Many of us, including myself, have tried to lose weight but sometimes it feels as if things aren't going our way. Reducing body fat involves much more than just dieting, you’re probably thinking, “Great, more things to worry about”. It’s not as bad as you may think, take a deep breath and lets talk about how you can kick-start your weight loss.

As I mentioned previously, dieting or consuming fewer calories than we burn, is what helps us lose weight. Even when it seems like we have it all figured out and progress is starting to show, results come to an abrupt stop. I have outlined 5 different reasons that you must follow in order to jump-start your journey to a healthier life.

1. Improve Your Gut Health.

The digestive system is a very complicated and complex structure. Many bacteria live in our gut and they are essential in making sure the food we consume gets broken down and nutrients absorbed for the growth of our body. If you want to continue to burn fat, boost your immune defenses and just feel better on a daily basis, your digestive system must be in good health.

We often don’t realize the importance of our digestive system until its too late. Some things you can do to alleviate some stress form your gut is to reduce the amounts of sugars, processed foods, pastured dairy, and making sure that we chew our food completely before swallowing.

2. Add More Fiber to Your Diet.

Fiber goes hand in hand with the health of your digestive system. It also helps with satiety, adding volume to your meals so that you feel fuller which helps consuming fewer calories.

A good rule of thumb is to consume about 30 grams of fiber per 1,000 calories. Some easy ways to add more fiber to your diet is to eat a variety of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. Ex: brown rice, quinoa, and steal-cut oatmeal.

3. Let’s Reduce Stress.

Stress has been named “the silent killer”. It definitely lives up to its name when it comes to weight loss. Stress triggers a physiological response in the body and a hormone called “cortisol” is released.  This hormone will be sure to stop your weight loss journey dead in its tracks. High levels of cortisol trigger the response to increase fat storage, degrade muscle tissue and can lead to cardiovascular disease!

It’s time to reduce our stress! Yes, it’s not as easy as it sounds, but with a conscious effort you can decrease stress by doing the following. Surround yourself with positive people, wake up prepared for your day, meditate, try yoga, and make sure you are getting plenty of sleep each night!

4. You’re Lacking Sleep.

You see, while you sleep, a hormone called “growth hormone” is released and has the opposite effect of cortisol. GH improves the function of your organs, reduces stress, improves immune health, and encourages fat loss.

Another important thing about sleep, it helps regulate the hormones responsible for hunger. This can very well help you control the amount of calories you consume a day. Everyone is different, but it is recommended to get about 7 to 9 hours of sleep a night.

5. Drink More Water.

We always hear about how important it is to drink water, yet so many people still don’t drink enough water!

There are tons of benefits to being hydrated but when we are dehydrated that’s when things start to go bad. Your kidneys are responsible for the filtration of fluids, so when the kidneys are impaired because of lack of fluid intake, it forces your liver to take over. The liver has a main purpose of metabolizing fat, if the liver is doing the work of the kidneys, then your body isn’t efficiently work like it should. Leading you to have health issues and weight gain.

 Stay hydrated! Drink when you are thirsty and always be sure to have water when you are exercising.

I hope that you picked up on a pattern. Everything builds on each other. Could any of these be guilty of holding back your progress? Be sure to take action and start feeling better!

By: Craig Capurso

Cheat meals are a hot topic in the health and fitness industries. Recently, one of my twitter followers messaged me about cheat meals--he asked, “What’s the right way to go about cheat meals?” My response was simple, “Enjoy them! It’s what you do with the rest of your meals that matters most.” 

When I first started my fitness career, I hired an ex-bodybuilder as my coach. I followed him blindly—listening closely to his advice and executing just as he instructed. He had me on a very strict plan that tracked macros and emphasized carb cycling. This strict approach transformed my body, and although it was challenging, I was fortunate to have the willpower to follow such a regimen without having cheat food cravings.  

While the strict, no cheat approach worked well for me, others however may find that rewarding themselves for a job well done has psychological benefits, and helps them stay sane and on track. This approach can absolutely breed success, though I caution that there are pitfalls. 


THE PROBLEM WITH CHEAT MEALS
The cheat/reward can set up the wrong emotional response to food, triggering your brain to associate “bad”, “unhealthy” foods with happiness. Cheat meals can also have negative physical effects--a sugary cheat meal can skyrocket your insulin levels, giving you a sugar high that causes you to crash later. You may feel good while you eat it, but a few hours later your body goes into sluggish mode. Once this happens your body may signal you to reach for sugary foods just to feel normal again. What began as a cheat meal now turned into multiple cheats--that is the problem with cheat meals, they can be a slippery slope if you’re not careful.  


THE RIGHT WAY TO CHEAT
Although cheat meals can backfire, if done properly and with control, they can be beneficial. This is especially true if you’ve been in a prolonged state of calorie restriction. Incorporating cheat meals after a cycle of restriction kicks the body out of autopilot and revs up your metabolism so that you can continue to see results.

If you’re going to have cheat meals, you must hold yourself accountable, and limit cheat foods within reach. Do not go buy everything you want all at once, rather only buy what you plan to cheat with and keep any other "bad" food out of sight. Having a cabinet or fridge filled with temptation is never a safe bet--you are more likely to go overboard and sabotage your success. 

Another key to cheating is preparation. Either plan ahead by reducing calories prior to the " scheduled cheat", or deduct those calories from your next meals. This approach will keep you in balance and on the path to success. 


WHAT ABOUT RE-FEEDS?
Re-feeds are a common term in the industry and are dependent solely upon what type of diet you are following. After weekly dieting on low carbs, your glucose stores drop, causing you to lose energy and interest in working out, or even in many other tasks that require energy and focus. A re-feed is a strategic meal that refills those stores so that you can carry on, with a resurgence of energy and a full stock of glucose to help your body perform to its fullest potential. Beware though--re-feeds are not for everyone. If for example you’re on a diet with an even macro profile, where your calories are coming from protein, carbohydrates and fats equally (33.3%), then a re-feed is not necessary. 


TAKE A LOOK AT YOUR PLATE
The topic of cheat meals and re-feeds is certainly one that you can debate. The key point to take away from this article is that your decision to cheat should depend on the type of diet you follow. If you are just slightly under your estimated maintenance calories, then cheat meals may not have a place in your diet. On the flipside, if you’ve been in a calorie deficit for an extended period of time, throwing in some extra calories will help you keep balance. 

Whether you use a cheat meal or re-feed is up to you, but either one would help your metabolism while you diet. Regardless of your strategy, make sure to hold yourself accountable. Have a plan and do not go about it loosely, because a cheat meal can easily lead into a cheat day, which can lead into a cheat week, which is sure to throw you off track!