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 I want to loose fat. That’s what I hear constantly from my clients, especially the women that I work with (I know, big surprise). To accomplish this goal, there are only three things that will really help you lose fat -  two involve sweat and nutrition. The last one is more a reality check than anything else. Let's go over the reality check - If you think that you can go to the gym in full war paint and the latest Juicy outfit, and just stand by the Stair-Stepper or spinning room, and lose the last happy hour appetizers and drinks, you better go find Dorothy's Ruby Red Slippers and start clicking your heels together, because once you come to grips with the fact that you will have to sweat and eat clean, you will be way ahead of the game. Here are some basic, but very effective, fat loss strategies.

• Get at least 30 minutes of above average cardio. That means TV walking is out. What is that you ask? If you can talk about what was on your favorite TV show, you are not moving fast enough.

• Change your cardio every day...it keeps the body guessing. 

• Exercise as early as possible in the day. This speeds up the metabolism by as much as 25%.

• No (or very little) starchy carbs (French fries, bread, pasta, etc.) after 3:00pm in the afternoon. If you must, simple fruits are best.

• Eat breakfast! And small meals throughout the day.

• Get the big muscles working! (legs, chest, and back) Abs are not a big muscle...sorry.

• Use the right supplements the right way. More is not better.

But this is the most important point, one I can't stress enough, it’s not going to happen overnight. You will fall off the wagon and eat foods that you shouldn’t. There will be times when you would rather jump in front of a bus than hit the gym. All of which are ok in moderation, just get back on track and stay after it. In most cases it takes at least 6-8 weeks to see real results from a program. If you are working really hard, it could take less.  

Tricks of the Trade

Watch your portion sizes at restaurants. By most accounts, a single portion size is the area of your palm. Anything bigger is generally too much for most men and women to eat at one seating. If you have to eat high value carbs (pasta, bread, etc.) eat fiber with it. Fiber would include salads and green veggies which help to absorb the excess carbs that you don’t need.

When you’re at the gym or outside doing cardio, make sure you get the heart rate up into the cardio zones.

Another common mistake people make is to look at the cardio chart to see where their target heart-rate should be to burn fat. This can become a very tricky and technical issue, but what I can say is, if you keep the heart rate in the "fat burning zones" in the afternoon and evening, you will need to walk miles to burn any kind of significant calories. But, if you where to increase the intensity of your cardio and really get the heart rate up, you will have to do less time. Which lead to the question...how many calories should you try and burn in a work out? My recommendation is about 500 calories a day. You must include both cardio and workout to get any real results in a timely fashion. If you can’t workout regularly, then you would need your "calories burned" to be higher, typically 700-800 per workout.  

Nutrition is 75%. This is what I tell my clients trying to lose fat. If you don’t get a handle on your eating, you will be fighting a losing battle and get nowhere fast.  

Happy Sweating!