by GameChanger Strength & Nutrition Coach Rob Riccobono
Eat less and move more. Lift some weights, do your cardio, and eat a clean diet. That’s to solution to the body you want, right?
Unfortunately that’s not enough advice for most people to get rid of their stubborn fat. Here are a few more specific strategies for you to shed unwanted pounds, ones you probably haven’t tried yet.
#1 – Increase Your NEPA (Non-Exercise Physical Activity)
The exercise you do in the gym is not your only source of burning calories. You can also burn substantial calories during everyday activities whenever you’re moving around, commonly referred to as NEPA.
Someone who leads a very sedentary lifestyle has low NEPA, and has to eat far fewer calories to lose weight than someone who’s more active during the day. There’s a big difference in the fat-loss diet of a construction worker and someone who sits at a desk for 8 hours a day.
How can you increase your NEPA if your job or home life requires you to sit for most of the day? Some tactics include:
- parking further away from your office or home so you will walk more;
- always using the stairs instead of elevators or escalators;
- walking to destinations within a mile radius from your house rather than driving;
- standing up from your desk every hour to take a quick walk around the office to “stretch your legs”;
- using a step tracker to increase your average daily total steps by 1,000;
- walking the dog 2-3x a day;
- going for a walk with friends or family rather than talking around the television.
I bet you can discover other ways to move more during your day. All of these extra steps (pun intended) will add up.
#2 – Count Calories EVERYDAY
This is the most accurate and effective way to break any fat loss plateau. Counting calories allows you know exactly what you’re putting into your body, and from there you can decide where to reduce your calorie intake.
The invisible hand guiding whether we lose, gain, or maintain our weight is still the equation of calories consumed vs. calories burned.
The most important part of this stratgey is to be consistent and to do it on a daily basis. If you’ve counted calories before and it didn’t work for you, honestly ask yourself if you did it daily and for how long of a period. If you stick to a calorie goal 5 days a week but take a break from counting on the weekends, you can overeat (and drink) enough on the weekends to undo the previous days’ work.
Of course, the downside to counting calories is that it takes work and concentration. Like anything in life, fitness results require hard work. Counting calories is the most effective way to lose weight and thus may require more of your attention.
ALSO, like other things in life, with counting calories, practice makes perfect. The more you do it, the more you understand how to do it quickly, efficiently, and accurately. It requires a time investment at first, but this investment pays off with lucrative dividends.
#3 – Hire a Coach
You might not have the body you want because of misinformation, but more often than not, you just need to stick to any nutrition and exercise plan more consistently. What better way to stick a plan than to have someone for whom you’re accountable to?
You are simply more likely to stick to a plan when you know someone has invested their time into creating it, when you know you have to report back to this person with your compliance, and when you’ve paid your hard earned money for this guidance.
You’re also investing in someone’s expertise and experience that you don’t have the time to acquire yourself.
If the same old diet and exercise strategies are working for you, give one of these a shot and see what happens!
P.S. If you’re interested in learning more about GameChanger’s nutrition coaching options, contact Coach Rob at rob@gamechangergym.com
