So, you want to burn some fat? That’s absolutely no problem if you are in your teens or 20s, if you have never yo-yo dieted in the past and if you are of the male persuasion.
For everyone else, it’s not so easy.
Pesky fat is harder to burn as a woman, due to our lower muscle mass, and it gets even harder to burn (no matter what your gender) as we age.
Why is that? As we get older our hormone balance shifts in ways that encourages weight gain instead of weight loss. For example, testosterone levels decline in men, and women’s insulin-regulating hormones become less effective.
These changes decrease muscle mass, slow down our metabolism, sap our energy, all while increasing our belly fat and our resistance to insulin.
In addition, who hasn’t been on a diet before? If you are a woman over the age of 40, I can guarantee there has been some point in your life where you have restricted food to lose weight. Now, if you have done this restriction on a regular basis (otherwise known as yo-yo dieting), then you have really sent your metabolism — and your ability to burn fat — in a free fall.
All is not lost, though.
Just recently I released an online course that trains people over the age of 40 on how to burn fat, how to keep it off for good and how to never diet again. Today I want to share with you some insider tips from that course to help you rule your fat too.
First, drink water and to be more precise as soon as you get up. We wake up in a dehydrated state and in order to start repairing, and then maintaining, a healthy metabolism you need to drink water.
Start your day with at least 12 ounces of water before you eat or that first cup of coffee.
Next, change what you are doing in the kitchen and start with the complete elimination of low-fat foods. Fat is not the enemy in your diet. In fact, since the introduction of fat-free foods into the marketplace, we have never been fatter.
We need dietary fat. It is an essential nutrient for our body as well as a key component to producing hormones that enhance our youthful qualities. Fat also helps transport vitamins, it promotes healthier skin and it supports a healthy
brain.
Aim for 35 per cent of your calories from fat, especially if you are over 40, and choose from a variety foods such as olive oil, grape seed oil, canola oil, coconut oil, fatty fish, nuts and seeds, and avocados. These are all monounsaturated and polyunsaturated foods that have a positive effect on the body.
The other fat, trans fat, should be avoided at all costs and is super easy to do if you eat from the perimeter of your grocery store, walking right past the bakery, mind you.
As for the final fat out there, saturated, there has been some positive research indicating it is not so unhealthy for us like doctors, nutritionists and health authorities have been warning us.
It seems researchers are now casting doubt on those claims that it can cause heart disease, concluding that people who eat lots of saturated fat do not experience more cardiovascular disease than those who eat less.
And, finally, the biggest fat booster of them all — add strength training to your weekly workouts.
Nothing will burn the fat faster than lean muscle tissue, and strength training is the best way to increase yours. How can you do that on your own? Start a strength training routine, lifting three to four times a week. After about 12 to 16
weeks, start adding more advanced training techniques to continue to see change and growth.
Some of these techniques include high intensity interval training, super setting, training to failure, circuit training (my personal fave), Tabata training, drop sets and light to heavy volume training, to name a few.
PJ Wren is a personal trainer and writer in the Delta area. Check out her online program, Over 40: Becoming a Fat Burning Machine, at www.fitnesswithpj.com.
