Getting Started

You will need a few things to get started

Plan your meals

You are going to be a little hungry. It’s a requirement for fat loss. You want to plan ahead, minimizing the number of decisions you need to make when you are hungry. Decide ahead of time how you will spend your calories throughout the day. For example: if your calorie target is 1500, your meal plan might look like:

This calorie distribution doesn’t matter. If you get busy and skip lunch, just have those calories for dinner.

Also, have an idea of what you will eat for each meal. Again, you just want to avoid making decisions hungry. Plan on having the same breakfast and/or lunch most days. When you cook, cook extra so you can have leftovers.

Plan your treats

You want to make this process as enjoyable as possible. That means rewarding yourself on a regular basis. Decide what your treat will be and how often you get it. Allocate about 100 calories per day, or 700 calories per week. This can be alcohol, dessert, or 1 or 2 large meals on the weekend.

Weigh everything you eat

The goal is to be in a slight calorie deficit. 100 or 200 calories per day can make the difference between consistent fat loss and no fat loss. It’s very difficult to eyeball food with that level of precision. Use a food scale.

Walk everyday

You actually burn quite a few calories just moving your body throughout the day. If you are desk or couch bound, make sure you take time to move. You could use a step counter, or just plan on walking 30 minutes per day.

Resistance train 2-3 times per week

This can be lifting weights, or body weight training like push ups and pull ups. The goal is to challenge your muscles each week, and let your body know it shouldn’t use them for fuel.

Set realistic expectations

Convincing your body to get rid of fat is a little like trying to pet a wild animal. If you try to force it, it will freak out. You need to shoot for about 1 lb of fat loss per week. You will likely drop more than that in the beginning, but know that a lot of that is water weight.

Plan for mistakes

Sometimes you are going to make a mistake. You are hungry, you decide to eat a cookie without tracking it. Your instincts will tell you that you messed up, and now you are off your diet. You will want to eat as much as you can and get back on track tomorrow. That is the real mistake. That 100-200 calorie cookie isn’t the problem, it’s the 500 fuck-it calorie that follows. Sure you messed up a little. Don’t do it every day. But you didn’t blow it, just get back on track as soon as possible. Maybe you really needed a couple hundred calories. It’s not that big a deal.