Did you know that nearly 80% of people who lose weight end up gaining it all back within one year? (Source: American Journal of Clinical Nutrition). It’s not because they’re lazy. It’s not because they choose to be overweight. And it’s definitely not because they lack willpower. After more than three decades in the fitness world, and after coaching thousands of people, I started to understand the real problem...
Meal prepping (aka “meal prep”) is often misunderstood. Many people think meal prepping and meal planning are the same thing. The truth is, they go hand-in-hand, but they’re different. In this post, first I’ll quickly explain that difference, and then I’ll show you how I do meal prep, and how you can use these great meal prep ideas too to burn more fat (or build more muscle)
At Brown University, Dr. Rena Wing and her colleagues knew that the biggest problem is not taking fat off, it's keeping fat off. So they designed a study where subjects were told to break their diet for at least two weeks. The scientists were intentionally trying to get people to go off their diet and regain weight so they could study relapse and how to best get back on the wagon afterwards. What happened was totally unexpected......
A lot of people struggle with tracking calories and macros (protein, carbs and fat) and hitting their ideal macro targets every day. In fact, many people are frustrated from day one because they can’t even figure out their ideal calorie and macro intake in the first place, let alone make a daily or weekly meal plan based on macros (without hiring an expensive coach). I understand the frustrations and concerns. That’s why in today’s post I wanted to share two easy alternatives to setting calorie and macro goals.
Most people are making big mistakes when setting their macros (protein, carbs, fats). Beginners are more prone to these errors. That's understandable. There's a learning curve to this stuff. But what might surprise you is how many experienced dieters and physique enthusiasts are making the same macro mistakes too. See a list of the top 6 mistakes, and what to do about them in this post...
What’s the biggest problem you’re struggling with in your nutrition and training right now? I recently asked everyone in the Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle (BFFM) Official Facebook group this question. The list of problems was long. But one problem was named more than any other...
How many carbs can you eat per meal without storing it as body fat? This has become a common question, and a part of the reason is due to low carb diets getting so popular. But you don't have to be scared of carbs, you simply need to know how to set them right for your goals and needs. Follow the 5 "carb-setting factors" in this post and you'll know exactly how many carbs to eat per meal without a doubt
The "protein-first" method is a new, alternative, and most important - ultra simple - way of setting your macronutrients, aka "macros" - protein, carbohydrate and fat - that many nutrition coaches are starting to use and embrace because it's so simple. Having a simple method is helpful because crunching macro numbers is one of the first stages in the meal planning process where many people get confused and frustrated
Many top scientists and bodybuilding coaches have suggested that you should eat both after and before you train to maximize muscle-building results. Yet many people don't have time to prepare a full breakfast or sit around waiting for a big meal to digest before being able to train comfortably without nausea. For some, training in the early morning is the only time they can do it. If you're in the same boat, what should you do? Should you force yourself to eat at least something? Will you lose all your gains if you lift fasted? Or is there another solution?
The topic of meal planning for improving body composition is terribly misunderstood. On my flexible meal planning webpage, I listed the 8 biggest meal plan myths, but there are even more myths than that. A [...]
