Everyone has their go to method of cutting fat to look leaner. We all love a good bulking season with all of the glorious eating and heavy lifting; however, being fluffy can get old. Some people love to cut their carbs or carb cycle to lean out, others love to up the cardio and intensity of workout and there’s the brave people who can properly Keto diet. But, there’s no one way to do anything best. There’s ways to tweak or add some changes to make the cut a little easier or simply do it differently to keep your metabolism firing at full speed. Here are a few tricks to try with your next cut…
HIIT and SSC
There are some people that believe HIIT, high intensity interval training, is the most effective method of burning excess fat from cardio. While HIIT is highly effective at getting adipose fat mobilized into the bloodstream, it does not mean it always gets used as fuel in the body. Meaning, the fat leaves the areas in which you have excess and enters the bloodstream. Just because it has entered the blood stream, it does not mean that the body is utilizing and burning those fats as fuel for the work out. When they are not used for fuel, they remain in the body stored as adipose fats AGAIN. Disturbing, right?!
Although steady state cardio, SSC, does not produce the same result as HIIT by mobilizing the fats, it is VERY effective at burning the fats released in the bloodstream by doing HIIT. Using both HIIT and SSC, you can give your excess fats the one-two punch you need to get rid of it. Attack the fat and put your body in the position to burn it away during the workout with the intensity of HIIT, then make sure that it is burned away with the effectiveness of steady state cardio.
Get creative with your cardio. If you’re anything like me, cardio is your least favorite portion of the work out. As a matter of fact, I’d rather attempt fifty deadlifts in a row than sit on a machine for an hour. Make your cardio fun with the combination of these two forms. Try running outside instead of in the gym and implement HIIT with steady state cardio by doing thirty second sprints with thirty second walks for twenty to twenty-five minutes. Follow that up with a thirty to forty-minute jog. You’ll even have a beautiful view to look at if you go out by the beach in the morning to run.
Strategically Eat Carbs
Reducing or eliminating complex carbohydrates from your diet is a popular and effective favorite method to cut fat. But, cutting complex carbs can be problematic with workout intensity and the ability to retain muscle mass. This is mainly due to the fact that your body will have lower insulin levels from the lack of carbohydrates consumed. This is not to say that you shouldn’t reduce carbs to cut fat, but choose wise times to consume the limited carbs that you are eating.
Plan to have the restricted amounts of carbohydrates around your work out. To make sure your intensity of workout stays up, be sure to eat carbs approximately an hour prior to training. This will give your body fuel to power through lifting and cardio. Otherwise, you run the risk of your blood sugar plummeting intra-workout and getting lightheaded, along with all of the other not so fun side effect of low blood glucose.
The other important time to consume carbohydrates is post work out. It’s no secret that after you’re done lifting and doing that monstrous amount of cardio to cut fat, your bodies glycogen is depleted. Post work out carbs are necessary to promote proper recovery and keep your gains. By drastically reducing the carbs eating throughout the rest of the day, strategically planning carbs around the workout will promote muscle gains and fat loss.
Keep Proper Fat to Carb Ratios
Fats and carbs can both be used by the body to produce energy; but, consuming too much of both fats and carbs during the same meal results in the excess fat we all hate. It’s important to remember that these two staples in your macro nutrient count need to be inversely proportional within your meals and overall diet. Simply put, if you want to have a higher carb meal prior to working out, limit the amount of fats that are going into your plate. Conversely, choosing to have more fats during a meal will result in less carbs.
Protein is the other important macro nutrient to pay attention to in your diet. Protein rarely gets used in the body as a source of fuel for energy. The best strategies for fat loss will keep protein amounts consistent and fluctuate the levels of carbohydrates and fats to manipulate body fat loss or gain. Protein is essential for the body’s ability to maintain and grow muscle, which is the reason to keep it consistent.
Remember, there’s both higher fat or higher carb diets that will help cut fat, BUT NOT BOTH. Increasing both your fats and carbs will result in nothing but fat gain. Essentially, keep your protein consumption consistent and maintain an inverse proportion of fats to carbs consumed to create a foundation of a diet that is meant to cut body fat.
The combination of working hard in the gym and eating the proper diet will result in fat loss. But, using certain tips and tricks might help your cut work better for you. It’s not always about who can work the hardest, but also about who can work the smartest. Don’t be afraid to branch out and try new tactics to keep your body guessing as well as properly fueled while looking your best.
Written by: Samantha Meinrod
IG: @sammiegirl_fitness
Email: sammiemeinrod@gmail.com