In the past, being overweight meant a life of excess and wealth. With the latest stats, this means half of all Americans must be living the life of royalty and convenience. I’m not a dietitian or even ever lost a substantial amount of weight (never had to). However, physical fitness and nutrition has interested me for some time and, for what it’s worth, I would like to offer some unbiased weight loss tips.  There’s lots of weight-loss bullshit to wade through out there and a bunch of gimmicky weight loss programs that come and go every couple of years. But what it all boils down to is a simple formula:

Hard work + Proper Diet = Weight loss and fitness results.

This formula is reliable and as true as the law of physics.  Sorry, but there is no way around it.  The following are my fitness/weight loss tips. They are very basic and should lay a solid foundation for which to build on to.  Now if you half-ass it, you’ll reduce the value of the left side of the equation which will directly reduce the output from the right side of the equation. In other words, you get out, what you put in.

With no further ado:

1. Hard work
   1. We take for granted how easy and fast it is to get food and to consume it. There’s no physical work involved.  Hell, you don’t even have to know how to tend a garden or hunt.  You should try to keep in mind that food should be an award for physical work.
   2. Be active. Find a way to put in 30 minutes of activity every day. This time should be non-negotiable. Aim for functional fitness and maximum effort. The 30 minutes you made for yourself is not to be spent lollygagging. Sweat and work hard. Get your heart rate up and perform many activities engaging large movements and body parts.
   3. Weights are preferred, but are not required. You can use your body as weight (for example, try to finish 50 air squats, 50 pushups, and 50 sit-ups as fast as you can).  For most workouts, you should be exhausted at the end.  Check out crossfit.com for examples of daily workouts.
   4. 30 minutes of rigorous activity per day is enough. Any more will burn you out. Also, allow for 2 days of rest (weekends for example).
   5. Get sufficient sleep at night for proper recovery and energy levels. You will find it easier to sleep, once you are active during the day.
2. Proper Diet
   1. Do your own due diligence and research on the foods you eat. Do not trust/assume the government/FDA to tell you what is safe. Depend on yourself to make the correct and well-informed decision.  Read your food labels.
   2. Aim for something around 60% complex carbs (not straight sugar), 30% protein, and 10% good fats for your daily food consumption.  You don’t have to be precise, just as long as you get the basic idea that every meal should be proportioned.
   3. Avoid consuming a large amount of food in a single meal. Instead, eat smaller meals throughout the day (five meals a day).  This will help prevent insulin spikes.
   4. Avoid simple sugar. Sugar is supposed to be a rare treat, not an everyday food staple. Sugar isn’t even supposed to be in our daily diet. It’s addictive and food companies exploit this.  Try to aim to only obtain sugar from a natural fruit source.
   5. Cut out all soda (diet or non-diet). One of the worst “foods” we consume.  It has no business in your diet.
   6. Cook your own food. If you don’t grow your own food or hunt it, at least learn to cook mostly from scratch. This means avoiding all processed, artificial, and fast foods.
   7. Don’t worry too much about counting calories in the beginning.  When you eliminate sugars, sodas, and processed food, you won’t be eating hidden calories anymore.  Eating a home-made, raw, natural diet will automatically cause a reduction in calories. Just eat whenever you are hungry.
   8. Look at food from the perspective of what nutrients it can provide to you.
   9. Indulge only when you earned it by performing physical activity.  Though you will find that, the more exercise you do, the less you crave junk food.

The above are general guidelines and should be gradually applied.  This is not a crash diet. It is a lifestyle change that slowly gets refined through the years.  Along the way, you may need some motivation or reminder of why such a lifestyle change is important – Proper exercise and diet impact other areas of your life other than looking good in a swimming suit. This is very important to remember. It positively impacts every cell and organ in your body, including your brain. It is preventive medicine, as it helps ward off health ailments of all kinds.  It makes you more resilient and gritty and improves your outlook/attitude on life. Our body has evolved to do work and use our brain. Do our ancestors a favor and take advantage of what you were given. Take ownership and accountability for your health!