The first thing you need to understand about fat loss is that real, lasting results take time to achieve. How much time totally depends on where you’re at right now and the lifestyle you’re willing to have in order to get to where you want to be. For some, reaching their goal may only take mere weeks, for others it could take a year or more. Never compare yourself to somebody else when you are improving your health and body. Being the best version of yourself is what you want to focus on. Here are 8 important things you need to know about women’s fat loss.
Women’s Fat Loss #1: Myths
There are many fat loss myths out there, which is why you need to be informed. For instance, a very popular fat loss myth is that carbs will ruin all of your hard work. In reality, carbs are not the enemy. The body needs carbs for fuel. If you cut out all carbs, chances are, you’ll feel fatigued and cloudy. The key is to eat carbs that give lots of nutrition like, sweet potatoes, oats, vegetables, and so on. Eating a balanced diet with the appropriate amount of protein, fats, and carbs will ultimately create the best environment to lose unwanted fat.
Another myth: Don’t eat after 7-8pm. Your body doesn’t care what time it is, and it won’t automatically turn anything you eat after that time into fat. If you have worked out at say, 6 pm and get home an hour later, of course, you should eat to refuel your body! The thing that many people don’t realize is that you have to eat to lose fat. Eating for your body’s activity levels and goals is so important.
Women’s Fat Loss #2 Don’t Overcomplicate Things
Many people over-complicate a weight loss plan. I recommend allowing yourself some time to get used to a basic plan. Leave more complex strategies like carb cycling (where you eat more carbs say, on a heavy exercise day than a rest day) until you have set some new habits. Until then, just do your best to be consistent with your efforts. Don’t try a new fad diet, don’t detox, don’t do an apple or a soup diet, just eat sensibly.
Women’s Fat Loss #3: Effort
Fat loss does require you to put some effort in. This means being consistent with buying and prepping food for when you’re out of the house. This helps you to avoid fast food and snacking on things that don’t serve you. Using an app like MyFitnessPal to track your food can make things much easier. Bear in mind this isn’t about perfection; it’s about consistency.
It also means remaining active. You don’t necessarily need to work out every day to lose fat. You simply need to go for more walks, take the stairs where you can, maybe even throw a home workout in every so often. Of course, working out more can get you faster results, but all is not lost if you can’t commit to that yet. Start out slowly and build up to more intense and frequent work outs.
Women’s Fat Loss #4: You Don’t Have To Be Perfect
Most people end up going ‘off the rails’ because they do one thing that they know isn’t in line with their goals. Maybe they have chocolate, skip the gym one day, or do something else that flips that switch in the brain that says, “Right, efforts ruined, let’s go all out!” Just remember that being perfect is not required. Doing your best 80-90% of the time is usually enough to get results. Eating a cupcake won’t derail all of your progress – eating 3 more cupcakes will. You need to be sensible, do things in moderation, and if you’re going to eat a cupcake, for the love of all things sweet, make sure you enjoy it!
Women’s Fat Loss #5: Positive Mindset
This is where many women go wrong. They think getting the body they want will give them a positive mindset. Wrong! You get the mindset and then you get the body. Aligning your thoughts and actions with your goals will get you results. Nobody gets to their dream body healthily by hating themselves when they look in the mirror. Keep a positive attitude about yourself and your intentions. No beating yourself up for set backs or lack of progress! Learning to love your body and doing things that are good for it rather than punishing it is the key to maintaining results.
Women’s Fat Loss #6: Supplementation
With the appropriate diet and exercise regimen, the right supplements can give you a boost. In fact, quality vitamins, minerals, and herbs can give you more energy, reduce soreness after workouts, and help to speed up the metabolism. Do, however, consult your physician before starting a supplement. This is mainly due to potential interactions with medications.
Known for burning fat, Conjugated Lineolic Acid or CLA can help you with your weight loss efforts. The Best CLA Supplement For Weight Loss Is Here. Additionally, BCAAs (Branch Chain Amino Acids) are great if you do challenging workouts, as they reduce soreness and help with energy levels. Protein shakes aren’t necessary but help if you’re not getting enough protein from your diet. I recommend staying away from fat loss supplements that promise a certain amount of weight loss. These can be risky and do more harm than good.
Women’s Fat Loss #7: Progress Updates
Progress updates are a must if you want to stay motivated. You may not feel like you’re making a lot of progress, and this can be a little demoralizing. However, when you do proper updates, you’ll see that you really are! Here are some pointers:
- Do not use the scale alone. Use this as little as possible, as weight can fluctuate for any number of reasons, including the time of the month and whether you’ve been to the toilet that day. Use it once a week max. If it doesn’t move, or even goes up a little, do not panic. Weight loss is not linear, and there are other ways to track!
- Use a tape measure to keep track of your inches. Weight may not move, but if you’re losing fat, your inches will!
- You can use body fat percentage calipers if you like, but they aren’t necessary.
- Take pictures and videos once a week and then compare. You’ll likely be amazed at the changes!
- Also, pay attention to how your clothes fit and how you feel. How you feel is extremely important in terms of progress!
**** This post is strictly informational and is not meant to replace the advice of your health care provider. Women’s lifelink, it’s owners, administrators, contributors, affiliates, vendors, authors and editors do not claim that this information will diagnose, treat, or improve any condition or disease.