Consistency is the Key to Fat Loss

I've got a short little Friday scenario post for you all today:

For two weeks, you have been training and eating clean. Friday night comes along, and you have a workout scheduled. Your friend calls you and says, "Hey, I'm going out to the bars tonight. Do you want to go?" What do you say? You certainly don't want to let your friend down, but you have to train. Is missing one session and having a few drinks really going to derail your fat loss program?

This boosts obesity by 171%

I am coming down to writing the final few chapters of my book. Unfortunately for me, these chapters will be the hardest to write because they are on nutrition. Nutrition is not my number 1 field of study, so I have to spend a lot of time researching. Luckily, I have plenty of sources. One person's blog that I like to read regularly is Chris Mohr's. There is a ton of information there that is valuable. Recently he had a post on one factor that boosts obesity by 171%!

The V8 Shake Weight... and "Is fruit juice okay to drink?"

I recently created a parody video for the shake weight. By now, I'm sure you all know what the shake weight is... how can you not? It is absolutely ridiculous! So anyway, the video I created shows me using my own shake weight contraption, a half-empty bottle of V8 Fusion, strawberry banana.

The V8 Shake Weight

It works just like the shake weight. As I shake it one way, the juice goes to one side, but then I shake it the other way and I have to resist all that inertia! Oh my goodness! The resistance can only be exceeded by almost any other exercise I can think of. In fact, the exercise is so simple to do that I can do really complex and worthwhile exercises in restrictive clothing at the same time that I am shaking my V8! Click below to watch the video.

Study: Americans Get the Most Exercise When...

Everyone knows that exercise is good for the heart, lungs, and body. Why then is it so hard for people to make a short time commitment just a couple of times per week to exercise? One of the biggest problems in today's society is inactivity. How do we combat this problem? Well, recently a study was conducted to figure out when it is that Americans get the most exercise. The following video is pretty powerful, and I think it can be the solution that we are all looking for.

Fixing Anterior Pelvic Tilt: Postural Limits for Fat Loss

Update 7/3/2011
I just wrote a new post on some additional soft tissue/myofascial considerations when addressing anterior pelvic tilt (opens in a new window). Be sure to check it out after reading this entry.

Update 5/15/2011
If you are on this page, there is a good chance you were referred here by this bodybuilding.com thread. The OP "TheBroBrah" is a friend of mine who stumbled upon my blog when searching for APT. Since finding me, we have had several discussions on how to fix APT, and I see he used much of the advice I gave him to create his post and subsequently answer hundreds of questions about correcting the posture. I know some people would be upset that "their" ideas were taken and used somewhere else, but not me. I'm glad that in helping "TheBroBrah," I was able to help dozens upon dozens of other people. All I ask is that if you read this, that you do the same and link back to my site. Please click the "like" button below to help build backlinks for this page so more people can benefit from the discussion. Thanks!


Postural limits fall under the category of functional limits to fat loss. A postural limit is a skeletal alignment that restricts one's ability to move or utilize the appropriate muscles. Poor posture not only causes issues when it comes to being able to perform certain movements or lift heavy weights, but also poor posture can lead to pain and injury. Anybody who regularly trains knows that pain and injury are major problems that are big-time motivation killers. We all know that if you aren't training, you aren't optimizing fat loss!

In this entry, I will analyze one of the most common postural limits that exists in today's society, anterior pelvic tilt, and give you some tips you can start performing immediately to fix the problem.

The Theory of Fat Loss Update

I just spent 4 hours today finishing up a really good chapter on aerobics and energy system training for fat loss instead of spending that time watching my alma mater Notre Dame play football. Now that's dedication. I have about 5 chapters left to write (out of about 30 total), so if I stay as highly motivated as I have been recently, I'll be done very shortly. Enjoy this excerpt from the book as a preview.

This is my friend Mike George who is currently a junior and

is serving as one of the ND Leprechauns

Is it Simpler for Men to Cut Fat?

I recently addressed the topic "Is it harder for women to burn fat?" The conclusion was that, yes, it is more difficult because women are simply not as strong as men in an untrained state. So, if it is harder for women to burn fat, that should make it "easier" for men, right? That is true... at least to an extent. What types of limits do men have that they need to work on to look like the guys from Jersey Shore? (Just kidding).

 

Fat Loss Theory for my Loyal Kazakhstan Following

Update 1/10/11: For some reason "Kazakhstan" has been a major search term for the past two weeks and has driven quite a bit of traffic to this page on the site. The information in this entry isn't special at all, so I'd like to direct you to a much more useful page if you wound up here. Here is the most "liked" page of the blog... low back pain (part 1) and here is a link to the book page on Amazon.com so you can get your copy of the highly acclaimed "The Theory of Fat Loss"

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While checking the statistics for this blog, I found it quite interesting that I had a bunch of page hits from Kazakhstan. It didn't surprise me that I had visitors from the UK, Germany, and Spain, because I know people that are in those countries right now. Kazakhstan, on the other hand... I don't believe I know anybody that lives there. So, for all the people of Kazakhstan that read English, this blog entry is for you!

Maybe Fat Loss, Exercise, and Getting In Shape aren't for you...

If you don't want to put forth any effort to look really good, you don't have to. In fact, there are many ways to look good without any effort. So, why would you bother following a fat loss blog or reading a fat loss book when you don't have to? What I am about to reveal to you just might be the answer you are looking for.

The Limiting Factor Theory of Fat Loss

The Theory of Fat Loss is comprised of two separate constructs, the theory of absolute intensity and the limiting factor theory. The limiting factor theory states- within any fat loss program exist multiple potential limits that can inhibit one's ability to achieve success, and a limit is defined as anything that negatively impacts one's ability to achieve or maintain a great(er) absolute intensity.

Is Body Mass Correlated With Fat Loss Potential?

When it comes to fat loss, it is important to realize that certain people are better equipped for it than others. Even if we ignore genetics and physiology completely (which I often like to do because few people want me to get that scientific), this is entirely true. One of the main themes in The Theory of Fat Loss is that the more athletic you are and the better in shape you are, the easier it is for you to cut fat (see Strength for one example of this).

On the other side of that spectrum are the people who are not athletic and not in shape... the people who haven't been to a gym in years and who sit around at their computers or at their TV screens and like to eat... in other words, people who, for lack of a better term, are morbidly obese. You will be interested to know that these people will also find it easy to cut fat! In fact, it might be even easier for them than for anyone else!

Branched Chain Amino Acids Linked to Fat Loss?

The branched chain amino acids isoleucine, leucine, and valine have long been purported to be the main drivers of new muscle growth. Bodybuilders have been taking BCAAs for years as a muscle building supplement. Is it possible that BCAAs are also valuable when it comes to burning fat?

Should Kids Train for Fat Loss?

In my previous post, I wrote about women as a special fat loss population. Today, I am writing about another special population, youth. The following is an excerpt from the appendix of The Theory of Fat Loss:

This book applies to adult populations only. While youth obesity is a prevalent societal problem, it is wrong to train kids like they are adults. It is wrong to send kids to “fat camps.” It is wrong to train kids for the sole purpose of absolute muscular strength so that they can train at a greater absolute intensity. It is wrong to push kids so hard that they learn to hate physical activity. 

Is it harder for women to burn fat?

There is a lot of research out there trying to prove that it is harder for women to lose fat or lose weight... whatever you want to call it. The research mostly tries to find genetic and hormonal reasons for why this is true. I am not denying that women store fat more easily than men. I am not denying that existence of chemical reasons for it or practical reasons for it (such as the undeniable fact that women bear children).

However, I think a focus on this sort of research is doing women a disservice. Why give people more excuses for not making positive lifestyle changes. Instead of researching 100 reasons why women are worse at burning fat than men, why not research 100 ways women can burn just as much fat as men? Why focus on the negative and ignore the positive? I have known plenty of women who have lost plenty of weight and who look absolutely fantastic now.

I think the most important reason why women can't lose as much weight as men is because they aren't as strong as men. Please read my post on strength if you don't understand why this is.