"As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another." - Proverbs 27:17
If you haven’t seen them yet, we post three weekly one hour fitness videos that you can follow directly from our website, www.americanchurch.com. Thanks to Jason and a team of dedicated Christian men, these videos are produced and offered free of charge. We hope you or members of your church are enjoying them as you tone up.
Now for those final five tips that Jason offers for a better body.#6 - Eat Food, Not Products:
Our bodies were designed to eat, digest, absorb and utilize food. The problem lies in the fact that most of us are completely confused on what food actually is. What is food? Is corn food? What about corn chips? Is a pork chop food? What about a hot dog that contains pork? Food that will give your body the nutrients it needs as well as allow you r body to digest and absorb properly is very hard to find in a box or a can. If you want to get your body functioning well and are looking for that beach body, then eat foods that are as close to their natural source as possible! When trying to choose what to eat, the question to ask is "where did it come from?" The best choices are the ones that have an easy answer to that question. "It came from the ground!" "It came from a tree!" "It's a fish from the river!" The worst answers would be something along the lines of, "well, this ingredient came from a food processing plant, this one came from a chemical plant, this one...well I'm not really sure what this one is, but this one is a berry extract!" So often today, we are given products to eat and are told they are food. Don't believe it. Not only are they stripped of nutrients, but your body usually doesn't have to work very hard to digest it. Then, you are missing out on a significant amount of calorie burning that would come from digesting real food. Processed, refined food is basically pre-digested; which means that it can absorb very quickly which can quickly cause body fat storage.
#7 - Eat Lean Protein at Each Meal
Your body utilizes protein for countless purposes in the body. Plus, protein is used to rebuild and repair muscle tissue. Muscle is the active tissue in your body. It is what "burns" body fat. The only location in your body where body fat is broken down and converted into energy is inside of each muscle cell. Thus, to lose body fat, you must optimize the muscle tissue on your body. In order to do this, you need protein. Also the act of digesting protein plays a large role in your daily caloric burn rate. Your body has to work hard to digest protein. Foods like eggs, chicken, turkey, buffalo, ostrich, salmon, shrimp and lean beef are an important part of improving your metabolism. Try to avoid commercially raised livestock as much as possible. Free range meat and wild caught fish are much better choices.
#8 - Eat Every 3 hours
If you are eating lean protein and good, quality carbs about every 3 hours throughout the day, then your body will incinerate body fat at a high level. I know that this sounds contradictory to almost every diet and weight loss center claim. However, if diets and caloric deprivation worked, then there would be no such thing as an obesity epidemic. Diets don't work. Proper exercise and feeding the body what it needs DOES. Think of your metabolism as a fire burning inside of you. You need to feed the fire to get it to burn hot! If you want to know the real effects that caloric deprivation has on the body, then stay tuned for my article in the August newsletter.
I suggest that, regardless of the time of day, you should seek out and be prepared for a meal every 3 hours that consists of visually equal serving sizes of lean protein, a starchy carb, and a fibrous carb.
#9 - Exercise with Resistance
There are many ways to exercise and challenge the body. Most of them are great. There is no one video, exercise machine, or program that is in the universal answer for everybody. However, in order to lose body fat, resistance exercise must be included at some level. The resistance can come from weights, rubber bands, machines, a wheelbarrow full of rocks, or in some cases even your own body weight. Whatever the source, you need to challenge your muscles. This is key. The fear of "bulking up" has prevented many people from realizing their body dreams because they have avoided strength training. I suggest weights first, cardio immediately after. Modern technology and conveniences have caused our population to challenge their bodies much less than ever before. We simply pick-up, carry, and lift much less than we ever did before. As a result, many of us are simply not used to challenging the body. The resulting weakness and less muscle development leads to lower metabolism, higher fat accumulation, and low energy levels. If you want to lose fat, then lift weights (just do it properly...hint...we would be happy to show you how).
#10 - The Magic Bullet Only Shoots You in the Foot
Bottom line, there is no magic bullet. If there was, believe me, I would tell you! Starving yourself, wrapping yourself in a thermal body wrap, taking a pill, getting an injection, drinking a shake, electrocuting yourself, rubbing a cream on your skin, cleansing yourself, baking yourself in a sauna, and vibrating belts are examples of "Magic Bullets". They DO NOT WORK. So stop wasting your time and money on them. Stop falling for them. Ignore them. Don't give them the time of day. Stop grasping at straws and start exercising, feeding yourself properly, and stick to it! Don't stop!
-Jason Minich is the owner of Catalyst Fitness in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Jason is also an ACE Certified Personal Trainer with extensive training in the human metabolism and fat loss. In 2009, Jason was voted as a Top 10 finalist for Trainer of the Year out of professionals from the United States and Canada.
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