This blog is going to be a blog dedicated to physical fitness: diet, training, etc. I've been on the path to better health and a more beautiful body and I want to use this platform to share a little bit of information about what I've been learning. Here are just a few of the important lessons I've learned that may help others (especially women). Be sure to eat lots of lean protein. Protein is a dieter’s best friend for several reasons. It helps you feel full (this is called satiety) and therefore prevents you from filling up on more fattening types of foods. For all intents and purposes you can be assured that protein will not turn into fat. Here's another wonderful thing about increasing your protein content: it helps your body repair itself after workouts and helps you build muscle (I don't mean "bulking up"--I'm just referring to building nice curves in all the right places). Count your calories. Speaking of protein, I've learned that no matter how often you go to the gym, you really won't see maximum results without a diet plan. I wish this weren't the case--I wish there was some way around this. But there's not: you have to have some idea of how many calories you are consuming every day in order to lose weight. You can't trick the simple law of thermodynamics--burn more calories than you eat/consume and you'll lose fat. Train with weights. One of the most positive things I've ever done for my body is resistance training. I used to focus almost all my attention on cardiovascular exercises like walking on a treadmill. There are benefits to that, but nothing will transform your physique the way lifting weights will. I had to start training with some of the same exercises that men use (like squats). My routine still doesn't look exactly like what a man would do (I'm doing a workout for a bikini body; click here for details--musclereview.net/bikini-body-workouts-review-jen-ferruggia/not to be a bodybuilder), but I have built the kind of feminine muscles that make me look good. Avoid the scams. There are a lot of bogus products out there that supposedly help you lose weight or burn fat. One type that comes to mind is ab machines--equipment (usually cheaply made) that gets advertised on infomercials. Training your abdominal muscles is important, but training your whole body is what will ultimately help you look better (in addition to diet, which I've already mentioned). Another thing I've seen a lot of is "fat burner" supplements. These are also a waste of money for the most part. Most of the time you'll find that these kinds of supplements are just caffeine plus some other random ingredients. Caffeine is actually not bad for energy and appetite suppression, but there's no point in paying big bucks for it (you can just drinks some coffee or take generic caffeine tablets). Cheat, but not too much. I think one mistake I used to make is I believed that one cookie or one dessert meant that I had completely failed and might as well give up. This is simply not true. A little cheat meal (or even a cheat day) every once in a while is actually quite beneficial. It gives you a psychological break from dieting which gives you the will to stay on the diet until the next cheat. This way you can still eat your favorite foods guilt-free. Just be sure that your cheats are occasional and that most of the time you stay on your diet. Consistency is the key word here: not perfection. These are just a few of the many lessons I'm learning about how my body works. Just to keep you up to date, I'm still very happy with the workout I'm doing. |
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