Everything You Need to Know about Fitness in One Post
Fitness has been one of my passion for the past 7 years. I spent those years immersed in the fitness world and consumed every video I could on training, nutrition, strategies, and even just for plain entertainment. I experimented with so many different regimens, just to see what works and what doesn’t. After numerous trial and error, I think that it’s safe to say that I understand something about losing fat and building muscle. In this post, I’ll try to break everything down as simple as possible. Here’s everything you need to know about fitness in one post.
The Information (Overload) Age
How to lose weight. It’s been one of the most talked-about topics during the modern era. There are so many programs, supplements, products, and even tea designed to tackle it, but yet, people are still confused about this topic. If you’re someone just starting or don’t know much about fitness, chances are you probably “YouTubed” or read some fitness content online on how to lose weight and build muscle. And the more you research about it, the more you’re just confused to the point where you just give up.
There is just so much conflicting information that pulls you in different directions. Well, let me start by saying that is purposely the case. There are good and bad apples out there. Some of them are just there to solely market to you, while others are trying to teach you. If you see a video “How to get abs in 10min,” I’d hate to burst your bubble, but it ain’t gonna happen that fast. People love videos like that because it sounds so easy. No one wants to watch a video of someone explaining the actual in-depth science of losing weight for 30 minutes. It sounds extremely boring.
Well luckily, I bring some good news. Fitness doesn’t have to be as hard as you think. It doesn’t even have to feel like you’re solving a calculus riddle or trying to climb Mt. Everest. It’s as simple as riding a bike. You’ll stumble a little bit on the way, but eventually, you’ll be able to do it without even thinking.
How to Correctly track your weight
This is an important first step. Correctly tracking your weight will give you an accurate measurement to work with. Here are the steps:
- Weigh yourself every single morning when you wake up
- Continue doing this for a week then calculate your weekly MEDIAN weight
- Continue this method on a weekly and monthly basis to see how much weight you may have gained or lost.
The reason that the median weight is more accurate than the average weight is due to the fact that it’ll eliminate those outliers. It is also better to weigh yourself every single morning to get an accurate reading, rather than just weighing yourself once a week.
Calories In vs. Calories Out
This is the golden rule when it comes to losing fat and building muscle. As long as you burn more calories than you consume, you’ll lose fat. As long as you’re in a caloric deficit, you’ll lose fat. That is a simple fact. Losing or gaining weight is a numbers game.
There are many misconceptions out there depicting that you’ll only lose weight by eating just greens, brown rice, and lean meat. There is also an ongoing belief that carbs are bad for you or that 5 small meals are best to put off the weight. Misinformation has confused the public. As crazy as it sounds, you can lose weight while still enjoying the ice cream or chocolate bar that you consume daily.
The goal is to enjoy the process and make it a lifestyle. If you can’t see yourself doing it for more than a year, then you’re doing something wrong. All you need to learn are these 3 things:
How to read the nutrition facts
Alright, let’s take a look at how many calories this chocolate bar contains. Go ahead, I’ll give you a second.
If you say that it’s only 220 calories, then YOU’RE INCORRECT. This is a popular marketing gimmick used by food companies to trick you into thinking that you’re purchasing a healthier product than it really is. The CORRECT answer is actually 550 calories. You simply take the number of servings then multiply it by the calories, which would be 2.5 x 220 = 550 total calories in this chocolate bar!
Get into the habit of using a food scale
A food scale will probably be one of the best investments for your health. It will do more for you than those pre-workout or protein supplements that you’ve purchased in the past. The scale will cut through the guessing game of how much calories you’re putting in your body and it’ll give a definite match. The two numbers you’ll only need to focus on are and . Calculating the calories will track whether you’re going to gain or lose weight. Calculating the protein will ensure that your body can recover and build muscle. It is recommended that you consume 0.8–1.5g of protein per lb. of bodyweight.
Calorie Tracker
So how much calories should you consume daily to start losing weight? Well, everyone will carry a different number. It will vary depending on your age, height, weight, and how many times a week you train. Some great trackers out there would be MyFitnessPal or TDEE calculator. These applications will give you an estimated number of calories that you need to hit to lose weight. Next is the training aspect!
How many days a week should you train?
When you’re lifting heavy weights and challenging yourself in the gym, it can be very taxing for the body. This is why it’s important to not over train yourself. You should be lifting weights only 3–4 times a week. This will help the body recover and you’ll be able to step into the gym refreshed every single time and ready to progress. In my personal experience, 4 times a week is best to lose fat and build muscle, while 3 times a week is suitable for maintaining your physique. On your off days, this is the perfect opportunity to get your steps in or play any sports that you may enjoy.
Focus on getting stronger on key lifts
The exercises you’ll want to focus on are squats, deadlift, benching, pullups, and shoulder press. These are compound movements that will work your entire body and it is where you’ll get the most bang for your buck. You’ll want to build your regimen around these exercises because as you get stronger on these movements, your body will grow in response.
Tracking your lifts can make a difference. By tracking how heavy and how much you lift, you’ll always have something to aim for. This is what separates the people who are training vs the ones that are just going through the motions. Anyone can step into the gym, but it takes a goal-oriented individual to push and excel.
“If you can’t measure it, then you can’t improve it.”
- Peter Drucker
Rest days are optimal and necessary
Rest days are an essential building block for your muscle to recover and get stronger. Certain people carry this mentality of “no rest days.” They think that it makes them hard and will help them build muscle faster, but it is a deluded mentality that will leave you burned out in a few short weeks or months. Many professional bodybuilders and powerlifters understand the importance of rest days. Rest days are just as important as the days you step into the gym. More doesn’t always mean better.
Fitness should be a lifestyle
At the end of the day, fitness should never be your main priority. Your career and personal life should be. Fitness is just here to elevate and enhance your life. I’ve never believed in causing myself to starve or slave myself away in the gym for a good physique. It isn’t worth it and is unrealistic. You can build a great body and physique by still doing and eating the things that you enjoy.
Hopefully, you were able to make it this far. This is everything about training and nutrition made as simple as possible. Does this mean that you shouldn’t research more about fitness? Absolutely not. If anything, I hope you gained even more clarity and curiosity from reading this post. Fitness should always be something that elevates your life. It should never be the consuming factor that takes up all of your time and energy.
Originally published at https://articlesbyjulian.com on June 6, 2020.
