Focus on the big rocks (weight loss edition)
I've tried to write this post a few times and haven't quite nailed it. As such it hasn't been published, so I'm happy that I've finally managed to get it done. I've written it to explain the basic 360 Degree Fitness philosophy and how I view training and fitness in general.
The philosophy revolves around 3 basic ideas - train well, eat well, recover well. If you can get these sorted you're on your way to reaching your fitness goals. Often, however, people end up getting bogged down in the details before getting the basics right.
The plethora of information out there makes it hard to know what the basics even are. So these are what I consider the basics to be - plain and simple. For the basis of this post, I'm looking at weight loss as this is what I get asked about most often as a trainer. If you have any other specific questions get in touch with me and I will answer them.
Firstly, nutrition. Eat for your goal. It really is (in theory) that simple. If you want to lose weight, you need to eat fewer calories than you burn.
Before you worry about supplements, fat burning pills or meal timing answer the following question: are you eating fewer calories than you are burning as a result of activity throughout the day?
There are lots of different (often free) apps that can tell you how many calories you need to be eating to lose weight and to help you track your food (Easy Diet Diary is a favourite of mine). Get one and start tracking - you will then know whether you're eating the right amount of calories to lose weight.
Next is training. Technically you can lose weight by diet alone, but you also lose muscle along with the fat which is not ideal. This is where training comes in. Training not only burns calories but the right sort of training will minimise muscle loss which has (at least) two benefits.
First, having more lean muscle mass means you burn more calories simply when you go about your daily life. Secondly, it means you'll have a bit of muscle tone once the fat has been burned off. Which is great for beach season.
Lastly, recovery. Keeping an eye on your nutrition and training hard is vital, but recovery is equally important. You need your sleep in order to let the body prepare itself for the next day of training and eating well. Also, utilising recovery methods such as foam rollers and massage can be a huge help too.
Losing weight is stressful. Both to the body in terms of the training and being in a caloric deficit but also stressful on the mind. Setbacks with training/diet can be frustrating and can take a toll mentally so make sure you are getting your rest.
This post is incredibly basic - I get that. But it is purposefully written that way. If you have been trying to lose weight but have not been successful you need to ask yourself the basic question - am I eating well, training well, and recovering well? Chances are if one of these 3 boxes isn't being ticked then it could be the answer.
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The philosophy revolves around 3 basic ideas - train well, eat well, recover well. If you can get these sorted you're on your way to reaching your fitness goals. Often, however, people end up getting bogged down in the details before getting the basics right.
The plethora of information out there makes it hard to know what the basics even are. So these are what I consider the basics to be - plain and simple. For the basis of this post, I'm looking at weight loss as this is what I get asked about most often as a trainer. If you have any other specific questions get in touch with me and I will answer them.
Firstly, nutrition. Eat for your goal. It really is (in theory) that simple. If you want to lose weight, you need to eat fewer calories than you burn.
Before you worry about supplements, fat burning pills or meal timing answer the following question: are you eating fewer calories than you are burning as a result of activity throughout the day?
There are lots of different (often free) apps that can tell you how many calories you need to be eating to lose weight and to help you track your food (Easy Diet Diary is a favourite of mine). Get one and start tracking - you will then know whether you're eating the right amount of calories to lose weight.
Next is training. Technically you can lose weight by diet alone, but you also lose muscle along with the fat which is not ideal. This is where training comes in. Training not only burns calories but the right sort of training will minimise muscle loss which has (at least) two benefits.
First, having more lean muscle mass means you burn more calories simply when you go about your daily life. Secondly, it means you'll have a bit of muscle tone once the fat has been burned off. Which is great for beach season.
Lastly, recovery. Keeping an eye on your nutrition and training hard is vital, but recovery is equally important. You need your sleep in order to let the body prepare itself for the next day of training and eating well. Also, utilising recovery methods such as foam rollers and massage can be a huge help too.
Losing weight is stressful. Both to the body in terms of the training and being in a caloric deficit but also stressful on the mind. Setbacks with training/diet can be frustrating and can take a toll mentally so make sure you are getting your rest.
This post is incredibly basic - I get that. But it is purposefully written that way. If you have been trying to lose weight but have not been successful you need to ask yourself the basic question - am I eating well, training well, and recovering well? Chances are if one of these 3 boxes isn't being ticked then it could be the answer.
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