4 Keys to Get Lean
The fitness industry has done a great job in many things, and one of them is overcomplicating/ speaking way too much about the not-so-important aspects of health and fitness, while not emphasizing enough what actually moves the needle. In this article, you will be able to understand the top 4 key aspects of reaching your fitness goals that actually move the needle. This is:
Food quality
Strength training
Protein
Sleep
Now that we know what we need to focus on, let’s dive a little deeper into each category.
Food quality
In other words, nutrient density. This is the overall quality of food measured by the its micronutrient content (vitamins + minerals)1. What makes foods like avocado and quinoa superior over chips and highly processed foods is their lack of micronutrients and fiber. This can do a few things:
a.) disrupt your hunger and satiety signals making you overeat b.) processed foods are highly palatable and engineered to make it purposefully addicting, making it easier to overeat and c.) don’t give your body the proper building blocks it needs to produce energy and aid in digestion/metabolism (lacking nutrients while being energy/caloric dense)
On the other hand, eating whole foods are more nutrient dense, helping you feel fuller while eating more in volume (meaning you feel fuller) but are actually eating less calories. They also support your gut microbiome which is essential in metabolic processes and ensuring all your body systems are functioning properly. You can feed your gut microbiome with fermented foods like low-sugar kombucha or fermented drinks, as well as pro and prebiotics. Probiotics like yogurt and sauerkraut feed the good bacteria in your gut microbiome while prebiotics like bananas, onions, and garlic help increase the amount of good bacteria.
Strength training
This is important because it is the most efficient and effective way to both build muscle and lose weight2. You need muscle because it helps speed up your metabolism among other benefits. With a faster metabolism, you are able to lose fat faster, look better, feel better, do less, and keep the weight off once you do lose it.
Protein
Protein is the building block of muscles. As stated before, muscle is important, but you are not able to build muscle without sufficient protein. Protein also has other benefits like helping you feel fuller and therefore decrease your overall caloric intake which is needed to lose weight. A diet rich in protein and fiber already wins most of the battle when trying to lose weight. Muscle is torn during exercise, especially during strength training. It starts to build after the stress is no longer being imposed, after a workout. But if your body does not have sufficient building blocks to recover and build after the stressor, it will remain broke. Exercise is a stressor and recovery is where building takes place. Therefore, it is vital to intake adequate protein for proper recovery. This leads me to my next point.
Sleep
Sleep is the most important form of recovery. It goes sleep, protein/energy (calories), and water. You can train all you want and eat all you want but if you don’t get adequate rest, you will never see results you want. This goes for both fat loss and muscle gain. Your potential will be greatly capped because your body is prioritizing other bodily functions like digestion, heart, brain, etc and to be honest doesn’t really care about your pool party next month. This is where it is important to keep in mind to prioritize health and aesthetics will come. Once you try to sacrifice health for aesthetics, both will suffer. Sleep also helps with other things: a.) cravings b.) hunger/satiety signals c.) metabolic processes d.) energy to fuel daily activities and exercise
Drewnowski, A. (2018). Nutrient density: addressing the challenge of obesity. British Journal of Nutrition, 120(s1), S8–S14. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0007114517002240
↩︎Strength Training for Fat Loss by Nick Tumminello ↩︎
