Hi, I’m Jabari Martin. I’ve been a certified personal trainer (NASM) for 15 years and a registered dietitian for 7 years. Although most of my professional experience has been working with athletes, I'll tell you what I’ve seen work for my athlete clients and give you some interesting, lesser-known facts about losing weight. If you’re trying to lose weight, reading this will be helpful. I promise!
What is the most effective way to lose weight?
The most effective way of losing weight is to focus on gaining muscle. Here’s why: Muscle is metabolically active. This is a fancy way of saying muscle consumes calories even when you’re doing nothing – sitting, watching Netflix, sleeping – your muscles burn calories just by existing. This is why you might see your athletic friend scarf down a burger and fries without gaining any weight.
This is why you see athletes scarf down burgers and fries without gaining any weight.
Adding muscle to your frame boosts your metabolism and this makes it easier to achieve the calorie deficit you need to lose weight. I’ll explain:
You’ll automatically burn an extra 10 calories per day for every pound of muscle you gain. Admittedly, this doesn’t sound like much but this is only at rest! Being muscular also increases the number of calories you burn during physical activity. Having more muscle means your body burns more calories while performing your usual activities. For example, a more muscular person burns more calories while walking, running, or lifting weights compared to someone with less muscle.
Having more muscle also allows you to exercise at a higher intensity, which multiplies your calorie burn. For example, having more muscle allows you to perform more reps and lift heavier weight. This burns more calories and builds muscle faster than a lighter workout, which then increases your metabolism and burns even more calories – a virtuous cycle!
Exercising, especially high-intensity and strength training, increases post-exercise oxygen consumption (EPOC). In other words, your body continues to burn calories at an elevated rate even after you’ve finished exercising. The more muscle you have, the greater this effect, leading to more calories burned in the hours after your workouts.
To summarize, building muscle leads to more calories burned at rest, during your workout, and after you exercise. This makes it much easier to achieve a calorie deficit without making drastic changes to your lifestyle.
What foods/drinks can we add to our diets to support a faster metabolism?
Protein
Muscles are made of protein so to improve your ability to gain muscle, you need to ensure you’re eating enough protein. Make sure you’re eating protein-rich foods like meat, fish, eggs, beans, and tofu.
Micronutrients
People often focus on their macros and neglect their micronutrients. Not only do micronutrients improve your ability to gain muscle, they also improve your workouts and help you feel and look better. For example, iron improves your endurance, vitamin E improves your skin and hair, and Vitamin D can improve the way you feel – especially on days when you’re not spending time outside getting sun.
Not only do micronutrients improve your ability to gain muscle, they also improve your workouts and help you feel and look better.
Eat seeds (flax and chia) leafy vegetables (spinach and kale), and fruit (berries are high in micronutrients)! Look at the nutrition labels of the foods you buy. Do they list their micronutrients? Surprisingly, a lot of foods we consider healthy like protein bars contain absolutely no vitamins or minerals.
GRIT Superfoods, a small brand many athletes are becoming increasingly familiar with, makes food that is great for people looking for highly nutritious snacks between meals.
One of their snacks, called Rejuvenation Lemon Bites, is a nutrient-dense snack with 26 grams of protein, 200% daily value of Vitamin C, and is high in iron, vitamin D, and Vitamin E among a myriad of other nutrients.
What are healthy lifestyle habits that we can create to maintain our weight?
- Drink plenty of water. When you’re properly hydrated, it’s easier to maintain your focus and you’re less likely to snack on junk foods.
- Add electrolytes to your water. Electrolytes
- Eat fewer carbs. Obviously, eating excess carbs can cause you to gain fat. But many people don’t realize carbs can also cause excess water weight. This is one reason people lose lots of weight when they start the keto diet. It’s possible to lose over 10 pounds of water weight in just a few days, while also increasing your water intake. Just lose the carbs!
What are the benefits of taking a fat burner supplement?
Natural fat burners proven to boost metabolism and fat oxidation include caffeine, green tea extract, capsaicin, rhodiola extract, and yohimbine.
The Fat Loss Benefits of Natural Fat Burners
Their fat loss benefits are two-fold:
- They stimulate fat oxidation by increasing the release of free fatty acids throughout your body. These fatty acids are used by your organs, such as your brain and muscles, for energy.
- They stimulate the sympathetic nervous system to release hormones that increase your heart rate, which increases your metabolism.
Risks of Natural Fat Burners
Of course, fat burners can have side effects, including increased heart rate (tachycardia), high blood pressure, and digestive issues. They may also interact with other medications or underlying conditions.
Interested in reading academic studies about these natural fat burners? Here are some I’ve found throughout my research:
