Have you been wanting to get in shape for some time, but it never seems to happen? Maybe you start going to the gym but you get bored, or you focus on your eating and all of a sudden it’s party season with cake and alcoholic drinks everywhere.
If you’re ready to finally get rid of that extra weight, gain lean muscle, and completely change your body, you’ll need to be prepared to work hard. It won’t happen overnight, but with small, consistent changes, you’ll notice that the weight begins to drop off. You’ll then find that you sleep better, you fit your clothes, you’re less sweaty, you have more energy, and you feel great, which keeps you motivated to keep working out and eating well.
So how do you get in shape? You may be surprised to learn that the answer is not to dramatically cut your calories and live on kale. You also don’t need to avoid fat like the plague and stick to low-fat foods, as these are often high in sugar and carbs and will send your blood sugar plummeting and make you starving later on in the day.
You want to eat as much protein and fat as possible (within your calorie limits), while limiting carbs. Protein shakes are great, although you may need to try a few to figure out the best protein shake for you. Weight loss shakes can also help, as long as you’re sticking to a healthy, clean diet and not using them to replace every meal every day.
If you’re wondering how to build muscle, the answer is to lift, and lift heavy. That means fewer reps with as much weight as you can handle, and during your final set you should reach a point where you absolutely cannot do anymore. Consistent weight training with cardio on your off days, along with eating well and getting in all your protein will help you build up those muscles and lose fat, so you can get a great beach body.
Swap out the snickers bars you like to eat in front of the tv for a few nuts or a piece or two of high-quality dark chocolate, swap chips and dip for carrots and cottage cheese, and add butter and olive oil to stir fries to keep you full throughout the day.
You may also find that intermittent fasting works well for you. Basically, this means going without food for a set amount of time so that your body enters ketosis and begins eating its own fat. When you can eat again you can eat your normal calories and focus on healthy foods.
Getting in shape is something that most of us want to do, but it’s easy to go all-out for a couple of weeks before throwing in the towel. Focus on long-term goals and if you happen to mess up, just try again the next day.
Sophia
