Hey everybody, the title pretty much gives way to my point so I'll dive into details. I have never really been too focused on maintaining my health because I have a naturally high metabolism. Over the last couple of months though I've noticed that I am now the not-so-proud owner of a beer gut. With summer coming along, it seems like the best time for me to try to get into shape.

I will point out that I do not see a need for radical weight loss. I am about 6'1", and as of yesterday I weight about 180 lbs. The issue is more about my perception of my own appearance. There are shirts that I feel uncomfortable wearing when I go out, and when I first noticed that the need for me to go back to my old slim build. Right now my plan is just to cut down on fatty foods and beer. I don't want to swear off booze because, well, I like going out to bars. But I'm wondering what foods and drinks are better for me to maintain my health while only trying to lose 5-10 lbs over the next month or two.

Specifically, are there ways to focus on losing weight in my abdominal area? After all, I'm in decent shape, and I just don't have any desire to start bulking up so any workout I begin would mostly focus on running/biking to burn calories over building muscle mass.

high intensity inteval training and a low carb diet. you can still go to bars and stuff mate but just drink vodka or other spirits . sure theyre not " good " for you but theres alot less calories.

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Seize the day

watch the 21convention drew baye, doug mcguff and mark sisson. Believe me you will lose your fat

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“The only reason to wait a month for sex is if she's 17 years, 11 months old.”-Barney Stinson

drink lots of water, and as someone earlier said high intensity but low amounts of time, so instead of going on a mile run do suicides something that gets your heart rate up quickly and is making it be anaroebic, thats how you burn calories

Weight circuits focused on intensity and activating as many muscles as possible.

[link]

Have a look at my first post in this thread, should help you out a bit. TTo make my point again, I dont agree in low carb diets...its is a short term solution to a long term issue! If you can create and maintain healthy (healthreally = balanced!) eating and exerscise habits then you might not get the quick results everyone seems to want but you will be able to maintain your progress and it should avoid the up and down weight gain/ weight loss that so many people go through.

In addition if you want to "cut" or "shred" up a good way is to keep resitance training an add in some High Intensit Interval training(HIIT). So instead of going for a long run you could do something like, jog 2mins, 100% sprint 30 secs, walk 1 mins then repeat 5,6,7,8 times. This can be adapted for other excersies, rowing maching, bike, cross traininer ect.

or you could do some interval sprints. Something like 4 X 400m 15 secs rest in between, then move to 4 X 200m, 4 X 100, 4 x 50m....you can adjust rest times and amount of work to your current firness and gradually increase the intensity as you progress...

hope that helps.

These are the best tips to reduce the weight..
Don’t Eat Before Bed
Drink Plenty of Water
Cut Down On Your Favorite Foods

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Los Angeles Fitness Trainer

hey mate. i'm a personal trainer so here is some advice. i'll try to be as real world as i can be
1. reduce carbs, tough to do but its a no brainer. only get carbs from veg. once your body realises that it wont have carbs (glucose) to run on it will turn to fat as an energy source (look up keytosis).
2. interval train- only twice a week. too much will burn fat but the you will produce cortisol, which is a hormone, that among many things will cause you to store fat around y our mid section. try something llike 15-20 secs sprint on an elliptical/rowing machine, 40-45 secs rest. repeat 10-15 times.
3. no long duration cardio.
4. lift weights. i know you dont want to build bulk so either go for rep ranges of 2-6 reps or 15-20 reps. neither of these will cause muscle to bulk but your muscle will increase in density. dense muscle needs calories to live.
5. eat meat with every meal. it releases glucagon which causes you to feel full and protein increases metabolism.
6. eat some fat with each meal. re: SPAM.
7. in bars order- clear drink (vodka, agave tequila), the juice of 1 whole lime or lots of lime juice and soda water. little calories and carbs for starters, the lime actually alkelines in your body and the soda water gets the alcohol into your system faster so you need drink less.

hope this helps.
let me know if i can help more.

launchpad.

@launchpad.

i have started doing some work with free weights, but I'm curious to frequency. Is it like interval training in that it can produce cortisol if done frequently, or should I focus on it a bit more to speed up the process of increasing muscle density.

4 times a week weights is ideal. work upper one day, then lower, rest day, upper, lower, interval training, rest day.
over training will always result in elevated cortisol levels so with weights every 4 weeks you should taper it off for a week, meaning half the no. of sets you do per exercise by 50%. also dont weight train too late in the evening, maybe 6-7 should be the latest you train. this is all ideally speaking for best results.
best of luck man. keep me posted.

could suggest you try any/all of these:

-high intensity interval training i would do 10-20mins 3 or 4 times a week

-swimming (45mins-1hr 30mins)

-sit ups specifically leg raises and similar exercises because these will hit the lower part of your abs which im assuming is where the unwanted guest has taken up, it will also help you get that cut V above your man sausage area which girls dig

-adjust your diet, lower carbs, more veg (less beer) and dont forget the protein because you're training.

could suggest you try any/all of these:

-high intensity interval training i would do 10-20mins 3 or 4 times a week

-swimming (45mins-1hr 30mins)

-sit ups specifically leg raises and similar exercises because these will hit the lower part of your abs which im assuming is where the unwanted guest has taken up, it will also help you get that cut V above your man sausage area which girls dig

-adjust your diet, lower carbs, more veg (less beer) and dont forget the protein because you're training.

Just a quick and dirty tip if you binge eat: drink 8 fl. oz of cold water 20 mins before a meal and you will have less desire to massacre the entire plate of food in front of you.

5-6 meals a day (take your normal portion size and cut it by half)

Be practical in life:
in parking lots park far away from the entrance
take the stairs vs elevators if its 5 floors or less (unless willing to take the challenge)
don't eat within 2 hours of going to bed
focus on limiting carbs and saturated fat

Ok, despite making this thread a month ago, I kept making excuses for committing to this decision. I started lifting more, but if I had a busy workweek or the weather was poor out I was quick to procrastinate. Starting tomorrow, that will change. To help that, I am going to post my plan here so that, at least as I start, my fellow puas in training can remind me to stop being a little bitch and get on with it.

Diet:
5 meals a day, I do work nights so I need to work on this a bit
-breakfast
-brunch
-lunch
-small snack
-dinner

I've gotten better about my diet, but far from perfect. I am eating more fruits and vegetables instead of salty snack foods, though I will still have a small batch of pretzels every few days to satisfy a snack while avoiding potato chips.

In terms of drinking, well my family isn't really helping! I went 8 days without a beer, instead opting for gin and club mixes, then low and behold my mom (gotta love her) buys a case of beer for me, which she hadn't done in months. *sigh* well I will just have to keep a distance from it.

Exercise:
I am not fully versed in interval training, so that is the only part I'm not sure about.
I am not trying to bulk up, so I am keeping the weight levels fairly low, at 15 lbs in each hand. So far my plan is this:
Day 1: upper body
Day 2: lower body
Day 3: interval training
Day 4: rest
and repeat. The only exercise I am thinking to do on every training day is abdominal work with crunches and leg lifts. I am not sure if it would be wiser just to do it during one of those 3 days in each cycle.

I want to avoid taking any sort of supplements, even if 99% of the medical community says they are safe. It's more of a financial decision than anything else. That being said, I think one of the biggest obstacles in my way is my sleep cycle. Working nights, usually 6 or 7 hours a day until about 10 pm, I have gotten into the habit of staying up until, well, now, and waking up at 11 am, give or take. If I purchased basic over the counter sleep aids, would that alter my metabolism in any detrimental way?

The Best way to lose fat is Cardio. Get a gym membership and Start Taking Spin Classes. Spin Classes Are one of the best ways to lose that Stomach Fat. And There Are Normally Bomb Ladies In the Class.
Good Luck