Keep Going!
I received a message this morning from a very good friend from college who is on a mission to lose 150lbs. He's already lost 25lbs and is dedicated to his goal. He has family and friends supporting him. But he has limitations to the amount of cardio he can do because of past injuries.
So what happens now?
1) Make sure you're logging your caloric intake. As discussed in one of my previous posts on creating a weight loss plan, the very first step is knowledge. If you've been doing well but winging it, great! But to make this sustainable you need the info.
2) You need to operate at a caloric deficit. That doesn't necessarily mean you need to constantly decrease how much you're eating. It means that the calories out need to be more than the calories in. You can increase your cardio, sure, but another way to increase the number of calories you burn is to increase the intensity of your non-cardio workouts. Increase the number of sets you're doing. Increase the weight if you're ready. More motion, more exertion, more calories out.
3) Alcohol...you know what I'm going to say and you're not going to like it. But here it is: alcohol is killing your progress. It doesn't matter if it's PBR in a can, Schlitz, vodka, White Claw, wine or whisky. No matter what form the alcohol is taking, it's doing a ton of bad: increasing calories, increasing the munchies, decreasing metabolic rate, increasing inflammation. The list goes on. Want to build muscle? Want to lose fat? Stop drinking. I know it's not easy. I've done it myself. Get used to ordering a seltzer and lime. It's not forever, it's just not right now.
4) Increase your metabolism by eating small, frequent meals. If you're still eating three squares a day, break those in half and eat twice as many.
5) Plan your meals and do meal prep ahead of time. Prepare as many meals as you can in containers. Bring them to work.
There are more ways to manage your caloric intake and increase calories used during the day, but these are the fundamentals. Each one of these help. If you're doing these, you will be successful.
Everyone has off days. Progress isn't a straight line. Stay the course.
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