Are you finally ready for an easy diet plan that works?
You’ll get exactly as it says on the title. An easy diet plan that works and 10 guaranteed fat loss tips. With a bonus of no snake oil rubbish.
Truly digest this article and you’ll never be confused with dieting again.
You’ll gain a great grasp on setting up a diet for yourself
At this posts conclusion, you’ll be ready to delve further into my blog posts, build upon your knowledge and ensure your own fat loss success.
Future entries within this blog will delve into various topics (for beginner and advanced goals), but for now, let’s focus on arming you to never be confused by dieting again. To learn about the true meaning of fitness, click here.
Want a good female weight loss article? click here.
Contents
as always, you’ll find the contents listed below and all easily locatable within the article. I’d always recommend an initial full read through and then feel free to skip to relevant sections.
Why Is Dieting Confusing?
Eliminating Dieting Confusion
10 guaranteed fat loss tips
My own journey of formulating an easy diet plan that works
Closing thoughts and practical application
Why Is Dieting Confusing?
You’d think that the process of eating less food to reduce body fat would be rather easy to understand? It’s far from it. So why is dieting confusing?
Achieving an optimal body fat level is crucial for overall health. I’m not talking about the modern day instagram definition of unsustainably ripped and a protein shake away from deaths door. But healthy levels of body fat (10-18% for men and 20-30% women).
These fitness influencers are mostly within the top 5% of the gene pool (not always, but usually. Standard fat loss advice doesn’t apply to these genetically gifted people, they’ll mostly remain impressive regardless of diet.
Please stop comparing yourself to them. How do you achieve the body of your favourite instagram influencer?
Short of becoming them, you can’t.
You’ll find an article covering the above here.
Navigating today’s plethora of contradictory information can be overwhelming. I glanced at social media this morning and encountered a myriad of messages, each proclaiming a different approach to fat loss: from dismissing the importance of calories to advocating extreme dietary regimens.
Amidst the noise, it’s vital to establish sustainable strategies, emphasising the importance of consistency for long-term simple diet and fat loss progress.
There are some great fitness influencers out there (perhaps an article for a later date), but for every decent page there are ten others that don’t go into their closet steroid/ fat loss pill addiction, bulimia and complete lack of being able to get an erection since 2009.
The danger of envying a life/body on social media is you see the highlight reel (often fabricated). To nerd out, it’s comparable to how you’ll read about Superman’s greatest adventures, but don’t see the majority of his life as clark Kent. No wonder you require an easy diet plan that works.
The onslaught of information and easy access to calorie-dense foods has contributed to a widespread health crisis and lined numerous pockets along the way. Believe it or not, we didn’t adapt with the ability of picking up a chocolate bar from our local shop.
Consider this: if the veil was lifted and everyone was given an easy diet plan, how many companies and influencers would lose business? Would a shady mechanic rip off someone who’s savvy in this field? The same goes here.
Whilst I believe some approaches are superior for optimal health and fat loss (a topic for another day), if you’re just embarking on your fat loss journey, overthinking can be your worst enemy. Be honest with yourself, how many different diets have you attempted over the last few years? Do you have any long term success to show for your efforts? Why is this?
Eliminating Dieting Confusion
It’s crucial to understand that losing body fat is straightforwardly simple! You don’t need a magic formula, nor are you required to spend a fortune. You need an easy diet plan that works and 10 guaranteed fat loss tips 🙂
Let’s focus on common sense and simplicity, shall we?
The human body, though incredibly intricate, is relatively straightforward when it comes to weight loss (or rather fat loss). The reason you’re carrying extra weight is simple: you’ve consumed more calories than your body requires to function and survive. You’ve overindulged. Your bodies prepared for a famine…. it’s still awaiting one.
Fat accumulation has always been the body’s method of storing energy for lean times. However, carrying excess body fat was never meant to be a long-term arrangement. Losing fat occurred naturally within nature.
Losing body fat is essentially giving your body the opportunity to utilise those stored energy reserves. To complete this effectively, you need to monitor your calorie intake and ensure it aligns with your fat loss goals. This is the only method for guaranteed fat loss!
Every diet plan out there (whether they mask it or not) is simply a method of ensuring you eat less for guaranteed fat loss. There’s infinite ways to repackage this and sell it to you.
None of this sounds exciting does it? I’m sorry, but getting to brass tax assists will assist in absorbing why to never be confused with dieting again. Whether you’re a male or female, fat loss doesn’t differ and run to the hills if you’re told otherwise.
10 guaranteed fat loss tips
1. Track your calories
What gets measured gets done! You need to be aware of what you’re taking in. Start by tracking calories using a tool like MyFitnessPal (no need for the premium version). Track calories! You prioritise what matters to you- prioritise this.
2. Easy Calorie Calculation
An easy (short of using complex calculators) way to calculate your maintenance calories is to multiply your current bodyweight in lbs by 15. For me this would be 180 lbs x 15 = 2700 calories per day to sustain myself at this weight. This is assuming you’re reasonably active (5000 steps plus a day or some workouts a week). if in doubt x by 14.
3. Fat loss calorie calculation
To lose fat multiply your goal bodyweight in lbs x 13 (if you’re fairly active and already exercise a few times a week/ walk) or 11 if you’re generally sedentary and take little activity per week. As I’m active, my fat loss calculation would be 170lbs (my goal summer bodyweight) x 13 = 2210
4. Prioritise Protein
Prioritise protein and ensure you eat 1 gram per lb of goal bodyweight per day. this will preserve any muscle on your frame and ensure that most of the weight that comes off will be fat. Your muscle loss will be minimal.
Without getting too complex- protein is unique. If a high % of your diet is protein vs carbs/fat you’ll lose more fat and quicker. Protein is so important for health, particularly as we age. Read more about our friend protein here.
5. Split Fat and Carbs Equally
How you split carbs and fat is entirely up to you. Don’t get caught up in demonisation arguments against either macronutrient. Tracking calories/protein focus will get you 9/10 to your diet and fat loss goals, I promise
6. Don’t use a fitness tracker for calorie burn
Don’t rely on a fitness tracker (I’m a huge fan) for calories and don’t ever eat additional calories back. Although fitness trackers won’t be pinpoint accurate with steps, their consistent inaccuracy will allow you to rely on it. Aim for 5-10k steps a day.
7. Meal Frequency is Irrelevant
Meal frequency is irrelevant as science has taught us (the media and public take a while to catch up). I’m sure you’ve read that fasting is the Holy Grail and a day later stumbled across an article/upload advising you need to eat 6 times a day to stoke your metabolic furnace. T
Take me, for example – I’m greedy by nature and like big meals. I’ve never been a breakfast person (it’s not the most important meal of the day) and get by very well on a small lunch and large evening meal. Focus on calories/protein and don’t worry about carb/fat ratios/. Meal frequency is irrelevant, I promise you this.
Eat in accordance with what allows you to achieve your protein and calorie goals.
8. Learn About Food Volume
You can lose fat eating McDonalds every day (I have – wouldn’t recommend it), but learn about food volume. if you’re clever with your meals, you can eat a significant amount of food volume for very little calories. Coincidentally, anything that isn’t made by a human is generally lower in energy (a banana vs a chocolate bar) and contains more vitamins and minerals. A sensible diet plan that works will encourage plenty of fruit and veggies as they’re so filling. Learn about food volume and you’ll feel far more satiated and dietary adherence will become easier.
9. You cannot out exercise a bad diet.
Exercise is so important for health and longevity, but it’s not a fat loss tool. A scenario…. you hop on an elliptical for 45 mins (around 200 calories burned depending on intensity) and feel you deserve a ‘treat’ for your efforts.
A chocolate bar alone will contain around 250 calories. Diet for fat loss and exercise for health and fitness benefits. Always split the two. using exercise to counteract carrying excess weight will make you scratch you head and wonder why you’re not losing body fat.
10. Weigh yourself weekly
Weigh yourself weekly. if you can afford it, get a body fat scales to check progress.
My own journey of formulating an easy diet plan that works
You’ll have read within my about me section, I worked out for 12 hours a week and didn’t drop a lb/kilo. Why? Because I didn’t grasp the fundamentals of easy fat loss (tracking calories) and thought exercise was a magical tool. It is, in a different way.
If anything, I ate more during this period and possibly ended up going away carrying extra weight, because I was constantly hungry. The jar of Nutella every evening also didn’t contribute positively.
Nutella is my kryptonite and I can’t be within 4 foot of the stuff. If my wife buys a multipack of chocolate it’s game over! A great tip is to buy what you fancy treat wise on a day by day basis, and don’t keep any excess in the house.
There’s a wealth of information beyond what’s covered here, with numerous tips to explore (we will get there). Begin by grasping the fundamentals, establishing a solid foundation for your journey.
Essentially, you’re losing body fat by tracking calories and creating a deficit. Whilst there’s always more to delve into, focus on mastering the basics of fat loss for now. Don’t be swayed by overly complicated messages, and remember, if something seems too good to be true, it often is.
Closing thoughts and practical application advice
I’ve given you more strategic guidance than rigid fat loss tips. The secret to successful dieting is finding the most tolerable way to enjoy a deficit.
Remember, As meal frequency is irrelevant, you can pick a schedule that best suits you. Providing you prioritise protein and are tracking calories (we have calculated above), you’ll lose fat eating whatever you want. I haven’t restricted carbs or fat outside of the calorie allowance.
Pick high volume foods where possible, but you can work in treats
I’d like to thank you for reading an easy diet plan that works and 10 guaranteed fat loss tips. You can check out my other blog posts for further advice.
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I’d always be delighted to hear off you (contact me section) if there’s anything I can help with.
Thanks so much for reading
Chat soon,
Matt