on the muscles while training. Visualize your muscles getting stronger while lifting — see your muscles lean and sculpted. This will literally assist your body in getting in shape sooner than working out mindlessly.
7. Fuel Your Body
If you truly want to sculpt your body, then eat what your body craves — wholesome nutrition. Have a small meal every few hours consisting of a variety of healthy options. Have at least 25 to 35 grams of lean protein with every meal. Eating a clean diet is the catalyst for shedding fat and transforming your body. Eat lean protein, fresh fruit, raw or steamed veggies, salads, and clean fats (such as flax seed oil or fish oil) and eat complex carbs sparingly. When trying to decide what to eat, keep in mind what I always advise my clients, “If God didn’t make it, don’t eat it.” Processed foods are filled with toxins! And by all means, stay clear of all junk food, it will only make you tired, stressed, fatigued, bloated and frustrated with yourself for not staying on track with your weight loss goals. You will have to work out harder in the gym and won’t see your desired results as soon if you stuff your face with empty calories. Proper nutrition is vital to shed weight and keep it off. It’s okay to have a treat now and again; just be mindful that you’re only having a treat for one meal — not the entire day.
8. Log Your Success
Keeping a diet and fitness log of your success is an excellent motivational tool. Having a ready source of reference of what foods and training work for you (and what doesn’t) helps. And it feels great to see how you’re honoring your goals each time you write in your journal(s). In addition to logging your diet and training, keep a gratitude journal. Each day, write down what you ate and what exercises you did, along with how you felt and how proud you were of yourself. And when you retire for the evening, do so with a heart full of thanks. By giving thanks for your miraculous body and for the tender mercies you received that day, your body will have a happy environment to thrive in. By focusing on the positive, your subconscious mind will create new self-affirming beliefs that support your heart’s desires of achieving your goals and dreams — in all aspects of life.
By incorporating these 8 fat-blasting tips into your life, you will be able to burn off the stubborn fat that’s been hanging around since Christmas and will be able to transform your physique by summer. As you begin to incorporate these tips into your daily routine, be sure to follow through — consistency is key! Plan ahead and make your workouts count and eat smart. Before you know it, you will achieve your weight loss goals.
Happy training!
