Fat Loss Hacks That Aren’t Counting Calories

Targeting and losing body fat is likely the most common fitness and health goal. While counting calories has proven to be successful for many, it involves a meticulous approach to restricting calories through tedious tracking to stay within a certain range. Many find calorie counting too extreme and a practice they won’t stick to for the long term. Luckily, there are a handful of way to make your fat loss journey stress-free and sustainable.

Increase Protein Intake

Specifically, try aiming for 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight or your target body weight. Surprisingly, many people fall significantly short of this benchmark, often consuming only about a quarter of the recommended amount! Increasing protein in our diet not only prompts us to reconsider our dietary choices, but we also fill our plates with more satiating foods that keep us feeling full for extended periods, making overeating more challenging. Additionally, the thermic effect of protein is higher than other macronutrients like carbs and fats, meaning the body expends more energy to digest protein. Although this may not yield drastic results immediately, consistently meeting higher protein goals can show notable positive changes in body composition over time.

Prioritize Your Sleep

Poor sleep is one of the most common ailments we see in the general population. Insufficient sleep is interpreted by our bodies as stress, leading to numerous negative effects. Neglecting sleep disrupts hormone balance, restricts the body's ability to recover effectively, decreases stress resilience and lowers motivation and energy levels throughout the day. All of which limit the body's ability to burn fat. Conversely, prioritizing and improving sleep can organize our hormones in optimal ways, elevate daytime energy levels, enhance muscle building and kick start the process of burning excess body fat.

Eat More Home Cooked Meals

Opting for home cooked meals, consistent meal prepping and minimizing eating out can significantly reduce daily calorie intake. When you prepare your meals at home, you gain a much better understanding of the ingredients you use and their quantities. Eating out often involves hidden elements like excessive oils, butter, sauces that may go unnoticed. Simply cutting down on eating out each week can make a huge difference in how effortlessly you’re able to trim excess body fat. Additionally, this approach provides a great opportunity to discover healthier alternatives to your favorite meals!

Limit Liquid Calories & Alcohol

Regularly indulging in high-calorie drinks and alcohol can slow down fat loss goals dramatically. Beverages like sugary lattes, sodas, cocktails, and the like may be costing you hundreds of unnecessary calories every day. Finding healthier and lower calorie alternatives is a simple way to manage your calorie consumption without meticulous counting. Additionally, it's important to recognize that alcohol offers zero health benefits. The body perceives alcohol as a poison which needs to be metabolized. This means everything you eat is in a more optimal position to be stored as body fat. Drinking alcohol can slow down your metabolism by up to 50%! Alcohol can also negatively impact your quality of sleep and reduce inhibitions, which can weaken your willpower when it comes to food choices.

Upgrade Your Workout Routine

While many believe weight loss requires an emphasis on cardio or spending extended periods of time on the treadmill, the key lies in achieving not just weight loss but sustainable fat loss. Manageable and sustainable fat loss is best done with a consistent strength training routine and a moderate amount of low-impact cardio. Strength training sends a signal to your body that, despite being in a calorie deficit, our muscle is in use. This prompts your body to preserve muscle mass while reducing calorie intake. I also enjoy adding bursts of high-intensity intervals, such as sprints or sessions on the assault bike for 10-15 seconds, followed by 2-3 minutes of rest. This is a fun and challenging way to incorporate cardio best suited for retaining muscle mass and promoting a lasting boost in metabolism.