50 TOP TIPS FOR FAT LOSS - TIP 2

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Eat Often

Most people associate losing body fat with cutting back on calories and to a certain degree they’re right. Almost every overweight person I’ve seen walk through our doors possess similar traits: they lack energy, they don’t eat regularly and as a result, when they do they binge and usually on all the wrong sorts of foods. These results in all of what they do eat being converted to body fat and stored. And here’s why?

Remember in tip 35 (listen to your body) I talked about our sympathetic nervous system has been designed to protect us from imminent danger (sabre toothed tiger) and from starvation? Well when you go for long periods of time without eating, your body thinks it’s going to starve. As a result, it creates the perfect energy storage system, whereby anything you do eat gets saved for later.

Now add to this the stressors of 21^st century life, such as working long hours, driving in peak hour traffic, financial pressures, relationship pressures and your body is being constantly bombarded with the, “ I’m about to be eaten by a tiger so save me” scenario and you can quickly understand why we have such and obesity epidemic today.

Eating regular balanced meals with the correct macronutrient ratio for you is the best way to keep your body fueled for dealing with today’s 21^st century lifestyle. Now I’m not saying eat large meals at every opportunity. What I am saying is every 2-3 hours have something. As your body becomes accustomed to receiving good quality fuel, it will no longer think it’s trapped in a famine and as a result, what happens to the energy you’re eating will be diverted to working systems. Brain, liver, kidneys, digestion, cardiovascular, muscular, skeletal. All of these organs and systems will begin to perform more efficiently. You should notice an immediate rise in level of alertness, cognitive function, sleep patterns and exercise performance.

However eating regularly is not easy given our 21^st century lifestyles so here are some little tricks to get you by:

When you make dinner, make enough for 2-3 added snacks the next day.
Fruit, nuts, seeds and boiled eggs make excellent handy snacks. Simply have them at arm’s reach so they are always available, in the car, on the office desk.
Plan you weekly eating regime around important weekly events so that shopping coincide with when the fridge and cupboard is going to be empty.
A good source of quality protein can be a sneaky little cheat snack and when blended with some fruit can make an awesome, filling and substantial meal when on the run.
Be organized is the key. Lack of organization leads to emergency runs to the petrol station and accept for a few, I’ve yet to find anything healthy in their stores to eat.

So, if body fat loss is your goal, then eating often (every 2-3 hours during the day) is an absolute must. Tomorrow we talk about why cutting out alcohol is so crucial as well.