Weight Loss Without Being Hungry

This morning I jumped on the scale...down 28.4 pounds in 30 days.....I know what you are all thinking..."That can't be healthy, you will be losing as much muscle as fat"....WRONG.  I've actual gained 5lbs of lean body mass, so in actuality I've lost 33.4 lbs of fat. Keep in mind, For years I was a serious weightlifter...had a few periods of my life that due to stress, work, marriage problems, etc I just stopped, but under my Fat has always been alot of lean body mass...muscle.

So what is the secret??? I'm about to share it with you. no expensive books to buy, no pre-packaged food, nothing I am trying to sell you. My point is if I can do this ANYONE can do this.I still have many pounds to lose to get to my goals. I'm a Big guy, still. This morning Chest was 51"...I have large arms...21" and waist...well 37.5"....Goal is to get down to around 48" chest...keep my arms around 19"-20" cut, waist at 32...that should put me in a very fit 10% or less body fat.

This diet is carb restricted....not carb free. At the beggining I do recommend very limited carb intake for the first week or so. It also involves working out. If you don't want to workout.....I say...good luck with that. You will never achieve you body goals without working out and I don't care if you are paying some expert, or weightloss clinic lots of money and they are telling you differently, they are wrong, period.

First you need to eat protein...lots and lots of good proteins, it is the way you can keep yourself in a anabolic state without fear of losing muscle while burning fat.  Also this diet is not fat free...you do eat some fats, healthy fats which the body uses as fuel and turns on the switch for your body to start burning fat stores.

Some of my more recent recipes are great examples of what you can eat...it doesn't have to be boring!!

Ceviche and Roasted Pork Tenderloin

Cod With Shaved Mushrooms and Truffle oil

Greek Chicken with Stuffed Mushrooms 

Low Fat Turkey Chili 

P.F Chang Style Chicken Lettuce Wraps

Chicken with Roasted Red Peppers

Healthy Tex-Mex Chicken

Even if I don't post another dish for weeks...this gives you SEVEN...one different dish a day HEALTHY dinners. When I was young I was a HUGE believer ins supplements...now, I'm just a believer in eating right...the ONLY supplement I take is a Protein smoothie I make after weight training...and I will give the recipe for that.

Here is an example of a typical days food, I alternate between "Carb days" and no carb days:

Carb Day:

Breakfast: 1/2 cup of oatmeal cooked with 1 cup of sugar free almond milk, 2 packs of truvia, 3-4 sliced strawberries.1 scoop of whey protein.

Mid Morning: 4-6oz of 0% fat Greek style strained yogurt, 1/2 cup of strawberries or blueberries, 1 pack of truvia.

Lunch: 4oz of Chicken Breast, or other lean meat ( Pork tenderloin, Fish, etc) Large Salad with  2 Tblspoons low fat salad dressing.1 small potato, sliced with Greek yogurt and dill

Mid Afternoon: 1/2 cup of low cottage cheese, 5-6 strawberries, or 1/2 cup blueberries, or 1 sliced peach

Dinner: 4-6 oz of lean meat ( Chicken, fish or lean pork) can be cooked in 2 tablespoons of good oils ( EVOO, Flax seed, etc) Unlimited amount of green veggies ( Green beans, broccoli, spinach, etc) Large salad with tomato, cucumbers, spouts, etc. Top with low fat salad dressing, or the juice of a lemon, sal pepper and Italian seasoning.

After Dinner snack: 4-6oz of 0% fat Greek style strained yogurt, 1/2 cup of strawberries or blueberries, 1 pack of truvia. 

If you notice, even on Carb days there are no carbs ( with the exception of what is in the yogurt or cottage cheese)  after lunch. Complex carbs for breakfast, and lunch only.

Carb Restricted Day: 

Breakfast: 1 egg with 2 egg white scramble or egg beaters omelet. Can have with Salsa, low/no fat cheese.

Mid Morning: 4-6oz of 0% fat Greek style strained yogurt, 1/2 cup of strawberries or blueberries, 1 pack of truvia.

Lunch: 4oz of Chicken Breast, or other lean meat ( Pork tenderloin, Fish, etc) Large Salad with  2 Tblspoons low fat salad dressing.

Mid Afternoon: 1/2 cup of low cottage cheese, 5-6 strawberries, or 1/2 cup blueberries, or 1 sliced peach

Dinner: 4-6 oz of lean meat ( Chicken, fish or lean pork) can be cooked in 2 tablespoons of good oils ( EVOO, Flax seed, etc) Unlimited amount of green veggies ( Green beans, broccoli, spinach, etc) Large salad with tomato, cucumbers, spouts, etc. Top with low fat salad dressing, or the juice of a lemon, sal pepper and Italian seasoning.

After Dinner snack: 4-6oz of 0% fat Greek style strained yogurt mixed with 2 tablespoons of sugar free jam.

The only real change is in Breakfast and lunch....if you notice...no carbs.There are carbs in the diet with fresh fruit, but no complex carbs.

You MUST drink 6-8 glasses of water a day. I also recommend at least 1 cup of coffee, and 2-3 cups of green tea or black tea throughout the day...this will keep up your energy along with giving you a thermogenic effect.

For your snacks( mid afternoon or after dinner) you can substitute my protein smoothie if done after a work out: (One cup of sugar free almond milk, 4-5 frozen strawberries, 1 scoop of Whey Protein powder, i pack of truvia)

Let me stress, these are just examples of my typical daily food intake.....I do vary my food frequently...and a lot of variety...I AM the Amateur Top Chef after all...LOL! in a seperate post I will give a list of healthy foods to eat...

Workouts

This is were I'm going to lose you!! But you MUST work out!! How many of you have been in the Military?? I was in the Marine Corp...but one thing all branches of the service have is what????? PT!!! every morning before breakfast what did we do??? "Up in the morning with the rising sun, gonna run all day till the running done"...any of you remember you DI's singing that cadence???

It is important before we  " Break Fast" to get our body to use up our glycogen reserves and be in fat burning mode...and that means PT...Cardio before breakfast.  Have you EVER seen fat soldier right out of boot camp??? Heck no!!! I can tell you...we had lots of fat guys that joined the Corp, but everyone finished boot camp as a lean, green fighting machine!!

Cardio MUST be done daily, even on weight training day. Don't have weights...thats OK, push ups, Squats against wall, Chin ups will all give you the same effect. I recommend starting off with at least 20-30  minutes and building up to 40 minutes of  HIGH INTENSITY Cardio ( treadmill, elliptical, stair climber,  DOUBLE TIME WALKING etc)...have you ever seen a fat sprinter?? during your walks or treadmill...speed it up...Run for short periods of time...20-30 second burst...then back to a "double time" pace.

Weight training:

You don't have to be a "gym rat" or a "Dude Bro" as my daughter calls them. ( why Dude bro???...go to them gym and listen.... Dude....Bro....Dude...Bro...this is what the majority of the conversation.sounds like..something like..." Dude...I just got an excellent pump on my Biceps......replied by " Bro...your biceps are totally jacked!")

For most,  I would say a five day a week split. The Key...DO NOT OVER TRAIN THE MUSCLES. The biggest complain I hear is " I don't want to look like a bodybuilder, or I don't want big muscles" My reply...are you serious??? If looking like a bodybuilder was EASY everyone that goes to the gym would look like Arnold. 

The truth is, it is not easy to look like a bodybuilder!! Years of intense training, STRICT diet, proper supplements and truth be told, proper cycles of anabolic steroids. Yes I said it. Steroids. It is NEARLY impossible to look like a competitive bodybuilder without having a proper understanding and dosing of steroids, period. Can it be done without steroids...yes...but go look up "Natural bodybuilders "and compare them to the men and woman in Flex......no comparison. And for the record, I do NOT support the idea of anyone using Steroids unless one is a professional athlete, under medical supervision and has weighed the cost of taking them. My older brother DIED partial due to his abuse of anabolic steroids.

Monday

Flat Bench Press - 8-12 Repsx4
Incline Dumbbell Press - 8 Repsx4
Dumbbell Flys (flat Or Incline) - 8 Repsx4
Dips - 10 Repsx4
Calves - 15 Reps
Abs. leg raises-20 Repsx4
Two mins rest between each set and 3 min rest between each movement.

Holding all movements two seconds at top of movement

Tuesday

Empty stomach morning cardio HI 40 mins

Hold for 2 seconds per rep!! Hold the Flex!!
Lat Pulldowns - 12 Repsx4
Wide Grip Rear Pulldowns - 12 Repsx4
2 min rest between each set and 3 mins between each movement.

Seated Pulley Rows 1 set of 8 no rest and move right into
Single Arm Dumbbell Rows 1 set of 8 each arm
rest 1 min and repeat 5 times.
Abs crunches- 12-20 Repsx4

Wenesday off

Thursday

empty stomach morning cardio HI 40 mins

Standing Dumbell Press 1 set of 8 no rest move right into
Lateral Raises 1 set of 8 no rest move right into
Dumb bell Upright Rows 1 set of 8 Rest 2 mins and repeat. do this 4 times.
Rest 3 mins.

Seated Bent Over Lateral Raises -10 Repsx4
Shrugs - 15 Repsx4

Friday

Bicep Barbell Curls - 8-10 Repsx4
Preacher Dumbell Curl - 8 Reps x4
Standing Dumbbell Curl - 8 Repsx4
Tricep Cable Pushdowns - 12 Reps x4
Dips - 10 Repsx4
Standing Barbell Extensions - 12 Repsx4

Skull Crushers 8 RepsX4
Abs crunches - 12-20 Repsx4

Saturday

Empty stomach morning cardio HI 40 mins( run)

Squats - 8 Repsx4
Deadlifts 5 Repsx5
Leg Presses - 10 Repsx4

Calf Raises - 15-20 Repsx4
Abs leg raises - 12-20 Repsx4
Sunday off

That's it!! nothing esoteric about it...just hard work!!! Are you ready to take the challenge??? To look the best you ever have in your life??? Join me in getting healthy, in shape and HOT!!!