Tag: Nutrition
Arnold Schwarzenegger on Protein: “The Quality Isn’t As Important As You’ve Been Led to Believe
Bodybuilding legend Arnold Schwarzenegger’s attention to nutrition and dieting remain top priorities at the age of 76. In the latest Arnold’s Pump Club Newsletter, Schwarzenegger discussed protein intake and whether or not quality matters when choosing which sources to consume.
Given his star power and name recognition, fans listen when Arnold Schwarzenegger talks about his nutritional options. Having dominated the most prestigious stages in the sport, Schwarzenegger is no stranger to the protein demands of a top-tier bodybuilder. He’s a seven-time Mr. Olympia winner, a reign he made possible with popping biceps, a slim waist, and towering height.
In retirement, Schwarzenegger admits his diet has changed drastically. In 2022, he credited an 80% plant-based diet he’s followed for the last five years. ‘The Austrian Oak’ was dealing with cholesterol issues, which eventually led him down this ‘green diet’ path. While he accepts animal-based protein sources have richer amino acid profiles, Schwarzenegger believes the diet he follows has helped improve his life.
Hoping to make fitness more mainstream, Arnold has used his newsletter to inform the masses. To shed more light on diet hacks, the bodybuilding icon went over a healthy checklist he uses to stay fit despite his hectic schedule. Now, he’s back to highlight the differences between eating protein for quality versus quantity.
Arnold Schwarzenegger Weighs Up Protein – Does Quality Matter?
According to the seven-time Mr. Olympia, if you’re eating enough protein, quality isn’t as important.
“The debate about protein superiority usually focuses on the speed of digestion, rate of absorption, amino acid content, or being “clean.” But all of these claims might be a distraction from what really matters.
New research suggests that if you’re eating enough protein, the quality isn’t as important as you’ve been led to believe.
Many people believe that if you want to grow muscle, you need a fast-absorbing protein with high digestibility. But there hasn’t been much research asking a more practical question — if you eat more protein, can you worry less about the quality?
However, he says for those who want to consume less protein, quality options are preferred due to their absorption qualities.
The new study — which reviewed existing protein research — found that the quantity of protein you consume determines the need for quality. In other words, if you want to eat less protein, it’s best to focus on more premium protein. But, if you prefer eating a higher protein diet, then it’s OK if you’re not always consuming the highest absorbing options.
This is because protein consists of amino acids, the building blocks of your cells and muscle. And you need essential amino acids because your body can’t make them. Low-quality proteins have fewer essential amino acids or can be missing some of them completely. And that’s why some proteins really are “better” than others.
Schwarzenegger shared that the body will compensate with amino acid ‘gaps’ if the person eats excessive protein daily, which is good news for bodybuilders, who must consume staggering amounts of protein to maintain their muscle mass.
“But if you eat more protein (a minimum of 1.6g/kg per day of protein, according to the research) — even if it’s not the best option — the quantity compensates for the lower quality, your body fills the amino acid gaps (assuming you’re eating a variety of protein sources), and your body gets what it needs to build muscle, help you recover, and support your overall health
Of course, there are other considerations when choosing protein. Calories still matter, so if selecting a “lower quality” protein source means loading up on unnecessary calories, that could impact your results. But the protein itself — as long as you eat enough — will not hold you back.
If you want some guidelines or count your macros, here’s a simple example to show how it works. Let’s say you’re 175 pounds. If you’re eating only high-quality options (such as whey, beef, egg, soy, or milk — all have high digestibility), you could see results with only 80 grams of protein per day. But, if you eat roughly 175 grams of protein daily, you can eat some lower-quality forms of protein such as peanuts, wheat, or beans.” Arnold Schwarzenegger shared in his newsletter.
Aside from his nutrition, Schwarzenegger continues to dedicate himself to training but he’s also eager to help others discover fitness. In a recent collaboration with fellow FUBAR actors Bert Kreischer and Fortune Feimster, Schwarzenegger turned back the clock pumping iron and offered tips on maximizing contractions during each movement.
RELATED: Arnold Schwarzenegger Unveils His 3-Tier ‘Hierarchy of Muscle Gains’
Schwarzenegger believes adequate protein consumption is critical to a happy, healthy, and fit lifestyle. Regardless of its quality, “it will not hold you back.”
Published: 3 August, 2023 | 5:43 PM EDT
Heart Rate Based Calorie Burn Calculator
Whether you are trying to burn fat and lose weight or build muscle, it’s often helpful to know how many calories you burn during your workouts.
For weight loss, this can help ensure you have created a sufficient calorie deficit for fat burning. When building muscle, knowing how many calories you burn per workout can be useful for ensuring you still have a calorie surplus, which is critical for building muscle.
Most calorie expenditure calculators provide a rough estimate of how many calories you burn. However, your actual energy expenditure is determined by how hard you work. For example, walking four miles an hour will burn significantly more calories than two miles an hour. Most calorie expenditure calculators fail to take exercise intensity into consideration.
Our simple-to-use calculator takes your exercising heart rate into account, providing you with a more accurate indicator of your calorie expenditure per workout.
Heart Rate-Based Calorie Burn Calculator
Result:
You Burned
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What is the Heart Rate-Based Calorie Burn Calculator?
Our heart rate-based calorie burn calculator is designed to estimate the number of calories you burn during AEROBIC workouts. It uses your average heart rate to determine the intensity of your workout so it can more accurately determine your energy expenditure.
In general, the higher your heart rate, the more intense your workout is and the more calories you burn. The calculator also takes your gender, weight, and age into consideration, both of which affect your energy expenditure.
After entering all the relevant details, the calculator will reveal the number of calories burned during your workout. You can then use this information to plan your food intake according to your goals.
How Does the Heart Rate-Based Calorie Burn Calculator Work?
Estimating your caloric expenditure from your heart rate requires some heavy-duty math. Sure, you COULD do this calculation yourself, but with our calculator, you don’t need to. These are the equations that the calculator uses to determine your heart rate-based calorie expenditure:
Male: ((-55.0969 + (0.6309 x HR) + (0.1988 x W) + (0.2017 x A))/4.184) x 60 x T
Female: ((-20.4022 + (0.4472 x HR) – (0.1263 x W) + (0.074 x A))/4.184) x 60 x T
HR = Heart Rate (in beats/minute)W = Weight (in kilograms)A = Age (in years)T = Exercise Duration Time (in hours)
How to Use the Heart Rate-Based Calorie Burn Calculator
While the equation for determining your heart rate-based calorie expenditure is pretty complex, our calculator is incredibly simple to use. Just follow these step-by-step instructions to get your results.
Select your units, choosing between imperial (pounds) or metric (kilograms).
Select your gender, choosing between male and female.
Enter your age in years.
Enter your weight in pounds or kilograms.
Enter your exercise duration in minutes and seconds.
Enter your average heart rate for the workout.
Hit “enter” and read off your result from the output box.
Interpreting your Results
After entering the required information and hitting enter, you’ll receive your calorie expenditure for your workout, adjusted according to your average heart rate. The higher your average heart rate, the higher your caloric expenditure should be. That’s because your heart rate increases as you exercise harder.
When you exercise, your muscles demand more oxygen than at rest. To supply this extra oxygen, your breathing rate and depth increase and your heart rate goes up, too. This ensures that your working muscles get the oxygen they need to keep you moving. All this extra work requires more energy, which is measured in calories.
Therefore, there is a direct correlation between your exercise intensity, your heart rate, and your caloric expenditure. The harder you work out, the higher your heart rate will be and the more calories you’ll burn per minute.
How to Use Your Results
Now that you know your heart rate-based caloric expenditure, what can you do with this information? Here are a couple of ideas:
For weight loss and fat burning
Losing weight invariably means creating a calorie deficit. A calorie deficit occurs when you consume fewer calories than your body needs to maintain your current weight. This deficit forces your body to use stored fat to make up the energy shortfall, leading to fat burning and weight loss.
It’s generally accepted that you need a 500-calorie-per-day deficit to lose one pound of fat per week. This can be achieved by eating less, exercising more, or a combination of these two scenarios.
Knowing how many calories you burn per workout makes it easier to adjust your diet for weight loss. You may find your workouts burn more calories than you realized, so you don’t need to cut your calorie intake as dramatically. Conversely, you could also find that you aren’t burning as many calories as you expected, so you need to cut your calorie intake more aggressively.
Make your workouts better for fat and weight loss
The higher your heart rate, the more calories you burn per workout. You can use this information to motivate you to raise the intensity of your workouts to increase your exercise energy expenditure.
For example, a 35-year-old woman weighing 140 pounds with an average heart rate of 120 BPM burns 200 calories in 30 minutes. However, if they increase their average heart rate to 140 BPM, they’ll burn 264 calories or an additional 64 calories per workout. These extra calories could have a significant impact on your rate of weight loss.
Knowing that your more strenuous workouts burn more calories could be the incentive you need to kick your training up a gear and start working harder.
For building muscle and gaining weight
Building muscle and gaining weight require a calorie surplus. This involves consuming more calories than you burn. Depending on how quickly you want to gain weight, your calorie surplus could range from 300 to 1000 or more calories per day.
Needless to say, the longer and harder you exercise, the greater your daily caloric expenditure will be. It’s entirely possible that your workouts could wipe out your calorie surplus, leading to little or no muscle and weight gain progress.
Knowing how many calories you burn during your workouts means you can more accurately adjust your diet to ensure you have the surplus you need for your goals.
FAQ
1. How accurate is the heart rate-based calorie burn calculator?
Our heart rate-based calorie burn calculator provides a reasonable estimate of how much energy you’ll burn during an aerobic workout at a given average heart rate. The equations are tried and tested and shown to be reliable.
However, there are several factors that the calculator doesn’t account for, which can affect the accuracy of your results. As such, consider the results from this calculator as relatively accurate but not 100% precise.
The most exact way to determine calorie expenditure during exercise is through indirect calorimetry, which uses a metabolic chamber or a portable metabolic analyzer. These methods measure the amount of oxygen consumed vs. carbon dioxide produced during exercise to accurately calculate the energy expenditure.
2. What factors can affect the accuracy of the calculator?
There are several factors that can affect the accuracy of our heart rate-based calorie burn calculator. These include:
Individual heart rate variability: Resting and exercising heart rate can vary from person to person. These variations can be influenced by factors such as age, fitness level, genetics, and overall health. This can affect the accuracy of the calculations.
Accuracy of average heart rate reading: The accuracy of the average heart rate data plays a crucial role in your final result. Use an ECG-quality chest strap paired with a good-quality monitor to get the most accurate readings, if possible.
Environmental factors: Temperature, humidity, altitude, and other environmental conditions can influence heart rate and estimated calorie burn during exercise. However, they may also cause you to slow down, actually lowering your caloric expenditure.
Metabolism: Metabolic rates can vary, and some people naturally burn calories more efficiently than others. The calculator cannot account for this variability.
Body Composition: More muscular individuals typically burn more calories than those with a higher proportion of body fat. Body fat percentage is not accounted for in this calculation.
3. Can a heart rate-based calorie burn calculator be used for different types of exercises?
Yes – where there are activity-specific calorie-expenditure calculators, it’s exercise intensity rather than the type of exercise performed that matters most. As such, you can use this calculator with any aerobic workout, inkling walking, jogging, running, swimming, cycling, rowing, etc. However, it is not suitable for anaerobic activities such as weight training or high-intensity interval training.
4. How do I determine my average heart rate?
The most convenient and accurate way to determine your average heart rate during workouts is by using a heart rate chest strap paired with a monitor. These chest straps measure the electrical activity in your heart and use the same technology as clinical EKG machines to provide real-time measurements.
Another common method used in fitness trackers and wearable devices is photoplethysmography (PPG). These devices use light-emitting diodes (LEDs) to sense blood flow through arteries and veins, offering accurate heart rate readings for most individuals.
In addition, some cardio machines have built-in heart rate sensors. Grip and hold the sensors to complete an electrical circuit, and the machine will estimate your working heart rate. Repeat this process several times during your session to obtain your average heart rate.
If you don’t have access to a heart rate monitor, you can manually measure your heart rate. Press your first two fingers gently against your carotid (neck) or radial (wrist) pulse and count the number of beats for 15 seconds. Multiply this number by four to get your heart rate per minute.
However, note that this manual method does not provide real-time tracking during your workout and is generally less accurate than using heart rate monitors.
5. Are there different heart rate zones for specific fitness goals?
Yes, there are different heart rate zones that correspond to different fitness goals. Heart rate training zones are based on a percentage of your maximum heart rate (MHR) and are used to determine your workout intensity and achieve different fitness objectives.
Zone 1 – Recovery Zone (50-60% MHR): This zone is ideal for warm-ups, cool-downs, and light activities. It helps improve blood circulation and aids in recovery after more intense workouts.
Zone 2 – Fat-Burning Zone (60-70% MHR): This zone is often recommended for fat burning during exercise. It enhances the body’s ability to use fat as a primary source of energy, making it beneficial for weight loss and improving endurance. However, overall caloric expenditure will often be lower.
Zone 3 – Aerobic Zone (70-80% MHR): Training in this zone improves cardiovascular endurance and overall fitness. It is an efficient zone for increasing stamina and boosting aerobic capacity. Exercise in this zone burns more calories per minute than zones one and two.
Zone 4 – Anaerobic Zone (80-90% MHR): In this zone, the body is working anaerobically, i.e., without oxygen, and lactic acid buildup can occur. It is suitable for high-intensity interval training (HIIT) and helps improve anaerobic endurance.
Zone 5 – Redline or Max Effort Zone (90-100% MHR): This is the highest-intensity zone where you work at or close to your maximum heart rate. It is ideal for short bursts of high-intensity efforts and can help improve overall athletic performance. Zone five is only sustainable for a few seconds.
Wrapping Up
While it’s often helpful to know how many calories you burn per workout, most calorie-expenditure calculators don’t take exercise intensity into account. They mistakenly assume that two people running six miles/10 kilometers an hour burn roughly the same number of calories.
However, this is not always the case.
For example, an unfit person will work much harder than a very fit person and burn more calories even if they cover the same distance it the same time. Speed/distance alone does not determine energy expenditure, and intensity matters more.
Use our Heart rate-based calorie burn calculator to get a more accurate idea of how many calories you expend per workout.
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The post Understanding Calories and Ways To Cut Them first appeared on .
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Is the Hard Boiled Egg Diet the Weight Loss Breakthrough You’ve Been Looking For?
With the advent of social media, fad diets have taken on a life of their own, having the ability to go viral almost overnight. So, it’s no surprise that we’re seeing more and more fad diets gaining traction. Amongst the recent crop of diets, the hard-boiled egg diet has been heavily promoted as a way to lose weight fast.
Eggs are one of the most healthy foods. As a result, a diet built around the humble egg may sound like a good idea. Its advocates claim you can lose up to 20 pounds on the egg diet in two weeks. So, does it really work?
Read on for the most complete analysis of the hard-boiled egg diet you will ever need.
What is the Hard Boiled Egg Diet?
Hard Boiled Egg
The hard boiled egg diet is a short-term diet centered around consuming hard-boiled eggs. The diet has several variations:
Traditional:
The boiled egg diet’s traditional version is a variation of the Atkins diet. You do not have to limit yourself to eggs on this version, but most of your protein will come from this source. Carbohydrate intake is restricted. This version requires two or more eggs, a low-carb veggie, and fruit for breakfast. You may also consume lean protein in place of a low-carb veggie. Lunch might consist of a lean protein source or another serving of eggs.
Typically, chicken or fish are included. More eggs or lean proteins like fish or chicken will be served for dinner. You can have as many low-carb veggies and salads as you like on this diet. One or two portions of fruit are allowed daily, and carbohydrate intake is closely regulated, so you’ll eliminate foods like bread, pasta, and potatoes.
Read also: 14-Day Boiled Egg Diet: Should You Try It?
Egg and Grapefruit Diet:
The egg and grapefruit diet involves consuming half a grapefruit per meal. Apart from that, it is similar to the traditional boiled egg diet. Grapefruit is believed to accelerate weight loss. It is an extremely nutrient-dense fruit that is especially high in vitamins A and C, potassium, and folate. It is also very high in fiber and low in calories. Adding grapefruit will compensate for the low fiber content of the other versions of the boiled egg diet.
Egg Only Diet:
This is the most extreme version of the diet, requiring you to eat nothing but eggs and water (which may be infused with electrolytes). In this diet version, eggs may be boiled, scrambled, or poached. This diet does not represent a balanced form of eating, as it is very low in fiber. It is a very restrictive diet that can be maintained for a short period. Most people usually follow this diet for a week.
Egg Diet Pros
Here are the benefits of the egg diet:
Reduced Hunger: A high-protein, low-carb diet can suppress hunger, making you feel fuller even when dieting.
Faster Calorie Burn: You’ll burn calories more quickly due to the greater protein content.
Vitamins: Eggs are a rich source of vitamins in addition to being a wonderful source of protein.
Weight Loss: Eggs, particularly during breakfast, are proven to accelerate weight loss.
Egg Diet Cons
These are the disadvantages of adopting the egg diet:
Not a Balanced Diet: This is not a balanced way of eating because it cuts out whole food groups, including many vegetables.
Low Carbohydrate Intake: Lack of carbohydrates might make engaging in any intense activity challenging, especially at the beginning.
Nausea: Many dieters experience nausea and exhaustion for the first few days. This is because the body must adjust to reduced carbohydrate consumption.
Boring: Since you consume the same foods daily, you can easily become bored while on the diet, making it difficult to maintain.
Benefits of Eating Eggs
There are many health-related benefits of eating more eggs. Here are seven reasons to up your egg intake:
Eggs are Nutrient Rich
Vitamins A, D, B-6, and B-12 are some of the essential vitamins and minerals found in eggs. Iron, calcium, and magnesium are also present. 10% of the recommended daily intake of vitamins B-12, A, B-6, B-3, and D can be found in one boiled egg. It also has 2% of your daily iron and calcium requirements.
Eggs are a Superior Form of Protein
Chicken eggs contain more than six grams of protein per egg. The protein content of one egg is equal to around thirty grams of meat, making it a higher-quality protein option. Additionally, the protein content of eggs is considered greater than that of chicken or beef, and they are also considerably more affordable than those foods.
Eggs have one of the highest biological values of any protein source. That means they contain all the essential amino acids in the right proportions. This makes them more readily available for protein synthesis, leading to greater muscle gains and post-workout tissue repair.
The protein in eggs is easily digestible, so it can be quickly broken down and absorbed into the body. The body can use the amino acids more effectively thanks to this digestibility.
Improved Eyesight
Your eyesight will deteriorate with time, a condition known as macular degeneration. Lutein and zeaxanthin, two essential nutrients abundant in eggs, are present in the eyes and help protect them. If you’re concerned about your eyesight, eggs are a terrific addition to your diet as they can help to shield them from harmful light wavelengths.
Balanced Blood Sugar
Eggs’ combination of protein and fat will help maintain stable blood sugar levels. If you have diabetes, this may help avoid problems because such issues raise blood sugar levels. Remember that eggs won’t boost your cholesterol if you’re following a low-carb diet. Eggs can help gradually lower your total cholesterol when you follow a low-carb diet. As a result, especially when considering the advantages of weight loss, this can aid in lowering the risk of heart disease.
Brain Health
A nutrient called choline, abundant in eggs, is crucial for your mental well-being. It promotes brain development as well as memory activation. It’s also vital for pregnant women because a growing child will cause a mother’s choline levels to drop dangerously low. According to estimates, as many as 90% of people have low choline levels. Therefore, you are doing your brain a huge favor by giving it a nutrient it sorely needs by eating eggs.
Promotes a Feeling of Fullness
Eggs do a great job of filling you up, helping control your caloric intake. As we’ve already discovered, eggs are a fantastic source of high-quality protein. Protein can aid in lowering appetite and boosting feelings of fullness because it is more satiating than carbohydrates or lipids. The amino acids in eggs promote the release of hormones that signal to the brain that you are full.
The essential amino acids in eggs promote a feeling of fullness. The rich supply of nutrients in eggs also helps control appetite and advance general health. Eggs take longer to digest since they include more protein and fat. This gradual digestive process enables you to feel satisfied for extended periods and can minimize blood sugar spikes, which can cause cravings and increased hunger.
Hair, Nail, and Bone Health
Eggs are great for the health of your hair, bones, and nails, especially if you cannot consume dairy products. That’s because eggs will boost your calcium and vitamin D levels. Eggs are also rich in omega-3 fatty acids, which also support your hair, nail, and bone health.
Is It Best To Eat Scrambled Eggs or Hard Boiled?
The name of this diet is the hard-boiled egg diet, which leads to the question, ‘Why hard-boiled?’ After all, one of the benefits of eggs is that there are so many ways to cook them, helping to prevent eating monotony. So, is there a reason why you should stick to hard-boiling your eggs on this diet?
To answer that question, let’s consider the best way to cook an egg to preserve its nutritional goodness. We first need to appreciate that fats oxidize when heat is applied. This can potentially turn good fats into bad fats. Eggs contain a lot of good fats, so we don’t want to do anything that will take away from that goodness. Excessive heat can also damage the micronutrients contained in the egg.
So, with these points in mind, let’s look at the various way you can cook eggs:
Hard-Boiled
Hard-boiled eggs are the winner in terms of convenience. They require minimal work to cook and provide a convenient snack you can take with you when you’re away from home. Hard boiling also lets you leave the shell and the protective membrane on as you cook the egg. This will help to protect the nutrients and the fats from the heat that is applied.
Soft-Boiled
The difference between a soft-boiled and a hard-boiled egg comes down to timing. With a soft-boiled egg, you reduce the time under heat, so the yolk remains runny. As a result, you are applying less heat, which further protects the fats and micronutrients from damage. In fact, because you are not really cooking the yolk, its contents will not have a detrimental effect.
Poached
Poaching eggs well is a skill that takes time to acquire. It involves filling a saucepan with 2-3 inches of water and heating it to a gentle simmer. You then crack the egg into a small bowl and slide it into the simmering water. Cook the egg for 4-6 minutes for a soft yolk and 7-8 minutes for a hard yolk.
Poaching is an excellent way to cook your eggs, as it reduces the heat applied to the yolk.
Scrambled
Scrambling is probably the most popular way to eat eggs. However, from a nutrient point of view, it’s also the worst way. That’s because you are applying a lot of heat to the mixed-up egg from every angle. This can potentially destroy some micronutrients and convert good fats into bad.
Over Easy
Over-easy cooking involves putting the egg in a frying pan and cooking it on both sides. This method also applies a lot of heat to the egg, providing a greater chance of damaging the micronutrients within the yolk.
Sunny Side Up
Sunny side up involves only cooking the egg on one side. This is a healthier way to cook the egg as it means leaving the yolk in a close to raw state. Because you’re not applying a lot of heat to the yolk, you won’t destroy its micronutrients and fats.
Raw
Eating raw eggs ensures you’re not destroying any of the micronutrients or fats. However, you are missing out on the advantage of heat, which effectively eliminates bacteria such as salmonella. This risk, though, is minimal, especially if you store your eggs properly.
To summarize, we can list different ways of cooking eggs based on their nutritional value, ranking them from the most beneficial to the least.
Soft-boiled
Hard-boiled
Raw
Sunny side up
Over easy
Poached
Scrambled
When it comes to the hard-boiled egg diet, there is no particular benefit to hard boiling rather than soft boiling, apart from the convenience factor (it’s easier to eat a hard-boiled egg on the run than a soft-boiled one). Feel free to use either method to prepare your eggs.
Here’s how to boil an egg to ensure you end up with your preferred level of hardness:
Add enough water to a pot to cover an egg by about an inch
Place the egg in the pot and bring it to a boil
Reduce the heat to a gentle simmer
Cook for:
Four minutes if you want a runny yolk
Five minutes for a slightly firmer yolk
Six minutes for a yolk that is almost set
Transfer the eggs to a bowl of cold water until it is cool enough to handle
Why You Lose Weight on the Hard-Boiled Egg Diet
Proponents of the boiled egg diet do not claim that eggs have any magical weight loss properties. Still, many cases of extreme fat loss are reported online from following this diet. By extreme, I mean up to 20 pounds in two weeks.
Not all that weight loss, however, will be fat loss. Our bodies can store fats and carbohydrates. When we store carbohydrates, we also hold water. Those carbohydrates are used to fuel exercise and other daily activities. We can lose weight quickly when we cut back our carbohydrate intake. Much of that weight loss, though, will be water.
Here’s what a typical day of following the hard-boiled egg and diet might look like:
Meal One: Two hard-boiled eggs and a piece of fruit
Meal Two: Green vegetables and chicken salad
Meal Three: Chicken and salad
The first thing you’ll notice here is that this is not a lot of food. In fact, if you were to calculate the calorie content of the above three meals, it would come out at less than 1,000 calories for the entire day. That is an extremely low total, especially for active people.
The daily carbohydrate content is also extremely low on this diet. As a result, you will see quite a dramatic reduction in the amount of fluids held in your body if you follow this eating plan.
Most people following a weight loss diet will increase their activity levels. They may begin a workout program at the gym or simply start using the stairs rather than the elevator at work or parking their car a couple of blocks away from their work location. This will help with the calorie burn that ensures that they maintain a daily caloric deficit, which is the key to weight loss.
The hard-boiled egg diet’s effectiveness in quick weight loss is undeniable. However, the main reason for the weight loss is not that you’re eating eggs, even though they are extremely healthy, but that you are dramatically cutting back on your calorie intake. Most people require 2,000 or more calories daily to maintain functionality. The hard-boiled egg diet cuts that number in half. This creates a daily caloric deficit of over 1,000 calories, forcing your body to turn to stored body fat reserves to make up the energy difference.
The hard-boiled egg diet is meant to be a short-term intervention, with most people only sticking with it for a couple of weeks. And that is its biggest problem. It is not a sustainable diet because it involves such a dramatic calorie reduction. Most people will regain the lost weight, and then some, after going off the diet.
When you take in fewer calories and, at the same time, increase your energy levels, your metabolism adjusts so that it becomes more efficient at not burning calories. This is part of the body’s built-in survival mechanism. So, when you go on an ultra-low calorie diet, such as the hard-boiled egg diet, your metabolic rate will adapt, so you burn calories slower.
What do you think will happen when you go off the diet?
When you return to your pre-diet caloric intake, you will see rapid weight regain. Your slowed-down metabolism will not be able to cope with the high caloric intake that it is now experiencing. As a result, more and more calories will be stored as body fat, and you will end up heavier than when you began the diet.
Hard-Boiled Egg Diet vs. 36 Eggs a Day Diet
While the hard-boiled egg diet has gained traction over the past few years, another egg-based diet has been popular, especially among bodybuilders, for decades — the 36 eggs-a-day diet.
When I first heard of the hard-boiled egg diet, I thought it was a version of the 36 eggs-a-day diet. You may have thought the same thing. So, to avoid confusion, let’s see how the 36-eggs-a-day diet differs from the hard-boiled egg diet.
The 36 eggs-a-day diet was promoted in the 1970s by legendary bodybuilding trainer Vince Gironda. Known for his unconventional training methods (he banned squats from his gym) and nutrition advice, Vince reportedly said that eating 36 eggs daily was as beneficial in building muscle as going on a Dianabol cycle.
Vince referred to his diet as the hormone precursor diet. It was designed to do the following:
Get you in a state of positive nitrogen balance
Put 30-50 grams of protein into your body every three hours
Release the precursor hormones to put you in an anabolic state
Vince was aware that cholesterol, which eggs contain a lot of, is a precursor that is a building block for growth hormone and testosterone. The high-quality protein in eggs also helps put you in a positive nitrogen balance.
Vince believed that the best way to consume eggs was raw. So, rather than eating the eggs, he had his athletes drink them as a special shake. The shake contained 12 raw eggs and was consumed three times per day.
Here’s the full contents of the raw egg shake:
12 oz (360 ml) half-and-half milk
12 raw eggs
⅓ cup of milk and egg protein powder
1 banana
This shake is to be consumed for breakfast and then between your lunch and dinner meals. Lunch and dinner would consist of a palm-sized serving of meat and a salad.
Vince also advocated the use of the following supplements on this diet:
Zinc
Multivitamins
Kelp
HCL
Digestive enzymes
Liver tablets
Apart from the small amount in the banana and your lunch and dinner salads, this diet has no carbs.
There is some scientific backing for this diet. In a 1975 study, doctors put severe burn patients on a diet consisting of 35 eggs per day. None of the patients suffered negative side effects. They all experienced normal serum protein levels more quickly than patients in the control group. The researchers concluded that a high-protein diet is safe for treating severe burns. [1]
The 36-eggs-a-day diet should be followed for six to eight weeks. You then switch to a vegetarian detox diet for a week before resuming your normal eating pattern. While Vince advocated the diet for hard gainers, he also promoted it as a way for advanced bodybuilders to break out of a muscle plateau.
Key Differences Between the 36-eggs-a-day and Hard-Boiled Egg Diets
Here are the differences between the two egg diets:
36 eggs a day is primarily for muscle gain
The hard-boiled egg diet is mainly for weight loss
36 eggs a day diet has you drink raw eggs
The hard-boiled egg diet has you cook the eggs
The hard-boiled egg diet is shorter, usually lasting no longer than two weeks, compared with six to eights weeks on the 36 eggs-a-day diet
How to Succeed on the Hard-Boiled Egg Diet
As we’ve seen, the major problem with the hard-boiled egg diet is not the fact that you’re eating eggs but that your total daily caloric intake is simply too low. But it doesn’t have to be that way. By increasing your daily food intake, while still focusing on eggs, citrus fruits, vegetables, and lean proteins, you will be able to find success on this diet. While your weight loss will not be as dramatic as it would be if you were eating less than 1,000 calories a day, your weight loss will be far healthier and more sustainable.
You need to make the following two key adjustments for the hard-boiled diet to be successful:
Track your Calories
Your first step in planning a healthy hard-boiled egg diet should be calculating your current caloric maintenance level. This figure, also known as your total daily energy expenditure (TDEE), tells you how many calories you must consume daily to meet your energy needs. There are several formulae that you can use to work this out. However, the easiest way is to use an online calculator such as this one.
Once you know your total daily energy expenditure, you should reduce that figure by 500 calories. This will ensure that you end each day with a caloric deficit. To meet your daily energy demands, your body will have to call on its stored fat energy reserves. Reducing your daily food intake by 500 calories is safe and sustainable.
Now that you know how many calories you need to consume each day, it is up to you to track those calories. Don’t just leave it to chance. You can use online food tracking apps like MyFitnessPal to track your calories and protein, carbohydrate, and fat intake.
Rebuild Your Caloric Intake
By reducing your daily caloric intake less dramatically, you can sustain the hard-boiled diet for longer. While most people only stay on this diet for 14 days, you should be able to do so for at least six to eight weeks when you reduce your intake by 500 calories per day.
Even though you are only reducing your daily caloric intake by 500 calories, your metabolism will still slow down. If you suddenly return to your maintenance calorie level when you finish the diet, you risk unwanted weight gain. That is why you should slowly return to your pre-diet calorie intake.
For example, if your daily maintenance caloric intake is 2,500, you should consume 2,000 calories daily on the hard-boiled egg diet. Rather than going straight back up to 2,500 calories, you should increase by 50-100 calories per day for the first week. Then, continue adding another 50 calories daily for each passing week. By doing this, after 10 weeks, you will have returned to your maintenance level. Slowly transitioning back up in this manner will give your body the time needed to readjust your metabolism. This strategy will help you avoid the rebound weight gain that plagues so many dieters.
What Type of Egg To Use on a Hard-Boiled Egg Diet
While most people use chicken eggs for the hard-boiled egg diet, other options exist. Here’s an overview of the various types of eggs available and their benefits:
Brown Chicken Eggs
You’ve probably seen brown eggs on the supermarket shelf. You may have also noticed that brown eggs are considerably more expensive than white ones. The difference between the two comes down to the breed of chicken producing the egg.
Brown eggs as produced by the Marans, Reds, Sussex, and Plymouth Rock breeds. All of these breeds have brown feathers and produce eggs with brown shells. White eggs are laid by chickens with white feathers, such as White Rocks and Leghorns.
Despite the price difference, Brown and white chicken eggs have no major nutrition differences. The macro and micro nutrient content does not change depending on the color of the eggshell.
Omega-3 Enriched Chicken Eggs
Eggs promoted as omega-3 enhanced have been laid by chickens fed a diet rich in omega-3 fatty acids. Omega-3s are a type of polyunsaturated fatty acids that provide a wide range of health benefits, including controlling inflammation, improving brain power, and enhancing heart health.
Omega-3-enriched chickens are fed with foods like flaxseed, algae, and fish oil. This increases the omega-3 content of the eggs they lay. The eggs will be especially high in alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA).
The amount of omega-3 fatty acids in these eggs can change according to how the chickens are fed. Check the nutritional label to identify the exact omega-3 content.
Vegetarian Chicken Eggs
If you notice the vegetarian label on an egg carton, it signifies that no animal protein was given to the hens who laid the eggs. This may sound good for you, but it’s not. A hen is naturally not vegetarian because its diet typically includes insects and worms.
Duck Eggs
Duck eggs tend to be bigger than chicken eggs in size. Compared to chicken eggs, their shells are a bit thicker and harder, which might make them stronger but harder to shatter.
Here is a comparison of the nutritional content of chicken and duck eggs:
Chicken Egg:
Calories: 71
Total Fat: 5 Grams
Cholesterol: 211 mg
Carbs: 0 Grams
Sodium: 70 mg
Protein: 6 Grams
Duck Eggs:
Calories: 130
Fat: 10 Grams
Cholesterol: 619 Grams
Carbs: 1 Gram
Sodium: 102 mg
Protein: 9 grams
Duck eggs typically have larger yolks than chicken eggs. They also have around double the fat content and a third more protein. In addition, their levels of micronutrients like selenium, vitamin D, and vitamin B12 are higher. The cholesterol level in duck eggs is often higher than that of chicken eggs.
Although there are notable differences between chicken and duck eggs, they have comparable nutritional profiles.
Duck eggs have a distinctive flavor that is richer and creamier than chicken eggs. Duck eggs’ yolks have a deeper flavor and a slightly different texture since they are bigger and contain more fat. While some people prefer the taste of duck eggs, it may be too strong for others.
Duck and chicken eggs can be substituted in many dishes, but there are several key distinctions to remember. Duck eggs are frequently preferred in baking and pastry preparation because of their bigger size and higher fat content. Some baked foods can contribute to a richer texture and help produce a higher rise. Custards, puddings, and other desserts frequently use duck eggs as an ingredient. However, the availability and adaptability of chicken eggs make them more popular in regular cooking.
Some people may find that duck eggs are more tolerable for them than chicken eggs. Duck eggs can trigger allergies in some people, so those with egg allergies should proceed cautiously. Duck eggs are more expensive than chicken eggs because of limited supply and greater production costs.
You should give duck eggs another one to two minutes in hot water when boiling because they naturally have a thicker shell and are larger.
Organic Eggs
Organic eggs are promoted as being healthier than standard eggs. As a result, they command a significantly higher price. However, there are variations among organic labeling. You can’t just assume that since something is labeled organic, it is healthy. A few labels the USDA allows to describe an organic product are ‘one hundred percent organic,’ ‘ninety-five percent organic,’ and ‘created with organic ingredients.’
If a carton of eggs is marked organic, you know it was produced in an environment free of pesticides, fungicides, herbicides, and synthetic fertilizers. However, “organic” won’t tell you anything about your hen’s living conditions or nutritional worth. In other words, just because you buy organic eggs doesn’t guarantee they are more nutrient-dense. All you can be sure of is that they won’t have any pesticide traces.
What is the Grade of an Egg?
Grading systems, which may differ between countries, are used to rate the appearance and quality of eggs. The Department of Agriculture (USDA) established the USA’s grading system. It is based on the following grades:
Grade AA:
Grade AA eggs are the best in terms of look and quality. The shell must be unscratched, intact, and without leaks or cracks. The air cell, or pocket of air, should be small and not deeper than 1/8 inch at the wide end of the egg. The egg white has to be crystal clear, solid, and barely spread. The yolk should be solid, spherical, and either slightly off-center. The egg should be neat and appealing in terms of aesthetics overall.
Grade A:
While Grade A eggs are still of great quality, they might not seem quite as flawless as Grade AA eggs. The shell must be undamaged and clean. Small imperfections or stains are acceptable but should be kept to a minimum. The air cell may be slightly bigger than in Grade AA eggs, but it shouldn’t be deeper than 3/16 inches. The egg white should be moderately distributed, transparent, and firm. The yolk should be solid and spherical, but it can be slightly off-center or flattened. The egg should have a respectably tidy and decent appearance overall.
Grade B:
Grade B eggs are generally not offered as table eggs in stores because of their poor quality. They are frequently employed in processed egg goods or industrial settings. The shell may be rough, have little fissures, or both. The air cell may be larger than Grade AA or Grade A eggs. The egg white may be more evenly distributed and thinner, and the yolk may be more delicate and flatter. Compared to Grade AA or Grade A eggs, Grade B eggs are less aesthetically pleasing.
It’s important to remember that the grading standards primarily evaluate the outside quality and do not point out variations in nutritional value or flavor. Eggs of all grades can be equally nutrient-dense and safe for ingestion. Check the carton when buying eggs for the grade, usually marked on the box. Before choosing, look for any indications of damage or abnormalities in each egg.
Freshness is another important factor to consider when buying eggs. Check the carton for the Julian date, which is the date the eggs were packed. The closer it is to that date, the fresher the eggs.
Where to Store Eggs
Should eggs be kept on the kitchen counter or in the refrigerator? While most individuals worldwide keep their eggs in their pantry or on the counter, most Americans keep them in the refrigerator. The main distinction is that Americans often wash their eggs and store them in refrigerators to prevent salmonella.
Salmonella can be transferred to eggs in one of two ways:
From a contaminated hen
From poop
To ensure there are no feces on their eggs, Americans have a habit of washing them after returning from the shop. By doing so, however, they unintentionally reduce the egg’s safety. The cuticle is a coating of proteins and other substances that protects eggs. Salmonella cannot enter the egg through the permeable shell because of this built-in defense mechanism. This barrier is removed by washing the egg.
In Europe, egg washing is avoided to prevent cuticle loss. In contrast to the USA, many European nations also immunize their hens against salmonella. Salmonella contamination in American eggs is, therefore, more likely.
Bacterial growth is slowed by refrigerating the eggs. According to research, eggs with salmonella contamination, whether on the outside or inside, will become dangerously contaminated after three weeks of storage at room temperature. However, even after six weeks of storage in the fridge, there won’t be much bacterial development. [2]
So, let’s return to our original query — should eggs be refrigerated?
Store eggs at room temperature if they have not been washed and have received a salmonella vaccination. Condensation may accumulate on the shell of an egg when you retrieve it from the refrigerator. The resulting wetness promotes the growth of bacteria, which may penetrate the porous shell.
You should keep your eggs in the refrigerator if you live in the United States or another country where you buy them from the grocery store’s refrigerated section.
Hard-Boiled Egg Diet Tips
I have personally tried the hard-boiled egg diet, both in its strictest form and in the more traditional version. This has given me insight into the practicalities of the diet and how it can be modified to make it more user-friendly. Here are half a dozen tips that I’ve come up with:
Don’t limit yourself to hard-boiled eggs. Include soft-boiled, poached, and raw eggs if you can handle them.
Only reduce your calories by 500 calories below your maintenance level.
Add vegetables to the diet, including cucumbers, tomatoes, and leafy greens. This will ensure that you’re getting a sufficient amount of fiber.
Count your calories with the help of an app like MyFitnessPal; don’t leave it to guesswork.
Use hard-boiled eggs as a snack when you are away from home.
Add chopped-up hard-boiled eggs to your salads
FAQs
Is the hard-boiled egg diet expensive?
No, the hard-boiled egg diet is not considered an expensive diet compared to other diet options. The bulk of your protein will come from eggs, which are relatively inexpensive. If you follow the eggs-only diet version, you will probably find that your shopping bill will be dramatically reduced. Yet, even the traditional version will reduce your food bill as the other foods you eat are relatively inexpensive (such as fruits and vegetables).
Should you eat fats on the boiled egg diet?
Yes, you should consume fats on the hard-boiled egg diet. Fortunately, eggs themselves are a healthy source of fat, especially omega-3 fatty acids. This source of fatty acids has been shown to positively impact heart health, reduce triglyceride levels, and lower blood pressure. They also have cognitive benefits. A type of omega-3 fatty acid called docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) is a component of brain tissue and is vital for brain function and memory.
You can buy eggs that are omega-3 enriched. These are more expensive than standard eggs but will provide a higher amount of essential fatty acids.
If you are following the traditional version of the boiled egg diet, you can get extra fats by consuming avocados, nuts, olive oil, and fatty fish. You can also consume grass-fed butter and sugar-free mayonnaise.
Can I have any sweeteners on the hard-boiled egg diet?
No, you should not add sweeteners to any version of the hard-boiled egg diet. However, if you follow the traditional version, you will get natural sweeteners in the form of fructose in the fruits you consume. You should, though, limit your fruit intake to control fructose content. I recommend limiting your intake to three pieces of fruit per day.
Will I get constipation or diarrhea on the hard-boiled egg diet?
You might experience some digestive discomfort on the hard-boiled egg diet, including constipation or diarrhea. This is due to the diet’s high protein, low carbohydrate nature.
You increase the likelihood of constipation when you restrict your fiber intake and increase your protein intake, as you do on the hard-boiled egg diet. Fiber, which is abundant in whole grains, vegetables, and fruits, plays a big part in controlling your bowel movements. To avoid this, you should make sure that you are getting an adequate amount of fiber. You can do this by adding citrus fruits, vegetables, and nuts to your diet. You should also stay well hydrated, drinking at least half a gallon (around two liters) of water daily.
When you drastically change your food intake, especially one that involves increasing your protein intake, you may experience diarrhea. This should only last a day or two as your body adjusts to your new diet.
How long does the hard-boiled egg diet last?
The length of the hard-boiled egg diet will depend on the version of the diet you follow. If you follow the strict egg-only version, you should not go beyond one week on the diet. That’s because this version is nutritionally unbalanced, and doing it for longer than a week may be dangerous. The traditional version of the diet is usually followed for two weeks.
Summary
The hard-boiled egg diet can help you lose weight and keep it off, but only if you follow it smartly. By reducing your caloric intake by no more than 500 calories, adding leafy green vegetables to get the needed fiber, and gradually rebuilding your caloric intake as you come off the diet, you can avoid the metabolic reset that leads to weight regain.
Why not try the hard-boiled egg diet — you’ve got nothing to lose but those unwanted pounds!
Research
Hirshowitz B, Brook JG, Kaufman T, Titelman U, Mahler D. 35 eggs per day in the treatment of severe burns. Br J Plast Surg. 1975 Jul;28(3):185-8. doi: 10.1016/0007-1226(75)90127-7. PMID: 1191862.
Khan S, McWhorter AR, Moyle TS, Chousalkar KK. Refrigeration of eggs influences the virulence of Salmonella Typhimurium. Sci Rep. 2021 Sep 9;11(1):18026. doi: 10.1038/s41598-021-97135-4. PMID: 34504138; PMCID: PMC8429434.
Best Exercises to Lose Belly Fat After 50 — Get Fit and Fabulous
Once you pass your fifth decade, everything gets harder. Building muscle is a great struggle. Getting stronger takes a more dedicated effort. And maintaining a healthy body weight becomes a massive uphill battle. The reasons are clear; your metabolism is slowing down, your testosterone levels are depleting, and you’re naturally losing muscle and strength. So, what can you do about it?
Once you’re past 50, adopting a more intelligent approach to training becomes essential to conquer the innate obstacles to maintaining a healthy weight. Following the gym crowd and doing the old stand-by exercises to lose belly fat won’t cut it.
This article lists the best exercises to lose belly fat after 50. I’ll also lay out the other aspect of weight loss over 50 — how to eat to lose belly fat.
Importance of Losing Belly Fat Over 50
There are two types of fat in your body, subcutaneous and visceral. The fat that is beneath your skin is referred to as subcutaneous fat. This type of fat may be easily grabbed by hand and gathered in the usual “problem areas,” including the thighs, hips, neck, and arms. It accounts for around 80% to 90% of our total body fat.
The remaining 10 to 20 percent is called visceral fat and is found around the liver, spleen, intestines, kidneys, and other internal organs, as well as beneath the stomach muscles. It sometimes goes by “deep fat” since it covers your internal organs and fills the spaces between your stomach, intestines, liver, and other organs. [1]
Subcutaneous fat differs from belly fat, which is far more hazardous because it increases the risk of type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and inflammatory disorders. Belly fat forces the abdominal muscles outward because it is harder than subcutaneous fat.
These deep abdominal fat cells transfer their free fatty acids directly to the liver rather than releasing them into the bloodstream. Triglycerides and cholesterol are other types of fat that the liver creates in reaction and release into the bloodstream. Free fatty acids are the types of fat that are released from fat cells and carried into the blood, whereas triglycerides are another type of blood-borne fat that the body uses as an energy source. Increased risk of cardiovascular disease is linked to high cholesterol and triglyceride levels.
Challenges of Losing Belly Fat Over 50
Once past 50, you will find it increasingly difficult to keep your belly fat down to healthy levels. It’s not that your willpower to resist tempting foods is lower. Here are four physiological reasons you’re more prone to putting on belly fat over 50:
1. Reduced Metabolism
At around 30, most people’s metabolisms decline by about 1% every two years. Although the exact cause of our aging metabolism is unknown, it most likely involves a decline in muscle mass and a shift in hormone levels. Men produce less testosterone, while women’s estrogen levels decrease after menopause. [2]
2. Less Muscle
Age-related muscle loss, or sarcopenia, kicks in from about the age of 40. Because muscle is more active metabolically than fat, having less of it negatively affects our metabolic rate. As a result, you won’t burn as many calories at rest, making it easier for that spare tire to develop around your belly. [3]
3. Lifestyle
Most people tend to slow down as they age. By the time they reach their 50s, most folks stop playing sports, no longer play with the kids, and spend more time on the couch. That means fewer calories burned throughout the day.
4. Stress
When we experience chronic stress, our cortisol levels increase dramatically. This can indirectly contribute to higher levels of belly fat. As we get older, our stress levels can increase due to many factors, including work stressors, financial problems, and the concerns of looking after elderly parents.
Cortisol can increase the desire for comfort foods with high caloric content, particularly those high in carbohydrates and fats. These are the very foods that contribute to increases in belly fat.
Cortisol encourages fat storage, particularly visceral fat, which builds up around the abdominal organs. In fact, the hormone can actually redistribute subcutaneous fat to visceral fat.
Cortisol also has a catabolic effect on muscle tissue, causing a breakdown of amino acids. This can contribute to age-related muscle loss. [4]
15 Diet & Nutrition Tips To Lose Belly Fat Loss Over 50
As we’ve learned, excess belly fat is aesthetically unpleasing and dangerous. It puts you at a higher risk of cancer, coronary heart disease, type 2 diabetes, arthritis, and depression. Fortunately, it is possible to reduce your belly fat levels dramatically.
Here are 15 diet and nutrition tips that will complement your exercise-based efforts to reduce the spare tire:
1. Increase Your Fiber Intake
You can shed belly fat by increasing the amount of soluble fiber in your diet. This is because fiber will assist in lowering your blood sugar levels. You’ll experience stable insulin levels as a result.
Fiber, which is incredibly filling, also serves as the body’s natural cleaner. It enhances digestion and improves waste excretion. A 2011 study found that a 10-gram increase in soluble fiber consumption over a five-year period reduced belly fat accumulation by 3.7%. [5]
The best sources of fibrous carbs are brightly colored vegetables and berries, including strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, beans, lentils, and other legumes.
2. Reduce Your Alcohol Intake
Unsurprisingly, overindulging in alcohol can lead to a ‘beer gut.’ In fact, if you are trying to reduce your belly fat, alcohol will be one of your worst enemies. Alcohol contains zero proteins, carbohydrates, or fats. In other words, it has no nutritional benefit whatsoever, and every gram of alcohol adds seven calories to your system.
After you drink alcohol, your body prioritizes metabolizing it. That means your body will first burn alcohol instead of fat, postponing your ability to burn off the spare tire.
Alcohol puts almost twice as many calories per gram into your body than carbs and protein (seven versus four). And those calories are much easier to consume than the solid foods we eat to get macronutrients into our system. As a result, it is extremely easy to take in hundreds, even thousands, of zero-nutrition calories from alcohol in an evening.
Alcohol slows down the central nervous system and lowers inhibitions. One of the effects of this is that people eat more when they are drinking. And the foods that are normally consumed on these occasions are those that are high in simple carbs. All of this is a sure-fire recipe for fat gain.
Alcohol hurts food digestion, leading to reduced efficiency in breaking down fats for fuel, impeding the weight loss process.
Alcohol has a negative effect on testosterone production. Testosterone is an important hormone for fat loss, so its alcohol-induced lowered release will directly impact fat-burning ability.
The bottom line here is if you’re serious about getting rid of visceral body fat, you need to cut back on the booze. [6]
3. Consume More Omega-3 Fatty Acids
Your feelings, behavior, and physique aesthetics will change dramatically if you consume more omega-3 fatty acids, particularly while following a weight loss program.
Here’s what increasing your omega-3 intake will do for you:
Boost your insulin sensitivity
Aid with fat burning
Boost your metabolism
Reduce cortisol production and increase your energy
Assist with muscle growth
The best sources of omega-3 fatty acids are eggs, fatty fish, chia seeds, walnuts, and flaxseeds. [7]
4. Eat More Monounsaturated Fats
Monounsaturated fats have the power to lower insulin and LDL cholesterol levels. Here are five excellent sources of monounsaturated fats:
Olive
Nuts
Avocado
Avocado Oil
Coconut Oil
5. Eliminate Processed Grains
Processed grain products include cereal, bagels, pasta, bread, and bagels. The nutritional content of the grains is reduced while the calorie density is increased by milling, refining, and bleaching. That’s not a healthy combination.
Although whole grain types are preferable because they still contain some fiber and nutrients, even these are processed to some extent and may be high in calories.
However, you should only consume only whole grains going forward. That means avoiding products made from white pasta, rice, or flour. [8]
6. Prepare for Snack Time
A vital tactic for effective weight loss is predicting and planning when you’re likely to feel hungry throughout the day. When hunger strikes, having ready-to-eat, homemade snacks can come in handy.
Here are five tasty, straightforward snacks:
Apple crisps
Almonds
A nutritious smoothie
Hard-boiled eggs
A can of water-packed tuna
7. Reduce Liquid Calorie Intake
Liquid calories have several significant issues. Refined sugars are frequently used in weight loss smoothies as flavoring. Others use preservatives to enhance flavor and mixability. Those who consume solid meals feel satiated longer than those who use meal-replacement beverages.
In a 2007 study, test subjects were given solid food and a meal replacement shake, and their degree of satiety was monitored over the next four hours.
The satiety levels were much higher in the solid food group. In fact, the meal replacement group’s body didn’t even recognize that they had eaten from a chemical standpoint. [9]
8. Increase Water Intake
Hydration is crucial to a successful weight-loss strategy. Water can also help increase metabolism. Participants in a study who drank 16 ounces of water daily experienced a 30% rise in their metabolism. [10]
Always keep a water bottle with you. To stay full, regularly sip from it. Drinking water will also assist you in satisfying your thirst so that you don’t confuse it with hunger.
9. Begin Meal Prepping
One of the keys to sticking to your smart eating plan is prepping your meals in advance. This involves keeping a couple of hours aside, usually on the weekend, to prepare your weekly meals.
This greatly eases your search for nutritious options that adhere to your macronutrient guidelines. Meal planning will also significantly reduce your likelihood of reverting to poor eating patterns.
10. Avoid Trans Fatty Acids
Unsaturated lipids become trans fatty acids when hydrogen is introduced. They have been demonstrated to increase belly fat in addition to being connected to heart disease and insulin resistance. According to one study, eating a lot of trans fats can increase belly fat by 33%. [11]
11. Do a 14-Day Detox
To get rid of toxins and other impurities in your body, try a 14-day detox. The doors of fat loss may effectively be flung open by this. It’s not necessary to starve during a cleanse. It involves giving your body the proper nutrients to remove toxins and restore its natural equilibrium.
12. Increase Coconut Oil Consumption
Recent years have seen a lot of research focused on the coconut. Many of these studies have focused on how they can aid in weight loss.
Coconut oil contains medium-chain fatty acids that do not circulate in the bloodstream like long-chain fatty acids. Instead, they are sent to the liver, which turns them into energy. As a result, your body turns to coconut oil for energy rather than storing the calories as fat.
According to some studies, switching from olive oil, which contains long-chain fatty acids, to coconut oil, which contains medium-chain fatty acids, results in greater fat reduction. Coconut oil is particularly helpful for decreasing weight around the abdomen, where visceral fat collects. Because it is linked to so many ailments, visceral fat is the most harmful type of fat.
In a recent study, one ounce of coconut oil was added to women’s diets with excessive abdominal fat. Both their waist circumference and their BMI significantly decreased after 12 weeks. This was accomplished without any exercise or other dietary changes. [12]
13. Add Herbs to your Meals
Several plants have been used by indigenous peoples worldwide for centuries to help with weight loss. In recent decades, science has confirmed the effectiveness of some of them. Here are three of the best:
Turmeric
Cumin
Ashwagandha
14. Consume More Protein
Protein aids in fat loss in addition to helping you develop muscle. This is because protein has the strongest thermogenic effect of all the macronutrients, is very filling, and reduces hunger. As a result, it requires more energy to digest than fats or carbohydrates.
When paired with weight resistance exercise, protein’s ability to build muscle also aids in belly fat reduction. Maintaining muscle demands five times as many calories as maintaining body fat. Therefore, the more muscular you are, the leaner you will be!
Plan to consume one gram of protein per pound of body weight, with your preferred protein sources being eggs, chicken, fish, legumes, Greek yogurt, and cream cheese. [13]
Related: Try Our Protein Calculator
15. Cut Yourself Some Slack
It is important to be realistic when trying to lose belly fat. When you try to lead a healthy lifestyle, you’ll find yourself moving in the opposite direction from the vast majority of people. The environment you are in will constantly provide you with temptations. It’s ridiculous to expect yourself to never make a mistake. Remember that a poor eating decision won’t halt your progress.
The key takeaway is that you shouldn’t punish yourself if you make a poor nutritional choice or skip an exercise. Your ability to succeed depends on developing long-lasting habits that you can maintain. An occasional slip-up won’t hamper your results.
Best Exercises to Lose Belly Fat Over 50
Losing weight, and keeping it off, is all about consistency. Sticking to a balanced training and diet plan to create a calorie deficit will help you shed unwanted pounds effectively and sustain your weight loss progress over time.
The key to success is incorporating a sustainable exercise schedule into your lifestyle. Let’s find out how it should (and shouldn’t) be done.
How Not to Lose Belly Fat
Let’s get it straight from the outset, you will not lose belly fat by doing hundreds of sit-ups, crunches, leg raises, or other exercises for your abdominal muscles. The reason is simple; you cannot spot-reduce belly fat. In other words, doing a thousand crunches will not burn fat off your belly fat.
Fat comes off the body evenly. So, when you do a calorie-burning exercise, you cannot dictate what part of the body it will come from. Depending on your genetics, the fat might come off the belly and the sides of the waist (the dreaded love handles) last. When you build muscle, you will also increase your metabolism to burn more calories.
Exercise Type: Fast or Slow?
There is a lot of confusion about what type of cardiovascular exercise is best for weight loss. It boils down to two options — long and slow cardio or fast and short cardio. Both sides have their passionate advocates, yet the current scientific consensus is squarely on the side of fast, short, high-intensity sessions. High-intensity interval training (HIIT) involves quick bursts of high-intensity training followed by short rest periods.
The best HIIT exercises will allow you to use maximum exertion to burn maximum calories. Running is a great choice, allowing for hard-out sprints (imagine a Doberman is chasing you) followed by a slow jog. Incorporating HIIT training into your exercise schedule thrice weekly will help you burn calories while exercising and turn your body into a fat-burning furnace by boosting your metabolism for the next 24 hours. [14]
The best exercises to reduce belly fat for men are those that burn the most calories. Combine this with a healthy diet, and your belly girth will decrease. Here are the six effective belly fat exercises to reduce fat from your midline:
Treadmill
Exercising on a treadmill is the most popular form of cardio exercise in gyms worldwide. However, most people do not do it with enough intensity. Walking at 2 miles an hour while reading a book will not cut it. A far better way to go is HIIT. This involves interpreting short sprints with even shorter rest periods for multiple bouts.
Tabata is another effective form of HIIT workout for fat loss. It involves a slow two-minute warmup and a 20 seconds max speed sprint. You then throw your legs out to the side of the running belt for 10 seconds. That is one round. The workout involves performing eight rounds. It is extremely hard work but burns a ton of calories. Then, thanks to what is known as the enhanced post-exercise oxygen consumption (EPOC) effect, you will have an elevated metabolism for the next 24-36 hours!
Rowing Machine
The rowing machine is another excellent exercise that will help you reduce fat around your belly. This exercise involves your whole body and gets your heart and lungs in good shape. While rowing, stay upright and move through a full range of motion, pushing through the legs. [15]
Here’s an awesome fat-burning rowing machine workout that combines the rowing machine with body weight and free-weight exercises:
Row at a steady pace for 10 minutes.
Jump off the machine and do 10 dumbbell overhead presses.
Do 10 standing torso twists or cross-body punches.
Row at a steady pace for 10 minutes.
Jump off the machine and do 10 lateral shuffle walks.
Now do 15 kettlebell swings.
Row at a steady pace for 10 minutes.
Jump off the machine and do a 30-second plank.
Now do 10 step-ups.
Jumping Jacks
Jumping jacks is a classic old-school cardio exercise you can do anywhere, anytime, to burn off those excess calories. To perform them, start with your legs together and your arms by your sides. Take a small jump straight up and, as you do, move your legs apart. At the same time, swing your arms up above your head into a clap. Take another small jump and return your arms and legs to their starting position.
You can use jumping jacks to burn off calories as a stand-alone exercise or add them to your workout routine. For example, if you are doing a weight training program, do 20 jumping jacks between each set.
Burpees
The burpee is another old-school bodyweight exercise that must be a part of your training regimen. This is, in fact, one of the highest calorie-burning exercises that you can do without any equipment.
Here is how to perform the burpee:
Stand with feet shoulder-width apart and your arms by your sides.
Drop down into a push-up position, kicking your feet back behind you.
Perform a push-up.
Jump your feet back toward your hands.
Spring up into the air to return to the start position.
Burpees can be performed in HIIT fashion, making them an even more effective fat burner. Here is an example of how you can do this:
Do burpees for 20 seconds.
Rest for 10 seconds.
Do another 20-second round of burpees.
Rest for 10 seconds.
Repeat until you have completed eight rounds, aiming to maintain the same number of burpees in each round.
Step-Ups
Step-ups are another effective calorie burner that you can do without any equipment. Besides helping you reduce belly fat, this exercise will work on your quads, glutes, hamstrings, and calves. Here is how to perform step-ups:
Stand out 12 inches away from a step or bench with a hip-width stance.
Place your right foot on an elevated surface while the left is grounded.
Drive your right foot into the surface and extend your leg. Both your feet should be together at the top.
Reverse the movement to lower yourself to the floor.
Switch between legs or complete recommended reps on the same side between changing sides.
Always keep your body straight and tall. Avoid the temptation to lean forward from your hips. Hold a pair of dumbbells in your hands to burn even more calories.
Shuttle Sprints
This is a challenging cardio calorie burner that will also improve your agility.
Set up two markers on the floor 3 yards apart.
Begin with your hand on one of the markers in a sprint stance.
Sprint to the other marker and touch it with your hand.
Immediately sprint back to the other marker.
Lift Weight to Lose Weight
The second tier of your weight loss exercise regimen needs to involve some form of resistance training. There is conclusive evidence that exercise involving muscle contraction burns more calories and assists in fat loss.
Incorporating weight training into your exercise schedule will not only boost your fat-burning efforts but also ensure that you are not losing vital muscle tissue. In the process, it will help build your dream physique. [16]
Lifting weights burns a considerable amount of calories. That is especially the case when you perform what are known as compound moves, such as deadlifts, that involve several muscle groups working together. But there’s an extra benefit. After you finish your workout, your body will have a greater need for oxygen to meet the demands that your workout has placed on your muscles. This brings on the EPOC effect.
EPOC stands for excessive post-exercise oxygen consumption, and it leads to a higher metabolic rate for up to 24 hours. That means you burn more calories for up to a day after your workout.
When you work a muscle with weights, you place stress on that muscle. This can cause micro-tears in the muscle fiber. When you recover after the workout, your body uses energy to rebuild the muscle. That, too, is burning calories from stored body fat.
Weight training is the best way to add muscle mass. Muscle is much more dense than fat. It takes up more space and burns five times more calories than fat. So, every ounce of muscle you add makes you more of a fat-burning machine. That’s why resistance training should be integral to your belly fat loss program. I recommend doing resistance exercises at least twice weekly.
Rather than doing multiple sets of the same exercise before moving to the next one, you will do all five exercises consecutively, with a minimum amount of rest between exercises. Don’t rest at all between exercises one and two. Then give yourself 30 seconds to regain your breath before doing exercises three and four. Rest another 30 seconds before doing exercise number five.
Go through this circuit thrice, resting for two minutes between each circuit.
For each consecutive workout, your goal will be to add more resistance to the bar. However, only do so when you are confident that you have optimized your form on that movement.
Here is your six exercises resistance training circuit for weight loss:
Dumbbell Bench Press
Prime Mover: Pectorals
Sit on the end of a bench with dumbbells resting on your thighs. Roll back onto the bench, bringing the dumbbells up to arm’s length above your chest.
Breathe in as you expand your chest and lower the dumbbells to the sides of your chest. Be sure to go down to a point at least an inch lower than your nipples.
In the bottom position, your scapulae should be squeezing together. Now breathe out as you power back to the start position.
Farmer’s Walk
Prime Mover: Quadriceps
Select a pair of light dumbbells of an appropriate weight.
Stand between the dumbbells and bend down to grip the handles. Lift the dumbbells by driving up through your heels while keeping your back straight and your head up.
Take an exaggerated step that requires you to lunge. The longer the step, the more emphasis is placed on your glutes, while shorter steps maximize the effect on the thighs.
Pushing off with your forward leg, continue lunge walking until you have covered the set distance.
Deadlift
Prime Mover: Upper Back
Stand in front of the bar so that your midfoot is under the bar and your feet are shoulder-width apart.
Grab the bar by bending the knees but maintaining a neutral spine. Hold the bar with a shoulder-wide mixed grip.
Push through your heels as you pull with your hips, not your arms. Your hips should be higher than the knees at the start of the pull.
Bring the hips, shoulders, and chest up together as the bar comes off the floor. You want the bar to travel directly up and close to your body.
As the bar reaches the mid-thigh level, squeeze your glutes tightly to prevent pulling with your lower back. At the same time, pull your shoulders back.
Continue pulling until you are standing erect.
Kettlebell High Pull
Prime Movers: Quadriceps / Glutes
Holding a light kettlebell, and with your feet shoulder-width apart, squat down with a neutral spine and your hips slightly higher than your knees. Your shoulders should be ahead of the kettlebell.
Simultaneously pull down through your feet while driving your hips up and forward. Pull the kettlebell up toward your chin. This movement should bring you up on your toes.
Immediately squat back down into the start position.
Incline Dumbbell Curl
Prime Mover: Biceps
Set an incline bar at a 45-degree angle. Grasp two dumbbells with an underhand grip.
Curl the weights towards your shoulders.
Stop and squeeze your biceps when the dumbbells are 6 to 8 inches in front of your shoulders. Hold the contraction, squeezing tight, for 2 seconds.
Slowly return the dumbbells to the starting position. Be sure to resist gravity during eccentrics.
Lying Triceps Extension
Prime Mover: Triceps
Lie face up on a bench with a pair of dumbbells in your hands.
Extend your arms directly above your upper chest.
Keeping the elbows in, bend at the elbows as you bring the dumbbells down at the sides of your forehead.
Contract the triceps to return to the start position.
Putting It Together
Now that we’ve identified the types of exercise that best fit your weight loss exercise schedule, let’s consider the frequency of performing those movements. You must exercise five days a week. You will perform your HIIT exercises on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. As already explained, HIIT involves short-duration workouts. In fact, you’ll only have to allocate six minutes to your workouts on those days.
Here’s how it will look:
Choose an exercise you are comfortable performing with maximum intensity (sprinting, cycling, and skipping are good options).
Perform a medium-intensity warmup for two minutes.
Perform 20 seconds of maximum intensity.
Recover for 10 seconds.
Repeat this sequence until 4 minutes are up.
On Tuesday and Thursday, you will perform your resistance training workout. On each exercise, you will perform 12 repetitions. Then move directly to your next exercise until you have completed the six-exercise circuit. Work up to doing four rounds of this circuit workout.
Supplement Strategies to Lose Belly Fat Over 50
The are four mechanisms used by fat loss supplements to help users strip off body fat:
Appetite suppression
Increased metabolism
Increased fat oxidation
Boosted energy levels
Here are five supplements you can consider for your weight loss program:
Caffeine
Caffeine has been a foundational ingredient in fat burners from the very start. Its main appeal is its ability to speed up metabolism. Each milligram of caffeine you add to your body has been shown to increase your metabolic rate by about one calorie to a maximum of about a hundred calories daily. Caffeine also reduces perceived exertion during exercise. That means you can work harder for longer and burn more calories.
Caffeine also can focus your energy consumption during exercise on your fat reserves rather than stored glucose. The evidence that caffeine suppresses the appetite is not very strong.
Too much caffeine, however, is not a good thing. The maximum daily dosage should be limited to around 300 mg (250 mg for women).
Coffee Caffeine
L-Carnitine
L-Carnitine is added to fat burners to increase fat oxidation. That’s because it has been shown to play a key role in transporting long-chain fatty acids into the cell’s mitochondria, where energy is produced. The body naturally produces carnitine, but it quickly depletes when exercising. Adding it to your fat burner will help to replenish your carnitine levels and speed up fat oxidation.
Look for a supplement that provides 1-3 grams of carnitine daily.
Green Tea
Green tea comes from the camellia sinensis plant. It is rich in polyphenols, including catechins and flavonoids. Catechins have been shown to be especially beneficial for fat loss, boosting the metabolism. The star among the catechins when it comes to fat burning is a compound called epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG). EGCG will boost your metabolism and work with L-carnitine to promote fat oxidation.
Green tea also gives you an energy boost. The ideal daily dosage of green tea for fat loss is 100 mg. Some products will individually list EGCG on the ingredient label. In that case, look for 500 mg.
Green Tea
Capsicum
Capsicum contains a polyphenol known as capsaicinoids. This compound provides a hot and spicy flavor to hundreds of foods. It has been shown to have some pretty impressive fat-burning benefits. For one thing, capsaicinoids increase the core temperature of the body. Your body will then work overtime to bring the temperature back to a state of homeostasis. This takes up energy, which burns calories.
Capsaicinoids also break down adenosine triphosphate (ATP), the main form of energy in the body. It has also been shown to boost the body’s lipase production, which breaks down fat for energy.
Glucomannan
The roots of the konjac plant are used to make the dietary fiber glucomannan. It has an incredible capacity for water absorption, which transforms it into a thick, gel-like substance. It multiplies to many times its original size when ingested because it combines with bodily fluids. Your stomach has to make place for this, which causes you to feel full. In this manner, glucomannan aids in appetite suppression so that you consume fewer calories throughout the day and finish with a net calorie deficit.
In addition to making more room in your stomach, glucomannan also delays stomach emptying and lessens the absorption of fats and proteins. The recommended dosage is one gram taken three times daily.
Summary
This article provided a complete blueprint for losing belly fat over 50. You’ve been given the ideal balance of cardiovascular exercises to burn calories and resistance training to increase muscle mass and stoke your fat-burning furnace. At the same time, you’ve been given a wealth of nutrition and dietary tips to get you beyond the barriers to belly fat loss.
It’s now over to you to put all this belly fat-burning knowledge into action. Don’t let procrastination hold you back. Instead, resolve to start your workout program tomorrow, starting with the three weekly HIIT workouts and then adding in two circuit weight training sessions. Then, work through the 14 nutritional tips, incorporating one new tip daily into your routine over the next two weeks. Stay positive, remain consistent, and you will steadily lose that stubborn belly fat.
References
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Palmer AK, Jensen MD. Metabolic changes in aging humans: current evidence and therapeutic strategies. J Clin Invest. 2022 Aug 15;132(16):e158451. doi: 10.1172/JCI158451. PMID: 35968789; PMCID: PMC9374375.
Hunter GR, Singh H, Carter SJ, Bryan DR, Fisher G. Sarcopenia and Its Implications for Metabolic Health. J Obes. 2019 Mar 6;2019:8031705. doi: 10.1155/2019/8031705. PMID: 30956817; PMCID: PMC6431367.
Van der Valk ES, Savas M, van Rossum EFC. Stress and Obesity: Are There More Susceptible Individuals? Curr Obes Rep. 2018 Jun;7(2):193-203. doi: 10.1007/s13679-018-0306-y. PMID: 29663153; PMCID: PMC5958156.
Burton-Freeman B. Dietary fiber and energy regulation. J Nutr. 2000 Feb;130(2S Suppl):272S-275S. doi: 10.1093/jn/130.2.272S. PMID: 10721886.
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/11892225_How_does_the_body_deal_with_energy_from_alcohol
Zivkovic, Angela M, et al. “Dietary Omega-3 Fatty Acids Aid in the Modulation of Inflammation and Metabolic Health.” California Agriculture, U.S. National Library of Medicine, July 2011,
Harris Jackson K, West SG, Vanden Heuvel JP, Jonnalagadda SS, Ross AB, Hill AM, Grieger JA, Lemieux SK, Kris-Etherton PM. Effects of whole and refined grains in a weight-loss diet on markers of metabolic syndrome in individuals with increased waist circumference: a randomized controlled-feeding trial. Am J Clin Nutr. 2014 Aug;100(2):577-86. doi: 10.3945/ajcn.113.078048. Epub 2014 Jun 18. PMID: 24944054; PMCID: PMC4095661.
Stull, April J, et al. “Liquid and Solid Meal Replacement Products Differentially Affect Postprandial Appetite and Food Intake in Older Adults.” Journal of the American Dietetic Association, U.S. National Library of Medicine, July 2008
Boschmann, Michael, et al. “Water-Induced Thermogenesis.” The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, U.S. National Library of Medicine, Dec. 2003
Dorfman, Suzanne E, et al. “Metabolic Implications of Dietary Trans-Fatty Acids.” Obesity (Silver Spring, Md.), U.S. National Library of Medicine, June 2009
Assunção, Monica L, et al. “Effects of Dietary Coconut Oil on the Biochemical and Anthropometric Profiles of Women Presenting Abdominal Obesity.” Lipids, U.S. National Library of Medicine, July 2009
Batterham, Rachel L, et al. “Critical Role for Peptide YY in Protein-Mediated Satiation and Body-Weight Regulation.” Cell Metabolism, U.S. National Library of Medicine, Sept. 2006
Atakan MM, Li Y, Koşar ŞN, Turnagöl HH, Yan X. Evidence-Based Effects of High-Intensity Interval Training on Exercise Capacity and Health: A Review with Historical Perspective. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2021 Jul 5;18(13):7201. doi: 10.3390/ijerph18137201. PMID: 34281138; PMCID: PMC8294064.
Hansen RK, Samani A, Laessoe U, Handberg A, Mellergaard M, Figlewski K, Thijssen DHJ, Gliemann L, Larsen RG. Rowing exercise increases cardiorespiratory fitness and brachial artery diameter but not traditional cardiometabolic risk factors in spinal cord-injured humans. Eur J Appl Physiol. 2023 Jun;123(6):1241-1255. doi: 10.1007/s00421-023-05146-y. Epub 2023 Feb 13. PMID: 36781425; PMCID: PMC9924870.
Willis LH, Slentz CA, Bateman LA, Shields AT, Piner LW, Bales CW, Houmard JA, Kraus WE. Effects of aerobic and/or resistance training on body mass and fat mass in overweight or obese adults. J Appl Physiol (1985). 2012 Dec 15;113(12):1831-7. doi: 10.1152/japplphysiol.01370.2011. Epub 2012 Sep 27. PMID: 23019316; PMCID: PMC3544497.
IGF-1 Insulin-Like Growth Factors in Bodybuilding
Unleash the power of IGF-1 in bodybuilding to maximize your muscle growth, recovery, and performance. Discover the benefits of IGF-1 LR3, the recommended dosages for beginners, intermediate, and advanced bodybuilders, and how to safely incorporate this potent growth factor into your bodybuilding journey. Unlock your full potential and achieve optimal results with the help of IGF-1.
15 Best Foods to Eat on a Cut: Unveiling Fat Loss Secrets
Achieving a ripped physique is a process. It requires month after month of dedication, discipline, and hard training. And it requires that you are 100% on top of what you eat daily. When it comes to the cutting phase of your program, nutrition becomes more important than ever. However, knowing just what to eat on a cut can be confusing. After all, there’s a lot of conflicting advice out there.
In this article, we will identify 15 key foods and four super herbs and spices that should form the foundation of your cutting phase. Whether you’re zeroing in on a competition or trying to get in the best shape of your life, you’re about to learn what you must eat during those final three months to achieve your dream physique.
Understanding a Bodybuilding Cut
Cutting is a bodybuilding term that refers to a period when you reduce your caloric intake and carefully monitor your food with the goal of stripping as much excess body fat from your physique as possible. It follows a bulking phase, which aims to increase calories beyond the maintenance level to add as much muscle mass as possible.
Bulking and cutting, therefore, go hand in hand. Bulking can be considered like packing slabs of clay onto your frame. During the cutting phase, you sculpt and refine that clay to bring out the detail and eliminate the excess.
The success of a cutting phase often depends on how the bodybuilder went about the bulking phase. If they choose to go on a dirty bulk, where they pay little attention to the quality of the calories they’re putting into their body, they are likely to start the cutting phase with a high level of body fat. It will take a lot of work for them to first get rid of the extra fat they gained during the bulk and then burn their normal fat stores to improve their muscle definition.
On the other hand, a bodybuilder who follows a clean bulk, where they stick to lean protein sources and clean carbs, will put on minimal fat during the phase. It will allow them to start making immediate inroads into their fat stores.
During the cutting phase, your primary goal is to strip the maximum amount of body fat from your frame so that your muscles are more defined. You want every muscle fiber to be clearly visible. Ideally, cross striations in the muscle fiber should also be visible when you flex.
At the same time that you’re getting ripped, your secondary goal is to preserve the hard-earned muscle mass you’ve gained during the bulking phase.
So how long does each phase last? There is nothing set in concrete regarding the length of the bulking and cutting phase, but most bodybuilders tend to follow each phase for 10-12 weeks. We will work on a three-month cutting period for the rest of this article.
Calculating Caloric Needs
The most important thing to understand when you’re on a cut is that you can’t simply wing it. You have got to determine your numbers and stick with them. So, what numbers are we talking about?
It all starts with your total daily energy expenditure (TDEE). That number represents the total energy your body needs to meet its needs over a day. This includes your resting metabolic rate, physical activity, and the thermic effect of food (how many calories it takes to digest it). Once you know how many calories you need to function, you can then make adjustments to that number to create a caloric deficit.
Creating a caloric deficit will force your body to take action to meet the energy shortfall. Without enough energy from food, your body will turn to its reserve energy source — stored body fat — to meet the shortfall. And that is how the fat loss process takes place.
So, let’s begin by determining your TDEE.
There are several calculations to work out your TDEE, each based on a slightly different formula that considers your activity level. I recommend using this convenient online TDEE calculator.
You now know how many calories you must consume daily to maintain your physique. You must create a modest caloric deficit to start shedding body fat without sacrificing hard-earned muscle mass. I recommend reducing your intake by 10-15%. So, what does that look like?
If your TDEE is 2,500 calories, you should cut back by 250-375 calories. Start with a 250-calorie reduction to take your daily calorie goal to 2,250. Assess your progress over the first couple of weeks. If you’re not losing fat at the desired rate, reduce it by another 125 calories per day.
Macronutrient Breakdown
Let’s now narrow things down to the makeup of your daily calories during your cutting phase. Here’s what you need to consider regarding each macronutrient:
Protein
Sources Healthy Protein
During your bulking phase, protein is the key nutrient for muscle growth. When it comes to cutting, protein is just as important. Of the three macros, protein is the most satiating, meaning that it fills you up faster than either carbs or fats. Protein also has the highest thermic rate. While it takes about 10% of the energy in fat or carb to digest that food, that percentage skyrockets to around 30% for protein.
Ensuring you get a plentiful supply of protein during your cutting phase will also help preserve your muscle mass while dieting.
As a result, protein should remain the foundation of your diet during a cutting phase — you’ll simply be eating less of it. You should consume one gram of protein per pound of body weight during your cutting phase. Aim for 30-35% of your calories from protein.
Related: Find your daily protein intake.
Carbohydrates
When it comes to carbohydrate intake during your cutting phase, you need to be strategic about your timing. Carbs can power your workouts, so you should consume them around your training sessions. You should emphasize complex carbs such as whole grains, fruits, vegetables, and legumes.
Adjust your carb intake according to your activity level and how your body responds to them. Aim for 40-45% of your calories from carbohydrates.
Related: Find your daily carbs intake.
Fats
Healthy fats are an essential part of a successful cutting diet. They help fill you up while promoting nutrient absorption and hormone production. Go for sources of unsaturated fats such as avocados, nuts, seeds, olive oil, and fatty fish, which are rich in omega-3 fatty acids. Aim to get 20-30% of your calories from fats.
Related: Find your daily fat intake.
Focus on Whole Foods
Even though it can be tempting to grab processed foods, especially when you’re on the go, whole foods should be your priority on a cutting diet. When we talk about whole foods, we’re referring to foods in their natural, unprocessed state. Examples are fruits, vegetables, meats, nuts, and seeds. Here are five reasons why you should prioritize whole foods on your cut:
Nutrient Density: Whole foods provide a lot more bang for your buck in terms of nutrient density. They are packed with antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, and fiber to meet your body’s daily needs.
Satiety: Whole foods don’t contain empty calories. As such, they are more filling, ensuring you get the maximum benefit from your calorie cost.
Better Digestion: Natural whole foods are easier to digest than processed foods, putting less strain on your digestive system. They also better promote a healthy gut microbiome and provide valuable fiber.
Lower Calorie Density: Whole foods tend to be lower in total calorie count than their processed alternatives. That allows you to eat more while staying within your calorie goal, making you feel more satisfied and less deprived.
Greater Ingredient Control: When you focus on natural foods, you have more control over the quality and composition of your food. You can avoid sugar, unhealthy fats, and artificial additives added to processed foods.
15 Superfoods To Add To Your Cut
During your cut, you’re looking for every advantage you can get to strip fat from your body. That means you need to be smart about the foods you eat. The 15 foods in this section have all been shown to maximize fat burn while supporting muscle mass and promoting optimum health. Use these foods as the foundation for your cut:
1. Grapes
Grapes are a wonderful snack you can overindulge in without feeling bad since they provide a potent combination of health-improving and weight-loss advantages.
Grapes are a fantastic hunger suppressant when trying to lose fat. They can also help control blood sugar levels. By doing this, they lower insulin levels and stop leptin, the hormone that causes hunger, from being released.
Because of a high concentration of polyphenol phytochemicals, grapes have a hidden healing ability. Although the precise process is still unclear, polyphenols can protect us against cancer.
Additionally, grapes offer more nutrition per calorie than almost any other food. Beta carotene, lutein, selenium, and vitamins A, C, and E are just a few of the abundant antioxidants in them.
In addition to all these health benefits, grapes contain a chemical that turns them into a superfood. The skin and seeds of the grape contain the plant-derived substance — resveratrol. It has been demonstrated to have a strong, advantageous impact on the cardiovascular system. It is an effective tool in the fight against blood clots that can cause a heart attack or stroke because it can prevent blood platelets from clumping together.
Resveratrol has emerged as a crucial tool in the battle against breast, colon, and esophageal cancer since it inhibits numerous crucial processes that result in tumors. Resveratrol also has potent anti-inflammatory properties. Studies have shown that it helps regulate blood sugar levels, lowering insulin levels and preventing binge eating and cravings. [1] [2]
2. Nuts
Healthy Nuts
Nuts, which are packed with healthy fats and protein, represent the ideal cutting snack. When you eat nuts as a snack, they will keep you full while also working to improve your health.
Consuming any kind of nut significantly lowers the risk of heart disease. Furthermore, consuming almonds has been demonstrated to lessen the risk of colon cancer. If that’s not amazing enough, scientists predict that eating nuts daily can add two years to a person’s lifespan. [3]
Naturally, nuts may provide you with the amino acids you require, devoid of cholesterol and saturated fat, since they are a plant-based source of protein. Magnesium, a vital mineral that aids in maintaining healthy blood pressure, is also abundant in nuts. Additionally, they offer a first-rate supply of B vitamins like riboflavin and niacin.
Omega 3 fatty acids, which are chronically undersupplied in the Western diet, are also abundant in nuts. Omega 3 fatty acids can significantly increase your ability for fat loss.
Nuts are an excellent healthy carbohydrate source for weight loss because they lower leptin levels, improving fat burning by reducing insulin resistance.
Nuts are also a great source of fiber, which plays a significant role in losing weight. It slows down carbohydrate absorption and digestion, enabling a more regulated rise in blood sugar levels.
The best nuts to eat as a cutting snack are:
Walnuts
Almonds
Macadamia Nuts
Cashews
Pistachios
3. Berries
According to scientists, berries are now considered among the world’s top foods for fighting disease. That results from their abundance of antioxidants, which also contributes to their brilliant colors. Berries’ antioxidants have been linked to reducing the incidence of certain malignancies, improving cognitive conditions, and fending off the effects of aging.
In addition, berries are a fantastic source of nutritional fiber. Blueberries have got to be the best disease fighter among all the berries. Antioxidants included in blueberries help lower cholesterol levels, which lowers the risk of heart attack and stroke.
Berries contain a lot of flavonoids as well. Flavonoids have positive effects on the circulatory system and can lower cardiovascular risks. Blackberries, in particular, have a high flavonoid content. [4]
Although berries are a seasonal food, frozen berries are accessible all year round and have the same health benefits as fresh berries.
A super fruit that offers the antioxidant properties of other berries boosted by a factor of five has recently been made known to the Western world. This extraordinary food has more antioxidants than any other food identified so far. It is raised in the remote Tibetan Himalayas, which have some of the highest elevations on earth. It’s the goji berry.
Researchers refer to goji berries as the Rolls Royce of berries, and they are currently becoming a sensation in the nutritional world. Here are several reasons to eat goji berries:
Boosts testosterone and libido
Contain 19 amino acids, including the essential ones
Comprise 22 trace minerals, including zinc, calcium, and selenium
Lower blood sugar levels and satisfy cravings faster than other berries
Contain 500 times more Vitamin C than oranges, vitamin E, which is extremely rare in fruit, and more beta-carotene than carrots. [5]
4. Apples
Apples are among those common foods that are easy to take for granted. If you’re one of those folks who overlooked the apple’s benefits, it’s time you sat up and paid attention.
Antioxidants can be found in abundance in apples. Additionally, they are an organic source of phytonutrients that support the health of your bones.
They contain both soluble and insoluble forms and are also a fantastic source of fiber. Because of how incredibly full the insoluble fiber in apple skin is, it is fantastic for weight management. Roughage is another benefit that aids in preventing and treating constipation.
Pectin, found in apples, is extremely helpful for detoxifying the body. It is a wise choice when you sense a cold coming on because it also reduces throat swelling and pain.
Blood sugar levels can be effectively managed by eating apples. Fructose, a naturally occurring fruit sugar, is present in them. These sugars are delivered into the bloodstream very gradually due to the high fiber component of the apple. This is a fantastic tool for ensuring consistent blood sugar levels, making apples great for losing weight. [6]
5. Salmon
Salmon provides your body with the perfect one-two power punch to knock fat for six — it is a fantastic source of protein and a rich source of omega-3 essential fatty acids.
To appreciate the amazing health-giving benefits of salmon, we must look to the Inuit Eskimo peoples of Greenland. Half a century ago, scientists were puzzled at these people’s low incidence of heart disease. Now they know why — it is all down to their diet, which is extremely rich in omega-3 fatty acids.
Studies of Eskimo people compared to those who follow a typical Western diet have made it clear that the risk of heart disease decreases as the amount of fish in our diet increases.
Salmon is also an effective stress fighter, as it can suppress the secretion of cortisol, the stress hormone. And, with stress being a critical factor in binge and craving eating, the link between salmon and fat loss is obvious. [7]
6. Avocado
If you had to choose just one food to eat for the rest of your life, you couldn’t do much better than the avocado. Avocados have all the nutrients you need to survive, thrive, and quickly reduce weight.
A typical avocado consists of 60 calories and 9 grams of carbohydrates, with 7 of those grams being fiber. Additionally, it contains 2 grams of protein and 15 grams of healthy fat. Plant sterols, which have been demonstrated to decrease cholesterol levels, are abundant in avocados. Studies have shown that avocados’ high monounsaturated fat content reduces LDL (bad) cholesterol levels.
Additionally, researchers think that substituting avocado oil for vegetable and palm oils when cooking can reduce visceral body fat in the abdomen area. The avocado is not only low in calories, nutrition dense, and packed with healthy fats, but it also speeds up metabolism and stabilizes blood sugar.
One of the best-known ways to satisfy hunger is a scoop of guacamole. According to a Nutrition Journal study, half a fresh avocado with lunch reduced participants’ appetite by 40% for the next four hours.
According to a 2012 study from Chile, eating half a medium-sized avocado per day was highly connected with better diet quality overall and a 50% lower chance of developing metabolic syndrome. In addition to reporting a lower body mass index and smaller waist circumference, the avocado eaters also reported eating more fruits and vegetables and fiber and vitamin K, two nutrients linked to weight loss.
Your metabolism will continue to run smoothly after eating an avocado, allowing you to burn calories even while you sleep. [8]
7. Tea
Amazing thermogenic characteristics in green tea can aid in your natural fat loss. Green tea can increase body temperature naturally, which helps burn calories. So, why is green tea so good at accelerating your metabolism? It’s down to two essential compounds — caffeine and a catechin known as epigallocatechin (EGCC).
These two substances cause the release of epinephrine, which in turn accelerates metabolism. EGCC is a very potent antioxidant. Without endangering healthy tissue, it can destroy cancer cells. The prevention of heart disease has also been demonstrated to be greatly aided by EGCC. Additionally, it aids in maintaining normal cholesterol levels.
Green tea contains antioxidants called catechins that promote the body’s use of fat as a source of energy. Green tea “increases your daily fat-burning rate by 43%,” claims Dr. Nichola Perricone, a well-known weight loss specialist and the author of three books.
Green tea’s catechins compel the body to produce heat. Because of this, the body absorbs carbohydrates into the bloodstream more slowly after eating, which helps control your insulin levels. [9]
One particular variety of green tea stands out as the best for losing weight — oolong tea. Another name for oolong tea is Wu-Ling Tea. If you thought that green tea’s capacity to increase metabolism by 43% was impressive, get ready to be astounded. Oolong tea burns fat 220 percent faster than green tea.
Numerous studies conducted in China have revealed that individuals who consume 2-3 cups of oolong tea daily lose weight at a pace that is 8% higher than those who drink green tea. According to one study, this amounted to a one-pound weekly weight loss from simply drinking two cups of oolong tea! [10]
Oolong tea can help your body burn more fat for energy, speeding up fat burning and causing weight loss. Drinking two to three cups of oolong tea each day will strengthen your immune system, lower your risk of developing some malignancies, and accelerate weight loss.
8. Grapefruit
Grapefruit Slices
Recent studies on grapefruit have shown its effectiveness as a fat-loss stimulant. Half a grapefruit was consumed before each meal by a volunteer group in a 2006 trial at the Scripps Clinic in La Hoya, as opposed to a control group. The grapefruit-consuming group shed almost twice as much weight as the other group. [11]
Grapefruit’s secret weapon is its capacity to regulate insulin. Balanced insulin levels, in turn, regulate blood sugar, which then regulates hunger. Insulin regulates the amount of stored fat because it is also a hormone that causes the body to store fat.
You should include half a grapefruit as a mainstay in your cutting diet plan.
9. Dark Chocolate
It may sound too good to be true, but eating chocolate can help you lose belly fat. Research from the University of Copenhagen shows that dark chocolate reduces the urge for sweet, salty, and fatty foods. In another study, people who ate a candy bar’s worth of dark chocolate for 15 days straight decreased their insulin resistance potential by 50%. This is due to the flavonoids and healthy fats that dark chocolate contains. [14]
10. Broccoli
Broccoli is an extremely nutritious, fiber-rich vegetable that is also very low in calories. That makes it a smart choice if you’re trying to curb belly fat. It also contains high vitamin C and folate levels to help ward off heart attack and stroke.
Broccoli
11. Yogurt
Yogurt is a rich source of protein and calcium. According to a 2015 study, obese study participants who were given three servings of fat-free yogurt daily lost 22% more weight and 61% more body fat than those who merely reduced caloric intake. The yogurt eaters also lost 81% more belly fat than the control group!
12. Peanut Butter
Peanut butter makes a great snack option. A single serving provides you with 8 grams of protein and 4 grams of fiber, which assist with fat loss. It is also a rich source of L-arginine, which helps counter fluid retention.
13. Peas
Peas are one of the most nutrient-dense foods you will ever come across. A single cup delivers 8 grams of protein, along with antioxidants and phytochemicals, all at a very low calorie cost. Peas are also rich in vitamin C, magnesium, potassium, and iron, making them a genuine nutritional powerhouse.
14. Eggs
Eggs are among the most digestible forms of complete protein available. They also contain healthy fats with virtually no carbs. Eggs also have good amounts of calcium, zinc, and vitamins D, E, K, and B6. They are among your best options for breakfast. High protein breakfasts have been linked to enhanced weight loss.
15. Asparagus
Asparagus is filled with prebiotics which positively affects your gut biome. This will increase your levels of healthy bacteria, boosting digestion and helping to eliminate bloating. Asparagus spears are also an excellent source of the B vitamin, folate, which is essential for synthesizing key mood-influencing neurotransmitters, including dopamine, serotonin, and norepinephrine.
4 Herbs & Spices to Ramp Up Your Fat Loss
You can significantly increase your fat-burning potential by strategically adding herbs and spices to your cutting diet plan. Here are four herbs and spices that deserve to be part of the equation:
1. Turmeric
In terms of weight loss, turmeric has established itself as a wonder spice. It is rich in essential nutrients like fiber, protein, potassium, calcium, iron, and vitamins C, E, and K. It is known as the “Queen of Spices” because of its many anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects.
The capacity of turmeric to stop fat storage is its most remarkable quality. Curcumin, the turmeric root’s active component, binds to fat cells and induces their contraction and shrinkage by inhibiting the blood arteries necessary for forming fat tissue.
Additionally, turmeric has a thermogenic, metabolism-boosting impact and is very good at lowering blood sugar and insulin resistance.
You should use turmeric as your go-to herb for weight loss during your cut. This golden, powdered spice helps accelerate your weight loss efforts with just one teaspoon consumed daily. You may either consume turmeric as a supplement or utilize it to make scrumptious soups and curries that burn fat.
2. Basil
Basil is a powerful anti-inflammatory herb with great therapeutic properties. It considerably facilitates digestion, which boosts the calorie-burning process. Basil also kills the dangerous bacteria that cause food poisoning. Additionally, it has been demonstrated that this herb aids in stress reduction, which in turn helps with weight loss. Basil leaves also replenish your energy levels and promote the production of new blood cells.
Use fresh and dried basil liberally to reap the most rewards from this incredibly useful herb.
3. Cumin
The spice cumin has gained popularity among people who follow the most recent studies on weight loss. In a recent Iranian study, 88 obese women were divided into study and control groups. Both groups completed nutritional education while consuming 500 fewer calories daily for 12 weeks. The study group also consumed 3 grams, or roughly one teaspoon, of cumin powder daily. Five ounces of yogurt was combined with the cumin. The yogurt was also given to the control group but without the cumin.
After the 12-week research, the study group’s percentage of fat reduction was three times higher than that of the control group (14.64% vs. 4.91%). [12]
Along with these remarkable fat reduction findings, the cumin groups’ triglyceride levels had plummeted by a staggering 23%, as opposed to a 5% drop for the control group. Additionally, compared to the control group, the cumin group’s LDL (bad cholesterol) values were reduced by an average of 10 points.
Consider how such outcomes came about from consuming just one teaspoon of cumin daily.
Researchers have identified that it is high in phytosterols, which are substances derived from plants that can absorb cholesterol. Cumin also can significantly increase metabolism.
4. Capsaicin
For years, people have applied capsaicin topically to relieve pain. However, recent research has shown that it also has a ton of weight loss potential.
The naturally occurring spicy substances in red hot peppers are known as capsaicinoids. One particular member of the capsaicinoid family is capsaicin. It is the primary active ingredient that gives red hot peppers their heat.
In a 12-week trial conducted by the University of Maryland Medical School, obese men and women received 6mg of capsaicin daily. At the conclusion of the study, the capsaicin group had not only lost more weight than the control group, but a significant portion of that weight had come from visceral fat in the abdominal regions. [13]
The researchers concluded that using capsaicin supplements increased metabolism, leading to faster calorie burn. They also hypothesized that capsaicin stimulated the production of adrenal hormones, causing a strong burst of energy.
7 Tips for Next-Level Leanness
Ready to take your leanness to the next level? If you’re already under 15% body fat and want to drop even lower, these proven tips, in conjunction with hard training and a clean diet, will get you there.
Tip #1: Energy Flux
When it comes to fat loss, the amount of calories you turnover is crucial. This is called energy flux and is the relationship between calorie intake and expenditure.
Most people look at fat loss as calories in (eaten) versus calories out (burned). While that basic model can get you by, using the energy flux method improves upon it. It demonstrates that when you eat more and exercise more — even at the same calorie balance — you maintain a faster metabolic rate and a better lean mass-to-fat mass ratio.
Research shows that a high energy flux can significantly increase your resting metabolic rate. In other words, when your energy flux is increased, there is a corresponding boost in sympathetic nervous system activity. This causes an upward shift in metabolic rate and improved nutrient partitioning.
Let’s say you are dieting, eating 2,000 calories daily while burning 2,500 calories. Because you’re in a negative energy balance of 500 calories, you should be losing weight. Yet, if you were to add 1,000 calories to your diet (3,000 calories total) and burn another thousand calories (3,500 calories total), you would see improved body composition benefits.
First, your metabolism would be about 10 to 15% higher since it won’t detect a reduction in calories.
Second, you’d increase your lean mass because your muscles would be constantly supplied with amino acids through your protein intake.
Both of these factors contribute to significant fat loss.
Third, you’d avoid feelings of deprivation since you’d be eating more. In fact, some bodybuilders consume more calories at the onset of a fat-loss phase in conjunction with increased exercise volume.
So, the take-home message is this: when kicking off an advanced nutrition program, boost both your total calorie burning and your total food intake. As a general rule, the best fat loss happens when you exercise 7 to 10 hours a week and eat the right foods at the right times.
Tip #2: Time your Nutrients
If you’re not familiar with nutrient timing, you are missing out. It could be a limiting factor in improving your health, physique, and performance.
Traditional exercise nutrition focuses on what to eat and how much. Research over the last few years, however, shows that when you eat may be equally important. Think of your daily food intake as falling into one of these three categories:
Before strength training
After strength training
Rest of the day
Before you hit the gym, your focus should be to consume a whey protein shake with 5 to 10 grams of added branched-chain amino acids for cellular energy and the initiation of muscle recovery. Since maximal fat loss is your goal, avoid carbs at this time.
Within 2 to 3 hours after your workout, you should focus on consuming meals high in protein and carbohydrates and low in fat. This combination helps quickly stimulate muscle protein synthesis as well as glycogen resynthesis. The first of these meals should be a whey protein shake with added branched-chain amino acids. Have this within half an hour of finishing a workout. You can also eat some fast-digesting carbs (20-40 grams), such as white bread or a banana.
Have a whole food meal 1.5 to 2 hours after this that is rich in protein and moderate in slow-digesting carbs (sweet potatoes, brown rice, or beans).
All of your other meals will fall into the rest of the day category. Keep them high in protein and healthy fats and low in carbs. This helps keep insulin levels down while preserving muscle mass.
In the end, nutrient timing allows you to take advantage of specific windows of opportunity when protein and carbohydrates are most efficiently used. Under these conditions, the perfect balance between fat loss and muscle preservation can be achieved.
Tip #3: Burn Fat with Fish Oil
Omega-3 fats such as flax oil and fish oil can boost resting metabolic rate by 300 to 400 calories per day. In addition, research indicates that fish oil can improve carb tolerance and decrease inflammation, and it has been found to provide a host of benefits across the health and wellness spectrum.
However, be aware that the minimal doses recommended by most manufacturers are too low to offer the physique benefit that most hard-training people seek. To get maximum benefit in fat loss, take about 1 gram of fish oil per body fat percentage up to a maximum of 30 grams. So, if your body fat is 15%, you should take 15 grams of fish oil.
After about four weeks, drop the dose to about 0.5 grams per percentage of body fat. If you don’t know your body fat percentage, go with 12 to 15 grams for the first four weeks and then cut it in half to 6 to 7 grams afterward.
Tip #4: Cycle your Calories
As your diet progresses and your calories drop, your exercise volume will have to increase. This creates a highly negative energy balance that will eventually cause a metabolic slowdown. But that’s not all; sex hormone and anabolic hormone output will also diminish. This means your fat loss progress will drop while muscle begins to waste away.
To prevent this from happening, start cycling your calories in the later stages of the fat loss program (about the 8 to 10-week mark). But instead of just cycling calories, cycle your macronutrients as well. One great way to do this is to devise four different menu plans, such as those below.
Menu 1: Low calories, lower carbs, low fat: Monday, Tuesday, Friday, Saturday
9 calories per pound of bodyweight
50-70 grams of carbs per day
30-60 grams of fat per day
·Protein makes up the rest of your calories
Menu 2: Moderate calories, higher carbs, low fat: Thursday
11 calories per pound of bodyweight
100-140 grams of carbs per day
30-60 grams of fat per day
Protein makes up the rest of your calories
Menu 3: High calories, high carbs, high fat: Sunday
13 calories per pound of bodyweight
200-280 grams of carbs per day
60-120 grams of fat per day
Protein makes up the rest of your calories
Menu 4: High calories, low carbs, high fat: Thursday
13 calories per pound of bodyweight
30-50 grams of carbs per day
60-120 grams of fat per day
Protein makes up the rest of your calories
By varying your amounts of calories, carbs, and fats, you prevent falling into starvation mode and make your fat loss more continuous. In addition, a varied diet like this one is psychologically easier to follow.
Tip #5: Supplement with BCAAs and Creatine
Many dieters find that their muscle mass starts to drop off as a diet continues. To help combat this, try supplementing with BCAA’s and creatine. The BCAAs, especially leucine, have powerful anti-catabolic effects that can help stimulate protein synthesis and a positive protein balance.
Creatine can assist in the preservation of muscle cell volume as well as performance during a low-calorie phase. Both supplements can also aid fat loss, and together, they can help prevent muscle loss during a strict diet.
The best strategy is to take 5 to 10 grams of BCAA’s with breakfast, pre-and post-workout shakes, and a meal late in the day. Take 3 to 5 grams of creatine with your pre-and post-workout shakes. On rest days, take your creatine with your BCAAs at breakfast.
Tip #6: Eat More Whole Food
When you follow advanced dieting principles that aim to take you into the land of single-digit body fat percentages, you will be hungry. In fact, sometimes you’ll be famished. So ensure that most of your calories come from whole foods instead of shakes.
Whole food meals consisting of lean meats, healthy fats, vegetables, and unprocessed carbohydrates are slower to digest, keeping you satisfied longer. In addition, these foods deliver a steady supply of blood glucose and amino acids between meals.
Although protein shakes are more convenient, they can leave you feeling unsatisfied, causing you to reach for a snack much sooner. As your calorie intake decreases, fill up on whole foods for an easier time sticking to your diet. Of course, you should continue drinking protein shakes around workouts, as they will help build more muscle.
Tip #7: Improve your Sleep
Most people do not associate fat loss with sleep quality. There is, in fact, a huge link between the two. Not getting enough sleep not only triggers carbohydrate cravings but also stimulates appetite-increasing hormones and muscle-wasting stress hormones such as cortisol.
Interestingly, many dieters find it difficult to fall asleep and stay asleep as their energy balance declines. That is bad news for fat loss. If you begin to suffer from sleep abnormalities, try one of these two courses of action:
If you think you might suffer from elevated levels of evening cortisol, try taking 100 to 200 mg of Phosphatidylserine at dinner and another 100-200 mg before bed. Phosphatidylserine effectively decreases cortisol levels so you can fall asleep again. It is a phospholipid molecule found in cell membranes, particularly in the brain. It is important for normal cellular function and has been shown to have potential benefits for memory and cognitive function.
If you don’t believe it’s a cortisol issue, try supplementing with ZMA. Magnesium will help improve your sleep quality, while zinc and magnesium together can help boost fat loss and size and strength gains.
Note: The content on Fitness Volt is for informative purposes only. Do not take it as medical advice to diagnose, prevent, or treat health problems. If you’re suffering from a health issue, are pregnant, or are under 18 years old, you should consult your physician before starting any new supplement, nutrition, or fitness routine.
Conclusion
By building your cutting diet around the foods, herbs, and spices profiled in this article, you’ll ensure that you optimize every calorie you put in your body. Be sure to get plenty of lean protein spread throughout the day, along with those complex carbs around your workouts, and aim for a 10-15% calorie reduction of your TDEE. Then adjust as needed to get the results you’re after. Remember, experimentation and adaptability are keys to a successful cutting program.
References
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9 Foods That Combat Hot Flashes
It’s a typical weekend. You are relaxing on the couch, looking forward to your well-deserved break from work. But then, you feel a sudden bout of intense heat. You try fanning yourself and turning up the AC but to no use. When nothing does the trick, you have this irresistible impulse to douse yourself with cold water or stick your head into the fridge. And then, as if a switch were flipped, all of it stops.
This rollercoaster ride you just experienced was a mild episode of a hot flash, or, as the British would say, a hot flush.
According to Tania Lugo and Maggie Tetrokalashvili (Nassau University Medical Centre), “Hot flashes are sudden-onset, spontaneous, and episodic sensations of warmth usually felt on the chest, neck, and face immediately followed by an outbreak of sweating.” [1]
Who Can Experience Hot Flashes?
Although both men and women can experience hot flashes, the rate is significantly higher among older women. More than 50% of women in the early stages of menopause also experience this. A vast majority, nearly four-fifths, of women in their menopause endure long episodes of hot flashes. It worsens as they enter the later stages of menopause before steadily decreasing. Women, regardless of their age, who have undergone surgery to remove their ovaries (Oophorectomy) also experience hot flashes. The medical jargon for hot flashes is vasomotor symptoms (VMS). [1][2]
Causes of Hot Flashes
Sweating buckets like there is a broken faucet in your body is not something anyone would enjoy unless they were in a gym. Several women have reported having to change their outfits several times a day after being drenched in sweat. Sleepless nights, brain fog, anxiety, etc.—the torture is endless.
Sadly, despite extensive studies, the exact cause of this aggravating condition is unknown. Most studies simply attribute this to a hormone imbalance. Women’s estrogen levels in their menopause rapidly reduce, and very little estrogen is produced during postmenopause. This does not mean hot flashes will persist forever after menopause. Studies show that it is not the low levels of estrogen but rather the sudden decline in its levels that may be the cause. [3]
Our brain also has a pea-sized supervisor called the hypothalamus. It acts as our body’s thermostat and regulates our temperature. It has been recognized that dysfunction in its temperature control mechanism also causes hot flashes, although researchers are yet to discern why this dysfunction occurs.
Hot flashes occur in men due to an imbalance in testosterone levels. This doesn’t occur under normal circumstances. However, treatments like androgen deprivation therapy reduce testosterone production to prevent the growth of prostate cancer. Around 80% of the men who undergo such treatments experience hot flashes.
Effects of Hot Flashes
Different people experience hot flashes differently. Your skin turns red, your heart beats faster, and you sweat. Most women experience this during the night (night sweats) and, in most cases, cannot go back to sleep. Luckier people experience hot flashes for less than a minute. But they could also last up to several minutes. After sweating profusely, many people also have chills.
Women may experience hot flashes for a couple of months. A small group of women have experienced hot flashes for 30 years. [4]
Dealing with hot flashes is particularly challenging, as they not only disrupt your daily activities and sleep but also have a huge emotional impact. The lack of sleep and discomfort it causes often lead to anxiety, social withdrawal, or, in extreme cases, cognitive impairment.
Foods To Manage Hot Flashes
Other than therapies and lifestyle changes, you can control your vasomotor symptoms by improving your diet. You can certainly minimize hot flashes by including certain foods in your diet. Here are the top nine foods that help fight hot flashes:
1. Fruits and Vegetables
Obesity and a high BMI are some factors that easily trigger hot flashes. Eating nutrient-packed foods such as fruits and vegetables reduces your weight and waters down the intensity of your hot flashes. Soon you’ll be experiencing fewer hot flashes per day.
Replace your breakfast with a green smoothie made of celery, spinach, avocado, or aloe. It curbs your hunger by increasing satiety and managing your weight. It also aids in digestion, which in turn saves a lot of the body’s energy and, in turn, keeps the body cool. Foods like apples, green leafy vegetables, etc., that have a high percentage of water content also help keep the body cool. [5]
2. Tofu and Soy
Phytoestrogens in soy-based foods like tofu and tempeh act like wonder drugs for hormone imbalance. When consumed, it exhibits the same outcome as estrogen in the body. This can remedy the problems caused by decreased estrogen levels in menopausal women.
A study published in the British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology in 2014 proved that including soy protein in the daily diet significantly reduced the frequency of hot flashes. However, it takes a long time to show a significant effect. The phytoestrogens present in soy products are called isoflavones. To reap the maximum benefits of these phytoestrogens, use unprocessed soy products like tofu. Simply replace cheese with tofu in your recipes. With its lower fat content, tofu is a healthier choice for consumption. [5][6]
3. Flaxseeds
This plant-based source of phytoestrogens can set your hormonal scale straight. The phytoestrogens present in flaxseeds are called lignans. Flax Seeds also contain omega-3 fatty acids. It is also said to reduce breast cancer, although studies don’t provide strong evidence. Simply replace eggs with a mixture of ground flaxseeds and water in your recipe for pancakes, muffins, cookies, etc. It adds a nutty taste to it and provides more nutritional value. [5]
4. Salmon
Salmon is a rich source of vitamin D and omega-3 fatty acids. Consuming a gram or two of fish oil helps alleviate the symptoms of hot flashes.
5. Apple Cider Vinegar
Although not extensively researched, apple cider vinegar is said to reduce the frequency and intensity of hot flashes. Several studies show that it aids in weight loss, and when consumed after meals, it lowers blood sugar levels.
6. Lemon Juice
The benefits reaped by drinking lemon juice every day are endless. It helps with digestion, prevents kidney stones, controls weight, and reduces the risk of anemia. Women with high blood sugar levels experience severe hot flashes. Lemon juice, which can lower blood sugar levels, can reduce hot flashes. [7]
7. Cucumber
The high water content of cucumbers makes them an effective cooling food. This helps with hot flashes by reducing your body temperature. You can add cucumbers to your water and drink it instead of plain water.
8. Sunflower Seeds
Sunflower seeds are rich in Vitamin E, which is said to reduce the occurrence of hot flashes by more than 30%. You can easily mix them into your pancake mix or your oatmeal. [10]
9. Mushrooms
Mushrooms contain a mineral named selenium, an antioxidant that reduces stress and heart problems. The adrenaline produced by stress is a common trigger for hot flashes, and this can be prevented by including mushrooms in your diet. [8]
Foods To Avoid To Limit Hot Flashes
You should avoid processed sugar in sweetened drinks, candies, cakes, biscuits, and pastries, as they can lead to volatility in blood sugar levels and cause hot flashes. Also, drinks with caffeine, such as coffee, chocolate drinks, and colas, should be avoided, especially when they are hot. High temperatures increase the intensity of hot flashes. Again, spicy foods and sauces like chili and Wasabi that can elevate your body temperature should be avoided. Also, women should avoid red wine to reduce the risk of hot flashes.
Ways To Prevent Hot Flashes
Several factors can cause your body to experience a hot flash. Steer clear of them, and it can lower your chances of experiencing hot flashes. Some common triggers for hot flashes that you need to look out for are:
Stress Less
Stress is a one-size-fits-all key to a myriad of health issues. Hot flashes are just one more in a long line. Everyone has experienced that sudden burst of adrenaline when we are anxious or feel cornered. However, this sudden burst of energy also gets your heart racing and your blood pumping, and you feel more alert than ever. These responses could get worse and turn you into a hot mess. While we cannot choose not to stress out, we could certainly learn some techniques to calm down when that happens. Yoga and meditation are some ways to cope with stress. Relaxation techniques help dial down the magnitude of heat you feel due to stress.
Environment
The general temperature of our surroundings is a key factor in hot flash experiences. Many people experience hot flashes, even when it’s winter outside. However, it is far worse when the temperature is higher. Skip wearing multiple layers and instead wear loose, breathable outfits. Keep windows open when you can, and skip the sauna. Hot electronics like heaters or hairdryers can trigger hot flashes by raising your body temperature.
Abstain from Alcohol and Smoking
Consuming alcohol also makes your body exhibit symptoms similar to hot flashes. When drunk, your blood vessels dilate, your heartbeat increases, and your face turns red. Now you are just one symptom away from experiencing a hot flash. A couple more drinks, and you will feel the familiar, dreadful feeling of heat spreading through your body.
Although it is strongly advised to abstain from alcohol, you could alternatively use ice cubes or fruit to have a more cooling effect and try not to tempt fate by having more than one drink. Smoking also accelerates the heart rate and blood flow.
Avoid Spicy Foods and Hot Beverages
Spicy foods contain a little fireball named capsaicin, which causes a burning feeling in our mouths. Spicy foods not only induce heat but are also said to dilate your blood vessels. So, hard pass on that. But if you are particularly fond of spice, dial it down – a lot. You should also avoid hot beverages like coffee to avoid potential risks. If you absolutely cannot live without caffeine, try anyway. As a last resort, go for iced coffee.
Exercise Cautiously
Yes, exercise can trigger hot flashes too. While there is no question that exercise is a crucial contributor to good health, it’s not all sunshine and rainbows for menopausal women. Every time you try to sweat the extra calories away, your heart pumps faster, your blood flows faster, and you sweat more. You are not just burning calories; you are also sending an open invitation to hot flashes. However, do not use this as an excuse to skip the gym or exercise.
You can cope by staying close to fans, windows, or air conditioners. Avoid intense workouts and cool down with an ice bag or wet towel. [9]
Frequently Asked Questions
Are hot flashes the same as fever?
No, they are not the same. Fever exhibits a drastic change in body temperature, which you can notice using a thermometer. On the other hand, hot flashes last only a few minutes.
At what age do hot flashes stop?
Women may experience hot flashes for a couple of months or two years. It varies for each woman. In rare cases, women may experience hot flashes well into their 60s.
How to manage night sweats?
Make sure your bed is not too warm. If you can’t take a cold shower before sleeping, place ice water near your bed to drink or use as a cold compress when night sweats occur. When nothing brings relief, consult a doctor to get mild sedatives to help you sleep better.
Why does my face turn red when I’m experiencing a hot flash?
During hot flashes, the body tries to eliminate heat through vasodilation. The increased blood flow to the face can turn it botchy or red.
Can hot flashes occur for any other reason besides menopause?
Yes. Although rare, men undergoing treatment for prostate cancer can experience hot flashes. Women on some medications or with thyroid issues may experience hot flashes even if they are not in menopause.
Conclusion
Hot flashes throw a wrench into regular routines. Making huge changes to your lifestyle is not as easy as it sounds. It takes serious effort. With proper planning and a healthy lifestyle makeover, you can avoid the worst of hot flashes and stay cool!
In addition to incorporating these foods, it is essential to follow certain lifestyle tips for your overall well-being during menopause. With these tips, embrace a more balanced and enjoyable menopause.
References
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