A Trainer Finally Reveals the Only 10 Things You Need for Weight Loss
Are you confused about weight loss due to all the conflicting information out there? Colin DeWaay is a fitness trainer and YouTuber who educates his clients and followers on the most efficient ways to burn fat and get into shape. In a new viral video, he simplifies fat loss. "I am so tired of the overcomplication, contradictory information about what it takes to lose weight. And if I'm tired of it, I can't even imagine how you feel," he says at the start of the clip. "One person says don't eat meat. The other says, only eat meat. One says you should eat low-carb. The other one says low fat. One says you have to intermittent fast. The other one says to eat small meals all day long. It's just too much. It's overwhelming. One thing you really need to understand about US fitness professionals is that we always have something to sell you. Oh yeah, what a surprise. This influencer says, 'I know exactly why you can't lose weight, and I just happen to have a book or a supplement you can take that's gonna fix all your problems.' So today, I want to help simplify things." He goes on to reveal "the ten only things you need to worry about when it comes to weight loss."
Exercise 3 to 5 Days Per Week
"The first thing that matters is you need to move your body in between about three to five days per week of some form of exercise," says Colin in his post. "I personally think it should be some sort of combination of strength training and cardio. If you're a regular on this channel, you know I talk about the benefits of strength training all the time. It's the best thing you can do for body composition, metabolism, aging gracefully, pretty much everything, but whatever's going to get you excited to keep you moving, that's fine no matter what you do. Any form of exercise is going to have massive benefits to not only your weight loss goals but your overall health."
Avoid Sedentary Behavior
Number two is "moving your body through non-exercise," he says, "because what you do on a day-by-day basis makes a much bigger difference than most people think. And it's just so easy to be sedentary right now." He explains that life has made it easy not to exert energy. "We don't move anymore. So certainly, going for walks can be really helpful, and there's data supporting that for every increase of about a thousand steps per day on average, there's about a 10% decrease in all-cause mortality, but it doesn't have to be through specific walking." It can also involve taking the stairs instead of the elevator.
Eat Nutrient Dense, Whole Foods
For number three, he dives into nutrition. "Make sure you're feeding the body well, eating nutrient-dense whole foods," he says, noting that you will find them "on the perimeter of the grocery store," he says. "Don't get caught up in this low-carb, low-fat game. It's pointless. There's been research that shows it doesn't really matter as long as you equate it to calories and especially protein. So opt for these nutrient-dense foods. Get your fruits and vegetables in, and eat your leaner sources of protein. These will fuel the body up well, and they'll help you feel full."
Make Sure Your Diet Is Sustainable
"On the flip side of that, number four, if you want to lose weight and keep it off long term, your diet has to be sustainable," he says. Food is a big part of our lives, so I am not saying you can't go out and enjoy the foods that you like in moderation. I promise you there's no food that just turns into body fat instantly." Instead, it's about the "context "of your overall diet. "The more you ban everything you love and say you can't have it, the more you're going to crave it, the more likely you are to end up binging on it. When you do eventually have it because you feel like, 'Crap, I screwed everything up. My diet starts again tomorrow, so I need to get it all in now.' No, you want to create a healthy relationship with food. Yes, food is fuel, but it's also celebrations, anniversaries, holiday get-togethers. It's a big part of our lives. 99% of people aren't going to just go the rest of their lives without having anything fun," he says. "This is why around 95% of people can never sustain their weight loss because they diet in ways that are unsustainable."
Limit Alcohol
Number five, he recommends limiting alcohol. "I'm not saying you can't have alcohol. I tend to have a few drinks on the weekend. I enjoy it as much as the next guy. And as long as it's in moderation and you're counting on it, it's fine. However, there's a lot of negative health impacts, and honestly, your body treats it like a poison," he says. "When you consume alcohol, your body's going to shut down the other metabolic processes, and that's not going to worry about your carbs and your fat and your protein. It's going to worry about one thing. We have to get this poison out of our bodies. Not only that, yes, of course, it's empty calories, but it also lowers your inhibitions. You're more likely to go away off your plan and end up eating a lot more calories. It can interrupt your sleep. So yes, you can have alcohol. Just do so in moderation."
Tracking Your Food Intake
In the short term, Colin recommends tracking your intake. "The reason I say it's not necessarily long term is because not a lot of people are going to track everything they eat for the rest of their lives. For some people, they don't mind it. I've been doing it now for over a decade, and it doesn't bother me. However, even if you want to be able to eat intuitively, you never take the time to track and see what's in the foods you eat, see what portion sizes look like, and get a good understanding of what things really truly look like." He recommends tracking "for at least a few months" even though it will be "tedious at first," but "you'll get better at it," he maintains. "Often, you end up not minding doing it long term, especially when you're seeing great results from your efforts. Because honestly, if you want to get the best results possible, knowing exactly how much you're eating and how to adjust when you hit plateaus and everything, nothing's going to work better than that."
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Get Enough Sleep
Number seven? Make sure you're getting enough sleep. "You should be trying to get seven to eight hours of sleep," he says. "If you're like, there's just no way. I can't possibly do that. Get at least six hours. If you're not getting enough sleep, it can impact things like your hormones, your metabolism, how much muscle you lose in a fat loss phase," he says. "It's probably the most underrated part of a fit healthy lifestyle."
Stay Hydrated
Number eight is about staying well hydrated. "If you aren't hydrated well, your body's just not going to operate the way it should. I'm not sitting here and saying you have to go crazy and drink a gallon, two gallons a day. I'm not even saying that you have to do it only through water. So instead of saying, aim for exactly this much. Everyone's different and has different water needs, but just make sure that you're not overly thirsty most of the time and that your urine is mostly clear."
Understand You Can't Always Be in a Calorie Deficit
Number nine? "You're not going to be able to calorie deficit your way to the body you want. And I'm not saying you shouldn't go into a calorie deficit. A calorie deficit is the only way you can lose weight. If you don't think that's the case, you don't understand what calorie deficit means," he says. "What I'm saying is you can't constantly be in a calorie deficit. The body's too adaptive. It's going to fight you too much. So, while I'm all about sustainability, that means the lifestyle has to be sustainable, but your fat loss phases are temporary. And if you're constantly forcing a calorie deficit, running your body into the ground, eventually snapping and trying to come back again, it is just going to be a nightmare. What should you do? "It's not really what you do in your calorie deficit that makes the biggest difference. It's what you do before the calorie deficit that sets you up for the calorie deficit to go well. So you have to learn to be able to put in work without fat loss being the goal for long periods of time."
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Don't Stop Because You Get Frustrated or Make a Mistake
And finally, number 10. "You can't keep stopping every time you get frustrated or every time you make a mistake," he says. "There's no possible way you're going to get the results you want. And then especially sustain those results if you have that mentality." He points out that you will never be able to give it one hundred percent all the time. "Sometimes you are going to have to back off, but that doesn't mean you go into the all-or-nothing mentality. It means you back off some. Instead of doing four or five workouts, maybe you're going to do one or two for a while, maybe you're going to pay a little less attention to nutrition, but you're not just going to say, screw it and binge your face off. So consistency doesn't mean perfect, but it does mean you keep putting in effort because you are going to have to live this lifestyle for the rest of your life." And if you enjoyed this article, take advantage of these 15 Quick Ways to Lose Body Fat Percentage in a Week.
