Workout Tips..

Sorry for being late and not keeping up with my promise of one post per day.
Lets now get to work out. I would recommend that before continuing reading this post please read my earlier post 'No more boring cardio'.
Most of us who try to loose weight actually don't pay lot of attention on the science behing the workout. I see many overweight ppl in the gym who firstly just do cardio and then that too in the same way. Running/walking on the tread mill/cycle at a constant speed for as long as they dont get bored.
Our body, when in need of calories, either burns the fat for caloried or muscles. Buring muscles is easy and 1 gm muscle provides more calories to the body than 1 gm fat. But we dont want muscles to be burnt!
We need to make sure that our body burns only fat and not muscle. Morever, we should always try to add more muscle. Why? maintaining the muscle tissue needs calories. Lots of them. The more muscle mass you have the more is your basal metabolic rate(BMR). (refer to past 'frequently asked question' to know what BMR is).
So remember one thing--
MUSCLES BURN CALORIES!
MUSCLES BURN CALORIES!
MUSCLES BURN CALORIES!

The more your muscle mass, the more you can eat. and that is what i like. After you achive the desired fat loss and reach your ideal weight, you need to focus on putting on muscle mass.

Now coming back to the point, how to workout to ensure that body burns no muscles and only fat.
two basic things- you need to do weight training and you need to have atleast 30% proteins in your total diet. If you are having less proteins, your muscles cannot be maintained and more muscle cannot be added.
To ensure your body does not burn muscle- YOU have to remind your body that you are using muscles. That is y do weight training. Tell your body that Hey! I am using these muscles. How can you burn them!
My recommended workout plan- Do full body weight training every alternate day. Now, you need not workout like real weight lifters and body builders. Working on one muscles for a very long time. Remember- you just need to remind your body that you are using muscles. and this will also help you get in shape.
So for full body workout- do only one exercise/machine for one body part. One machine for chest, one for back, biceps, triceps, shoulders, and legs.
Do as many free body exercised using dumbles and make as less use of machines. And always do pushups, pullups and squats. I know most of you will not be able to do these propersly but you have to start. these are the best free body exercises which train muscles using your own body weight.
NOW- important thing. do weights first and then cardio. Remind your body and then burn calories. Muscle training itself also burn lots of calories.
Try something like this-
Day 1 - Full body weight training followed by interval training cardio
Day 2- interval training cardio or a sport like squash/swimming
Day 3 - Full body weight training followed by interval training cardio
Day 4- interval training cardio or a sport like squash/swimming
Day 5 - Full body weight training followed by interval training cardio
Day 6- interval training cardio or a sport like squash/swimming
Day 7 - Rest

Never workout twice in on the same day. your body nd muscles need a 24 hr rest atleast. Working out more will not help you loose more weight. Working out right will.
If you dont have a lot of time when you visit the gym for a full body workout. Then do chest and back on one day, and hands and legs on the next. Always follow with cardio.

And again- I shout at the top of my voice. Stop running at the same speed on a cardio machine. It is not gonna help you. STart interval training . Read my earlier post on No more boring cardio for more details on this.

Question are welcome as always.

nd

Water helps fat loss...

Water will be a key ingredient if you are looking for weight loss.
One must drink a minimum of 12 glasses of water everyday. It's needed to sweep the grease out of your system, keeps you rejuvenated and refreshed.

• Helps reduce your appetite
• It reduced fat deposit
• Relieves constipation
• Helps your body get rid of waste and toxins
• Reduces sodium in your body
• Reduces water retention. When your body doesn't get enough water it starts retaining fluids.
• Keeps muscles hydrated
  

Start your meals with a glass of water or Lime water(no sugar), vegetable juice, clear soups or coconut water.

Food Myths!

1) Honey is good for weight loss.
NOOO! It has around 80% sugar and rest water. Provides 4 calories per gram.

2) Juices are good for weight loss.
One glass juice is made from approx 4-5 fruits minus the fibre. Most juices available in market have added sugar. It's always and anytime better to have 1-2 whole fruits instead of the juice.

3) Refined oils are fat free.
Haha! Refined oils are 99% fat irrespective of the brand. 1 teaspoon gives 50 calories.

4) Healthy food means bland food.
NO. Spices are good for flavor and taste and they provide trace nutrients+anti-oxidants. No point in avoiding spices unless not tolerated by your stomach.

5) One can have as much of low calorie foods as one wants.
No. They have calories which add up and have to burnt. Have a balanced diet.

6) Buttermilk is not good.
NO. It is a good source of proteins and calcium.

7) Toasted bread is better than normal bread.
NO. The calorie count remains the same. Moreover, by toasting the starch gets converted into dextrins which is bad. Fibre content is also reduced.

There are many other myths that exist amongst us. Will try and address those soon.

Frequently asked questions..

Okay..here are the answers to some FAQs from reader-

1) What is Basal Metabloic Rate(BMR)?
BMR is the energy consumerd by an individual to carry out body functions when at rest.
There are machines to analyse your BMR.

2) What is negative calorie balance?
Consume less calories then you spend in a day and you will create a negative calorie balance.
If you consume more calories then you spend the excess calories are stored as body fat and are burnt only when you consume less calories than your body requires.

Aprrox, 75 caloreis get stored as 10 gms of fat. So over a period if you consumer 7500 less calories you burn 1 kg fat.

3) How much calorie should I consume?
Calorie requirements for diff age groups-
Men (sedentary) 2425
Women (sedentary) 1875
Boys (16-18 yers) 2640
Girls (16-18 yers) 2060

To loose weight the correct method is to consume less calories then you require to create negative calorie balance.

4) How do I create negative calorie balance?
Count your calories. Keep a diet diary. And exercise to burn calories so that you don't have to eat too less.

5) What is safe weight loss?
If you go on a crash diet and heavy exercise you may reduce lot of weight but your body will eat up muscles along with fat. You will notice sagging of skin and muscles and other medical complications may come up.
Ideally, you should reduce 3-4 kgs a month. 4 being max. 3.5 is ideal.
Although, if you are very overweight (20-30 kgs overweight) you may loose a lot (5-7 kgs) in the first month. This is Okay for the first month.

Also, if you reduce at a rate of 3.5 kgs a month the chances of gaining back that weight are less as compared to when you loose at 5-7 kgs a month. Loose slowly to ensure no gain back.

I hope this helps.

Remember the more overweight you are the easier it is for you to loose weight by light exercise and diet control. As you approach your ideal weight the going gets tough. But no worries. Excess fat is something no needed and has to go back.

How to Order when eating out

Okay- so most of us have to eat out at time with friends/family even when we are following a diet.
No need to panic...you can keep the following in mind while at a restaurant:

• Eat something healthy before going out. Like two fruits or skimmed milk with wheat flakes. So you feel less hungary and tempted when u r at a restaurant.
• Choose clear soups instead of creamy soups.
• Always order green salad. Top it up with salt/pepper. Avoid potato/beetroot and macroni in salads.
• Choose romali roti, tandoori roti or missi roti over parantha/kulcha etc...
• For starters, always choose grilled items like tandoori chicken, baked fish, paneer tikka or pasta with low fat sauce/dressing. Having said that, you cannot take huge amout of either of these. Treat them as starters only.
• Tell the waiter that you would prefer to use as little butter/ghee/oil as possible.
• For main course, if u have the option always go for South Indian food. A plate of idli or rawa sada dosa. Avoid coconut chutney and enjoy with sambhar. If you have to go for punjabi food go for steamed foods rather then dishes with lot of gravy. Have dishes with lots of vegetables or something like a palak paneer.
• Try and resist a desert but if you must then choose fresh fruits or frozen yoghurt.

Hope this helps. Personally I always make it a point to visit a restaurant with south india food and I tell my friends that I am not feeling good in stomach so i shall have south indian. And i also make sure that I am not very hungary when i visit a retaurant.

Pick up a Sport

Hey...
One thing I would strongly strogly recommend to all you guys trying to loose some Kgs or trying to get fitter...PICK UP A SPORT
Can be anything - Squash, tennis, Badminton or swimming...
This will make your daily workout interesting...every alternate day you need not hit the gym but go for any of the above...all these except swimming are competitive sports and you will never get bored plus they all are good cardio workouts...
I would strongly recommend Squash- coz its the best cardio workout you ca get...a good half hr to 45 min squash will burn around 400-500 calories...and the game is awesome...
I too hit the gym alternate days only and go for squash or swimming every alternate day...
You can start more than one sport to keep your execise routine interesting...
Moreover, sports add atheletism to your body which is very necassary to have a fitter you...

So go..find out a place a club, get a partner and start playing....

Fat loss tip 001-Lime Water

Lime is very essential for fat loss...Lime helps our body to bring out fat and burn it...
So without fail...every morning when u get up have 1 lemon in lukewarm water or even normal temp water..
try having lime water first thing in the morning as soon as u get up with an empty stomach...if u miss..have it anytime during the day and as many times as u want...
Make this a routine for the rest of your life...