We all have them to some extent

Published: Tue, 09/12/17

Good morning , 

We all have them to some extent! What might that be Candace?  Belly rolls, lumps, bumps, stretch marks, etc.



I love this meme from Girls Gone Strong,
if you aren't following them as well you should! 
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Are we less worthy? Nope, not in the slightest! Okay, let's carry on. You are beautiful, and it’s so important to work with the body that you have, because you only got one.

A friend of a friend asked me how to get rid of this - pointing to her belly. Pulled up her long sleeve t-shirt and grabbed some skin on her stomach.

Gosh darn it, why are so we hard to ourselves? That's another email for another time.

We are so hard on ourselves - I know we all want to feel good in our skin, be healthy, etc, but we don’t have to beat or ridicule ourselves to body change.

Many studies have illustrated that beating ourselves up does not work, and that it just makes things worse.

We get so caught up what we think we SHOULD look like or what we SHOULD be doing, etc.… that we miss the forest for the trees.

She proceeded to tell me what her diet was like (she’s not on a diet) - the way she eats. What her fitness regime is, etc.…

Guess what she was missing in the equation? You guessed, it - Strength Training - none whatsoever. Walking, yoga, bike riding - all great activities that I love and enjoy myself, but they do not do what strength training can do to the body.

I must also insert here that what used to work will not always work. Our bodies change and adapt as we age, and if you have never done any type of resistance training, well you know the rest.

Not that I was surprised at all that she wasn’t doing any resistance training, i.e. lifting the things.

Before we touch on Strength training, let’s back it up to the Nutrition, because that is the driving force of how much fat/weight we carry or don’t carry. Also, the amount of muscle that we have or don’t have - if you have little to no muscle, you will carry more fat and vice versa.

So, if you don’t know by now, we need a caloric deficit to lose fat. No matter what the diet is, it has to create a caloric deficit. Just because you eat “healthy” does not automatically mean you will lose fat. Just because it’s healthy does not mean it’s calorie free, or that it is exempt from causing weight gain.

I know folks think this, because every single time I ask well what’s your diet like, they respond, “well I eat healthy, blah blah!” I can’t lose weight, is what they proceed to tell me.

You can’t lose fat because you are not in a calorie deficit. Read that again! 

You may have been at some point, but was too restrictive - which leads to you know where, binge city or "I've been so good, I should treat myself, etc.., and then eventually you are flopping back and forth between a deficit and surplus. 

You don’t have to count every ounce of calories either - I ask you to look at your macronutrients (Protein, Carbs, and Fats first and foremost). If you are unsure of portion sizes, how much a serving is, etc. when you are first starting out, it is a good idea to track your food to get the hang of portions. However, this is not something you have to do forever.

For example, PB - we all over eat it, even when we think we are having just a tablespoon. We are not most of the time. Next time you eat Peanut butter, pull out a table spoon, or if you have it, a food scale and measure an actual TBSP. You are gonna be in total shock.

I’ll insert a photo here in case you don’t have the time to experiment. See how easy it is to overeat? And how you might think you are in a Calorie Deficit because you are over consuming healthy foods?

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I love cheese she said; I do too, I said. It’s not the cheese in itself that is the culprit. It’s your total calories as a whole.

Simple fixes - cutting back on some things, smaller portions, etc.. Instead of having 3-4 servings of a fat source, pick one or two per meal. That’s where you can start without overhauling your entire diet.

And again I must repeat this. Just because it’s all natural, organic, clean (whatever that means), does not mean you will naturally drop the fat.

Secondly, we talked about spot reduction - we cannot spot reduce. Forget everything that you have ever heard about targeting your belly fat - it does not work that way. If it all did, none of us would have belly fat.

It’s more important to make sure you have a strong core as a whole IMO, first and foremost. Just because someone's abs are popping does not mean they have a strong core. Abs are great and all, but what if you can’t get up and down from the ground or carry a box or groceries properly? Even worse, blowing out your back vacuuming or something?

So instead of crunching your life and precious time away, get your nutrition in check where you are consistently in a calorie deficit for awhile, lifting the things, and doing some core specific movements. Most importantly, be patient and be consistent. Belly fat is stubborn, and if it’s where you store fat the most, it will be the last place to leave.

This is what I left the sweet lady with; I believe she took my advice and is ready to implement it. At least I can only hope so, because It breaks my heart to see women in the perpetual diet cycle and spinning their wheels not going anywhere.

Some great Core Exercises:
    - Many variations
      -- Suitcase Carries

To name just a few! 

Lastly, if seeing your abs is something you want to achieve, I’m not knocking it, just educating you on what it will take. Go for it, but know that it comes with a butt load of discipline and a more strict nutrition protocol. All the other stuff is important of course.

And know this - you can still have a tight, lean midsection or flat belly without extremes or starving yourself. You can drop inches in your belly with a sane and sustainable approach that works for you.

 4-6 pack abs are largely genetic; these folks can walk around most of the year with little to no effort.

If you are not, you have to really put in the work to get them poppin. Again, just know that it comes with a price.

That’s all I have to say about that.

Cheers to sustainable fat loss! Hope you enjoyed this email and thanks again for allowing me to take up residence in your inbox.

Thoughts, comments, questions, etc.… hit the reply button; I’m waiting for you!

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